Much like the duality of the protagonist and his love interest, this debut novel is a delightful read and a dark reminder that everyone isn't yet completely free to be themself.

The plot contains homophobia and toxic masculinity that is detrimental to the health of the protagonist, but in time it is healed via a support system, personal reflection, and breaking ties with an abuser. This book is a mixture of food I wish I were being served (like Jules, I'll take the veggie options), teenagers living their lives as best the can, and heavy moments of harassment and abuse.

The side characters were so lovely, but despite the joy and love they bring, it is incredibly realistic to be let down by someone who should love you unconditionally and refuses to look past their old-fashioned beliefs to do so.

Essentially, I loved it, I'm hungry now, and I wish these characters all the best.

“but when we do, and i look up into the evening sky, i see the moon and the sun. together. sharing the same sky. and i know that, no matter what, we’ll be all right. i hope.”

content warnings: abusive homophobic parent, (off page, past) parental death, homophobia (slurs, bullying), underage drinking, non explicit sexual content

fifteen hundred miles from the sun stars julián luna—a high school senior who dreams of going to UCLA and finally being his true self. drunk at a party with his friends at the start of the school year, he unintentionally comes out via tweet. with his secret now out of the closet, he finds solace in mat, a cute boy he meets on queer twitter that he quickly finds himself falling for.

there’s a lot i loved seeing in this book.

i will forever love books where the cast is entirely made up of poc. from the main character, to the love interest, to the main characters closest friends. i have spent my whole life living in a community where the majority has been poc, so all of my friends through school have always been poc. and to have a both characters in the main ship be poc?? is so?? it’s so refreshing. every time. i will never get tired of reading queer kids of color fall in love.

one of the brightest stars in this book is xochi, julián’s older sister. i’m also an older sister. their age difference is exactly the same as mine and my brother’s. so and jules share such a beautiful relationship. i love seeing a fiercely protective older sister.

i also love a book that accepts and normalizes online friendships and relationships. about how bonds can be made across miles and computer screens. i’ve made some great friendships through the internet—maybe i haven’t fallen in love but i’ve met people who’ve changed my life.

overall, fifteen hundred miles from the sun is a book that is both heavy and warm. do not take the content warnings above or the author’s note at the beginning lightly. ultimately it is a story full of heart.

I romantic and beautiful debut from Jonny Garza Villa. I loved the friendship and family dynamics of this book and Jonny has such a wonderful control over voice and relationships. I recommend you pick this one up!

DRC provided by Skyscape via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Representation: gay Mexican-American protagonist, Mexican-American secondary characters, Black secondary character, gay Vietnamese-American secondary character, pansexual Mexican-American secondary character, Mexican-American tertiary characters, bisexual Vietnamese-American tertiary character, lesbian Vietnamese-American tertiary character, gay Filipino-American tertiary character, Vietnamese-American tertiary characters.

Content Warning: homophobia, racism, mention of death, outing, bullying, violence, physical abuse, trauma, anxiety.

Fifteen Hundred Miles from The Sun by Jonny Garza Villa is a book that will crush your heart and make you smile with its beautiful message and characters, but it will also have your mouth watering at all the delicious dishes Julián makes and eats.

Julián Luna wishes for his senior year at high school to go as smoothly as possible so that he can take the reins of his own life without feeling outside pressure. A drunken tweet changes all of that. After mistakenly outing himself on Twitter though, a cute boy from California message him and helps him through this arduous moment.

“Quisieron enterrarnos, pero no sabían que éramos semillas.”

I am not kidding when I say that I was already smitten with this book from the dedication. That sentence above alone evoked such a roller-coaster of emotions in me. A tornado of feelings that did not quiet when I actually started the book. The story deals with a very sensitive topic but in a such beautiful way that I could not NOT fall in love with it.

I found everything about it to be so perfect: the pacing and its short chapters; the characters, which I loved with every fibre in my body (Lou reminded so much of Jasmin from On My Block and I could not stop myself from imagining Jessica Marie Garcia’s voice in her scenes); but most importantly the novel’s message.

Fifteen Hundred Miles from The Sun is a book that every queer child should have on their shelves and that every teacher should assign to their students and that every library and bookshop should recommend to their customers.

Thank you so much to Skyscape for the ARC of this book!

Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun by Johnny Garza Villa is a sweet, sometimes heavy emotional roller coaster, and I'll be riding this one again, thanks.

