While this isn't my favorite of Villa's books, I can see the bones of a great book within the pages. Julián is a great character and personable and likeable, but I just feel tired of the "accidentally outed" or (while not in this book) "forced outing" trope.

Mat, my love.

Thank you to Skyscape and NetGalley this advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

Don't let this cover deceive you! This cover makes this book seem like it'll be a fluffy read. But it's not. You'll find yourself crying at 2pm at work while listening to the audiobook.

However, this book is still a happy book at times. Despite the hardships of Jules having to be out before he is ready, he is surrounded by people in his life that adore him for who he is. Though there are some really hard chapters to read, these experiences are painfully realistic for a lot of queer teens, especially in places like Texas, and I admire the way that Jonny managed to weave a perfect balance of love and heartbreak throughout this book. I feel like it really helped highlight the idea of "it gets better".

I listened to the audiobook of this and Avi Roque did a fantastic job of differentiating voices for the entire cast of characters in Jules's life. There's quite a bit of Spanish in this book as well, so I recommend the audiobook if you struggle with pronounciations like I do.

I think this was a great debut for Jonny Garza Villa and I'm sure his voice and writing have both grown since this was published. I'm excited to check out my backlist as I know a few of his titles are on there!

With a great balance between humour and heavy topics, this was such a sweet and funny long distance love story. I had one first hand and let me tell you, it's not easy and if you're a teen with lots of feelings and new emotions and wishes to have new experiences that can only be done in person, I know it was not easy. But it was done so well and it had me being emotional and cheering for them from beginning to end.

I loved Villa's book—the characters are so real, their community so beautifully developed, and the exploration of carving out your own space in the world as yourself. A wonderful talent to watch.

While this deals with parental abuse, i would not call this a heavy read.
I loved the online romance/long distance rep here. I think this will really speak to young adults who (especially during covid) have formed strong connections over the internet.
There are so many YA books that i feel like don't accurately represent young adults as they are now in the early 2020s. I feel like this was actually written for them and they will feel seen by it.
There are helpful conversations around sexuality and sex here that I feel like are age appropriate and good rep that teens who have questions need, particularly queer teens.

A fairly standard teen romance with some unique details. There isn't a lot of depth. There are hints that the plot might be headed in other directions, alternate paths that the characters could take. But none of these pay off. There's even the ideas of Machismo and the role of culture in gender identity mentioned, but these are only passing glances not in depth explorations.

Thanks NetGalley for the preview!

This book was an intense finding yourself story. I loved the vibrant characters. There’s a lot of heavy stuff in here though and it took me a while to read.

I really enjoyed this one. The writing was beautiful and the plot was great. I loved all of the characters and will for sure be reading more by this author!

Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun was a warm hug and a roller coaster. I loved every moment of it! I loved Jules, his friends, his family and Mat. The story was filled with such joy and longing and sorrow. I'm glad the ending was a happy ever after but all the loose ends weren't perfectly wrapped up. While some parts are fairytale fantastical it was also so down to earth and honest and kind. A wonderful book and a story that stick with you long after you've finished reading it.
I'd recommend this to everyone and I hope the author has many stories in him to share.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

Amazing! Very cute, but also incredibly moving! While everything I love is on the inside of the book, I have to say that the title is my absolute favourite part!. It perfectly sums up what this book is about and I can't help but gush about it. Help yourself to this book if you are looking for warm summer vibes, heartfelt first love and deeply emotional family complexities.

5/5⭐ to Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun. Thank you very much to Skyscape for an egalley copy to review! This was easily a top favourite of the summer, and gave me all the queer joy & pining I needed (though please check the trigger warnings)! Julian's accidental coming out was a comedy of errors that endeared me to his character, but also respected the seriousness of a situation like that which is not without consequences in Jules' case. What I really loved is how this lead to the introduction of our love interest, the wonderful Mat and the angst that comes with a long-distance first love. Oh, I fell so hard for these two and wanted to protect them at all cost! When they finally are able to meet in person what everything *insert heart eyes emoji*. The author balances this whimsy with the reality of growing up in a Chicanx family, machismo and homophobia included. In particular, they explore Jules' relationship with his dad after the accidental coming out. His dad will do anything to stop his son from being associated with anything gay or anti-masculine, even resorting to abusive behaviour. I can imaging there will be many readers who will be able to relate to this and find kinship with Julian. Yeah, I can't recommend this one enough, and that is the magic of queer books written for queer readers!

I'm really bad at reviewing great people's books because I don't know if the BOOK is amazing or the PERSON is amazing, but this was both! A rollercoaster of emotions and quite a few moments where I felt myself tense up, all around a heartfelt and beautiful read.

I loved reading this book, Garza Villa did an amazing job with every aspect of this book. However, my favorite part of this was the characters, I thought the author did a fantastic job with the protagonists and side characters! So excited to read their next books.

