To say I absolutely adored this book would be an understatement.  Just wow.  Having a highly anticipated book exceed your expectations almost beats the feeling of freshly washed sheets.  With other books, I end up resenting the collective excitement leading up to its release because the book falls flat.  But Ander and Santi Were Here felt so lively.  It’s a very rare occurrence that a book contains the vividness and utter dedication to the characters as this one did.  Jonny Garza Villa’s ability to immerse a reader and get them so hooked on Ander and Santi is impeccable.  And yes, I know that books are meant for immersion, but Ander and Santi was on the level of Adam Silvera’s History Is All You Left Me where you get so much detail about the protagonist’s surroundings that it feels like a distant memory when you think about it later.  If I could read Ander and Santi again for the first time, I would consider it one of my “birthday books,” the group of books sitting on my shelf that I almost don’t want to read because they seem so precious.

And Ander and Santi was so precious.  Next time I want my heart to be broken and then mended again, I will be reading this.  I hate rereading books but I could make an exception for this love story.  I had been very slightly rolling back my romance reading because the plotlines were getting repetitive for me.  But Ander and Santi completely destroyed that roll-back and my standards for romance books.  Along with Annie on My Mind and History Is All You Left Me, I will be wandering through life trying to find another book that gives me the same feeling.  This book is hands-down my favorite book of this year, and honestly, likely one of the best I’ve read in the past few years.

Besides the enthralling nature of this book, the writing style is just to die for.  I can’t even choose a favorite quote because the whole book is full of them and they weave together so beautifully with the context.  You will cry at how tender Ander gets and how much Santi means to them.  Their romance is one of those once-in-a-lifetime loves but with the possibility of it not working out due to external circumstances.  Nothing hurts me more than a seemingly ethereal romance that may not survive.

Garza Villa depicted the main conflict in such a humanizing and heart-breaking way that left readers with no choice but to be invested.  You cannot read this book and not have your heart broken alongside Ander’s.  

My only very small complaints are that Ander and Santi’s romance was almost entirely physical and that Ander’s personal journey is not quite resolved at the end.  I loved Ander and Santi’s relationship; however, I have read books with couples with more emotional chemistry.  The physical attraction was definitely there, as depicted through Ander.  However, I wish that there were more mention of the emotional and not-physical qualities comprising their relationship.  What about Santi’s personality did Ander like?  The epilogue also left everything a bit unanswered because I felt that Ander did not solve their questions about their art in the final decision that was made.  What will be they be doing in the new situation?  The epilogue could have definitely accommodated answers to those questions.  For a book that I will be thinking about for years to come, I wish that one little part was resolved.  Ultimately, I feel so blessed that this book has graced my eyes.