disappointing. and this is coming from a person who loved the first part.

i liked aristotle's development and how there was more description in this part and more complex sentences. because they were younger in the first book and couldn't find their words, but once they grew up they could express themselves more easily. but this no-plot thing made the chapters a complete mess, i think. everything happened so fast, i didn't even have time to enjoy the moments.

it could have been written much better.

beautiful. the writing the story the message, everything about this book is so beautiful

this is not just a queer romance book, this is a whole trip inside someone's mind, and this someone is a queer teenager that is becoming a man. this book is about the issues that a lot of gay people have during their life, mostly during their adolescence and when they find out their sexuality this book is about all the issues of '80 society but mostly about the issues of OUR CURRENT society

I still like the first book more. There are many lessons one can learn from this book but I agree with other reviews where some metaphors and dialogue feels so forced.

BENJAMIN ALIRE SÁENZ I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU FOR THE LAST 40% OF THIS BOOK. YOU WILL NOT BE SEEING HEAVEN FOR YOUR CRIMES.

“Between the living and the dying is the loving.”

Wow. This book. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

There’s so much more in this book than there was in the first one. I didn’t know why I stopped reading this when I was so close to the end, but reading it from the beginning again was definitely the best thing I could have done.

I think I stopped reading because I didn’t want it to end. 🥹

This book deals with so much, and the message is so powerful. There’s so much hate in this world, and this story serves as a powerful reminder that we are all human—and if we just loved each other a little more, this world would be a much kinder, better place. ❤️

“No one asks to be born. And no one wants to die. We don't bring ourselves into the world, and when it's time for us to leave, the decision will not be ours to make. But what we do with the time in between the day we are born and the day we die, that is what constitutes a human life. You will have to make choices—and those choices will map out the shape and course of your life. We are all cartographers—all of us. We all want to write our names on the map of the world.”

0-1 I realize that writing a book or creating art in any form must take a lot, which is what makes me rarely hate a book as intensely I did this one. Finishing this one has put my enjoyment of the first book in serious doubt. It's good for books to let loose and not have a tight narrative and, in fact, I actively seek ones written in that manner. This one however, is not only way too long, it has almost no sense of time or order. It introduces new plotlines in an insanely cheap manner. Things seem to happen just because the author wants one of the characters to let loose a corny 2 page long monologue on some important social issue that they seem to be going through on a list. Nothing will be left out but nothing important will be said either. None of it has any bearing on the story. Our main character would ponder over the idea for a page or two, throw it away to pursue another one before returning to it again, all of it done in the service of delivering good dialogues on a social issue with no other affect whatsoever. I wouldn't say there isn't good writing here. There's actually a lot. What's wrong is it's delivered solely for the purpose of being printed inside the book and the characters and events have to adjust to make way for that beautiful quote alone. The characters who actually speak them have personalities as developed as that of a stick figure. The effect? I cannot seem to care about any of these pretty passages. You will be force-fed the metaphor of "diving into the waters of the world" and "mapping out your own world" so many times that at some point even rolling your eyes would feel redundant. I expect some saccharine, unrealistic dialogue. I'd rather read a book or watch a movie that doesn't have any, but I still expect to find some before going in a book. The dialogues here though, look like they're written by someone who has watched nothing but soap operas and television commercials. All of the side characters speak the full name of the protagonist in a cloying manner at some point to gush over how quirky and different he is acting. The love interest's family starts performing as if they are in a play as soon as he steps into their house. The side characters who did not exist until then magically appear to drive the point home that the protagonist used to be such a loner and that he has changed so much. Everywhere this guy goes, he seems to meet another gay person (or someone who knows a gay person), which again allows the writer to switch off everything else and launch an elaborately written passage about the issue. I could not care less.

good god...

4.5 stars

I feel like a part of me is missing now that i finished this book. this book is sad, not as sad as the first book, but it’s still very sad. the way Ari couldn’t be out and proud about being gay. the homophobic comments made by his classmates and his own brother, and what it did to him and Dante just starting their adult lives. I still prefer the first book than this. If you loved the first book, you should definitely read this, as it explores heavier topics.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe did not need a sequel, but somehow this was the perfect follow up. Sáenz has a way of writing that feels incredibly real. Reading this felt like simply watching a boy’s life play out, rather than following a strict plot, and that sounds like it shouldn’t be a good thing, but it was oddly beautiful.  The ending was pretty cheesy in my opinion, but it didn’t ruin the rest of the book for me. It was great seeing Ari’s evolution and him forming stronger connections to his parents and friends. This book gave closure for a lot of unanswered questions from the first book. Like I said, it didn’t need a sequel, and those questions didn’t necessarily need answers, but if was still great to have them. Reading this really felt like the story had already finished and now I was just seeing the aftermath.  Despite having both their names in the title, this book is about Ari. Dante was really the worst part to me. This book was about Ari using the lessons he learned in the first book to live his life in a brighter way. This was a book where the morals have already been told, and it’s just a matter of the character implementing them now. There’s something comforting about seeing a character continue learning and growing after the initial plot has already come to a close. Like I said before, this felt less like reading a book and more like getting a glance into a person’s life. Not every book can accomplish making a reader feel that way.

