good thing i didn’t trust anyone in this story except ‘unknown’! my instincts were right!

this debt novel was heartbreakingly thought provoking and just so, so powerful. i still have chills. all i have to really say is that even though this particular book was a fictional story, the horrors in it are very real and we must bring every Indigenous girl and woman home.

wow… just wow.

cata and luke were so cute that it has me wishing it was a full-length lauren asher novel idc what anyone says!

kip and scott were super fucking cute but it did feel like they suckin and fuckin every other chapter like woahhhh

honestly this was so australian and gave me a cultural shock lmao but that being said, clay and ethan are both so precious and i want to protect them forever.

also the hard of hearing representation in this book was phenomenally written. disabilities in books are hardly ever seen or written well, but keira andrews executed it with grace.

i adored this so much and it was so much fun to return to this beautiful, inclusive world. as a mexican, the various mythological elements, especially the magical creatures, was so entertaining to read and i loved the world was built and expanded on from the first book.

i was pleasantly surprised this was dual pov but it worked because teo and xio were vastly different and having two perspectives added variety to the narration but also demonstrated how complex each character actually is. honestly, all the characters in this were so endearing and i loved learning more of the characters, especially niya and aurelio who were both so cute.

although that one decision towards the end ended up breaking my heart and left me so sad, i appreciated how that decision also sends a big message: it’s important to question the way of the world for the betterment of it. and to actually act on it? world changing.

the parts that i had mixed feelings about was that the dialogue was really juvenile. but the humor was still actually funny to me so it didn’t bother me that much. also, as is typical in ya books, most of the adults (literal dioses) are useless and dump everything, in this case: saving the world from an apocalypse, on teenagers. like why does the fate of the universe lay in the hands of a bunch of 13-17 year olds? quite silly but very ya.

one of my favorite parts of this book was teo’s connection and relationship with birds.

although it was kinda fast for my liking, this was still very cute, sweet, funny, hot, endearing, and cozy. perfect for the holidays.

usually i finish books within 2-3 days easily but i kept having to set this down and ruminate obsessively on each chapter. what a heartbreakingly tragic and breathtakingly beautiful take on this epic tale. an instant all-time favorite.