Aiden Thomas: Cemetery Boys

This was a pick for our team book club. I started reading it, but wasn't even close to finishing it in October when we were supposed to talk about it. I did finally finish it months later, and am finally writing my review.

Cemetery Boys by Aidan Thomas follows the story of Yadriel, a brujo tasked with protecting their cemetery and helping spirits cross over. The one issue, Yadriel wasn't always a boy, but as a trans boy, he is struggling to find acceptance and his place in his community. He completed the ceremony to become a brujo on his own and without anyone else knowing except his cousin, Maritza. Another of his cousins, Miguel, is killed somewhere - all of their community feel it - and Yadriel is desperate to help. Instead, he finds the ghost of a boy he knows from school, Julian, and feeling that this is finally his chance to be accepted into his community, decides to help him cross over.

I did really enjoy this book. The start was a little slow and a little confusing if you don't know much about Mexican mythology. I also felt that Yadriel's first internal conflict (while important to the plot) was overdone and overplayed. It felt very repetitive at the beginning. The plot was also a tad predictable. By about halfway through, I had a good portion of the mystery figured out long before Yadriel did. Other than that, I enjoyed the characters and characterization, and I enjoyed the magical aspect of this story.

I rated this book ⭐⭐⭐⭐

PG - some violence and slight hints at sexual themes.

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