Gr 8 Up—Ciela, a pansexual Mexican American girl, and Lock, a white boy who is new to the community, were
raped at the same party. Ciela pursues a friendship with Lock to help them work through their trauma. This lyrical
book, full of magical realism and layered characters, is an honest and frank look at consent, power, and the
aftermath of assault.

In the aftermath of an assault at a party, the lives of two teens intertwine as they struggle to find healing, lost magic, and ways to move forward.

Like her bisabuela before her, Ciela Cristales speaks “the language of flour and sugar.” In her family’s pastelería, she is La Bruja de los Pasteles, who can sense exactly which pastry someone wants before they know themselves, which flavors will give them courage or help open their heart to love. Although her abuela warned her that such gifts could be lost, she did not know this was true until a shard of glass buries itself deep in her heart along with the sharp, mirrored truth of what happened to her and a boy she’d just met at a party she wishes she could forget. McLemore reimagines Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Snow Queen,” or “La Reina de las Nieves,” in the weaving of an aching, vivid narrative about two young adults, a White boy and a queer, Mexican American girl, who are grappling with trauma from sexual assault. The poetic and vulnerable prose illuminates the need for more open conversation about sexuality, consent, and abuse without the limits of the gender binary. Balancing raw honesty and hope, McLemore does not shy away from depicting discomfort and injustice, but they also surround Ciela with a loving and affirming community of characters crafted with tender detail in this contemporary novel brushed with fairy tale.

Piercing magic. (author's note) (Magical realism. 14-18)

-Kirkus Review

a milder, magical version of Speak by Klause? Didn't finish it. ( )

diverse teen fiction (magical realism/sexual assault with Latinx main character) - author is a fantastic storyteller and also queer (they discovered they were also nonbinary while writing this book).

This author is so talented; I always love their stories. This one, loosely based on real events, is extra powerful--if you have ever been to a party where something very bad happened to you, this can certainly trigger your trauma, but even if you have never been so unfortunate, this will still affect you strongly. ( )

Thank you to @fiercereads and @coloredpagesblogtours for the gifted copy of The Mirror Season.

This book is a retelling of the Snow Queen fairy tale told through the eyes of Cielo and Lock, who were both victims of sexual assault on the the same day. This one will grab you by the throat, make you hold your breath as the details unfold and hit with a gut punch like no other. Although the story is about a traumatic and painful event, McLemore's descriptive, poetic, beautiful writing carries you safely through it all. McLemore writes about consent, being non-binary and taking your life back while exploring the effects of PTSD and what keeps poor and brown people from seeking justice. They take us through Cielo's and Lock's journey to reclaim their power and voices while possibly falling love in the process. McLemore writes a tale that will leave you no choice but to sit with your feelings. This is a story that you will carry with you long after it is over.

The writing was stunning and I wanted to share some of my favorite quotes:

🪞 "Every moment of our life, it goes with us. And alot of the moments you don't have say over. So the ones you do, you've got to do everything with them. So that what lives forever is something you want to live with."

🪞 "If no one believed me on things that small, why would they about anything this big?"

🪞 "It costs something to listen to someone else's story. "

🪞 "I want to stand for what I am, how I love, how my broken heart still works. Even if there are cracks in me. Even if my heart is scar tissue around a sliver of glass."

#TheMirrorSeasonTour #YAfiction #annamariemclemore #Latinxbooks #ColoredPagesTours #Booktour #latinxbookstagram #newrelease #booksandsneakers #bookfeature #bookreview #nonbinary #bibliophile #LatinxYALit #ReadLatinx #PTSD #sexualassault #bookdragon #books #bluebooks #ownvoices #hardcover
#readingisresistance #readYAstories
#MexicanRep #reebok #bookworm #booksoutside #bookstoread #snowqueenretelling ( )