Thank you to Netgalley and Tantor Audio for giving me an early copy of this audiobook! All opinions are my own!

This book immediately sucked me in, and it didn't let me back out until I was done! From the very first chapter, I was so intrigued and absolutely needed to know more about the mystery and what was about to happen. The way that the world was introduced left you hanging but gave you just enough information that it felt you were discovering it right along with Raquel.

The creepy factor of this book was through the roof, and I adored it! The Echo was described so well that it felt like I was in it right beside of the characters. There were several times my heart rate went up just because that was how good the descriptions were! I loved listening to this audiobook and I loved the way it really drags you into the Echo whether you wanted to try the challenge or not.

And the diversity of this book was absolutely beautiful. Raquel herself is full of diversity and culture, and I absolutely loved learning about her and the way she viewed her world. There was so much about the strength of marginalized communities and it was so beautiful to read that and be able to learn and feel such a kinship with these characters.

If you're a horror fan, you will not want to miss this!!

A thriller that will hook you from the start. The narrator has a pleasant voice. Lots of characters to keep track of, but the story sucks you in. I’m recommending this little gem to my students.

This is such a great book! The characters all feel very real, much more than the usual YA book. The plot draws you in from the start and keeps you hooked. I also learned about the history of the Bronx, and had a lot of fun doing it.

I enjoyed this book. It was spooky and atmospheric and gave me the heebies. It really did channel Stranger Things and I loved that!

The reason I am only giving a 3 star is that I felt like I got bored halfway through. It seemed like a lot of repetition and some parts dragged on.

Rep: Black sapphic mc, Black sapphic li, mc with asthma, Black side characters

Rating 3.5

I didn’t know much about this book going into it aside from it being a queer thriller, so I didn’t have many expectations.

This book had a good balance of horror and funny and light moments. Some scenes are gory, but it was never too much. I liked the historical aspect of the Bronx and how they tied it in with the current day Bronx. It was interesting to learn about the history part of it. It explores racism and social issues.

I really liked the concept, playing a game that takes you back in time, into the Echo. And the whole historical aspect as well.

I wish we got to explore Raquel and Charlize’s relationship a bit more. But she was absent for a big part of the book.

The narrator did a good job.

Overall, a pretty decent read.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an audio ARC of this book.

First I would like to say thank you for the opportunity to listen to Burn Down Rise Up by Vincent Tirado. What stood out for me what the gorgeous cover. I was also intrigued by the premise of the story, however what fell flat for me what the narrator. Her voice seemed liked she need to clear her throat at any moment. Because I could not get passed the voice I ended up DNFING it . I may pick this book back up once my library has it available, however unfortunately the narration ruined it for me.

Burn Down, Rise Up by Vincent Tira
Narrated by Julienne Irons

Pub date: May 3, 2022

Mystery & Thrillers | Sci Fi & Fantasy | Teens & YA

Thank you to @netgalley for this Audiobook in exchange for an home review!

Thoughts: this was a good book! It's a cool YA that is a thriller mixed with the horrors of gentrification in the Bronx.  I absolutely loved the main characters. The audio book definitely brought everything to life as well. I liked the changes in tone and actual acting by the narrator. I think she did a fantastic job! This monster hunting story definitely had me listening at a fast pace and I finished a relatively quickly for a YA.  If you are a fan of YA you will enjoy this the most.

Four and a half stars rounded up!
Thank you to NetGalley for advanced audiobook!!
I really loved this book and can’t wait to recommend it to people. It had everything - zombies, time travel, social justice, history, gays - I couldn’t put it down! It was an original and super creative story with likable characters that I found easy to connect with and care about. This book would lend itself well to kicking off a series of people around the world playing their Echo games and I would 100% read every single one of them.

I'm not an American history buff (because I'm not American so I honestly don't care about it lol) and know even less about a single neighbourhood in one American city, but I found myself really interested in the history of the Bronx that Tirado presented. Is it the real history of the place? I don't know... and don't care enough to do my own research but I wouldn't be surprised if it were.
The Echo is a really interesting concept but I really wish we got more creeps throughout this book. The first time Raquel and Charlize venture into the Echo was so marvelously creepy it got me feeling really uneasy myself. Other than that though I didn't get that creeped-out feeling back.
I'm always apprehensive when men write women in romantic relationship, especially women in relationships with each other, due to their... less than stellar track record with fetishizing us. Tirado thankfully didn't do that and Raquel and Charlize's relationship was quite sweet and not over-the-top in typical male-author fashion. This book checks my box for good representation!

Burn Down, Rise Up is an interesting YA sci-fi thriller with a paranormal twist. The description "Stranger Things meets Jordan Peele '' absolutely matches how I felt about it. I felt like the characters and the way they are written definitely fell more into the Peele category while the mystery that surrounds the Echo Game totally falls in line with the Stranger Things vibe.

The audiobook version of Burn Down, Rise Up is enjoyable, well-paced, and matches the atmosphere of the characters and overall story. My favorite thing about this story is that it leaves you thinking about the lasting effects that trauma can have on a community. It would be interesting to learn about how the Echo would vary in other parts of the world.

