The Next Book By My Favorite Author: Blanca Y Roja by Anna-Marie McLemore

Blanca Y Roja
Anna-Marie McLemore
★★★★★ | 8 Oct 2018

But I would not let the swans write our story for us.

So… let’s start with, I cried reading this? Anna-Marie McLemore is one of the most talented authors on any market right now. she is consistently fantastic at creating compelling characters, beautiful sentences, and Super Good Romances, all wrapped up in narratives of generational trauma, colonialism, & queerness.

➽W H Y T H I S W A S A M A Z I N G

This book is about a few things: internalized colorism, systematic transphobia & homophobia, and most importantly of all, stealing back your story from those who wish to make it theirs. In a world that wants to steal your words, to put you into a story of sister vs. sister and family vs. family, it is so difficult to find your own way and force your way out of a colonial narrative.

As always, McLemore’s writing is so beautiful and lyrical. I really do find it hard to tear myself away from her works; I never binge them, but whenever I read them I am so in them. For those of you who found Wild Beauty a bit much, I will say I found this slightly easier to read quickly; however, I will say that Wild Beauty was my favorite book of two years ago, so take my opinion with a grain of salt.

➽C H A R A C T E R S

These characters are just,,, so so good.

→Blanca Del Cisne has been trying to fit an archetypal role, a role she has been allowed to partake in due to her lighter skin. So throughout the story, she must find that she does not belong in that role, and that she can find love as a queer girl, and have her own life.

→Roja Del Cisne projects manipulation and lack of caring, but underneath that layer, she is a deeply loving girl, made fierce by love and by resentment of her mother’s dislike. (I really wished that had been resolved with slightly more buildup.)

→Page Ashby is a nonbinary trans boy trying to discover his identity in a world where he is put into boxes. There’s a really good discussion of gender ≠ pronouns incroporated here, as Page uses both he and she pronouns.

→Barclay Holt, or Yearling, is the story’s blue-eyed boy, a boy from an abusive family. His arc involves resolving his feelings around his past and adjusting to his disability. He is also sadly the only character I do not love; his arc felt sort of dissonant compared to the other three character’s arcs. He is fine and he exists and he is good.

→Also, Tess Holt and Grandma Ashby are the best. That is all.

➽R E L A T I O N S H I P S

There are two romantic couples in this book. Roja and Yearling’s romance is sweet. Blanca and Page’s is indescribably good. It’s sensual, but built on such an incredible base of trust, and their tension is just um… a lot? There is something so delicate and emotional to me about queer people finding themselves in loving each other, and I honestly wonder if there’s any personal element to how beautifully this romance is rendered. They are amazing, my favorite couple, 30/10.

But the main relationship in this book is between the two sisters. Blanca & Roja’s relationship is incredibly complex; each has problems with herself, and each often projects these problems on her sister. It is so easy, in a sibling relationship, to see your sister as something she is not — to allow the image of someone you love to twist and distort. Seeing that bond break, and then come back, was so cathartic.

➽I N C O N C L U S I O N

I remember about a week before I read this book, I saw this thread by Anna-Marie, and it was so amazing, and the fact that the reality of this book was even better is a real statement on how amazing this story was. I know I won’t forget about this story anytime soon.

TW: colorism, homophobia, transphobia, discussion of physical abuse.

Have you read Blanca Y Roja or any other books by Anna-Marie McLemore? Are you interested? Let me know in the comments!Blog | Goodreads | Twitter | Instagram | Youtube