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A review by sreddous
Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls by Kaela Rivera
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is a fascinating world full of myth and a vibrant culture. The descriptions are rich and beautiful and the scenery is really immersive.
The friendship and character arcs are really solid. Every character who shows up is different on the last page than they are on the first, and that's SO satisfying. That's what I want in any book, but especially for middle-grade -- I can see why Cece is different from the other brujas and other villagers. It's so well-built-up why her connections with her criaturas are different than anyone else's with theirs. Cece is a "Chosen one," but her decisions matter to how the plot develops too, so everything feels "earned."
Even the plot points that involve a lot of lies and hiding resolve themselves in satisfying ways -- it's hard to balance a kid character making impulsive decisions because sometimes that's hard to identify with, but it's so great the way that Cece learns to question herself and communicate and take ownership of her own decisions and abilities. Really really triumphant stuff here!
I have one nitpick that isn't a comment on the plot/writing/etc.: the artist who drew the book's cover is clearly talented. But that's not what Cece looks like! As part of her journey, Cece shaves her head, and not enough time goes by that it has the chance to grow back (as late as page 313, her hair is described as "shorn"). It would have been cool to show Cece on the cover, looking powerful and accepting of who she is, with her extremely-short hair. Why not have a girl character who doesn't have a traditionally-feminine hairstyle, OWNING it on the cover? It's a shame that (probably?) a marketing decision had to play down what Cece chooses to accomplish in this book to ....make her prettier, I guess? There's never a time in the story that her hair is this approaching-shoulder-length style shown on the book jacket, so it feels like it was just a "we have to have Cece look pretty on the cover" decision, and that's a shame, since that's not what this book is about.
But the cover doesn't matter -- what matters is that the actual story has well-built messages of self-reflection and good communication and tense action. Really cool stuff, can't wait to read the next books in this series!
The friendship and character arcs are really solid. Every character who shows up is different on the last page than they are on the first, and that's SO satisfying. That's what I want in any book, but especially for middle-grade -- I can see why Cece is different from the other brujas and other villagers. It's so well-built-up why her connections with her criaturas are different than anyone else's with theirs. Cece is a "Chosen one," but her decisions matter to how the plot develops too, so everything feels "earned."
Even the plot points that involve a lot of lies and hiding resolve themselves in satisfying ways -- it's hard to balance a kid character making impulsive decisions because sometimes that's hard to identify with, but it's so great the way that Cece learns to question herself and communicate and take ownership of her own decisions and abilities. Really really triumphant stuff here!
I have one nitpick that isn't a comment on the plot/writing/etc.: the artist who drew the book's cover is clearly talented. But that's not what Cece looks like! As part of her journey, Cece shaves her head, and not enough time goes by that it has the chance to grow back (as late as page 313, her hair is described as "shorn"). It would have been cool to show Cece on the cover, looking powerful and accepting of who she is, with her extremely-short hair. Why not have a girl character who doesn't have a traditionally-feminine hairstyle, OWNING it on the cover? It's a shame that (probably?) a marketing decision had to play down what Cece chooses to accomplish in this book to ....make her prettier, I guess? There's never a time in the story that her hair is this approaching-shoulder-length style shown on the book jacket, so it feels like it was just a "we have to have Cece look pretty on the cover" decision, and that's a shame, since that's not what this book is about.
But the cover doesn't matter -- what matters is that the actual story has well-built messages of self-reflection and good communication and tense action. Really cool stuff, can't wait to read the next books in this series!
Content Warnings
Minor: Child abuse