Warning: There are some brief descriptions of violence, unflattering outlooks on drug users, and unpleasant/violent descriptions of the appearances of some characters/creatures due to the effects of the Echo Game that may be slightly upsetting to some.

I LOVED this book. It was marketed as Stranger Things meets Get Out but I felt like it had more Candyman (2021) vibes than Get Out, though I think it's a mix of all three plus a bit of Orpheus and Eurydice for the modern age. I loved how much reading this felt like being in the Bronx and how realistic the setting was (not surprising from a Bronx native). I love that this mixed paranormal suspense with real life events and the intersection of that with racism/environmental racism. The storyline was clear and easy to follow while keeping you invested in the mystery and suspense, and all of my questions were answered by the end. It all tied in neatly and was really well done!
The narrator was great as well and I highly recommend the audiobook!

What initially drew me to this book was the cover and tagline in the description. I liked the colorful imagery of a strong young black teen with braids, a baseball bat & large monstrous claws lurking in the background. One of the taglines said Stranger Things meet Jordan Peele, I agree with Stranger Things but not as much the Jordan Peele aspect. I really enjoyed this audiobook, it is a sci-fi thriller with a history lesson added. The story is set in present day but it is deep rooted in the Bronx burnings of the 1970’s. Which shamefully I had never heard of before but this did prompt me to do some research on it myself.

Creepy and Violent this book is a fast paced read that will leave you wondering how the trauma of the past is affecting the unseen around you. Raquel lives in the Bronx with her Mami until her mother is infected with a mysterious illness at the same time that her childhood best friend's cousin, Francisco, goes missing. Raquel soon find that not only are the two linked but they result from Francisco having played a new urban legend challenge. Learning more about this new challenge means learning more about some of the painful parts of the Bronx's past.

I sadly didn't love this book as much as I thought I would. The premise sounded like something I would enjoy but it just wasn't for me. I listened to a few hours of it and just didn't care what happened to the characters. I thought the writing was alright.

This is a unique addition to the horror genre with just the right amount of supernatural mixed in. Hand this to older teen horror fans, they wont be disappointed!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this wonderful YA horror story!

I really enjoyed this book. It was a love letter to the Bronx and really did what “When No One Is Watching” wanted to do but somehow couldn’t. It combined current political and social issues with a fascinating plot that had me on the edge of my seat. The representation was amazing and I loved the characters so so much!

The plot itself was done a lot of times: a game turns into something more wicked and deadly, a group of people solves the mystery and so on, but the author managed to give it a completely new twist by including the history of the Bronx. I really loved to read about it, especially as someone who never visited NYC at all.

The love story was wholesome and cute, I rooted for the two sooo much and loved how we got a happy ending despite everything. Sure, I would’ve loved it to be a little more horror-ish and creepy but I’m satisfied with it either way.

If you’re into YA you should definitely check out this sapphic story!

First of all I want to thank Netgalley and Tantor Audio for giving me the chance to listen to the Burn Down, Rise Up audiobook. I don’t often come across a Young Adult Horror novel that I really want to read but this one immediately caught my eye. It is set in the Bronx, a setting you rarely see in any book for that matter, which was definitely a selling point for me. But it is also laced with plenty of interesting history and complex characters. It is really faced-paced, a read-in-one-sitting kind of story!

Burn Down, Rise Up also somehow reminded me of the 2011 movie Attack The Block. If anyone still remembers that one? I will say that I did notice throughout the story that it felt like it was written for younger YA readers, even though the characters are 16-17. This is just my observation though, and does not at all affect the plot of the story. Raquel and Charlize’s relationship felt a little underdeveloped to me but I still enjoyed reading about their romance blossoming nevertheless! Raquel is a likeable heroine and main character too. I even liked the side characters. Well done!

An excellent debut and I hope that we can except more of Tirado’s work soon!

DNF this book. The writing, premise, and characters were all good. I just can't deal with body horror and no warning, that's just my line with horror/suspense/paranormal. Mold growing out of someone's body is a hard pass for me, I'm so sorry.

Advanced Reader’s Copy provided by NetGalley and Tantor Audio in exchange for an honest review.

This was an interesting urban sci-fi/ode to the history of the Bronx. Centering around a global urban legend called the Echo Game, Tirado's YA debut mixes the history of the Bronx with a story out of a similar vein as Stranger Things. Sixteen-year-old Raquel and her friends end up facing the urban legend head on as they try to save their friends, Raquel's mom, and the Bronx from something that is causing people to go missing.

I loved the concept and thought the "bad guy" fit perfectly within the story. The connections between Raquel's life and that within the echo were perfect and added another level to the story.

Julienne Irons does a solid job with the audiobook. This was a great debut and I'm looking forward to seeing what Tirado has in store for readers next.

If you love horror books and a nod to the Bronx this is the one for you!

Such a great sapphic friends to lovers story with all the twists and turns of a spooky mystery. This is a very fast read. Representation and a great plot make for a book I look forward to recommending to others!☺️