The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera- 4 Stars!

Today's Tea Choice: Charleston Tea Plantation Peachy Peach- A delicious local tea!

Trigger Warnings: apocalyptic scenarios, family death/grief, a very emotional read

Genre: YA science fiction/dystopian

Pages: 320

Summary(goodreads.com):

There lived a girl named Petra Peña, who wanted nothing more than to be a storyteller, like her abuelita.

But Petra's world is ending. Earth has been destroyed by a comet, and only a few hundred scientists and their children – among them Petra and her family – have been chosen to journey to a new planet. They are the ones who must carry on the human race.

Hundreds of years later, Petra wakes to this new planet – and the discovery that she is the only person who remembers Earth. A sinister Collective has taken over the ship during its journey, bent on erasing the sins of humanity's past. They have systematically purged the memories of all aboard – or purged them altogether.

Petra alone now carries the stories of our past, and with them, any hope for our future. Can she make them live again?

My Review:

Hi Everyone!

Thank you for being patient and waiting for this review! It was difficult to write, work, and travel all at once. If you subscribe to my newsletter, you'll see what books are coming up on the blog along with writing tips, updates on my latest projects and Etsy store, and fun musings!

So let's get back to The Last Cuentista. When I first saw the cover, I thought this was going to be something witchy, maybe even magical. I forgot to always read the book description and MAN! This book was emotionally crazy and written well!

What I loved:

Plot: The novel starts in media res with apocalyptic events upon the horizon: Halley's Comet is off course and will destroy the earth. Petra Pena is saying goodbye to her grandmother with a last night together, and her grandmother Lita tells her a folk tale about the fire snake coming home to greet his mother Earth, a way to deal with this intense realization. From this point forward, Petra vows to carry the folklore of her Mexican heritage to the next planet. When her grandmother gives her a necklace with a sun pendant, she tells Petra to look for "her," a sign that Lita will always be with her. This created an instant emotional impact that really struck me.

Petra even reminisces how she let her pet tortoise go into the desert, and this broke my heart. Anytime we think of our beloved pets in dire situations, it causes instant grief and raw emotional reactions. Even though it was difficult to read, I really appreciated Higuera's ability to write with such intensity and brevity.

As they head onto the spaceship that will change the course of human history, Petra and her family are led into these stasis pods, which will keep them alive and asleep for the next 400 years! A group of people called monitors have been assigned to watch over these passengers for multiple generations. But I immediately felt a sense of dread when I realized the kids would be in separate parts of the ship from their parents. There's even a new technology that downloads subjects into their subconscious while they're in a catatonic state. I thought this was an awesome detail that showed technological advancements and further highlighted the science fiction themes!

But just as Petra is about to be sealed in, a riot breaks out and her stasis process is rushed, causing her to witness a terrible mutiny that affects the entire journey. She can hear and has moments of consciousness, which allows her to listen to her monitor as he reads classical stories aloud. Decades later, Petra is still in her stasis pod, but she soon learns an extremist group called The Collective is erasing everyone's minds so they become mindless slaves. It reminded me of The Giver by Lois Lowry.

This was such an emotional plot, but I loved the pacing. Each chapter ended in a great cliffhanger, grasping the reader's attention with each moment! Without giving away any spoilers, I felt the ending was very rushed and wished Higuera explored what happened once they arrived on the new planet. It was a bit of a let-down considering the entire plot was built for that moment.

Imagery/Symbolism: As previously mentioned, the novel begins in media res with an oncoming catastrophe. Petra is spending her last night on Earth with her grandmother Lita, and for an early thirteenth birthday present, she gives her a pendant in the shape of a sun with a black gemstone center. Petra holds it up and sees light reflecting in the dark center. This is an excellent example of both foreshadowing and symbolism despite any challenges Petra may face, there is always light or a positive outcome.

Although this takes place in the near future, society hasn't changed. Despite the fact that Halley's Comet is off course and will strike the planet within hours, only the elite like politicians, millionaires, and expert scientists are allowed to leave on futuristic spaceships that will guide them to a planet over 400 years away! This was another great metaphor on social commentary represented by today's current events.

I don't want to reveal too much on what happens during this epic space journey, but here is a quote from Petra that represents the core concepts of this novel:

What the Collective doesn't understand is that by honoring the past, our ancestors, our cultures-and remembering our mistakes awe become better (Higuera 258).

Characters:  Petra Pena is a young girl on the cusp of becoming a teenager and learning to balance her parents' career wishes with her own dreams. She loves stories and wants to be a storyteller like her grandmother. We get a sense that Petra is mature, creative, and nurturing. However, I wish there were more physical character descriptions since her features are overlooked.

But The Collective's description...

This was ON ANOTHER LEVEL.

They are described as a mutated human species that has evolved with crazy traits like translucent skin and eyes. Their description reminds Petra of ghost shrimp!

Can you imagine THIS as a human being?!

POV:  While I appreciated the first person POV since it allowed for more emotional depth, I found Petra's narrative to be too mature. She is supposed to be thirteen but sounds more like an adult, so some readers around her age may have trouble relating to her.

Setting/Historical Context: The novel takes place in the year 2061, pretty scary considering that's not too far away. The main spaceship is enormous, bigger than an entire city, and they have enough supplies for the monitors and passengers for generations. There's even a gym, lap pool, and a huge garden with LED screens above to show day/night cycles. As the years progress and The Collective makes drastic changes, it was difficult to keep up with the setting details since there's so much intricate detail, but I was still able to picture a majority of the ship.

What Needed Improvement:

I sincerely enjoyed reading this novel despite the emotional gravity and serious undertones. The only aspects that felt a bit off were Petra's mature narration voice and the complex setting. I also wish the ending was described in more detail since the entire plot led up to that moment.

Authors Can Learn:

• How to include emotional depth in a story

• How to include tech and understand its importance in sci-fi lit

• How to include dystopian themes to create an allegory on complex social issues.

Readers Will Love This For:

A fantastic sci-fi space journey that highlights the strength in human differences and the importance of creative culture.

I give this book 4 stars.

Kyla