I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
Teach the Torches to Burn is a delightful queer reimagining of Romeo and Juliet that went in a direction I didn’t quite expect, especially upon initially reading the blurb. I fully expected it to be more optimistic, given the trend these remixes have been taking thus far in revising the source material, but I didn’t know what to expect when it came to central characters or the romance.
While Romeo is still pretty similar to his Shakespearean counterpart, not being overly dynamic, I liked that he had some more layers, being something of an artistic soul. And while the pressure to marry well was solely on Juliet’s shoulders in the original, there’s the question of when Romeo will settle down too…only he doesn’t feel any desire too, as he’s not attracted to girls.
Valentine, to my surprise, is not a 1-to-1 replacement for Juliet, but an original character in his own right. He’s Mercutio’s brother, and that does give him and Romeo some history by association, but their romance does proceed in other respects as quickly as Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet do. The high stakes, from the danger of being a queer young man in a time period that was hostile toward queer people, to the general plot beats resulting from the familial blood feud, present realistic complications for them being together.
The most wonderful surprise was the depiction of Juliet as aroace. It allows her conflict at not wanting to marry Paris to remain intact, while changing the dynamic of her interactions with Romeo in an intriguing way, as both of them (and Friar Laurence, who is also confirmed as aroace) are outsiders in their society.
Apart from the end, which is subverted, I like how Roehrig either recreates or pays homage to all the major plot beats of the original, while also fleshing out the narrative with his own ideas.
This is such a great read, and another fabulous installment for this series. I recommend it to fans of the original looking for a queer retelling, as well as anyone looking for queer YA historical fiction.

A really nice Romeo and Juliet remix retelling. This has more insta-love and is a little slow to get into, but definitely a great read once it picks up. A great and enjoyable retelling, and the cover is gorgeous!

Romeo and Juliet gets an LGBTQIA+ YA makeover in Caleb Roehrig’s Teach the Torches to Burn. The premise is irresistible. Who doesn’t love a classical retelling that features two boys finding love against the odds? Roehrig’s treatment of the star-crossed tale is a gentler version of the oft-reworked play that stays true to its emphatic optimism about the uncompromising power of young love.

Roehrig chose to not wander far from the Shakespearean canon in many ways, which on one hand activates the reader’s engagement with familiar characters, and on the other, introduces some challenges with mixing contemporary and fourteenth century themes. The original players are present and accounted for. The bitterly opposed Montague and Capulet patriarchs. Vengeful Tybalt. Convivial Benvolio. Sentimental Friar Laurence who shelters the young lovers from the fray, and the stalwart Prince of Verona who doles out equal blame and punishment to the warring families. Roehrig focuses on tweaks to the story that offer resonance to today’s young LGBTQIA+ audience.

Romeo is the first person point-of-view narrator, and he’s an alienated seventeen-year-old who wishes to be an artist against his father’s demand that he take up the family trade and marry and produce more Montagues. He’s also coming to the realization that he’s different from his girl-crazy cousin Benvolio, and both enlivened and abashed by the way his handsome family friend Mercutio makes him feel. Thus we have a Romeo recast as a closeted gay male teen who yearns to be left alone so he can sketch landscapes, and I suspect that readers will be polarized in their opinions of the portrayal.

YA fans will likely take in stride the young hero’s modern sensibilities and perhaps even his oddly highbrow British vocabulary, meant to give a nod to the source material, or approximate how teenagers spoke at the time, one supposes. Readers hoping for transporting historical romance may be less enchanted by the author’s choices. Well, Shakespeare himself took artistic liberties in rendering the time period, so one might forgive Roehrig for some questionable details and try to consider the bigger picture. It’s not a story that endeavors to illuminate how gay teens in medieval Verona might have lived from a culturally informed perspective. More so, it’s a retelling crafted to uplift queer representation, and readers of all stripes can likely agree the world could use more of that.

