.·:·.☽✧ 4.5 stars (rounded down to 4)✧☾.·:·.

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC of this title!

CW/TW (may contain spoilers)

"Fifteen Hundred Miles From The Sun" by Jonny Garza Villa is a beautiful story told in first-person POV centered around self-identity, family, friends, and finding love. When I read the synopsis for this story, I was beyond elated to read it. And while I found some issues with the novel, I thoroughly enjoyed it overall.

Within the city of Corpus Christi, Texas, seventeen-year-old Julián Luna feels suffocated because he can't be his authentic self without being judged. His plan is to graduate and attend UCLA so he can finally be free. But after a reckless tweet at a party, Jules' plan of lying low for the next nine or so months are thrown- quite literally-out the closet. On the upside, Jules has the opportunity to be himself. On the downside, the whole world knows, and now has the opportunity to judge him for his mistake.

But not all hope is lost when Jules' very cute Twitter crush from Los Angles, Mat, messages him through Twitter, and they quickly form a connection over the next few months. Jules feels like he can tell him anything, and Mat makes the world seem conquerable. But things become difficult when they both need physical comfort and affection because of their hectic worlds, yet the other person is still fifteen hundred miles away.

"And for a while, I can imagine a life where I'm not so scared. Where I'm happy and free and maybe get to hold Mat's hand while we walk through The Groove. A life fifteen hundred miles away from what's felt like continual gray and where I can finally be in the sun."

And now that Jules has accidentally propelled himself into the life he's always dreamed of, and he's in complete control, what he does next is up to him.

Plot & Pacing - 10/10

I liked the plot of this novel because while the synopsis I provided may not seem too action-packed, the story itself most definitely is action-packed and full of emotion. Because of how enthralling the plot was, the pacing was executed well in a similar fashion.

Characters (main and secondary) - 9.2/10

When I reflect on the characters in "Fifteen Hundred Miles From The Sun", it is slightly difficult to remember the characters who weren't Julián and Mat. I can remember their names, but I barely remember anything about their personalities, so I'll quickly talk about them towards the end of this section. Because most characters who weren't Julián and Mat were barely developed, I had to lower my rating for this section.

Julián was such a strong and courageous character. I know it's hard for me to support my point without spoiling, so please believe me when I say that. Jules went through so much, yet always found some benefit from the situation because his family and friends showed him how to overcome those type of situations. He was also so sweet and caring that I ended up loving his character even more. And going back to the things Jules went through, I liked how his struggles were portrayed in an authentic and realistic way instead of being shown to us through rose-tinted glasses. That portrayal most definitely helped me sympathize with Jules, while still understanding where he's coming from.

Mat was adorable. Man, I love him so much. He always had cute and funny one-liners to make Jules feel better when he's down. Even though he was optimistic in most situations, it was refreshing to see him acknowledge something for what it is. I think it not only benefited his character, but also his relationship with Jules, to sometimes have a pragmatic view on the world, so it doesn't seem like his head is in the clouds. I hope that makes sense. Though as much as I enjoyed his character, I think he could've been more developed, so he couldn't only be listed by the qualities I described.

The secondary characters, families, and best friends were good. I think that's the best way I can describe them. They all played their roles in the story and helped Jules and Mat, but they don't really have distinctive personalities. I remember that Itzel was the smart and caring friend. Jordan was the pretty masculine friend that usually isn't sentimental. The way I just described Jordan mostly describes Piña/Gabriel and Rolando. Lou was the loud and very expressive friend. Jules' sister, Xo, was the very supportive and caring older sister. And we're not going to talk about Jules' Dad because I'd be ranting for days. The reason I gave a very brief rundown of most secondary characters' personalities is because, as I said before, they aren't very distinctive. In my mind, their traits are pretty vague and aren't traits specific to just one character.

Relationships (romantic and platonic) - 9.4/10

As much as I loved Jules and Mat's relationship, I do have to acknowledge that their love developed in an instant and was very sudden.

""Anh yêu em, Moonlight."
"También te amo, Sunshine.""

Other than that small flaw, I loved their relationship overall. I really enjoyed seeing Jules interact with his friends and family because most of them support who he is, and it put a smile on my face to see his identity being validated.

And as much as I loathe Jules' father for how he treated Jules, I really liked how their relationship was portrayed. It wasn't black and white, and the lines were blurred when it came to what was right, and what was wrong. Even though Jules wanted to hate his father for what he did, he still loved him.

"[…]I want to tell you I hate you. I wish I could tell you I hate you.[....] But I can't. To say it would be a lie. Because I still love you. And I forgive you.[...]"

It broke my heart, but I understood why he felt that way. Their relationship is complicated and very intricate, and I really love how it was executed.