Jules is in his senior year of high school, and ready to get out of Texas ASAP. He's ready to live his life on his own terms and get away from his homophobic father and community. When he accidentally outs himself and meets a boy online that might just be the guy of his dreams he has to decide if he's ready to live the life he's always dreamed of or the one that might just be the safer option.

I don't know what I expected from this book. Johnny does an excellent job, in the beginning, warning us of what's to come, and I still wasn't prepared. They manage to mix these incredibly dark moments between Jules and his dad with lighter moments between Jules and his friends and Jules and Mat, his love interest. That's not to say that these light moments aren't also heavy. In them we see Jules being able to connect with another gay guy on a level he's never been able to with his own friends. We see the absolute love and devotion between Jules and his sister, Xo. The joy of cooking and culture and of bigger things to come.

I loved seeing Jules and Mat's relationship blossom. It was quick, but it was quick in a way that made sense. It was the irrefutable evidence that there's another person in the world who gets it, who gets you and all that entails. The sun to your moon. It was a book for 2021, where there are discussions of emotional and physical safety, of consent and safe sex. We absolutely love to see it in this book.

The story unfolds in a perfectly paced way and I was kept on the edge of my seat, trying to guess what happens and crossing my fingers for what I wanted to happen. I cried more than once toward the end, remembering what it was like like as an 18-year-old to hurtle toward this giant neon sign of ADULTHOOD and trying to figure out what it all means. When we have to leave behind our family and our found family, it's incredibly emotional and hopeful and Johnny captured that so incredibly well. They went above and beyond in creating a space in this book where queer teens can see themselves and find a little hope along the way.

Also, can confirm Whataburger is superior to In-N-Out Burger.

A beautiful and heartwrenching read. I didn't connect with it as much as I hoped I would, but I still loved this one a whole lot. Highly recommended.

CW: homophobic slurs, physical abuse/violence, forced outing

Thank you to NetGalley and Skyscape for an advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Julián Luna is in his senior year of high school, and his plan is simple: graduate, go to UCLA, never come back to Corpus Cristi again. One drunken night, Jules accidentally outs himself on Twitter, which leaves the perfect opportunity for his crush to slide into his DMs. But when his worst nightmare comes true, and his crush is fifteen hundred miles away, Jules needs to face it alone and figure out where to go from here.

Something very cool and important about this book: Spanish is inserted throughout, without immediate translation. Some can be gathered based on context, but the bilingual characters exist as they are. If you don't get something, you can look it up. But this felt special.

Julián's story is painful, but that is acknowledged throughout. There is also lots of joy, which is so heartwarming. There are a variety of LGBTQ+ stories that need to be told, and this one story covers many of those. The supporting characters truly breathe so much life into this story, and I'm so happy I was approved for this title! This is definitely one worth checking out once it publishes!

Excuse me for a moment while I find a corner to meltdown and cry over how precioso y emocional this book was. I only just found the strength to sit in front of my laptop and tell the world how I felt while reading this book.

Jonny Garza Villa gets it. Living in a Conservative Latinx home? Read this. Escaped that sort of a home? Read this. This book examined and exposed the machismo that so many of us Latinx chicos y chicas grew up with.

God, I just loved this. I can't wait to write a fuller, more profound review on the release date.

Te quiero mucho, Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun. Tú tienes mi corazón.

Fifteen Hundred Miles From The Sun appeared on my radar a year earlier when I saw that it was pitched as One Day At A Time meets Simon Vs. A book comp'd with my favorite book AND favorite tv show? I was SOLD. Historically, comps have not always been accurate and are usually just a publicity tool to get people to pick up the books. But FHMFTS is one of the instances where it delivers EXACTLY what it promises in terms of the vibes its compared to.

This book is UNAPOLOGETICALLY Latinx. Mexican culture is deeply entrenched in this story. There are so many instances of characters speaking in spanish with each other and Jonny Garza Villa does not stop to translate or explain what they mean. As a reader of color who grew up having to learn about white people things with zero context on any of them, it brought me so much joy to witness characters of color living their lives on the page without that translation. It didn't take away my enjoyment of the story in any way, and I had so much fun reading it.

The story was so cute and felt so nuanced. I am so proud and happy for how far queer stories in YA have come along in just the recent few years. It was a delight to read Julian's story. His awesome sister, his amazing supportive friends, his complicated relationship with his dad, his cute online fling with his twitter crush Mat - it was all so detailed and felt so real, I missed the characters so much by the time I finished the book.