Happily, Romeo is not alone in feeling like he doesn’t fit in. When he goes along with Benvolio to infiltrate a Capulet costume party, he meets Valentine, the younger brother of Romeo’s secret crush, Mercutio, and the only character missing from the Bard’s original story. Valentine has recently returned to Verona after living with extended relatives for several years. The two boys share a private moment by the courtyard fountain outside the party, where they realize they’re two of a kind in their disinterest with boy/girl courtship rituals. A mutual fascination sparks.

Later, Romeo stumbles upon Juliet, who is reimagined as a young woman wise beyond her years who can spot a gay boy from a mile away, even when he’s wearing a mask. Juliet is also beset by the weight of family expectations and sees in Romeo a sympathetic friend and an ally in her pursuit to live a life beyond heterosexual conventions. Then Romeo is recognized as a Montague, and his cozy confessional with Juliet is misinterpreted as a roguish pass. Tybalt wants to kill Romeo for crashing the party and dishonoring his cousin. Romeo flees with Benvolio and Mercutio and later runs into Valentine during the chase. The two boys make their escape through the wooded grounds, and after reaching safety, have more time to flirt and take cautious steps toward getting to know each other physically.

Another queer character is a reimagined, hunky Father Laurence, who serves as a confidante to both Romeo and Juliet as they’re figuring out who they are and how to find freedom with their identities. Laurence shares with Romeo that his vow of celibacy is a lifestyle choice due to his lack of romantic or sexual interest in people of any gender. As someone who has eked out a life beneath the LGBTQIA+ umbrella, Laurence understands Romeo’s plight and is instrumental in the solution for Romeo and Valentine (and Juliet) overcoming the bonds of tradition and moving onward to happily-ever-after.

A sweet and comfy retelling of Shakespeare’s tragic play, with affirming messages for gay male and aro/ace young readers.

Reviewed for Out in Print.

2.5 stars

This is the fourth Remixed Classics book that I have picked up and probably the one that I was looking forward to the most. As a Shakespeare scholar and performer, I have always stood by the idea that a great many of Shakespeare's characters are queer and was super excited to read a book where that subtext was made canon.

Roehrig clearly knows his Shakespeare and there are a bunch of great Easter eggs sprinkled throughout a narrative that delightfully subverts the well-trod beats of the source text. The crowning achievement of the novel, in my opinion, is in how he affirms once and for all that Juliet is an vastly intelligent, witty, and capable woman who is driving the story of her own life even when the forces around her are trying to close in.

This book also affirms the overwhelming passivity that characterizes Romeo in the original play, which made the pacing of this book absolutely drag at points for me. In addition, I had hope that the retelling would update some of the issues surrounding the quick timeline of the central love story. However, Romeo and Valentine truly speak together three times before they are declaring their love for one another and while I completely understand why they would fall so hard, I longed for a little more development in the relationship.

While some aspects of the execution didn't land for me, this book is bringing Shakespeare to the next generation in a completely new way and that is so important. I hope that this book gets into the hands of the readers that need it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Feiwel and Friends for an ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review!

Ok after sitting with this one for a second I have thoughts, some of which are me learning some of my own personal preferences when it comes to retellings.

This was my first of the Remix canon that I have read and I find the concept interesting. I love a retelling (Song of Achilles being one of my all-time favs) so I suspected this to be right up my alley. In this case, however, I almost felt the writing was held back by the Romeo and Juliet frame story. After thinking about it I really enjoyed the authors writing style and voice I just felt that it might have been better suited to an entirely original work. Like I said you could chalk this up to personal preferences, but I found that especially the language used by the characters too staunchly conflicted with the formality I've come to expect from Romeo and Juliet. I'd almost have preferred a story from this time period and with all the modern sensibilities that didn't use Romeo and Juliet as a framework. I do want to add that after reading the acknowledgments I do believe the author was successful in putting a spin on this tale that kept the focus on the feelings of the children involved rather than keeping the main theme of being a warning to parents and how there own petty biases are what lead to the destruction of their own families. And for this storyline that makes a lot more sense as it's about the queerness and love story of Romeo and Valentine.

On that note, this book gave me all the butterflies I look for in a queer romance. I got so caught up in rooting for them and their happiness. I will admit that the frame story did add to the unsureness I felt about how it would end as the original Romeo and Juliet is famously a tragedy. In this way, I enjoyed this story. It had all of the swoon-worthy romanticness I was looking for from something set in this context.

