I want to preface this by saying that I was not exactly in the best place when reading this book and I will likely reread it and change my opinion on it.
I had a hard time getting into this book. I thought the writing was good but it didn't quite work for me. I thought the characters were interesting and nice but I didn't connect with them. The plot was good and I thought it moved at a decent pace, but I had a hard time paying attention to it some of the time.
Overall: I didn't connect with this book in this read-through. I do plan on rereading it in the future because I do think my opinion will change on this.

Heartbreaking and vulnerable but also filled with moments of humor and romance. Garza Villa will tear your heart into pieces then put it back together again. Always recommend.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an advanced readers copy.

How do I describe the emotional rollercoaster that I went through while reading this book. I was so amazed by the authors ability to play with my emotions. This book had me laughing out loud and crying. All I could think about was how I wished I could’ve grown up reading books like this. I am also so grateful that books with non-binary characters are getting the platform they deserve.

This book had such heart warming scenes but also dealt with very heavy subjects. I could never really figure out the direction the book was taking. I enjoyed that in a sense that life is also unpredictable. Sometimes when you finally think you have everything figured out, you suddenly realize that you’re in over your head.

In full transparency I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
This book had me stuck to my couch for the entire day. Turning the page not knowing what would happen next. The gripping reality that some people actually live with day after day, afraid their humanity is being questioned due to not being “legal.” This was a beautiful and heart wrenching story of two young people with unwavering support from their loved ones. Seeing the queer rep was just the icing on the cake for this novel. Garza Villa does it again.

Was left in awe of this quietly devastating and beautifully intimate story of love, resistance, heartbreak, hope, and home -- in spite of fear, in the face of the things we can't control, and in all the moments in-between.

*ARC from Netgalley*

3.5☆

Let me preface this by saying I am NOT the target audience for this book, and that was definitely a factor in my feelings about the book.

The good:
I found that the writing was well done. The author was great at setting a scene and describing events.

The main character, Ander, I felt was well rounded and I was able to understand their motivations.

The cultural bits were lovely, especially regarding food and family.

Ander's painting was interesting and I liked reading about it.


The things that didn't work for me:

The plot felt so slow for like 75% of the book and just didn't seem like it was going anywhere. The last quarter of it was more exciting but getting there was a struggle.

I didn't feel like Santi was a well developed character. I know he had a rough background and likes to read and that's about it. And he just kind of moves in? with Ander? I'm not sure what happened with the people he was living with.

The instalove. This is where it is hard for me, because I know I'm not the target audience. These 19y/os are making huge life decisions based on how much they are sooo in love and only After a few months. I'm old and jaded I guess bc all I can do is roll my eyes. I cannot relate to these characters even a little bit.

The gen-z lingo. The author used the word "unalive" once and it completely derailed me from the story.

The formatting of the texting was really hard to follow and not always consistent.

So, overall, I don't think it was a bad book. It's actually a sweet story about young love and the lengths one would go for the person they love. I think that for an adolescent,it's probably a fantastic read. For me though, it was hard to get through.

Thank you to Wednesday books for an e-arc of this novel in exchange for an honest review!

Ander and Santi Were Here takes place in San Antonia, Texas and follows Mexian-American teen Ander who is also a non-binary artist. They meet Santi who is the hot new waiter working at their family’s restaurant and sparks fly. As their relationship progresses and unfolds, Ander starts to understand more deeply how they would like for their art to be perceived by the world. While, to Santi, Ander represents the first step toward settling down in the U.S. However, their relationship becomes more complicated once ICE agents come into the picture.

So first, I really enjoyed Ander as the MC as well as their voice in general. I thought their point of view blended seamlessly with the contemporary writing style. Specifically, modern-day references (while there were quite a few!) were incorporated into the book effectively and seamlessly. They all read very realistically and things I would actually say. It didn’t feel as cringy as other books that love to put so many modern-day references in them.

My favourite theme is how this book effectively touches on how minorities and underrepresented groups are watered down by institutions into the thing that makes them minorities — they impose a value on these groups that is directly tied to their cultural background. In a sense, it is exploitative and to quote Villa, “Even allies objectify people with “the potential of migrants”. Essentially, the bodies of migrants don't matter unless we are able to capitalize off of them.
It’s incredibly important for those who identify as allies and those who are on the path to allyship that they recognize any biases they have, in unconsciously or consciously imposing this value onto marginalized communities, especially in discussions of migrants.

The last third of the book was incredibly powerful, as it touched equally on themes of community solidarity and racialized injustice. Overall, I absolutely loved this book and will def read more of Villa’s work. 5 stars.

A moving, heartbreaking story. I read the author's first book and was really looking forward to this one, and it did not disappoint!

E-ARC provided by Netgalley

I should start this review by saying I'm Mexican, lol. I am also not a huge contemporary reader. But I really enjoyed this book. The relationship between the two main characters was just sweetness overload. I love how the restaurant and the town, the neighborhood and the familia were painted with so much emotion and uniqueness. A truly enjoyable read.


