This was a really great middle grade read, and I can definitely see it being popular amongst young readers!

I do love a good quest to break a curse so I was very excited to read this one!

I absolutely loved the representation and diversity within the book as well as getting to learn about and explore another culture!

This was a relatively easy and fun read, the pacing was perhaps a bit patchy but I still had a fun time reading!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

Freddie vs. the Family Curse is a fun tale of family, heritage, and luck told with such warmth you can't help but be charmed.

Thanks to NetGalley & Clarion Books for the copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fun, easy read. I liked the side characters more than Freddie, though.

This book was such a fun and exciting middle grade adventure. The Filipino representation is top notch. I loved getting a peek into Filipino culture and family dynamics and even getting to learn a little history I didn’t know. The characters are great, the curse is fun, and there’s even some dancing. Overall I loved this book and had so much fun chatting with Tracy about it!

Check out my interview with author Tracy Badua!
https://anchor.fm/whatangelareads/episodes/Episode-23---Tracy-Badua-Freddie-vs-the-Family-Curse-JR-EDITION-e1jubse

Freddie Ruiz has a huge problem, his family has a curse. The curse is ruining his life! With the help of an unlikely partner, Freddie will try to release himself and his family from this curse. Badua transports the reader into Freddie's life and the mystery to break the family curse. Freddie is every bullied and clumsy kid that thought they were cursed with misfortune. The intergenerational history was very well done and brought different point of views into the plot, making it more impactful.

Freddie vs. the Family Curse is a relatable tale of trying to fit in during your middle school years but also adding a family curse to being in middle school is a whole other level of hard. Freddie tries to remove himself of every scenario where his curse could cause him embarrassment but when he finds an amulet with a trapped relative inside he has to stop the curse or he will also become trapped. Freddie learns some really great lesson about life, luck and what family is along the way in this adventure. I think many 4th-7th grade readers will enjoy this story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Freddie Vs the Family Curse by Tracy Badua is a sheer delight to my inner child and to my own maternal heart. 13 may be a countdown to Freddie’s demise, but here are 13 reasons why I love this book and found it very relatable to my own upbringing:
1. The main characters are not only Filipino, but also Ilocano, which I’ve rarely seen represented in literature, let alone middle grade fantasy.
2. Freddie lives in a multigenerational household, and his cousin lives next door.
3. Many characteristics contribute to a diasporic representation. For one, Freddie doesn’t speak the language.
4. Number 13 and just superstitions in general are tackled within the storyline. One Christmas Eve, one of our relatives, not wanting to risk a death in the family, left the family gathering when we discovered 13 members were present.
5. The parental siblings compare their children, but the cousins remain built-in friends.
6. Teleserye is a daily staple. This is a sacred time, don’t mess with it.
7. Vegas road trip! Of course there’s a little gambling. Curse be damned!
8. Descriptions are not reserved for just people of color.
9. Filipino customs of respecting elders and the accompanying gesture are present in the story.
10. Interwoven Filipino history/ancestry is handled with care and sensitivity.
11. A certain beloved bookstagrammer is mentioned in the acknowledgements that just warmed my heart to see.
12. Boxers! And just the humor in general had me grinning from ear to ear throughout.
13. Chapter 13 is perfection! The audio by Edward A. Mendoza was well done!

This was such a delight and I was so happy to read an ARC! FREDDIE VS THE FAMILY CURSE is fun, exciting, and full of heart. It explores family and luck in such a poignant and charming way, and nails that very specific middle school feeling of trying to figure out where exactly you fit in. Badua’s writing draws the narrative together in an engaging and compulsively readable way, and Freddie’s voice jumps off the page. I can’t wait for FREDDIE to charm reader’s hearts the way it charmed mine!

Love this book! It's compelling and magical, and so so funny! Kids will love it. They will root for Freddie on his journey to improving his luck and understanding his family's past. There is so much humor and heart in this story. The blend of Filipino culture, ghosts, and humor make this a very entertaining book. I definitely am going to let my 11 year old and 8-year-old read this book.