All and all I really did enjoy this one and would only be curious what this author could do with a completely original concept because I did love the writing style.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC.

Teach the Torches to Burn is a Romeo and Juliet remix in MacMillan's Remixed Classics series. We follow Romeo Montague as he grapples with his destiny as his father's heir, all while trying to navigate not having romantic feelings for women in a world where that seems to be his only option. Then, at the Capulet's ball, he meets Valentine, and everything changes.

WOW did I love this book! I'm always partial to a Romeo and Juliet retelling, and I especially love retellings like this that so beautifully maintain the spirit e story while freshly reinventing it. Seeing tale from Romeo's perspective is always a treat, and his sweet romance with Valentine had my heart fluttering. But what I loved more than anything was that, in introducing Valentine as the love interest, we didn't lose Juliet either. I was so happy that she was still a vibrant and well-developed character, and I loved how her role in the story was transformed in this book. Also shoutout to my babies Benvolio and Mercutio who, though different in many ways here, were also a highlight of this read, especially since I didn't have to watch either of them die. In fact, the happy ending of this story really is what ties it all together, because while the original centered on tragedy, it was always about the hope and peace that sprang from that tragic event.

In all, I think this has quickly become my new favorite of the Remixed Classics. 10/10 would recommend, especially for any Romeo and Juliet lovers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Feiwel & Friends for the eArc of <i>Teach the Torches to Burn: A Romeo & Juliet Remix</i>. All opinions are my own.

I have been an English teacher for 20 years, and probably about 17 of those have taught Shakespeare's <i>The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet</i> at least twice a year for all those years. One of my stupid human tricks is that you can read nearly any line from R&J to me and I can tell you the act and the scene that it comes from. So obviously I know this play inside and out.

Nervous as I was to read this book, I was utterly delighted by this queer remix of R&J. Caleb Roehrig took all the best qualities of the characters and instead of making them their fatal flaws, turned them into something that made them acutely likable and terribly human. Even though Romeo and Juliet, Tybalt and Benvolio, Friar Laurence and Lords and Ladies Capulet/Montague all appear in this book, they do not necessarily play similar roles. While Tybalt is still the unlikable aggressor, Juliet is independent and actually gets to express her own thoughts, Friar Laurence, though still the "responsible adult" Romeo most trusts, actually gives good advice, and Benvolio is footloose and fancy free, much more a Mercutio than Mercutio actually is. And of course there's the original character Valentine, Mercutio's brother, who catches Romeo's attention one night in—where else?—an orchard, of course. And our star-crossed lovers' journey goes from there.

Roehrig clearly knows the play well; he took many of the familiar trappings of the setting and conflict and tipped them just slightly, shook them up just enough that the core elements of the play remained while slotting both new and old characters into different roles. Seeing a queer love story play out while in the presence of some of my favorite Shakespeare characters was satisfying in a way I didn't think I needed.

I can picture my students making a beeline for this novel after we finish reading Romeo and Juliet, especially the students who generally lack representation in 400-year-old pieces of literature.

A queer reimagining of Romeo and Juliet where Romeo is gay and in love with his best friend's brother and Juliet is aro-ace??? YES PLEASE. Romeo is an aspiring artist, just looking to pursue his passion and be freed of the demands of his family to marry because he has a deep dark secret, he is not interested in women at all. Romeo has tried putting off all the marriage proposals and prolonging it for as long as possible yet when his best friend's brother Valentine finally comes back into town, Romeo knows he's found the one. Romeo knows that his love for Valentine is forbidden and with the tensions in the city rising and the Capulet and Montague families rising, blood will be spilled. Then there is Juliet, the counterpart to Romeo, a girl who wants nothing more than to be freed from the arranged marriage to someone she doesn't want that her family is forcing her into. Juliet is willing to do anything to be freed even come up with a very insane plan for both her and Romeo to make it out of Verona with their lives. This was such a fun take on the classic story and I loved the queer take on the classic. The ending was perfect and I would definitely recommend this for anyone who is a fan of the classic or for anyone who ever thought that maybe Romeo and Juliet should have ended differently!

