Latinx Book Bingo Wrap Up

Hi everyone! Today I’m going to talk about the books I read for the Latinx Book Bingo, a readathon that I host every year during Latinx Heritage Month, which goes from September 15th to October 15th. I had so much fun this year, both hosting and participating. I want to take this oportunity to thank everyone who join me and my co-host, Paola @ By My Shelf.

In this wrap up, I’ll be talking about the 16 books I managed to read for this readathon, one for each square of the bingo board.

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Without further ado, here are the books I read and some of my thoughts:

YA

Miss Meteor by Anna-Marie McLemore & Tehlor Kay Mejia (5 stars): THIS BOOK IS FANTASTIC!! the friends to lovers romances are adorable, the friendships healed my soul, the siblings’ relationships are wonderfully complicated, the character development is great. It addresses messed up beauty standards, xenophobia, homophobia. (Full Review)

Lobizona by Romina Garber (5 stars): the magical world is interesting and complex, the magic system is captivating, the characters are easy to root for, the Argentinian food, expressions and folklore are a wonderful addition to the story, the soccer inspired magical sport is so cool, the way it addresses immigration is very powerful… Everything about this book is just SO GOOD!! (Full Review)

Blazewrath Games by Amparo Ortiz (4.5 stars): This book is SO GOOD! It’s action-packed, it’s entertaining and it has such a cool concept. Tee world building is fantastic, the plot is engaging and the characters are easy to root for. (Full Review)

Undead Girl Gang by Lily Anderson (4 stars): this is a quick and entertaining read. I liked all the characters and the main story about a group of girls that go from enemies to friends. This book does a great job of being humorous while still dealing with heavier topics, especially grief and bullying. The mystery was a bit predictable but it didn’t decrease my enjoyment of the story. The ending made me cry, which doesn’t happen that often.

By Any Means Necessary by Candice Montgomery (3,7 stars): The voice of the main character is really strong in this book, it was engaging and funny and very real from the very first page. This book addresses some serious topics like racism, gentrification, and homophobia within the Black community. Also, the importance of self-care. I don’t know exactly how to put this but I think I would have liked to see a little less of the main character’s internal monologue and a bit more of him interacting with others

Middle Grade

The Dream Weaver by Reina Luz Alegre (4 stars): A very sweet middle grade that deals with hard subjects like grief, complicated family dynamics and not feeling Latinx enough. This book tells such a hopeful story about giving yourself time to figure out your dreams, fighting for them but also allowing them to change with time. This book includes a bowling team, sleepovers, friendships, a strong sibling relationship, and a lovable grandfather.

Sal and Gabi Fix the Universe by Carlos Hernandez (4 stars): This is cute and fun. I love Sal and Gabi, they are some of my favorite characters ever. I also liked seeing Sal’s character development in this book. I wish we got to see a bit more of Sal and Gabi work together because it felt a little bit like they had separate storylines and things they weren’t telling the other, but overall I really enjoyed it.

The Fire Keeper by J.C. Cervantes (3,5 stars): As the first book in the series, this was fun and entertaining. I really enjoyed the Mayan mythology, the different gods and magical creatures were really cool. I liked the characters in the book as well. But as with the first book, I’m a bit worried about the disability rep.

Romance

Here to Stay by Adriana Herrera (4 stars): I really enjoyed this book. The chemistry between the main characters is out of this world, the sex scenes are so hot, the friend group is amazing, I loved Julia’s family and Rocco is an adorable hero. The issue I had with this book is that the will they/ won’t they part of this book dragged a bit. (Review)

Crashing into Her by Mia Sosa (4 stars): This book is funny, entertaining and a quick read. I really liked the main characters and I enjoyed their dynamic that went from dislike to like, and their relationship that went from a one night stand to a friendship full of sexual tension to finally a romance. The banter and chemistry between them were amazing, the sex scenes were steamy, and the romance was heartwarming.

The Infamous Miss Rodriguez by Lydia San Andres (4 stars): This is short and sweet. This book has an Afrolatinx heroine and an Argentinian hero, both of them are great. There’s a marriage of convenience and that trope is well executed and the way the relationship transforms throughout the book. I would have liked to see a bit more of the main characters together, but overall this was really good.

Adult

Like Water for Chocholate by Laura Esquivel (4,5 stars): I loved the experience of reading this book, I couldn’t put it down because I needed to know what was going to happen next. I loved the unique structure of this book, the way the magical aspects are integrated into the story especially when it comes to the food, how atmospheric this was, and the complicated relationships between the characters.

Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica (4 stars): This book is very disturbing because it makes cannibalism seem like something that could actually happen, the way the author executes the whole concept makes it seem so plausible. Beyond the interesting concept, the plot revolves around events of a smaller scale but it’s as disturbing as everything else.

Journey Through the Socialist Countries by Gabriel García Marquez (4 stars): This is a very interesting account from an outsider’s point of view of what was happening in the socialist countries at the end of the 1950s. I really enjoy García Márquez’s nonfiction writing and I learned a lot reading this book.

In The Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado (4 stars): This is really good. It has a unique structure and the writing is beautiful. Machado does an amazing job of looking into the history of abuse in sapphic relationships and also addressing her own experience. My only issue is that the unique structure of the book, as much as it is interesting, made me feel a bit distant from Machado’s personal account of the situations she lived through and I’m not entirely sure if it was intentional or not.

Lima :: Limón by Natalie Scenters-Zapico (2 stars): this poetry collection simply wasn’t for me

Those are all the books I read for the Latinx Book Bingo. Hosting this readathon for the third time was an amazing experience and I can’t wait for next year to do it again!

What books by Latinx authors have you enjoyed lately? Have you read any of the books I mentioned?

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