This was such a heartfelt book. In this queer YA novel, Rafie and his family move to San Antonio. Rafie has always been a lead vocalist, but there is already one in place at the school he is going to go to.

Many thanks to Net Galley and St Martin's Press for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

jonny garza villas books never disappoint!! i would gladly read 100 more books written by them!

thank you netgalley for the e-arc!

Do better St. Martin's Press, then I will do better reviews ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. star rating here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Goodness gracious, where to even begin with this one? First of all, we love a transmasc love interest. Secondly, the absolute firecracker that is Rafi.....I was not prepared for that. He is so pompous, arrogant, full of himself......but also so fucking loveable at the same time. One minute I was rolling my eyes at something he said and the next I was feeling overprotective of him. Just like both of Jonny Garza Villa's other novels, Canto Contigo has a lot of heart. It is an honest story that simply HAS to be semi-autobiographical because no one writes this well about grief without having experienced it firsthand. As someone who has been under a dark cloud of grief for awhile now, this book honestly healed something inside of me. It acknowledges the ache of grieving someone you loved, without discounting it. I loved this book so much, it is impossibly good and you should definitely read it.

Reading JGV from their first novel to their recent one, you can see how they have grown as a storyteller and a writer. From the beginning, you see that they have a way of expressing the characters emotions and really give them depth. JGV only elevates the richness of Canto Contigo from the lives of these characters with witty banter and “oh, I’m just like this” relatability. Truly an auto-read author and one I really hope gets the FLOWERS they deserve. Such a good read for the heart and for your soul.

Loved the first half. But the second half wasn’t as enjoyable bc I despise a third act implosion and it was just too cheesy. An engaging story though and a world (mariachi) that I’m unfamiliar with. I love how, unlike many of their contemporaries, JGV tackles real issues and doesn’t pretend that homophobia and transphobia don’t exist. Great writing, just too heavy on the cheese for me.

I really enjoyed the parts of this I did read, I loved the representation and the setting and the characters, but I just feel too old for the YA books these days. It's nothing against this book and I will try to finish it later, but I also will not be reviewing it later due to the SMP movement.

Jonny Garza Villa continues to write STUNNING YA stories, and CANTO CONTIGO is no exception. It’s also, perhaps, my favorite of theirs so far.

CANTO CONTIGO is the story of Mariachi star Rafael—Rafie—Alvarez, who gets transferred from his award-winning group to a new school and new Mariachi group in San Antonio, where he’s stuck singing backup for lead vocalist, Rey Chavez—the boy Rafie kissed and connected with months ago, and hasn’t forgotten about. Rafie resists his demotion and does everything he can to earn back the lead vocalist spot — including alienating the captivating Rey and his new Mariachi group.

Not only is Rafie struggling with a new school, new enemies, and a new group, he’s dealing with the soul-crushing loss of his abeulo, the one who inspired his love of music since he was a child. Navigating his heavy grief and the animosity with his new (cute) teammate, he must find a way to rediscover his love for Mariachi, embrace his real self, and learn to work with his group in time for their upcoming competition.

This book is a beautifully rich love letter to Mexican culture, family and legacy, the people who shape us, and allowing ourselves to forge our own path. Jonny’s writing is not only hilarious, it’s heartfelt. It’s meaningful and magical. I hope everyone—EVERYONE—takes the time to read their books and enjoy some incredibly stunning stories.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest, unbiased review. CANTO CONTIGO is out now!

My favorite part of this book is the name of the high school. It's so funny and I love the classic trope of rivals to lovers!

4.5*

Canto Contigo was a highly engaging read, with all the messiness you'd expect in a book about a teenager. Especially when that teen is Rafie.
Oh Rafie, dealing with so, so much. Uprooted his senior year of high school to a new school, still reeling from the death of his abuelo, and finding out his almost hook-up from last year is the lead vocalist of the school's Mariachi group- a part he fully expected to win himself.

This book takes us on quite a journey, as Rafie learns to navigate everything life has thrown at him. It's messy and complicated, sweet and heartfelt, and quite and adventure.

At the end of the blurb for this book is this statement "Canto Contigo is a love letter to Mexican culture, family and legacy, the people who shape us, and allowing ourselves to forge our own path." And I truly believe it is.

I am a huge fan of Jonny Garza Villa but I will not be reviewing this title as I am participating in the St. Martin's Press boycott. More information can be found at @readersforaccountability on Instagram.

This is another beautifully written story by Jonny Garza Villa. They can always be counted on to bring up some hard topics, and in this book it is the untimely death of a loved in and the impact it has on a person.