*Thanks Netgalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Feiwel & Friends for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan audio and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Feiwel & Friends for the #gifted ALC and e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.
I have recently discovered i love and eagerly looking for retellings. I loved this mm twist and had no idea its part od a remix series which i immediately went and downloaded on libby. I loved the charactera and the narration was done very well

Thank you NetGalley and Feiwel & Friends for the ARC! Teach the Torches to Burn is a Romeo and Juliet retelling with a twist (a remix, if you will). The book is expertly crafted by Caleb Roehrig whose prose breathes new life into this classic tale. Romeo is being pushed toward his future and he feels dreadfully ill-prepared and unfulfilled. He knows he is expected to take over for his father and that he will be forced to marry, but to do so will be to lie to himself. While crashing a costume party at the Capulet estate, Romeo is reunited with an old friend, Valentine, and new feelings spark within him, but after he dances with a girl to appease his friends (a young girl who turns out to be Juliet Capulet) rumors fly and tempers soar. What follows are several familiar events mixed with some new twists and turns, resulting in an epic love story that plays out more fulfilling than the orginal. Shakespeare fans should enjoy this retelling and leave smiling rather than sobbing.

Unbelievably sweet and poignant. I loved this queer take on the classic story! I've been loving this remix series and it is so wonderful to see LGBTQ representation throughout the different novels. Love it!

I enjoyed Teach the Torches to Burn.
This is actually the first book I've read by Caleb Roehrig, and it definitely won't be my last as I was a fan of his writing.

I thought this book was written really well, as were the descriptions, they transported me to the time.
I also really liked the story and the characters!

Romeo and Valentine had a really sweet romance, and while it was insta love, I surprisingly didn't mind it that much.
I also really liked Juliet, and I thought she was a great character

I definitely highly recommend this book, especially if you are interested in a queer Romeo and Juliet retelling!

4.5 stars rounded up

If you ever wished for a Romeo and Juliet story that was queer and a bit less tragic, you have come to the right place! Teach the Torches to Burn is a fantastic remix of Romeo and Juliet where Romeo is secretly gay and developing feelings for Mercutio's younger brother. Meanwhile Juliet is asexual and looking for a way out of a forced marriage she doesn't want. This has all the drama, the romance, the tension, and some of the tragedy of the original, but remixed in the best possible way. The writing is lovely and the entire story is told from Romeo's perspective. This retelling managed to hit all of the plot beats you want while delivering a fresh and satisfying spin on a classic. Definitely worth a read and the audio narration is great too! I received an audio review copy of this book from NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

I’m really just bummed that this is a DNF for me. Romeo and Juliet was one of my favorite plays when I was younger but this just isn’t working for me. I’m only at 20% but I’m just so bored.

I really liked the twist that Roehrig did with Teach the Torches to Burn, but I felt like I wasn't ever super connected to the characters. They felt a little flat to me, and I was just hoping for something more — especially more social commentary. Overall, I did really enjoy this remix, and would recommend it to anyone looking for a nice twist on a classic!

with each iteration of these remixed classic, my inner queer teen soul heals a bit more.

queer stories, let alone queer classics, were not really what they are today. it was sparing to see them published and awarded so highly as we can see nowadays. nothing beyond the subtext. my high school experience really truly isn’t all that long ago if you think about it. my freshman year was only 10 years ago. so seeing classics, such as romeo and juliet, ones i was forced to read in my english literature classes, be re-interpreted so openly and canonically queer. i have no other words than saying that it warms my soul.

and unlike many of the classics that were thrust upon us, i actually truly enjoyed the original r&j story. it’s easily one of my favorite types of retellings to pick up, and especially when they’re queer. like this one so fantastically was. of course, we have romeo and valentine (mercutio’s newly added brother to the tale). but additionally, we have juliet who i coded as so obviously aroace, and friar laurence, who also falls on the ace spectrum in some fashion. now, i was not expecting that to be so. and i was delightfully surprised to see our titular girl have this role. and the way she explains her identity, somewhat like a flame that is just unlit in her. wow. i genuinely feel like that was one of the best ways i think i’ve ever seen it explained in literature. of course, it was flourished and flowery, but this is a shakespeare retelling after all. the core of her explanation to romeo. incredible. and i cannot and do not to it justice in my paraphrasing.

