Cemetery Boys book review

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
Series: Cemetery Boys #1
on September 1, 2020
Pages: 344
Goodreads

Yadriel has summoned a ghost, and now he can’t get rid of him.
When his traditional Latinx family has problems accepting his 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 up 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.

Cemetery Boys has been on my list for a very long time. To be honest I was a little afraid to go into it. There is so much hype and great reviews I was worried it was going to disappoint. Unfortunately it wasn’t my favourite. I loved the world building. I felt I learnt so much about the brujx community and a Latinx family structure. But some of the story just didn’t hit the right spot for me.

Characters in Cemetery Boys

Cemetery Boys is the story of Yadriel a trans Latinx boy. He is desperate to become a brujx like the other teenagers and men in his family. The story follows him as he deals with the the transphobic, deadnaming and insensitivities of various members of the family. Not to mention the ghost he accidentally summoned. This is a very character driven story. Meaning there is a lot of information about the two different worlds throughout the story. Yadriel has some really great moments, some of which really helped you understand him as a character. I don’t want to comment too much on the representation. It’s not really my place. However I felt the way the story was told was respectful and covered the hard parts with grace and sensitivity.

I will say that despite enjoying the characters as a whole I did think the relationship elements were a little short changed all the way through. Without spoiling the storyline, the villain gets the short end of the stick, and the development was lacking. In fact I thought that even the romantic elements throughout this story were a little lacklustre. I would have liked for there to have been more time spent building a slow burn romance. Instead of taking time away from the main plot to try and fit it all into a couple of chapters!

Bad Bits in Cemetery Boys

The main thing for me in Cemetery Boys was the pacing. Everything seemed to take a little longer to get to and there was so much information dumped at times. It all could have been a little overwhelming and I found myself drifting off and having to rewind and re listen to bits. I would have loved for there to have been a little less exposition and a little more action. It would have made the book more enjoyable and would have made more sense to the story, especially with the lack of development of the villain’s back story. There just felt like there was a lot missing when it came to the end and a lot of jumps had to be made to account for them all.

Good Bits

The story is rich and diverse with some fantastically written characters. I adored learning about the different cultures and what makes each family member tick. I think the way the plot moves is the perfect way to see inside the world of the brujx and the cemetery where they live. The richness of the story is something I really loved, I felt like I saw a completely new world and learnt a lot without it feeling as though it was a lecture or being pushed. It was overall a good read and I will definitely be looking for different books from this author.

What’s next?

I think I’m going to try Aiden’s other books before I make the decision as to whether to recommend his books. Although I enjoyed the plot and story in Cemetery Boys I did struggle with the pacing issues and the character development. I want to make sure I give the other books a try before making any decisions on whether I like the author or not.

Have you read any of Aiden Thomas’ books? Did you find another favourite? Let me know.