Review: Paola Santiago and the River of Tears

Paola Santiago and the River of Tears by Tehlor Kay Mejia
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The latest installment in the Rick Riordan Presents imprint, Paola Santiago and the River of Tears follows scientifically incline Pau into a world of Mexican folklore as she seeks to save her friends Emma and Dante from La Llorona, the ghost of a woman that haunts rivers. According to legend, La Llorona drowned her children in an act of anger when her husband left her. Remorseful after the deed, she drowns herself and haunts the river, drowning other people's children, perpetually asking "¿Dónde están mis hijos?" (Where are my children?) Here, Mejia expands the story, with Llorona having not just the two sons of legend, but a daughter, Ondina. Pau and Ondina's choices and self-determination are central to the story, as is Pau's making peace with the fact that her mother wants to look at everything from a spiritual angle as opposed to Pau's scientific inclinations.

This is the first in a new series and my only quibble with the novel is that this isn't such a great moment in time (in the midst of a pandemic) to be offering the message that science isn't everything when so much misinformation about stuff like diseases, treatments, and masks is flying around. (Mejia and the editors clearly had no way of knowing what was coming when the novel entered the publishing process, of course.) As a slice of Hispanic representation, I really enjoyed the novel, however. It's an excellent entry for Riordan's middle-grade lineup.

I received a digital and paper review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

~ ~ ~

Want to buy the audiobook copy of Paola Santiago and the River of Tears and have a portion of the sale benefit your local independent bookstore? Click HERE.

Want your eBook purchase of Paola Santiago and the River of Tears to benefit independent bookstores? Click HERE.

Follow Marzie's Reads on Bloglovin'

View all my reviews on Goodreads

© Marzie's Reads 2017-2020, All Rights Reserved.