not only do i hold it dear to my heart that roehrig made juliet aroace, is that like with every good r&j retelling, she received her agency back. unlike in the original story, we see juliet’s wit, her ability to think on her feet and make the most of a bad situation. she’s the one who took charge in the plan for during final act for romeo. she’s the one who was able to get their enemies to back down once and for all. she is an icon. and i strive to have a 10th of her intelligence.

and god, of course we have to talk about romeo and valentine. they were so damn gentle with one another. despite all the chaos and ruin happening around them, they still found away to love each other with a bright fire. their ability to be soft with one another, despite all their worries and all the problems facing them. they have a love like no other. and as a wise man says in the story. this is a happiness they deserve. a happiness they would not have received in their original classic. and that’s what makes me absolutely adore this retelling series. it gives our characters, queer characters, the happy ending they deserve. it shows a queer reader that this is something they can have. something they deserve to have.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I'm such a huge fan of this Remixed Classics series (classics, but make them diverse, and more often than not, gay? Yes, please), and I've previously read one of Caleb Roehrig's works and loved it (Death Prefers Blondes - highly recommend if you like heists, drag queens, and drag queens doing heists), so I was very much looking forward to this book, even if Romeo and Juliet isn't exactly my favorite of Shakespeare's plays. The spin Roehrig puts on it, though, is so fun and so rewarding. There are ace/aro characters - yes, characterS with an S, as in multiple characters share that identity. Juliet actually has some agency and personality! People actually communicate with each other! There's still fighting, and bloodshed, and many of the same plot beats you would expect from a Romeo & Juliet retelling, of course, but it never feels stale. And the romance? So good. I mean, just look at them on that cover. I live! This is definitely going down as one of my favorite entries in the Remixed Classics series.

This book gave me a lot of emotions and it was fantastic and I loved every moment of it. Romeo was a bit of a disaster, but I loved him for it and Valentine is just so sweet. Juliet is honestly so relatable for me too.

One of the most important things I loved was that on top of our main character and love interest being gay we are also given some good asexual and aromantic representation! There was also a great discussion with Romeo and Juliet about how even though Romeo is limited by his lot in life, Juliet is even more limited as a woman with little to no agency in their society and it forces Romeo to consider from someone else's perspective.

This is the second book I've read in the Remixed Classics series (A Clash of Steel was the first) and I cannot wait to read more of them. Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa will be next!

Thank you to NetGalley for making this available in exchange for an honest review!

This was another one of those books that I was so hyped to get my hands on, and I am so delighted I had the chance to get an early preview of it. Teach the Torches to Burn is everything that I hoped it would be and more, taking the tragic story that we're all so familiar with and turning it into something beautiful and queer and hopeful.

Romeo Montague would love nothing more than to live a peaceful life as an artist, left to make his own choices and away from the drama and bustle of Verona. But he is the heir of the family, and as such he is expected to give up such "womanly" pursuits in favor of marrying a woman his parents approve of and continuing on the centuries-old feud with the Capulets. Yet with every woman his cousin and friend introduce him to, he has to acknowledge that he is only attracted to men. It all comes to a head when he sneaks into a Capulet party, falls madly, deeply in love with Valentine (best friend Mercutio's younger brother) and manages to terribly offend Tybalt all in one evening. Suddenly Romeo and Valentine are trying to find time to kindle their tender new romance, while the feud between the Montagues and Capulets spirals out of control.

I was so curious going into this story how the general all of it was going to be handled, admittedly. Valentine being an outsider compared to the original tale left me with my doubts originally, but I was so genuinely delighted by how author Caleb Roehrig brought him into the story (as Mercutio's younger brother returned from a foster-sort of situation in the country) and how it made the entire feud between the two families all the more ridiculous. Valentine is perfect; ride-or-die material, really. Romeo is so so SO precious in this, too. He's humanized from the original tale and given interests and hopes and dreams outside of his romantic explorations, and I felt for him the entire time.

