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Saturday, September 14, 2019

Review: Five Midnights by Ann Davila Cardinal

Author: Ann Davila Cardinal
Publisher: Tor Teen
Publication Date: June 2019

Five friends cursed. Five deadly fates. Five nights of retribución.

If Lupe Dávila and Javier Utierre can survive each other’s company, together they can solve a series of grisly murders sweeping though Puerto Rico. But the clues lead them out of the real world and into the realm of myths and legends. And if they want to catch the killer, they'll have to step into the shadows to see what's lurking there—murderer, or monster?


Five Midnights is a YA horror that deals with the boogeyman legend of El Cucuy.  Lupe is visiting her aunt and uncle for the summer.  Someone is murdering boys on their eighteenth birthday.  Lupe and Javier must figure it out before he is next.  

As a YA horror, I enjoyed the book.  I found the story creepy and I liked the way the legend played into the murders.  There was also a great twist that surprised me.  I also like most of the characters.  I genuinely cared about them and what happened to them. With one exception...

I really disliked Lupe.  Even in the end, Lupe wasn't any different. She aregued about everything. Look, if you are going to make a female character be a feminist, please don't make her a major bitch.  Lupe was such a jerk to almost every male in this book, even her uncle.  Every time, she blames feminism.  There is a difference between wanting to be independent and just being an asshole.  I also found it interesting that everyone kept making a big deal about Lupe being only half Puerto Rican.  It got old.

I would recommend this one for the Horror aspect alone.  If you can ignore Lupe's behavior and are a fan of YA horror, then give this one a shot.



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