7 Reasons You’ll Fall in Love With Blanca & Roja

1. You love magical realism, a subgenre of speculative fiction typically associated with Latin American authors. The term was first used to refer to art and to differentiate it from surrealism. Adopted in the late 1940s by Venezuelan writer Arturo Uslar-Pietri, the genre’s roots have since expanded to English literature. But, you might ask, what is it? This definition requires more than a paragraph. In short, magical realism presents magical and supernatural occurrences in a “real” world setting, and yet it’s still separate from paranormal and urban fantasy. The magic of Blanca & Roja lies in the premise itself—two sisters, one of them fated to become a swan. Two other neighborhood boys who are, quite literally, taken by the woods. But the strongest magic is, of course, the words McLemore weaves. 
2. You love sister dynamics. There is no good girl/bad girl trope employed here: each sister has a fierce and defiant personality. Like all sisters, they clash and fight. But their love for each other is unbreakable, even when things get dark.
3. You want to read about Soft Boys™. Yearling comes from a wealthy family in town, but he suffers physical and emotional abuse, and Page is a trans boy from a family of apple pickers. They’re unable to fit in the roles created for them by toxic masculinity, and both become part of the woods.
4. You love fairy tale retellings. Blanca & Roja combines elements of classic fairy tale “Snow White and Rose Red,” known in Spanish as Blanca Nieves y Rosa Roja and centering on two sisters who save the life of a prince disguised as a bear, and Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, based on a German fairy tale about a curse that can only be broken by a man who promises to love the swan princess for all time. McLemore twists these inspirations for a modern, powerful result.
5. You want slow burn writing. Once you start reading McLemore’s writing, you are instantly transported into a world that manages to be both beautiful and harsh in its truths. Read it for gems like this one: “In the wisp of blood and not-yet-breath that was Blanca before she was born, there were already the beginnings of how her hair would grow as gold as October leaves.” You will sink into this prose.
6. You love complex families. From a strong-willed mother to aunts who give well-meaning but bad advice, to a father with a soft heart, the del Cisne family offers a glimpse at the complicated relationships in some Latinx families. We can’t forget Page’s grandmother, who is a badass outcast in the woods, and an unconventional fairy godmother. 
7. You love fate-defying girls. Blanca and Rosa are physically different as night and day. Their family legends say that the swans don’t know which girl they will take, but when Roja tells the story, she believes it will be her. McLemore creates a commentary about the way we see girls: Blanca is sweet, kind and fair. Roja is dark, fiery, and red-haired. The world around them seems to have already decided which girl will be taken. But they share a bond that will push them into doing whatever they must to beat the curse of the swans and defy expectations.
Blanca & Roja hits shelves October 9.