Rafie has always excelled at mariachi, and his love for it is rooted in his love for his abuelo. When his grandfather passes and his parents uproot him from his sou, Rafie has to work to recapture his love of music while simultaneously competing for lead vocalist with the boy who stole his heart a few months earlier. The path to true love and mariachi competition wins does not run smooth, but what's life without a few hurdles.

Thanks to NetGalley for the digital advanced copy.

4.5 Rounded Up.

I received an advanced copy of Canto Contigo by Jonny Garza Vila from the publisher St. Martin's Press Wednesday Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

What It’s About: Rafael Alvarez has had a whirlwind 24 hours, he said goodbye to his beloved abuelo, led his Mariachi group to victory at the Mariachi Extravaganza de Nacional, and made out with the cutest guy he’s ever me. Now eight months later, Rafie wants one more win to honor his abuelo, but this plan might go awry as his family have moved him to San Antonio, forcing him to start over in a new school and with a new group. Unfortunately, the school already has a lead singer and it happens to be the cute guy from eight months ago and he is not stepping aside. The boy he cannot thinking about is now standing between him and winning this final contest for his abuelo. Despite their rivalry, these two cannot stop thinking of each other and growing closer and Rafie has to figure out how to balance his lifelong expectations and perhaps finding the real him.

What I Loved: Again, let’s talk about YA that is done so well! I loved this one! Phenomenal grief study! From the start of this book we know that Rafie is losing one of the most important people in his life, his abuelo. The book starts with him saying goodbye to his grandpa and making a promise to him to continue to win the Mariachi nationals. While heartbroken at the loss, he pushes through towards the goal of making him proud. The way that our author makes it clear how people can work to avoid grief by putting all their energy towards a goal with blinders. This book also really nails the enemies to lovers (or rather lovers to rivals to lovers) trope in a way that it works. Rafie and Rey mesh so well but Rafie is constantly sabotaging because of his own trauma. I think normally the problem with enemies to lovers is that you can’t understand the hatred or overlook the damage done by the hate, but here, it works. The writing is phenomenal and the backdrop of the novel of Mariachi is fabulous. This is a deeply emotional book but it nails down. Also love the trans representation.

What I Didn’t Like: I felt some characters were unnecessary and hard to remember, but I did truly love this one, so it’s minor.

Who Should Read It: People who love excellent YA. People looking for queer romance stories. People who love grief studies.

Summary: Both Rafie and Rey are fighting to lead their Mariachi group, but they are falling for each other.

Real Rating: 4.25* of five

People are complicated, messy creatures, amalgamated from every speck of the spectrum of existence. No one who thinks babyqueers, that is your adolescent persons of all genders and preferences, should be kept in the dark about this, has any moral authority. They're arguing for repressions that they screech loudly about perceiving against them, but it being okay to do to others because they're Other.

The centrality of "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you" is obviously lost on these idiots.

Now that's out of the way, <I>Canto Contigo</I> (that title rips my sentimental heart out) is the 180° opposite of the book-banner/oppressor mentality's comfort zone. There's an out trans person in a gay relationship! That ought to send some fur flying among the deeply homophobic Latine folks, the religious nuts, and the fascist identity police. Good job, Author Garza Villa. Keep swingin' for their kneecaps. That goes also for Rafie's overweening Man-itude. The sheer arrogance of all adolescents I have ever met too often gets left out of the mirror of YA fiction. There is not a male person alive in the world today who could not benefit from seeing how his Man-itude looks from the outside. Start early instilling awareness and perspective in your boys, gay or otherwise. It will help him, and all who love him, in the long run.

The grieving that Rafie does for his Abuelo is very well-handled, and makes Rafie's dickheadedness a lot more forgiveable. It's a big refreshing change to see boys being credited with the ability to process deep emotions, albeit not smoothly. Too often the resolution of the grieving is both too smooth and too fast. Rafie's grieving isn't complete by the end of the story but it's underway...much more honest, IMO. I'll alsi let Anglophone readers know that there's a goodly amount of Spanish used in the dialogue. As that's normal for Mexican-American boys, I didn't actually notice it much until I was asked to translate something. So, be aware if speaking Spanish is not on your list of accomplishments.

The vibrancy of these boys rushing into their lives, hurtling past the idiocy of phobes and their control fetishes, their smallness of spirit, and the rules they insist must be obeyed, was delightful. The music lessons are fascinating. The fact that the boys are rivals for a very important and prestigious position in their school's mariachi contest is a great way to keep the emotional loud pedal down without it feeling as though the author's manufacturing crises. It's baked in when the situation is set up this way. Going for the same role in a public-facing event is going to make competitors out of any two boys, then add to the mix that Rey's got the added pressure of representing for all of transmasc-dom.... They're believably entwined, they're completely besotted, and they each want to win.

