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rieviolet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I felt like the beginning and the end of the story were stronger and more memorable, whereas the middle part was a bit slow and, to be honest, I remember very little of what happened, it all kind of blurred together.
I really liked the representation of the trans experience thorugh the character of Yadriel. We got to see the big and more evident aspects of it, but also the little and everyday details.
I appreciated the cultural elements, as well as their more fantastical re-imagination; though I think maybe at times the author verged into overexplanation. I also liked the interspersed sentences and expressions in Spanish.
I wasn't quite sold at the beginning on the romance but, as the story progressed, it got better and I'm not ashamed to say that
Graphic: Death, Racism, Transphobia, and Blood
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Deadnaming, Gore, Sexism, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Drug use, Homophobia, Self harm, Torture, Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, Classism, and Deportation
psitstorrie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Death, Transphobia, Blood, Murder, Abandonment, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Deadnaming, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Animal death and Car accident
classicalhell's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Transphobia and Blood
Moderate: Deadnaming, Car accident, Death of parent, and Dysphoria
Minor: Animal death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation
cowardlyteaman's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I'll be completely honest, and say that the first half of the book was rather uninteresting. The action didn't start until the last hundred pages of the book, but there was definitely potential for more action earlier on as well, to make it more exciting. There was a lot of identity issues and character dialogue during the first half of the book, which is by no means irrelevant to the plot, but to me it got dull.
I also wish that Yadriel had been given a more distinct personality. Julian was exceptional, Maritza was amazing, Catriz was fabulous, but Yadriel...? He deserved more than being a pretty standard protagonist-y type. Apart from being trans, he doesn't stand out as a protagonist at all, and being trans shouldn't be what makes him special. At least the trans people I know have personalities beside being trans.
However! I loved how Spanish was used in this book. Usually, non-English words will be written in cursive, alienating them, as it were. But here they're kind of just woven into the text as any other word, because of course Spanish isn't foreign at all to the narrator, and it makes it easier for me as a reader to relate as well, despite being the from the whitest of corners in Norway.
This applies to the rest of the culture references as well. It was all explained in a very nice way.
On a side note concerning the identity and language here: Why was there one line where author Thomas wrote «Latinx mom»? If the gender was unspecified, it would've made perfect sense, but if it's given that she's a mom, then wouldn't she be Latina...? As far as I know, you wouldn't really have a Latino mom? Maybe a Latino's mom, but... unless I misinterpreted, that wasn't the case.
Anyways, I've given my opinion, but I still enjoyed the read. Frankly quite predictable, but aren't all stories these days.
Graphic: Death, Transphobia, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Racism, Death of parent, Murder, and Dysphoria
Minor: Animal death, Cursing, Deadnaming, Abandonment, Alcohol, Classism, and Deportation
mle11's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Deadnaming, Death, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Child death, Cursing, Transphobia, Blood, Kidnapping, and Dysphoria
Minor: Animal death, Child abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Deportation
grets_reads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Cursing, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Confinement, Abandonment, Dysphoria, and Deportation
njh_books's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Reading this story also over the dates they happened added a bit of extra magic to it. Finishing the story in the early morning/late night hours of Dia de Muertos was like being in the story.
I enjoyed all the friendship shown in the story and the interactions the characters had. It felt so realistic and also just kids being kids in the circumstances they find themselves in. Maritza was wonderful and I enjoyed the scenes with her dogs.
Julian and Yadriel are quite cute and the playful teasing is fun. The slowly blooming relationship was reminiscent of teenage years and I loved that Yadriel's mom, Camila, got to meet him in the epilogue. The reunion with his mom was heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time.
Apparently the book should have sequel in 2024, so looking forward to that!
Graphic: Child death, Death, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Deadnaming, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Minor: Car accident and Alcohol
folded_between_pages_of_books's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Abandonment
lunep's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Death, Transphobia, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Deadnaming, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Medical content, Death of parent, and Deportation
Minor: Body shaming, Bullying, Grief, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism
merah's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I felt every single emotion while reading this book.
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Racism, Suicide, Transphobia, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Dysphoria, and Deportation
Minor: Cancer, Confinement, Deadnaming, Terminal illness, Vomit, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Alcohol, and Classism
loads of knives, blades, cuts and stabbings