Cemetery Boys

Cemetery Boys

By: Aiden Thoms

Audiobook narrated by: Avi Roque

352 pages 

Published September 1, 2020

My review 4.5 stars out of 5

I read this book to complete a prompt in the Boise Public Library's Ultimate Book Nerd challenge: Read a book about a holiday tradition you don't celebrate. 

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.


This story is about a trans boy trying to prove his place in his traditional latinx family. It includes some magical elements and lots of tradition. 

I loved the inner-city setting and the diverse mix of characters. The narrator, Avi Roque, did an amazing job of bringing Yadriel to life and making him feel like a real person. To be able to be in the mind of a transgender person, to see life from their eyes, it was enlightening. 

Though a work of fiction, I like to think that Thomas (the author) used some real-world stories to bring this character to life. He certainly felt real to me. There will be more in this series of books, but I loved that this was a full and complete story all on its own. No waiting for book two to know what happens because this book wrapped things up nicely. Other authors could learn a few things about books in a series! 

Another thing I really loved about this story was the way that the stories of Yadriel's culture were woven in. I feel like I really got to know a bit about the Latinx culture and why they celebrate el Día de los Muertos. That is why I originally picked up this book. I needed a book that fit the prompt: Read a book about a holiday tradition you don't celebrate. This fit it perfectly. I just saw this on the amazon q&a with the author about his inspiration: "What inspired you to write Cemetery Boys? Cemetery Boys was inspired by a writing prompt I saw on Tumblr — “What happened if you summoned a ghost and couldn’t get rid of it?” How great is that?!