Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

The First Was Good, the Second a Letdown

The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas

Celestial Monsters by Aiden Thomas

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The Sunbearer Trials I really liked this. While it didn’t measure up to the joy that Cemetery Boys brought me, it was a strong showing from Aiden Thomas. It’s set in a Mexican-inspired fantasy world, although it is very similar to our own world in terms of technology and even cultural references (e.g., it has Chupa Chups). Main character Teo is surprised to be selected to compete in the Sunbearer Trials. The loser of this trial becomes a sacrifice to protect the world, and the winner […]

Come for the Cat Named Purrcaso, Stay for the Story and Representation

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

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I expected to like this book. I did not expect to love it, but it was great. It was the second book I picked up for the trans rights readathon, and not only is there trans representation in the book, but both the author and the cover illustrator are trans. I love that Aiden Thomas was able to represent both their gender and their Latinx culture in this debut novel that follows trans teen Yadriel. While he is not fully rejected by his family, he […]

A Bittersweet Read

The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas

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The Sunbearer Trials is based on Mexican mythology, set in a world in which every ten years, a competition is held. There are reasons but the important thing for the main character Teo, the son of the goddess of the birds, is that the winner gets to bring light to the land, and the loser is sacrificed. While this doesn’t directly affect Teo, it affects his best friend. However, when the time comes for the selection, he gets chosen. I think my favorite part about this […]

“You know who you are, I know who you are, and our Lady does, too.”

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

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#CBR15 Passport Challenge: Different genres (paranormal fantasy) Being a queer teen can be difficult enough, even if you don’t come from a long line of magic users with very traditional gender roles. In Yadriel’s family, the brujos can summon the spirits of the dead and help them find peace in the afterlife. The brujas have tremendous healing powers. However, Yadriel’s family won’t let him go through the traditional rite for brujos, because of the gender he was born with. The only ones who seem to […]

I’m so sad about it, but this was so flawed.

The Sunbearer Trials (The Sunbearer Duology, #1) by Aiden Thomas

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This was fine. But “fine,” after reading this author’s wonderful debut, Cemetery Boys, is not enough. I feel like there were so many flaws baked in to this book before the author even started writing it, and they didn’t do enough to overcome them. The worldbuilding choices made in this book baffled me, and it read like a middle grade novel with f-bombs thrown in. (Not good when you’re aiming for upper YA.) Gonna bullet point this one to sort out my thoughts. *This was pitched […]

Perfect Halloween Read

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

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I am part of a YA for everyone book group at my local library. The organizer tries to pick books that fit the time of year, so for October, Halloween, we are reading Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas. I had no idea what this book was about, which is sometimes a great way to be pleasantly surprised.  Well, I really liked this book, it was such a fun ghost story. Yadriel is a trans teen who is trying to become a brujo. His Latinix family […]



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