It was very interesting to see the Chicanx experience, with both Mexican culture and the Spanish language. I caught just one or two spelling errors like: "Ciudad México" which made me cringe but other than that, I related to pretty much everything. I loved the ending sm.

Jonny Garza Villa proved again that they know how to balance heavier, emotional themes with lightheartedness so well. This book has its difficult moments, but it's such a loving story. What really stood out to me was that the conflict in this book mainly came from external factors, specifically being undocumented and ICE. The relationship itself was so wholesome, which also made the storyline hit that much harder. This is truly a beautiful story.

Breathtakingly beautiful. I read it in one sitting. Jonny Garza Villa has a gift in creating the most tangible characters, heart-wrenching plots, and memorable scenes. I’d recommend this book to absolutely anyone.

Ander & Santi Were Here was one of the most breathtakingly beautiful YA novels I've ever read. Readers are presented with such a rich, community-based culture and characters that break the mold. It was refreshing to see a main character be so confident in their identity and outspoken. Ander used their art and activism to make a difference in their community and refused to be boxed in by stereotypes.

I appreciated how Ander never stopped fighting for Santi no matter how big the obstacles between them were. At the same time, Santi loved fiercely, but not at the expense of living life on his own terms. This is something that is commonly brushed aside in similar books of the genre.

I loved the nod to They Both Die in the End.
Jonny Garza Villa's writing style was impeccable and I look forward to reading more of their books in the future.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this story but the writing style wasn't really for me. It was a little all over the place, felt like the POV was going a million miles a minute. Still a really great story though, I loved their relationship and I related very deeply to the characters.

Ander (who is nonbinary) has deferred their art school plans for a year to help their family. They're mostly known for painting murals, but they're feeling a little pigeonholed by their style. One school rejected them because of their style, thinking it too one-dimensional, and another is discouraging them from going beyond that style.

In this midst of this funk a new guy is hired to help at Ander's family's restaurant, Santi. He immediately catching Ander's eye and a tenuous flirtation begins, even though Ander's mother warned them away from starting a relationship with Santi (forbidden fruit, am I right?).

They've just made their relationship official when Ander discovers the secret reason why their mom didn't want the relationship to happen.

Now Ander has tough decisions to make about their future, their relationship and their art.

I am forever grateful for the touch option in kindles for translations and learned a lot of new Spanish words with this book. This delves deeply into the intersectionality of being Latinx, queer, and undocumented in the U.S. I admit, as an 30 something mom, a part of me thought Ander (and Santi) were being super dramatic and making huge life choices cavalierly to only be 19 years old, but I know I was the same.

I know the relationship was the primary focus of the book, but it's not the piece that resonated most deeply with me.

I struggled quite a bit with getting into this one. It took me months to get passed 10% if that’s any idea. Eventually I decided I have to DNF at least for now until maybe in the future it interests me more. It’s just that the pacing was really slow but of the story I read it was beautiful. I think it will absolutely be some people’s favorite.

Rep: non-binary Mexican MC, achillean romance

3/5 stars! I have such mixed feelings about this book. It is truly an extremely special story. Following Ander and Santi through their love story and the hurdles that injustices put between them. As a deep, heartwrenching story of this, it performs well. I think I just struggled to find a flow of the storyline besides this. It was an amazing concept and their connection was great, but I think the structure of the story could be improved.

I received an advance review copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

What a story that immediately draws you in! I love Ander and Santi, and their story really had me all kinds of emotional. This was such a beautifully told story, with gorgeous writing and well fleshed out characters. Santi's story in particular really pulled at my heartstrings and I really wish we got his POV as well.

I loved reading about the Mexican art scene in Texas and how it was such an integral part to Ander. They truly flourished with their craft and it was fascinating to see how they used art to work through complicated emotions..

The rep in this book was awesome as well. So many queer Brown characters who rooted and rallied around each other. The love they all had for each other radiated off every page.

The food descriptions in this story were mouthwatering! I now have an intense craving from some delicious Mexican cuisine lol. And I really appreciated the fact that the author never once felt the need to translate any of the phrases spoken in Spanish. Definitely made the story and the characters feel more authentic.

CONTENT WARNINGS: mentions of ICE, deportation of a character, family death

This was one of the most heartbreakingly beautiful books I have read recently. I couldn’t put this book down. I truly loved ander and Santi’s relationship so much. This book felt so raw and so real. The family dynamics of Ander’s family was so great. I love how supportive they were of them and what they wanted to do. This book dealt with some really heavy topics and I felt like they were covered very well. I can’t wait for this book to be released.

This is one of the best books i’ve ever read. Jonny somehow writes so perfectly that i go from laughing to sobbing within pages. I really enjoyed the characters and their relationships in this book. I didn’t 100% love the ending but I understood why it ended the way it did.

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an E-Arc of this book. The following is my honest opinion.*

The biggest take away from this review would be, "It might not have been for me, but it could be for you."

I don't know what to say about this book. For me, I think, this book was geared for a specific audience and I don't think I was it. It was a a good story/idea, beautiful in its attempt, but the execution could have been better.

As somebody who lives and is very close to one half of the major themes of the book, it felt exaggerated, stereotypical and a little unreal at times.