Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun by Jonny Garza Villa Release Date: June 8, 2021 Goodreads Page Author Website Why I love this book: I'm not going to lie- I'm having a hard time reviewing this one. Not because it's bad in any way, in fact, quite the opposite. It is an amazing book. So good in fact that when I was about 60 pages to the end I froze... I didn't want this book to be over, I wasn't ready to let the characters go... and I had many concerns that Jules and Mat were not going to get the ending I wanted for them. No Joke Friends- SPOILERS BELOW. Come back when you've read the book (and you 100% need to read this book) if you are against being spoiled at all.
I'm not a reader who always needs a happy ever after, in fact I much prefer for an author to give the reader and the characters the ending they need, and not just the happy ending that they want. Here though, I needed the happy ending, and I think Jules and Mat did too. I'm so happy they got it. I'm sure their lievs won't be perfect, but I was left with the impression that they would be stepping into their next chapter with a lot of love and support, and that's as close to a Happy Ever After as you can get. I've clearly jumped ahead to the end. While the ending is everything I wanted, the rest of the book is pretty rock solid as well. Jules' journey is manages to be both very narrow to his specific experience, while also being relatable to a much wider audience. Jules' drunken online coming out forces him to really confront who he is in a extrememly sped-up timeline. While we might not all have that experience, I think many of us can relate to making a decision in haste (ahem... or while absolutley obliterated) and having to deal with the fallout, both good and bad. In this case Jules' worst fears and greatest hopes are all realized. He is supported by his closest friends and his sister, and while they are not all immediately understanding and sometimes struggle to know how to support Jules, they are all willing to stand by him and work through it. He is bullied and rejected by the people that he expected that from, including his father, who as the story progresses we get more and more insight into how abusive he really is to Jules. Then there is Mat, 1500 miles away and shooting his shot over twitter. I will admit that I for sure come at online relationships with an extreme bias. Nothing about Mat and Jules connecting on twitter and making a go of it bothered me. Over a decade ago I was a moderator on TwilightMOMs and made some of the best friends I've ever had, we knew eachother almost entirely online, but did fly out to meet each other for vacations, not really knowing who everyone was, but trusting that we had made good choices and that these were good people. Since then I've made friends through fandom facebook groups, on twitter and more recently through TikTok that I would consider real, true friends, even though we have never met face to face. So where others, including some characters, may have been put off by the ease at which Jules and Mat fell into each other online, I saw a completely realistic situation that I loved to watch play out. To be perfectly honest, I loved everything about how the relationship between Jules and Mat played out- especially because it wasn't presented as this easy, idealistic thing. Jonny Garza Villa showed all the hard and messy parts too. They made clear that making it work at a distance is hard, that communication is hard, and that there is anxiety around meeting because what if what you are building online just doesn't translate to real life. They also reminded us that there is risk for sure, but that the rewards are worth it. In the end I loved to see Jules step into his own, and to know that even though he experienced loads of trauma at the hands of his father, that he was worthy of love and support just as he is. That he can be out and not be afraid of what is waiting for him at home. That there is happiness out there for him if he just goes for it. And that reminds readers that the bad things will knock you down and leave scars, but that everyone deserves to find love and support and to be happy.
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Home of the ramblings of an avid reader. In my spare time I also run, ride, teach, go on adventures and get into shenanigans. Find me here: Goodreads Etsy TikTok Categories
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