CW/TW: mentions of death, mentions of war, micro-aggressions
Rep: Filipino/AAPI

You know how I wax lyrical but LISTEN WHEN I SAY: it is PRICELESS (I repeat, PRICELESS) to feel seen, to be seen, in a work of contemporary fiction (I've given up with 'being seen' in 'classics'). In addition to several laugh-out-loud moments, thanks to Badua's amazing wit (more of that later), Freddie vs. The Family Curse is a delightful adventure focusing on middle-schooler Freddie Ruiz, who has been *cursed* by a family talisman. Tl;dr, he'll die in just under two weeks if he doesn't return the talisman to its rightful owner - all in a day's work of being a tween! Along for the ride is a cast of well-rounded complementary characters - my favorite of which is Apong Rosie, whose combination of tough love and unapologetic superstition achingly reminded me of my grandmother, mother, and aunts.

Badua's storytelling is engaging, and she has a flair for capturing the awkwardness and insecurities that come with being in middle school. From age-relevant interests (Robo-warrior, anyone?), heart-warming Filipino food, and a deceased ancestor in ghost form following him around, Freddie is the reluctant hero you will root for all the way to the end. In between the uplifting repartee, Badua also weaves in historical facts - the Philippine-American War - and subtly addresses micro-agressions faced by Filipino-Americans, who until today, have one foot in either culture. Highly recommended read, regardless of your age, and especially if you are Pinoy!

Thank you to Tracy Badua, Clarion Books and BooksForwardPR for a #gifted proof in exchange for an honest review.

I received an advance reader copy of this book from the publisher through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

Freddie vs. the Family Curse is Tracy Badua’s debut novel. Targeted towards middle grade readers, it features main character Freddie Ruiz, a Filipino American who lives in San Diego with and/or near several members of his extended family. Freddie is convinced that someone has cursed the entire Ruiz family with bad luck, with Freddie having the worst luck of all.


As the story progresses, Freddie discovers the source of the curse on his family and how he can reverse it, but he must act quickly or else he will become it’s latest casualty. This is ultimately a story about personal growth by stepping outside of your comfort zone, and it’s nice to watch Freddie as he works this out for himself. It’s also a story about forgiveness and family loyalty.

I gave Freddie vs. the Family Curse five stars on Goodreads. I recommend it for all young readers, and for older readers who enjoy children’s books. I’ll be keeping an eye open for the author’s next book.

An excellent adventure story for fans of modern twists on folktales or stories by Rick Riordan. This one builds on Filipino folklore about the power of curses and amulets. Freddie is always tripping, spilling, hurting himself, or generally messing up...all because of a family curse. When he gets a chance to break the curse, it's also a chance to be the person he wants to be. Charming characters and a fast-paced plot make this book a winner!

Tracy Badua did a great job with this middle-grade novel. I love that she included Filipino culture and history while Freddie was trying to remove the family curse. I definitely learned some history while reading this book, which is awesome.

I loved the family dynamics between Apong Rosing and Ramon, Freddie and Sharkey, and Freddie and his parents.

Looking forward to reading more books from Tracy in the future.

I read this middle-grade book in one sitting on a flight from Florida back to San Diego. In the hour that I read this book, I went from feeling tired, cranky and depressed, to exhilarated, entertained, and joyful. Yes, that’s how awesome this story way and I loved every minute of it.

There’s this scene that I remember vividly: Freddie does this dance and farts and I had just taken a sip of my drink and pretty much snorted it out into my mask.

Freddie vs. The Family Curse is a fun adventure book that is at once fresh yet reminiscent of the fun, adventures book I used to read as a kid –except of course, now I get to see characters who look like me because there is Filipino representation in the book!

Freddie finds a cursed anting-anting (I’ll let you look up the translation) and has to race the clock to beat this curse or else…gulp!

I love how the author peppers the book with not just culture, but important facts from Filipino-American history. The writing is crisp, the characters are vivid, and the story is a such a exhilarating ride. My only criticism is that it was too short!!

