Blurb:

 

A trans boy determined to prove his gender to his traditional Latinx family summons a ghost who refuses to leave in Aiden Thomas’s paranormal YA debut Cemetery Boys.

Yadriel has summoned a ghost, and now he can’t get rid of him.

When his traditional Latinx family has problems accepting his true gender, Yadriel becomes determined to prove himself a real brujo. With the help of his cousin and best friend Maritza, he performs the ritual himself, and then sets out to find the ghost of his murdered cousin and set it free.

However, the ghost he summons is actually Julian Diaz, the school’s resident bad boy, and Julian is not about to go quietly into death. He’s determined to find out what happened and tie off some loose ends before he leaves. Left with no choice, Yadriel agrees to help Julian, so that they can both get what they want. But the longer Yadriel spends with Julian, the less he wants to let him leave.

 

Book details:

Title: Cemetery Boys
By: Aiden Thomas
Published by: Swoon Reads
Publication date: September 1st 2020
Page Count: 352
Genres: Young Adult, Paranormal

Book Links

GoodReads | Amazon | B&N | iBooks | KOBO

My Review

THIS WAS AMAZING AND ADORABLE AND EVERYTHING MY LITTLE LATINX HEART WANTED.

COCO MEETS MEDIATOR AND SURPASSES MEDIATOR. [And I love those Mediator books], I say Coco because I did love the whole emotional vibe and expected any moment to burst out crying as I did while watching Coco but other than both consisting of Day of the Dead themes, and the Abuelita trying to stuff you but also being an iron fist, which is just Latinx standard, that’s where the similarities end.

Seriously, Yads was such a great MC just such an amazing character and he had such a good heart, I couldn’t handle how adorable he was and then we had Jules who was equally amazing and one of those little ‘tough cinnamon rolls’ and Martiza was the perfect prima, I felt her Vegan Bruja vibe with all my heart.

Setting this in East L.A. gave Thomas the opportunity to mix the Latinx cultures and communities exactly as we see them in areas like East L.A. and it was nice, being from San Antonio yes many of us were Mexican descent/heritage but we had other cultures as well and it was so nice to see the accurate mix we have in real life. 

There was such a difference in the way Yadriel and Jules expressed their connection in their heritages, especially in regards to how they handled Spanish and the huge differences in their families. Yadriel represent a large blood family, while Jules shows us a found family (and the hardships of those having to deal with a loss of parent(s)).

Thomas also does a great job providing the different nuances to the different communities, especially in their foods for Día de Los Muertos.

I know that Thomas did such a great job for one more reason, this made me miss my home and family so much. It’s not the same when it’s just you setting up an Ofrenda and celebrating, but Thomas made me feel a little less alone this year, and I can’t express how grateful I am.

Again, can’t stress this enough but, perfection, such…purrfection and adorableness and I need a Purrcaso in my life.

Thank you to Swoon Reads, Xpresso Tours, and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

5 HUGE cups of coffee from me!! GO GET/READ THIS, PREPARE FOR THE SEASON OF SPOOKY IN THE BEST WAY POSSIBLE.

Thanks SO much to XpressoTours and Swoon Reads for an eARC in exchange for my honest review as part of the blog tour.

 

About the Author

Aiden Thomas is a YA author with an MFA in Creative Writing from Mills College. Originally from Oakland, California, they now make their home in Portland, OR. As a queer, trans Latinx, Aiden advocates strongly for diverse representation in all media. Aiden’s special talents include: quoting The Office, Harry Potter trivia, Jenga, finishing sentences with “is my FAVORITE”, and killing spiders. Aiden is notorious for not being able to guess the endings of books and movies, and organizes their bookshelves by color.

Author Links

Website | Twitter |  Goodreads | Instagram

 

Giveaway

Tour-wide giveaway (US ONLY)

Print Copy of Cemetery Boys

Rafflecopter Link Click Here

 

Rest of the Tour

[Click on the picture to be taken to the full schedule]