
Member Reviews

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?- Goodreads*cracks knuckles* Let's jump right into this. Lupe Dávila was a trash character that had no respect for anyone and put her needs and her feminist ideas above everyone including those that she loved. Lupe is Puerto Rican and white. She looks more white than Puerto Rican, which is why everyone on the island views her as white. But my issue with her is very simple. Every single person that either calls her gringa or makes a general statement about white people, she screams at them. Just let's completely loose on them. She doesn't have any respect, especially for elders or any adult figure. She spent most of this book complaining about how she is feminist can do things by herself (although Javier saved her life and she didn't even say thank you) and complaining about how she is Puerto Rican. My issue on the last part is that it came off that she identifies herself as Puerto Rican because her mother left her and her father. Lupe wanting to be part of this world did not come off as if she wanted to identify a part of heritage but that she was doing it because it was all she had. Lupe was prideful, extremely prideful and I did not like anything about her. Javier, on the other hand was a way better character to read. I actually wish Cardinal (the author) would have dug deeper into Javier. Not only was he likeable, his struggle was real and powerful. But not only would have I wanted more Javier, I would have wanted more about Puerto Rico and the environment Cardinal set up. And oddly enough, the way that she tied the horror/mythology into this book was perfect. Everything was answered, everything made sense and it creeped me out. There are things that are passed down generation to generation and they vary by culture, but what makes this book different in how Cardinal presents this folklore and how she makes it present in the modern world. I loved the creativity of this. It took a while for the book to keep my interest. Lupe was a huge factor as to why it took a little less than halfway through the book for me to be at the edge of my seat. But once the ball was really rolling, I had to finish it. I would like to note that this is a sad read as much as it is a horror read. Cardinal adds a lot to this book that if you are not really reading you won't even see what she is trying to do. And what she is trying to do is tell two different stories. The one about the five and the other about Puerto Rico. I recommend this read. It is told through different point of views, which adds another layer to the novel. i enjoyed reading this and want to read more from this author. Overall, 3 Pickles

I received an ARC of this book thanks to Net Galley and publisher Tor Teen in exchange for an honest review.
This book deserves a lot of kudos for not really being like anything I've read before. Five Midnights is a story set in Puerto Rico about a group of boys who are all part of the same gang (or used to be). They are being killed off one by one before their 18th birthdays, supposedly by a mythical creature called El Cuco. Our main characters are Lupe, the teenage niece of the policeman investigating the case and the cousin of one of the victims, and Javier, one of the boys who was in the gang but has cleaned up his act.
I very much enjoyed the tone and atmosphere of this book. I thought the plot was paced well and I was intrigued by the story as more and more details unfolded. Some of the characters were developed brilliantly and that helped propel the plot forwards. I did however struggle to keep track of several of the characters, and I'm not sure if this was due to my unfamiliarity with Puerto Rican names or whether this was because several members of the gang blended together. I'm inclined to go with the latter since it was specifically the boys I kept mixing up and I thought Lupe's interactions with a couple of them were very similar at the start.
The overall mystery was interesting enough to keep me reading, although I feel like the solution was revealed very early on which was a bit of a shame. There's not a lot of possibilities for what could be going on and it becomes pretty easy to work it out. The story is strong enough without the mystery though to still be an engaging read, although I would have liked more of both the mystery and monster aspect to be played up.
Overall, I did really like this book and I recommend checking it out if you like the sound of the blurb. It executes the concept it promises well and it has a wonderful setting which is described in a lot of loving detail with a lot of expert knowledge. I liked being introduced to mythology I had never heard about before and this was a refreshing and enjoyable read.
Overall Rating: 3.5/5

YA Puerto Rican horror novel about El Cuco???
SOLD.
My students are obsessed with the hispanic legends I tell them about, but especially El Cucuy. Sure, La Llorona is great, and everyone knows about the Chupacabra, but when they learn about Cucuy, they're like, whoa, THAT is freaky.
So was this book.
This was a fantastic mix of Puerto Rican culture and don't-read-at-night horror. Once things really got started, I could not put this book down. I was into the story, the characters, the redemption and retribution, and, most importantly, the food.
My husband will be quite pleased that he gets to have arroz con pollo and chicharrones de pollo this week...

I thoroughly enjoyed this fast paced supernatural thriller set over a few days in Puerto Rico. An American teenager (who has a Puerto Rican father) visit the island for the summer she gets sucked into a supernatural mystery surrounding the disappearance of her cousin. The horror aspect revolves around the Puerto Rican version of the Boogie Man who is killing teenagers with birthdays whose are very close together. Seen from multiple points of view, the American teenager is a spunky lead character and although the rationale behind the supernatural story was a bit weak I think lots of teenagers would enjoy this book.

When "Gringarican" Lupe goes to visit her police chief tio in San Juan for the first time by herself, she is thrilled to be up close and personal with a real life, presumably drug-related murder scene. Except, there's things about this murder that seem a little supernatural, and her uncle isn't too fond of her snooping around on her own. But when Lupe fears her own cousin could be next, she teams up with neighborhood cutie and recovering addict Javier to find out what's really going on.
This was an enjoyable mix of Puerto Rican scenery, urban legend, and romance, but was somewhat corny.

As a Librarian with a large population of students from or their family from Puerto Rico, I was thrilled to find a book for teens that has takes place in Puerto Rico and has teens that are Puerto Rican. Five Midnights is an exciting run around Puerto Rico with super-natural beings, drug pushers and teens trying to solve a mystery. I think my students will absolutely love this book.