Review: So Let Them Burn by Kamilah Cole

 

💬:“Being forced to learn the language of your oppressors is an oppression of the mind. They rewrite your history when you’re too young to know what you’re giving away, and before you know it, it’s too late to reclaim what you’ve lost, she said.”

Cole, Kamilah. So Let Them Burn (The Divine Traitors Book 1) (p. 82). Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. Kindle Edition. 

📖Genres: fiction, fantasy,  young adult, dragons, LGBT, queer, mythology

📚Page Count: 392

🎧Audiobook Length: 11hrs 24mins

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️ - 2.75/5

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[SPOILERS BELOW]

So Let Them Burn is a Jamaican inspired fantasy about two sisters who get separated from each other against their will, it's book one in the Divine Traitors series. Elara and her younger sister Faron live in a country that was just at war, although the countries are currently vying for peace, there's still conflict behind the scenes. 

The setting and backstory are really fleshed out and I liked the dragons and I enjoyed the fighting and action scenes. The end of the book was really exciting. 

The author created a sense of urgency within the premise of the book and then the entire first and second half of the book fell flat because nothing happened. 40% of the way through Faron asks the gods for help and they say no, then 60% of the way through she goes back and asks them for help again. Like the first time, they decline to help. At this point 20% of the book has gone by and almost nothing has happened. 

I really didn't enjoy most of this book, the pacing was too off. Most of the beginning and middle of the book was just exposition, and it was frustration. The author would tell you something, not show you and that's not quite as exciting as it could be. It also felt like the author was writing in mundane scenes (even though she created that sense of urgency) just to fill the space so she can make the end of the story lead up to a sequel. 

Here are a few other things I didn't like about the book. The character relationships had little development but both Faron and Elara find love with their respective companions that they each used to hate. The action scenes were really entertaining, it's unfortunate that they weren't spread out more. Most of the action scenes were at the end of the book. The end of the book was very info dumpy with "surprises" she revealed. 

I didn't enjoy this book for the most part, I only enjoyed the ending. Due to that I'm going to give this 2.75 out of 5 stars

⭐️⭐️ - 2.75/5

I listened to this audiobook on [Spotify.com]

Review: Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

💬:“& although most people here won’t admit they 

think like me, 

a woman should be able to sell whatever she wants 

to sell. 

But not if it’s at the insistence of a man. This man."

Acevedo, Elizabeth. Clap When You Land (p. 46). HarperCollins. Kindle Edition. 

📖Genres: fiction, teens, young adult, contemporary, LGBT, realistic fiction, poetry

📚Page Count: 424

🎧Audiobook Length: 05hrs 32mins

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5

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Clap When You Land is a young adult fiction story written in verse by Elizabeth Acevedo. This story is heartbreaking and powerful, I cried more than once while listening to the audiobook. This story centers around two teen girls, Camino Rios & Yahaira Rios, who share the same father, but neither knows of the other girl's existence. Suddenly, when their father passes away in a plane crash, the two teens are left to deal with their father's secrets and each other. 

Elizabeth Acevedo definitely has a talent for telling stories in verse, her poetry is always beautiful and it flows so nicely. This story is based on a real life event that took place on November 12, 2001, when a flight taking off for the Dominican Republic crashed after take off in Queens, New York, killing a total of 260 people on the flight as well as 5 people on the ground. More than 90% of the passengers and victims were of Dominican decent. Here's apart of the author's note; 

"It completely rocked the New York Dominican community. It is the second-deadliest aviation crash in United States history."

Acevedo, Elizabeth. Clap When You Land (p. 420). HarperCollins. Kindle Edition. 

Overall, I think this story was fantastic, heartbreaking, and moving. I will definitely be reading the rest of Acevedo's work.  I'm going to give this 5 out of 5 stars

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5

I listened to this audiobook for free on [Libbyapp.com]

Review: Blood Debts by Terry J. Benton-Walker

 

💬: "People in expensive-looking suits and flashy cocktail dresses cling to glasses filled with champagne or cocktails and amble up and down the hallways and rooms, enjoying an evening of gambling and debauchery. It’s like a scene from one of Gatsby’s parties, except Black people are invited."

Benton-Walker, Terry J.. Blood Debts (pp. 70-71). Tor Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. 

📖Genres: Fantasy ,Young Adult ,LGBT ,Mystery, Queer, Young Adult Fantasy, Magic , Fiction, Urban Fantasy

📚Page Count: 400

🎧Audiobook Length: 14h 30min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5 

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Blood Debts is a queer mystery novel about getting justice for one's past crimes. 30 years ago there were murders and a lynching and it was considered the greatest massacre in magical New Orleans history. This has 5 different perspectives and I thought it wasn't going to work but everything went together really nicely. My reading experience was a good one. This book is a rollercoaster, the plot starts right away in the first chapter and that's one of the things I really liked about this book. 

The book starts off with twins, Clem and Christina, tending to their mother and waiting for the Dr. to come and give them an update on their mother's condition. Their mother hasn't been doing well and her health has slowly been declining. They soon discover that 

their mother isn't sick, she's cursed! 

Will they be able to find out who's trying to harm their family? 

A lot of the surprises were predictable but the book was still enjoyable. I think I left probably around 5 notes to myself about the plotline, just of me guessing what the next surprise was going to be. In this regard, the book was really predictable, but that didn't stop the book from being entertaining. There were some secrets I didn't guess but there were more secrets that I DID guess and I thought that was worth mentioning in my review. 

This was my first time reading a book by Terry J. Benton-Walker and they did not disappoint me! This was exciting, entertaining, intriguing, and it was just down right good! I'm giving this a 5 out of 5.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️