Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls

Written by Kaela Rivera

Narrated by Almarie Guerra

When a powerful desert spirit kidnaps her sister, Cece Rios must learn forbidden magic to get her back, in this own voices middle grade fantasy perfect for fans of The Storm Runner and Aru Shah and the End of Time. 

Living in the remote town of Tierra del Sol is dangerous, especially in the criatura months, when powerful spirits roam the desert and threaten humankind. But Cecelia Rios has always believed there was more to the criaturas, much to her family’s disapproval. After all, only brujas—humans who capture and control criaturas—consort with the spirits, and brujeria is a terrible crime.

When her older sister, Juana, is kidnapped by El Sombrerón, a powerful dark criatura, Cece is determined to bring Juana back. To get into Devil’s Alley, though, she’ll have to become a bruja herself—while hiding her quest from her parents, her town, and the other brujas. Thankfully, the legendary criatura Coyote has a soft spot for humans and agrees to help her on her journey.

With him at her side, Cece sets out to reunite her family—and maybe even change what it means to be a bruja along the way.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Apr 13, 2021
• ISBN: 9780063059283

Kaela Rivera

Kaela Rivera was raised to believe in will-o’-the-wisps and el chupacabra, but even scary stories couldn’t stop her from reading in the isolated treetops, caves, and creeks of Tennessee’s Appalachian forests. She still believes in the folktales of her Mexican-American and British parents, but now she writes about them from the adventure-filled mountains of the Wild West. When she’s not crafting stories, she’s using her English degree from BYU-I as an editor for a marketing company (or secretly doodling her characters in the margins of her notebook). Her biggest hope is to highlight and explore the beauty of cultural differences—and how sharing those differences can bring us all closer.

Reviews for Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls

[jennybeast · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I love how this book is solidly grounded in traditional tales and yet is an absolutely fresh imagining. The world building and magical systems are interesting and relatively solid. The relationships are supportive, if a bit superficial. On the whole, I enjoyed reading it -- here are the bits that bugged me: (would they bug a middle grade reader? I don't know)What is Cece supposed to be doing all day? She seems very much at loose ends, while her parents are out working the fields and helping with hunting parties. It makes it easy for her to sneak around and get her bruja-self together, but it's also a bit confusing. There's a certain inconsistency in the space that the family and town and magical shenanigans occupy -- there doesn't seem much to keep Cece from going out and rambling around without being caught, but she also just gets magically carried around a lot.I thought it was kind of brilliant for the Bruja fights to resemble Pokémon battles, but I also felt like the "death" situation was unclear -- the criaturas only need to be knocked out to be eliminated, but the desert rises up to consume them regardless of whether it's injury or the type of death that causes their soul stone to be marked.Why on earth doesn't she free her familiars at the end? If she's such a caring Curandera, surely they could choose to help her without being tied to her by their soul stones. It was an off note in an otherwise solid message of how not to a be a jerk when you have power over someone. They help her, but they don't receive the reward of debts paid. 5 stars for world building and imagination, 2 stars for plot holes and questions that seem to be answered by "because". I didn't think the fire and water soul stuff worked very well. I wanted more actual interactions/resolutions with her family. I like the creature crew and some of their conversations, but there were too many things left unresolved and mysteries left hanging.

[acargile-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This novel is a 2022 Lone Star selection.Cece lives in a desert town, Tierra del Sol, a descendant of the sun god. Cece, however, seems to be more water than sun because of an encounter with some creaturas when she was younger. Cece, unlike the other people in her town, refuses to live by hate and superstition. She lives by following her heart. The criaturas must be fought off by a dance that girl's train for. Cece's sister, Juana, dances the dance. However, when Cece runs off, Juana comes after her and is kidnapped by El Sombrerón, a powerful dark criatura. No one returns when taken by him. Cece determines that she WILL rescue her sister. To rescue her, Cece will have to train to be a bruja, someone who practices the dark arts and lives in Devil's Alley. To become a bruja, one must shave one's head and participate in fights. To participate, one must have a criatura who lives under your influence. Cece asks the Great Namer, Coyote, to be her criatura. Cece must rescue her sister. She and Coyote must participate in multiple fights. Upon winning, she will join the other dark brujas and live in Devil's Alley. She can't, however, tell her mother or father. Cece's maternal aunt became a bruja and Cece's mother has never recovered from the betrayal. Cece's mom absolutely will not support Cece and her father is abusive, so Cece is truly on her own. She holds innate knowledge that her parents cannot access because of their own paths in life. Cece shows abilities unlike any bruja before her. Still, can she save Juana from one of the strongest and darkest criaturas.I ended up enjoying the journey this novel took me. Cece shows grace under pressure and the ability to tap into courage she doesn't know she possesses. One of her most important traits is one of kindness. Perhaps light can vanquish the dark?

[sylliu_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls is an engaging, adventurous, and heartfelt story about a girl who lives in a village haunted by fear and traditions—they must fight brujas (witches) who steal souls, and criaturas (creatures) and dark spirits that prey on the people. When 12-year old Cece accidentally gets her older sister stolen by El Sombrerón, she decides to fight fire with fire and become a bruja to rescue her sister. She has to learn how to control the souls of criaturas and win bruja fights, but something in her rebels against the requisite cruelty. Using compassion and love, Cece befriends and allies herself with an unlikely group of criaturas, including the original Coyote, Namer of beings. With their help and her unique magic, she must find a way to defeat her enemies without losing her own soul.I loved how this story wove in Mexican myths, but even more, how Cece repeatedly found just the right and satisfying twist to solve each problem she faced. Her friendship with the criaturas and her relationship with her family were also so well-written. A thoroughly engrossing book that will fly off the shelves.