What is the title of your latest release?
TO OUR UNTAMED CORE
What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?
A boy survives by hiding his truth until his boyfriend is sentenced to El Torneo—a brutal, fight-to-the-death game—where he must risk everything to save him.
How did you decide where your book was going to take place?
I always knew it was going to be a completely made-up world. From the beginning, this book was inspired by The Hunger Games, but with a Mexican twist, where the “Capitol” is more like the conquistadores. I wanted this world to have very Catholic-coded world-building, without being actually Catholic or named as any currently existing religion, and the only way to do that was to completely make up my own world.
Would you hang out with your hero in real life?
If I was able to bring Temo into this world for a day, I would love to! I would give him the hug he’d never admit he needs and tell him he’s doing great. Only if he can come here, though. I’m sure he would be a delight, but there’s no way I’m willingly going to his world to hang out. Sorry, Temo!
What are three words that describe your hero?
stubborn, determined, clever
What’s something you learned while writing this book?
I learned that not every book needs to be painful to write. This one came to me so effortlessly and I had so much fun with the writing process. I didn’t question whether I was good enough to write it, and I love the story dearly. I love all my books, but I didn’t know until this one that I could write a book without hating it at some point during the writing process. Some books take a lot out of me, but this one filled me up in a time that I desperately needed an escape from this world.
Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done?
I used to always wait until I was totally done, but lately, my process has been changing. With this one, I drafted much slower than I usually do, and re-read and tweaked every chapter as needed before moving onto the next. I’ve learned that my process changes with every book, and that’s okay. Some first drafts want to be savored, and others want to sprint to the finish line.
What’s your favorite foodie indulgence?
I unfortunately love almost anything that’s bad for me. Fry it and I will eat it!
Describe your writing space/office!
There’s something about working with other people that motivates me, so I have a hard time working from home. If I don’t have any writer friends to meet up with, I go to my local coffee shop. It can be fun to pretend that everyone on their laptops is also working on their novels.
Who is an author you admire?
Jessica Lewis! I love that she can do both romance and horror so well. I strive to be able to master multiple genres the way she has. She has never disappointed me, and I will read anything she publishes.
Is there a book that changed your life?
LABYRINTH LOST by Zoraida Córdova was the first book I read that had a queer Latine protagonist, and it showed me that we are allowed to tell our stories. That book actually convinced me to try to get THE LESBIANA’S GUIDE TO CATHOLIC SCHOOL published, and my life hasn’t been the same since!
Tell us about when you got “the call.” (when you found out your book was going to be published). Or, for indie authors, when you decided to self-publish.
Both my agent offer and the offer from the publisher were extremely surreal. For my agent offer, I was actually recovering from top surgery when I got the call and thought it was all some drug-induced fever dream until I checked my email the next day. For the publisher offer, it was right after lockdown started from COVID, so it was really good news after some really bad news and also felt very unreal. Sometimes I still pinch myself!
What’s your favorite genre to read?
Lately I’ve been loving fantasy! Something about escaping into a completely new world right now is so comforting, even if that world has as many or more problems as this one.
What’s your favorite movie?
Coco! I cry every time.
What is your favorite season?
Fall. The weather is perfect, and it’s also where my birthday “falls” ;)
How do you like to celebrate your birthday?
I love to eat and hang out with people I love. I don’t need anything fancy, but if I can spend the day with people I enjoy hanging out with, I’m happy.
What’s a recent tv show/movie/book/podcast you highly recommend?
I recently re-read UNTIL THE CLOCK STRIKES MIDNIGHT by Alechia Dow. It’s about a bipolar fairy godmother and a broody misfortune who are fighting over the fate of this poor young bookshop owner. I love it so much, and the bipolar rep is so good! It’s literally the perfect book.
What’s your favorite type of cuisine?
It changes with the winds, but right now I really love dim sum!
What do you do when you have free time?
I love playing video games! I recently finished Baldur’s Gate 3 and am still looking for my next hyperfixation.
What can readers expect from you next?
I can’t reveal too much about it, but I will say that sometime after TO OUR UNTAMED CORE, I have what I call a rom-com-dram coming out. It’s like if Crazy Rich Asians and Knives Out had a Mexican baby. That’s all I can say.
The Hunger Games meets The Sunbearer Trials in bestselling and award-winning author Sonido Reyes's YA dystopia about a boy who survives by hiding his truth until his boyfriend is sentenced to El Torneo - a brutal, fight-to-the-death game - where he must risk everything to save him.
Centuries after the conquistadors claimed the Afueras for their own, Temo spends his life obeying the Holy Order's decree, undergoing their sacraments to tame his supposedly violent nature.
The only rule he breaks: hiding that he's trans. If that fact is discovered, Temo will face El Torneo, a brutal, fight-to-the-death game pitting the untamed against one another. No Afuereño who enters El Torneo ever escapes with their life.
But when Temo's boyfriend is unexpectedly arrested and thrown into the deadly tournament, he'll do anything to rescue Ollin from his gruesome fate, even if it means entering El Torneo himself.
Only there's far more to this tournament than meets the eye-survival is just the beginning. When the cost of saving the one he loves the most might be higher than he ever imagined, is Temo willing to pay it?
Young Adult | LGBTQ [ Versify, On Sale: September 22, 2026, Hardcover / e-Book / audiobook, ISBN: 9780063358447 / eISBN: 9780063358461 ]
Sonido writes fiction celebrating queer and Mexican stories in a variety of genres and age categories. He is also the vice-president of My Galvanized Friend, a nonprofit focused on providing access to and amplifying LGBTQ+ writing, art, and creators. They also co-host the podcast Bidi Bidi Book Pod, which celebrates queer and trans BIPOC authors and stories.
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