the writing is too good omg

2.5 :(

It was a good book! I didn’t like it as much as I liked the first book but it was definitely good and it had some great life lessons!

i think i had too much expectation for this book, and i think it actually exceeded it but at the same time… it doesn’t? i like it. the younng love remains fresh, and more relatable than ever. i also noticed how they tackled a lot of serious issues tooooo which i understand why they do that but i don’t see myself intrigued with that /that/ much. i guess it kinda irks me. but overall, my aridante remains the same.. the kind.. loving.. youthful.. and tender aridante. i love it i love it i love it. i cried at the end because their love, their journey, is indeed worth fighting for. and i am glad they get to map the city of love, with their love.

I feel that the first book was perfect and didn't need a sequel but I enjoyed reading this very much, I'm thankful that I was able to get to know better these characters I love. This book made me feel a lot of emotions, Thank you Benjamín for these beautiful words that now live in my heart.

No words. Just going to sit with this feeling and carry Ari and Dante in my heart forever.

Aku sayang aridante

i don't know what happened. i couldn't believe it ended that way. i hate to admit this but i really feel disenchanted with saenz's writing and the sequel altogether. i was at first enthused about ari and dante, but now, finishing the story—i don't know what to make of it. i had a number of things to disagree upon, one of which was saenz writing bernardo as a lost cause. i honestly didn't know what this achieved, it looked really bad for me—it kind of delivers the idea that people are incorrigible, one-dimensional, as if someone's transgressions define who they are. ari's parents inventing this concept about bernardo is personally disappointing and so wrong. i didn't really like how saenz made him look. i also wished the aids thing were more subtly told because the book frankly seemed like an AIDS campaign, i love this for the gays but book-wise, i wish it could've been written more creatively. i don't know if i read this at a bad time in my life, but it just didn't slay. i do not like this review but it is what it is. (i still like ari and dante though, and some parts of the sequel, but largely i didn't like the story as much as i wanted to)

4/5. kurang tau kenapa tapi lebih suka yang pertama. di buku kedua ini, baca beberapa chapter dari bagian pertama sedikit merasa bosan. ditengah-tengah juga alurnya sedikit lambat, dan pada bagian akhir saya merasa semuanya seperti teburu-buru. tapi untuk cerita dan isi buku tetap menarik, sama seperit buku pertamanya. mereka menyelami air yang ada di bumi, menurut saya menggambarkan tentang hal-hal terburuk apa saja yang bisa mereka alami. dan apakah mereka memilih naik ke permukaan bersama-sama atau tetap tinggal di dasar. ada banyak hal yang menyentuh dan bisa jadi sarana merefleksikan diri. not that bad tho i still like it :3

It is immensely captivating. Benjamin Alire Sáenz has created one of the most beautifully written characters ever. Some parts of this book were a little slow for me, but I still adored it. I loved how we got to see these characters evolve and find themselves. We got to see other sides of them; creative sides, maybe even more mature sides. We explored their pain, love, yearning and growth.

OKAY! So here’s the thing. I love Ari and Dante but was this book necessary? No. It ruined my perfect satisfied feelings of Ari and Dante’s relationship and just left me with bad feelings overall. The plot was boring. I had the hardest time finishing this book. If it wasn’t for my book date with ARLINE I wouldn’t have finished it at all. Maybe is it because I read it during my finals and directed all my bad energy towards it? Maybe? But maybe it just made my bad energy WORSE. Either way going to forget this book existed and focus on the first one. The only reason it has two stars is because of my love for Ari and Dante.

this book truly surprised me with how much more it had to offer than i ever thought it would have. it truly taught me about love, friendship and loss. the most important thing i took from it is that it's okay to be afraid, even you love someone.

truly a masterpiece and an incredibly sequel to the first book. the characters hurt, love, learn and grow so much. such a real and deep piece of literature, books like this are unfortunately very rare..