Even the way sex was dealt with in the book felt so real - and by real i don't mean there were lots of explicit on page content - this is still a YA novel. But it still had and implied the right amount of conversation and moments of sex (and sex education!!), the right amount (in my opinion) for a story featuring teenagers at the peak of their teenage years. We need more of this in YA books, especially YA books featuring queer stories!

I just absolutely enjoyed this book, it was filled with cute moments featuring an adorable cast of friends, siblings, and love interests while also tackling a lot of intense topics with the seriousness and nuance they require. If you're looking for your next feel-good read, look no further than Fifteen Hundred Miles From The Sun - Jonny Garza Villa has written a beautiful book that must be read by all. 5 stars.

This was such a cute, quick read! I fell in love with the characters. This is a book I will probably be adding to my bookshelf once it’s released.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an e-arc of this book.

This review will contain small spoilers.

I really enjoyed this book, so much that I preordered it right away. Jules's and Mat's relationship was adorable and give me hope. Me and my boyfriend are going to be doing long distance soon and reading about Mule"s?, long distance relationship help me see that it can work, especially if it is someone you love.

One thing that I want to talk about that I found myself really enjoying about this story was how Jules didn't go back to his father. I have read plenty of books where Queer teenagers go back to their family and friends after them being rude and homophobic. But Jules knew his worth and told his dad off and removed him from hist life. I don't really see that in a lot of books I have read and it was really nice to see this rep. Since so many queer teens fall out with their families.

Besides his father I am really happy Jules had an amazing support system and people who loved him so much. This book was filled with cute, exciting and heartfelt moments.

Also posted on Goodreads.

I, unfortunately, couldn't read this book after 50 pages! It was just not working for me. I really wanted to love those book considering I was really happy when I got approved for ARC for it, but I don't know. A few things that I'd like to point - the book has a lot of diversity. It has quite a bunch of characters but it doesn't spend enough time with them so you dont feel connected to any. Or maybe, I just didn't happen to stick long enough for that to happen. Next thing is -, the author depends heavily on SPANISH terms. There was so much Spanish that one time I thought Ill have to open Google translator. I am all in for different culture, ethnicity, etc - but if you are using so much of a different language so often, there should have been a glossary at the end!! The reading experience was definitely brought down by this. And lastly, I felt that the writing was more tell and less show.

Having said that, I do think that it would resonate with a certain audience who do not mind the things that I said above. I am going with a 2 out of 5 stars!

After getting entirely too drunk at a party, Jules outs himself via selfie on Twitter which, bad news, was not what he intended to do but good news, means that his Twitter crush slides into his DMs. Jules and Mat quickly progress from mutuals to friends, and then friends to boyfriends. Although Jules is surrounded by a close-knit group of incredibly supportive friends and an older sister who has his back, being queer at a Catholic school in Corpus Christi, Texas has its challenges for Jules to navigate. At the end of the day though, don't be fooled by the content warnings - this is a genuinely sweet story that will leave any reader with a smile on their face.

In short, this is the "It Gets Better" queer novel that Gen Z needs. It still has all the scary parts of being out and queer as a teen, including homophobic harassment and getting kicked out, but it also has the joyous parts - Jules' first relationship and the love and support of his friends. Another important aspect is the mutuals-to-lovers plotline, a reality for many queer teens that finally gets the validation it deserves with this novel. The author also does an excellent job with the dialogue, both the English teen slang and the natural codeswitching that bilingual folks use in regular communication.

FIFTEEN HUNDRED MILES FROM THE SUN is a book perfect for anyone who needs a good, queer story with a happily ever after, especially any teen struggling with the decision to come out.

I don't cry while reading books. I feel emotions deeply, but I am not a big crier when I read.
So when I say I was bawling my eyes out while reading this, it is a big deal.

Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun was a poignant LGBT coming of age novel that follows Julián, who has been suffocating under the expectations of others, pushing down his true self. When one reckless moment results in him suddenly coming out, Julián's life immediately gets more complicated. Luckily, he has an amazing Twitter friend/crush, Mat, who slid into Julián's DMs.

This book was heartwarming, heartbreaking, funny, and sad. I loved watching Julián with his friends as they helped him through some of the toughest things queer teens face. I also loved watching Mat and Julián's relationship develop, despite being fifteen hundred miles away from one another.
If you want to read something that pulls at every one of your heartstrings, I implore you to pick up this book. You will not regret it.

trigger warnings: past & present parental abuse, physical abuse (chapter 14 & 28), homophobia, outing, mc gets kicked out

Content warnings: Homophobia, parental abuse (verbal and physical), grief..

