Reviews with content warning for Kidnapping - Ander and Santi Were Here

Ander & Santi Were Here is a young adult/new adult book about finding home, finding voice, and finding love. Ander and Santi may be fighting for different things, but together, they learn to use their voice, art, and love to fit into a brutal yet beautiful world.

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duckyreads's review

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emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Ander & Santi Were Here is a moving young adult romance by Jonny Garza Villa. First, we meet Ander Martínez, a nonbinary Mexican-American artist that is contemplating their future at a reputable art school while completing murals in their San Antonio, Texas neighborhood. Then they meet Santiago López Alvarado, a new waiter at their family's restaurant. As they get to know each other, Ander and Santi's blossoming love is threatened by ICE agents hunting Santi, and shakes Ander's world at its core.

Jonny has such a beautiful and captivating way of describing characters and environments. With such a complex issue of immigration in the US in general, but especially in Texas, there is a lot of care put into Santi's story. My heart broke many times for Santi and his family, and this is a stark reminder that there immigrants and people seeking asylum are complex human beings with histories and families that deserve to be treated with respect.

I loved all of the Spanish throughout the story and the fact that it wasn't translated. As someone who isn't a native Spanish speaker, it felt very authentic to the story and put the responsibility on the reader to translate or use context clues during conversations. Ander has such a great supportive circle of family and friends, especially their grandmother.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

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betweentheshelves's review

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emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Working at their family's taqueria in their home in San Antonia, Texas is all Ander has ever known. In fact, their home is what inspired them to be a muralist, to follow their dreams to become an artist. However, in order to make sure they make the best of their gap year between high school and college, their family "fires" them. Now, they have the chance to focus on their art.

Until Santi enters the picture. Santi, Ander's replacement at the restaurant, inspires Ander to explore their identity as an artist. Makes them feel more like themselves. But the threat of ICE agents hang over both of their heads. And they'll realize how fragile their new home really is.

Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday books for an advanced copy of Ander & Santi Were Here by Jonny Garza Villa! This is their second YA book, and it packs a punch. Just like Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun. Both of these books explore the idea of that transition period between high school and college, especially when you find someone you connect with. If you haven't read their other book, I highly recommend it!

This book focuses on Ander's gap year, meeting with a mentor before they go off to an art program. However, part of the story is about their artistic journey, learning that they maybe don't have to follow the conventional path. And that those college art programs can sometimes put you into a specific box. I loved the way that art was woven into this story, and how it related to Ander's own growth as a person.

Their chemistry with Santi is also well written. Being undocumented, Santi has seen a lot of difficulties, but you can just tell that he feels safe with Ander. There were so many cute moments between them, and they both have a wonderful, vibrant community around them. A community that would do anything to make sure that they both feel safe.

Villa's writing has also gotten stronger in this book, with descriptions written in a way that just makes the images leap off the page. I honestly wanted to go paint something when I was done reading this!

All in all, another beautiful novel by Villa. Can't wait to see what they write next.

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bookreviewswithkb's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

look at this coverrrr 😍

highly recommend this one, especially if you enjoy young adult fiction and/or romance. absolutely beautiful storytelling with impeccable characters. i really appreciated the seamlessness of the identity aspects and the portrayal of Ander’s family having full acceptance of them. it felt like this was a gift of trans and queer identities being extremely normalized, just a part of the story rather than the story itself. you will 100% be sucked into Ander’s world

this novel is packed with wittiness and is extremely current and youthful in its language, with great reflections on culture and politics and a ton of great representation

don’t hate me but it did feel a little cheesy and unrealistic at times, which is the only reason it’s not a 5 star for me

thank you so much to @goodreads and @wednesdaybooks for the ARC!

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thewordsdevourer's review

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emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

*Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC

Ander and Santi Were Here is undeniably a book with a lot of heart, great message and intentions, giving a much needed humanizing depiction of an undocumented person, unfortunately its execution just does not do it for me.

The novel brims vibrantly with art and culture, a love letter to art that portrays and uplifts the community despite external ideas and pressure, to Mexican food and music that bring people together, and to community that shows up for one another even against state violence. It is a joy to read all the aforementioned and learn how the main character Santi is raised by, fed, thriving in all this, and it is a breath of fresh air indeed.

And of course the portrayal of an undocumented person here is almost monumental for me, so rare it is, let alone a fleshed out and humanizing one as is the case here with Santi. Similar to Ander, the topic of undocumented people seems like a concerning but distanced one from me, never something personal, but this book completely changes that, depicting both the minutiae and pressing aspects of being undocumented, shedding a more revealing and informative light on it.

While the book's intentions are heartfelt and well-meaning, however, I think its execution leaves quite a bit to be desired. The pacing is inconsistent, very slow at times with constant, repetitive internal monologues and reflection by Ander peppered with him doing art, going to Lupe's and hanging out with Santi, and only with rare bursts of development peppered in. It gets boring after a while, waiting for something concrete to actually happen. The last arc also ends too abruptly in my opinion, and more time could have been given to the ending.

The writing is also surprisingly juvenile. I get that this is YA, but at times the language simply does not fit the depth and sometimes seriousness of the story, and could have articulated in a better way. And while Ander and Santi's relationship is a major part of the book, despite it being a mostly health one and effortlessly queer, I am not a fan of the instalove and sometimes fail to comprehend or understand their bond. I think more focus could have been given to Santi's aspirations for the future as well, instead of only focusing on his past.

To sum up, this is a book with good message, with its love for food, culture, art, community, queer love that sheds a rare light on being undocumented, but one whose execution hampers its full potential.

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gigireadswithkiki's review

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emotional reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

I will never recover from the emotional toll of the last 25% of this book!! Ander and Santi Were Here begins in the midst of 19 year old Ander's gap year, starting with being "let go" from their family's taqueria and encouraged to take time to pursue their artistic endeavors. Upon meeting their hot new replacement at the restaurant, Santiago, Ander is pulled on a whirlwind journey of love and self discovery, leading to heart wrenching conclusion.

Ander and Santi were beautifully vibrant characters, and I loved watching them and their relationship blossom and come to life on the pages. Ander relationship with the art they love & the murals they created was complex and nuanced, tying strongly to their Mexican identity to form an animated multifaceted character. Santi's backstory was so emotional and devastating, touching so close to home for so many Brown and Black undocumented immigrants. Together, Ander and Santi were sickeningly adorable in their love and support for each other, giving the other just what they need in times of distress.

My only issue with this book was with the pacing, I felt that the beginnings and end were so action-packed and fast paced but the middle slowed down quite a bit and threw off my momentum for a little bit. Otherwise, I loved the powerful plot of this story: featuring two Latinx Brown queer characters on their quest for their place in the world amidst a country fraught with bigoted organizations like ICE. I loved that the book showed that despite all the forces driving them apart, Ander and Santi (and others like them) do not have to face these issues alone. The conclusion of this book had me on a roller coaster of emotions and I wouldn't have it any other way. I absolutely recommend this book, but would absolutely advise checking content warnings beforehand!

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