I totally envision this as a series with Freddie “versus-ing” something in each of the books…but it’s a stand-alone (Tracy! Think about it!)

I highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone of all ages.

Thank you to @clarionbooks @netgalley for the #ARC!

Freddie is cursed. It's a family inheritance. Anytime he tries to do anything, his bad luck screws him up somehow. He's "Faceplant Freddie," infamous since second grade for constantly tripping, knocking things (and people) over, and for being the biggest klutz ever. 

When Freddie finds an anting-anting in his garage and accidentally activates it, the Filipino good luck charm turns out to be quite the opposite. The old charm comes together with a ghost of his great uncle Ramon, the very one who'd brought the family curse upon them. With limited time to spare, and with the curse growing more lethal each day, Freddie, his cousin Sharkie, and Ramon must do all they can to break the curse and save them all.

Freddie's lived in fear of his curse all his life, unlike his neighbor/best friend/cousin, Sharkie, who is an awesome dancer and a very popular girl. Freddie has always been too scared to try anything new, but with everything going on, Freddie comes to realize that maybe not all the bad things in life are the curse's fault. After all, his family is able to get by with their jobs and their lives, even with all the bad that comes their way. Maybe he does need to take some small risks in life in order to succeed.

Sharkie and Freddie made a great team despite their differences. It was nice to read a boy-girl friendship without any romantic complications. And as bad as Freddie's curse was, the author managed to turn most of them into humorous moments for the reader. The mix of urgency, curses, Filipino-American culture, humor, and teamwork made this a fantastic read for middle grade and older readers.

I really enjoyed this book. Themes of friendship, history, and a multi-generation household warm my heart. The conversations between friends and family members are hilarious. I love Sharkey's smarts and brilliance. I can imagine this turned into a movie, one of those Filipino fantasy movies that I loved watching growing up.

What worked:
As the title indicates, Freddie’s family has been cursed with bad luck for generations. Most of the bad luck is simply annoying, as he runs out of glue while completing a last-minute project, breaks a printer, arrives late to class, and trips and falls flat on his face. Freddie thinks his luck may change when he finds an amulet hidden away in the garage, but the opposite is true. He activates a family curse and now has thirteen days before he dies unless he can figure out a way to stop the countdown. The story will keep readers guessing since bad luck can pop up at any time.
The amulet contains the spirit of Freddie’s great-granduncle, Ramon, and he behaves like many friendly ghosts found in other stories. He died during WW II in the Philippines and hasn’t interacted with the living for many years. He understands enough of the modern world to misinterpret situations and add humor to the book. He spends much of his time teasing Freddie before switching around to instill him with hope. Freddie’s unfortunate accidents beg the question of is this bad luck, or is it the ups and downs of everybody’s lives?
The plot becomes a mystery, as Freddie and his cousin Sharkey try to figure out a way to end the curse. Ramon is able to share some Filipino history and culture, and he finally reveals a secret that will be very helpful in Freddie’s search. Sharkey is a star on a competitive dance team, and it seems to be an unimportant side story. However, a regional tournament is coming up, and it becomes a catalyst for resolving the family jinx. It’s an unexpected twist to a middle-grade ghost mystery.
What didn’t work as well:
The imminence of Freddie’s death creates tension as the thirteen days go by, but not knowing the cause of his death leaves the foreshadowing vague. The evil spirits aren’t characters in the story, so it’s more difficult to see them as threats. Of course, it’s impossible to guess future bad luck, but having a tangible danger to consider might increase the suspense.
The Final Verdict:
Life is full of good and bad. The blend of Filipino culture, ghosts, and humor make this a very entertaining book. The countdown of the curse makes the story suspenseful while the climax brings the events to a happy ending. I recommend you give this book a shot.

Funny and engaging. There's a great mix of Filipino folklore, humor, and family. Definitely a good recommendation to the Rick Riordan fans and those who liked Sal and Gabi Break the Universe.