TWs: Parental abuse (physical and verbal), homophobia

I had been super excited for Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun back when it was first announced, and even when I first started reading it. Unfortunately I hadn't realized the level of parental abuse that was going to take place in it, or I might have skipped it entirely. This was pitched in a way that made it seem like it was going to be a softer romance, and while there's absolutely nothing wrong with the book itself, I was mislead and don't have it in me to read this right now. Anyway, I'm DNFing at 29%, even though I was actually enjoying the other aspects of the book (Mat and Julian are so cute with their messaging! Julian's friends are true homies!!).

I received a digital ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange of an honest review.

HONESTLY, IF I COULD, I WOULD DEFINE IN WORDS HOW MUCH I LOVED THIS BUT I CAN'T
THIS IS CUTE FUN SWEET SOMETIMES A BIT SAD ALL AT ONCE AND A GREAT READ AAAAA

I should stop using caps to try at least be concise but like seriously this book was great, entertaining, it made me laugh, cry, filled my stomach with butterflies and it made me feel like i was a teen once again

Super recommend, its amazing!

I absolutely adored this book. Jules and Mat were the cutest pair and as far as first loves go, this is what we'd all want. I loved Jules friend group that supported him through all the ups and downs and have a few choice words I'd like to share with his dad. The grandpa sliding in and being the MVP took me by surprise and I was so grateful for the love and support he showered on Mat and Jules. A story of first loves, self acceptance and healing, Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun is essential ready.

A fresh queer read that had me wanting to read more. A voice to watch for sure! This is also one of my favorite covers in recent years, so eye catching and joyful.

Julián Luna is a senior in high school trying to make his way to Los Angeles. To be honest, almost any university outside of Texas would be perfect for him. Stuck in a strained relationship with his father, trying to reconnect with her much older sister and come to terms with his sexuality, his life turns upside down when he accidentally comes out while drunk at a party. But then, even though things are rarely ever perfect, the unimaginable happens: his crush from Twitter slides into his DMs. So maybe things will finally start to look up for him?

“Time to compose myself. Center myself. Straighten myself. This ritual has existed in some form since people started calling out any of my mannerisms that weren’t ‘strictly masculine’. a way of keeping myself in check. And making sure that gay-Jules was securely locked back in his closet” .
― Jonny Garza Villa, Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun

I just need to start this review by saying that I am completely in love with Julián. I did not expect to find so much of myself in him (even if we do share opposing opinions on Gabriel García Márquez). He felt so real and sincere. Honestly, I just want to hug him.

Although I would like to think that my situation was better than his, I also could not wait to get out of my city, even if it meant leaving my friends and family behind. I just felt that, like him, better things (and a truer version of myself) awaited for me from someplace else. In the book, we follow almost all of his senior year and it was so nice to see that much character growth! His friends (and big sister!) were also great, we love a bit of found family™.

“I don’t know how my life will look like four years from now or even four hours (…) But I do know every day is getting better.”
― Jonny Garza Villa, Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun

Mat was one of the greatest parts of the story, although, like Julián, we almost only see him through texts and late-night calls. He is the literal definition of a ball of sunshine and must be protected at all costs. I am not always fond of slow-burn but, seeing as Mat plays a huge part in Julián’s character development (as a friend), I felt their relationship was neither too slow or too rushed. And I have to state that THE TITLE IS ABSOLUTELY PERFECT. Really. Lastly, as an Asian-Latina myself, seeing a mixed-race couple that it’s not white-something felt incredible.

Concerning the plot, the book is a coming of age story, which means the main focus is on the character’s growth. However, I feel that Jonny really excelled in capturing all of the angst, melancholy, and even happiness of the senior year. I am so glad to have read this book, I just wish I could have done it in my last year of high school. I would have cried so damn much.

“Being gay isn’t something I was able to choose. To be happy, to get out of bed every morning, to be strong and brave and proud of who I am, sure. Those were choices. Just like being an intolerant asshole is a choice. And that’s on you, Dad”.
― Jonny Garza Villa, Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun

I am all kinds of impressed by Jonny’s writing. He’s really good (already!) at writing complex characters and plot in such a sweet way. It was all very moving. If this is his debut, I can not wait to read what he writes next! (Maybe a LA sequel called Right Next to the Moon? SIGN ME UP).

Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun by Johnny Garza Villa is the ultimate coming of age story, you have to pick it out this summer! I recommended it to anyone looking for the perfect beach read or some BIPOC/LGBTQ+ excellence™

An incredible, emotional story of love, self-love, and growth triumphing in a world still so hostile for queer people. After Jules accidentally comes out as gay on social media, he strikes up a long-distance relationship with Mat while navigating his impending college decision and trying to hide the fact from his homophobic father.

Jules’ relationship with his father carries a heavy emotional weight in this story, and even though that aspect of his life does not work out happily by the end, this story still focuses on Jules’ life growing beyond that to the love and support that his sister, his friends, and his new love with Mat provide. Even throughout the worst of Jules’ problems, there’s a spark of hope that Jules will survive this, he will make it through, and he will find support and acceptance in the arms of people who love him as he embarks on a new path in life. The book doesn’t depart from the reality many queer people face upon coming out, but its hopefulness and happiness at Jules finally living his life as his true self left me emotionally wrecked but fulfilled. I cannot wait for the author’s next work.