Great way to tell a story. It's told well. I'm glad I got to know the entire bunch. Yes, even the jerks...need jerks to make a love story about us-v-them really work. This one's got that covered. I might think twice about handing the book to anyone fourteen or under without really carefully considering where that kid's social development was. Fifteen on up I'd be completely comfortable handing it over.

Get one for yourself, too, grandparent, and have a book club.

This book made me bawl! I loved this. It was so well written and I fully understood the motivation for Rafi. Their relationship was so cute and genuine.

5 Stars

This. Book. Is. Perfection.

I loyally cried at the end and audibly went “omg ahhhhhhhhh my heartttttttt”, so yeah, I’m a fan.

What I expected (and got) was an amazing queer romance full of Mexican culture and loads of mariachi. What I didn’t expect, but may have loved most, was the portrayal of how messy grief can be and how it makes us into people we might not want to be.

I don’t want to give too much away, but this book perfectly showcases how love isn’t always easy, loss of love may be even harder, but the only way to become the best version of ourselves is to let love change us for the better, even though it is hard.

I cannot recommend this book enough and I DESPERATELY hope we get an adaptation of it on screen one day. It would be ICONIC.

This. Is . What. I'm Talking. About. When. I. Say. We. Need. More. Latin. stories. I ate this up. Give me more more more more more more more. Also This author is a new autobuy.

I immediately wanted to find a mariachi band after reading/listening to Canto Contigo.

Ravi is living on a high, helping his high school win the Mariachi Extravaganza de Nacional. He also met a swoony guy. Flash forward eight months and Ravi is out of his high school and into a new one for his senior year. The school where Rey is the lead vocalist and who he ALMOST hooked up with. There's no way Ravi is letting Rey stay in his head. But forced to work together, he may just discover who he truly is meant to be.

The emotional outbursts Ravi experiences felt real, like I was right there with him, and the banter back and forth at times was interesting. I wanted more however; at times because I found some of the conflict petty and a tad bit unnecessary. However; many others may feel differently.

I will read anything Jonny Garza Villa writes. Their voice is so good and works so well for me. I really loved a lot about Canto Contigo and it hit me hard in a lot of ways. But, unlike Ander & Santi Were Here, I'm not sure I re-read it again any time soon.

What worked for me:
• First of all, the audio narration was great and really elevates the book - between hearing the Spanish as it should be heard and a couple of musical touches - I highly recommend reading this book with your ears.
• The grief. Oof. I lost my last (and closest) grandparent in the fall and it's been such a unique and powerful grief compared to any other losses I've experienced. So while Rafie's confusion and misguidedness could be really hard to read, there were some beautiful depictions of his grief that I needed to read.
• The instaconnection: When I tell you that the way Rafie and Rey initially met and connected felt so real, there is no way for me to explain that without simply saying that it deeply and personally resonated with me.
• The attraction and romance: I love a YA novel that can straddle the line of not depicting minors doing sex stuff in too much detail but can demonstrate the teenagers can be both horny and careful and thoughtful about physical intimacy. And Jonny Garza Villa writes couples who I believe can make it for the long haul despite their youth.
• The Selena Quintanilla-Perez Academy: God I loved this fierce, queer school.

What didn't work so well for me:
• I had to suspend my disbelief quite a bit to believe that Rey could (and should) be so gracious and patient with Rafie. Talk about a cinnamon roll.
• It is a pretty bold move to write such a self-centred, arrogant and frustrating character as your single POV main character. I don't even know if it's fair to say this didn't work for me because ultimately I was rooting for Rafie to get his shit together but wow, he was frustrating to spend time with and at times I simply did not get him and his experience, which made it harder for me to dredge up the sympathy needed to root for him. But I will say that the author got me back (or close enough) most of the time.
• The resolution felt a bit quick, neat and tidy - especially after all the messiness. But honestly I was so relieved to get it that I didn't dwell on that too much.

I still need to go back and read the author's debut and I might need to go back and re-read Ander & Santi too. I'll be writing whatever they put out for sure.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for giving me a free eARC of this book to read in exchange for my review!

This book was phenomenal. The love and care that went into the portrayal of Rafie and Rey was palpable throughout, and I kept finding myself slowing down because I didn’t want it to end. I can’t wait to reread it again and again!