Representation: Mexican American MC, Vietnamese American LI, and a full cast of BIPOC side characters.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Affirming and so necessary, FIFTEEN HUNDRED MILES FROM THE SUN is an incredible YA contemporary romance.

It follows Jules Luna, a Mexican American teen, who drunkenly comes out on Twitter, only to wake up to his Twitter crush, Mat, having slid into his DMs. This begins their long distance romance as they aspire to attend college in LA next year together.

I loved the balance in this book, how Jonny Garza Villa deftly managed the boys’ blossoming love, with Jules’ desire to be his true self. When I finished this book, my eyes were wet, that’s how much I loved this. I can’t wait to get my physical copy!

FIFTEEN HUNDRED MILES FROM THE SUN was equally emotional and painful and uplifting and filled with so much JOY! I loved the friendship dynamics and the strong sibling relationships. I feel like this book could truly change a teenager's life. This book certainly isn't easy (and I would place a heavy trigger warning on homophobia and emotional and physical abuse from a parent). Overall, a really good read.

This is a book about Julián, a senior in high school who is in the closet in Texas. The novel follows him as he comes out and meets a boy online. He is also juggling family issues and insecurities about being gay.

Pros: Every main character in this book is a person of color, which is awesome! We can have diversity with no white people. It can be done and this book shows it. I thought the fact it focused on a Latinx teen was a refreshing perspective. Even though the coming-out story usually feels cliche, the different perspective elevated it to something a little fresher.

Cons: I wasn't a huge fan of the writing style. It felt very okay and relied too heavily on physical description at the expense of emotional weight. I wish it spent more type building the emotional weight and connections instead of describing the clothes people were wearing or the food they were eating. BUT that is just me. I also thought the plot didn't really go anywhere. Things happened and that was basically it, but this would probably be good for younger YA readers making the jump from middle grades to more complicated YA narratives.

I really wanted to love this book but it sadly didnt do it for me. The writing style felt very flat and boring to me and the plot very unrealistic. The relationship felt very confusing to me as they met online through twitter and in the span of days were dating. It progressed way to quickly and lacked any chemistry. And I loved cemetery boys for the spanish integrated in the text, but this one went a bit to hard on it to the point it was hard to read as a nonspeaker.

I will admit that, when I first finished Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun, I was overflowing with so much emotion, I wasn't sure what to do with it. Happiness, grief, love... it all warred within me. I didn't know what to feel first, and as a result, was a bit overwhelmed for a little while. So, I'm sure you can understand from an introduction like that, I had a lot of feelings for this book.

Julián Luna is one of the most likable main characters that I've read in a long while. He's an adorable disaster, the type that somehow manages to pull it together at the last minute, but only by chance, force of will, and sometimes the sheer audacity that he and his friends circle have honed to a fine weapon. The book itself covers a full year in Julián's life, including a less than graceful announcement of his sexuality, conflict between friends, home stress, re-found connections, and most of all, love.

There were so many instances in this book where I literally laughed out loud at some of the antics, and there were more than a few times that I teared up, both in sadness and in utter and complete happiness. Also, I loved being able to read all of the Spanish in the book. It took me back to being a kiddo, when my father and his sister used to fire back and forth at each other with quips and playful insults, and I couldn't wait to learn more Spanish so I understood more (we are Puerto Rican).

The author has a playful way of making everything seem so real. These aren't characters in a book, they're people you might hear about, or even know. What happens in the book isn't just a story, it's something that your curious tía might share with you over dinner or drinks. I felt that I was a part of the story, that I was so heavily invested in these kids, their struggles and triumphs, their happiness and their sadness.

Honestly, I cannot recommend this book highly enough. It's both comforting and compelling. I wasn't able to put it down, and on the few occasions that I managed it, all I wanted to do was pick it up again. I read it over two days, and I cannot wait to have the physical copy in my hands so I can read it again. Please go read this book. It will absolutely brighten your day, week, month, and maybe even year.

A gripping coming of age insta love YA novel. There was a lot more Spanish in this book than I expected, but I could sort of figure out it from context clues. I am always happy to see queer representation in YA books and this one felt so realistic to me, especially when Jules wonders why it can't be like in the movies (although by the end it kinda was ;))