"Sometimes I feel as though I am being crushed alive, but it's happening so slowly, no one believes me when I tell them. Sometimes it feels like the most important parts of me are the ones I can't share with the people who are the most important to me."

I also really want to appreciate the care that was taken to make sure that Juliet was still given her due in the book. It would have been easy to only focus on Romeo and Valentine, but Juliet was still put center stage and allowed to take the lead on so many points. Without her, this story could not be told, and it is acknowledged repeatedly throughout the book that whatever Romeo is going through, it is much worse for Juliet just because of her status as a woman in the world. We love an aro-ace icon.
And then, of course, Benvolio and Mercutio. Best bros and allies.

I could babble about this one forever, but it's really just such a GOOD read and I am so excited for everyone to get their hands on it and to have a copy for my classroom shelves - especially for all of my students who have to read Romeo & Juliet in class.

4 stars!

the Remixed Classics series has been such a consistent delight. rewiring Romeo & Juliet so there's room for queerness, found family, and self-discovery nestled in among the classic love story everybody knows was simply wonderful.

as one might expect, we set the scene in fair Verona. our protagonist is Romeo Montague, currently languishing under his family's crushing expectations for his future and just wanting to sit somewhere quiet and draw flowers. he sneaks out one night to speak to his monk friend slash confidant and when he sneaks back in his cousin Benvolio is lounging on his bed. Benvolio wants Romeo to come to the city with him for a rousing good time and when Romeo hesitates, being very tired and sleep deprived because of his secret painting and confessing, Ben mentions that Mercutio will be coming.

Romeo definitely has a crush on Mercutio here, which I respect because... valid as hell. he drags his feet a bit but eventually agrees and off the pair of them go.
"You definitely got me," I concede at last, mustering my cool with an arched brow. "Now if only you could manage to get a girl, I might be impressed."
Ben hoots with laughter while Mercutio's eyes widen in shock; and then, he begins to laugh as well. Yanking me close, he thumps a happy fist on my chest. "I'm glad you decided to come, old friend! And not only because the ladies here will find me twice as attractive in comparison."
"Oh, so you plan to keep your mask on, then?" Benvolio interjects gleefully, and Mercutio gives him a thump as well.
Romeo and Benvolio have a fantastic and often hilarious relationship and are very close, but lately Romeo's queerness has been driving a wedge between them. he feels like it isn't something he can share with Ben, that Ben will find him disgusting or out him to his parents or anything else. unfortunately this also means that Ben is actively trying to get Romeo a girl, as he assumes his cousin is simply shy and painfully bad at courting them.

to throw Benvolio off his trail Romeo has been loudly waxing poetic over Rosaline. this charade is a filthy lie; Rosaline is fine, but Romeo is not particularly interested in her. what does interest him is her publicly announced vow of chastity, a built-in excuse for why he can't move forward in courting her.

the trouble-making trio hear about a masquerade Capulet party happening soon and decide to sneak in, as Rosaline is supposed to be in attendance and Benvolio genuinely thinks his cousin is dying to see her. Romeo begrudgingly comes along and ends up escaping the heat and pressure of the party after a couple uncomfortable dances with girls he's not interested in. when he steps aside, he runs into a boy dressed as a faun resting in an interior courtyard. he's revealed to be Valentine, Mercutio's long lost brother, and Romeo's new and intense love interest.
"You might as well get on with it while there's still ample time to be consoled after she turns you down." Ben slaps me on the back. "Remember. Women cannot resist a man who is confident, witty, and handsome. So pick someone who has those traits and pretend to be him."
"You can pretend to be me," Mercutio chimes in. "I won't mind."
Ben nods. "Yes - pretend to be Mercutio, but if he was witty and handsome."
"Piss off!"

rep - achillean mc, achillean love interest, asexual 'main' side character, asexual side character
thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the arc ✨