But when it comes to Jules' mother, I can't say the same. She's mentioned at times for holidays like Día de los Muertos, but I don't remember learning much about how he feels about his mother, his relationship with her or anything of the sorts. I really wish that relationship was focused on more in the novel because I would've loved to learn about those two.

Dialogue/Writing - 10/10

I don't have much to say about the dialogue and writing because they were both done well, and I have no complaints about it. I really appreciated how the dialogue just flowed. It felt like real teenagers were communicating and interacting in this book instead of aliens poorly mimicking teenage behavior. That was a weird comparison, but I hope you get my point.

Ending - 9.7/10

I love the ending. A lot. I really wish I could spoil, but I can't, so I'll keep this section brief. It made me very happy to see Mat and Jules living life to the fullest, and I nearly cried when Jules could finally be himself without the chains he previously had weighing him down. But I am curious to know what will happen with Jules and his ability to play soccer. Will he be a professional soccer player? Did he forget about soccer because that was high school, and he now wants to move onto bigger and better things? I have these questions about soccer because when Jules played soccer, it was merely mentioned, and wasn't discussed when he was figuring out his plan for college. I do wish that his plans for soccer were more clear.

In conclusion, "Fifteen Hundred Miles From The Sun" was a very enjoyable read, but left me with so many questions that I can't detail them all here without spoiling the story. I loved a lot of the relationships that were developed, but for some relationships, I wish they were developed more. The plot, pacing, dialogue, and writing were all on point. But I think the secondary characters and the ending could use some revision. I would highly recommend this novel to anyone who loves stories centered around self-identity, family, friends, and finding love. 

(Content and Trigger Warnings (may contain spoilers))

 *.·:·.☽✧ 5 stars ✧☾.·:·.*

"A Good Girl's Guide To Murder" tells the story of 17-year-old Pippa Fitz-Amobi as she tries to uncover and solve the murder of Andie Bell, who was supposedly killed by her boyfriend Sal Singh, who then killed himself. Even though this situation took place five years ago and people think they know the whole story, Pip knows there's still more to uncover. And as she revisits the case with Sal's brother Ravi for her final school project to cast doubt on the original investigation, she uncovers a trail of dark secrets that could prove Sal Singh's innocence.... and put not only herself but others at danger because someone doesn't want these secrets revealed.

The plot was action-packed throughout the whole book, and that's what kept me wrapped around this novel's finger. For most of the novel, we follow Pippa and Ravi as they interrogate their suspects and put together the pieces to the mystery, and it's so exciting. While a 17-year-old solving a mystery isn't very realistic, I didn't care because the thrilling story made me forget all about that. Every time they uncovered new information in the case and found a new suspect, I became more enthralled in the story. There were so many twists and turns throughout the story, but it wasn't too hard to catch up. The plot just kept building and building, so I was at the edge of my seat just wondering who committed the crime. And the ending was so explosive yet surprising that I was left speechless.

Now if we're being honest, the plot wouldn't have been as interesting without the writing. I adored how it didn't feel like there were fillers in the writing. It just got to the point, and I couldn't even appreciate that until I reflected on it. And I liked how there were journal entries in the novel right after Pippa and Sal discovered something, but they were written in Pip's first-person perspective, while the rest of the novel was written from a third-person perspective. Here is an example of one of Pip's capstone project entries and an example from the regular third-person perspective in the story for comparison.

[Capstone Project Log] "I'll keep trying the ones that went to generic voicemails, just in case anything comes of it. But I really need to get going with my application. Should I write about that time I got lost at the zoo? Was that a formative experience? Gah, 650 words is far too many for someone who doesn't know who they are."

[Regular Chapter Text] "She was on the train to Westport. Ravi was coming straight from work to meet her at the station. Pip looked away from the blank expectant page and out the window instead; they had to be nearly there. She'd taken the train to fit in some application time but had nothing to show for it."

It made me feel like I could understand Pippa's motives from the journal entries, and then I saw her execute those actions from a looking-glass in the rest of the story. The writing just had a good combination of articulation, suspense, and mystery.

Pippa was a great high-school detective, but she was still a one dimensional character. She doesn't develop much in character, but she definitely gains new perspectives on what's right and wrong. If you wanted me to tell you about some of her qualities, I wouldn't have anything to say. Pippa is a "good girl" who does her work on time, asks for extra assignments, does exceptionally well, and cares about her family. But she questions herself because her judgement is clouded while revisiting the case, even though she used to know exactly what's right and wrong. Though I think her character is supposed to be like this because throughout the story, we see her realize why she strides to be a "good girl" in the first place. And after coming to this realization and gaining all these new perspectives, I think her character will truly develop in the upcoming novels of this series.

While Ravi was my favorite character, he didn't have much development either, but I'm not mad about it. Ravi was a sweet but grief-stricken character who just wanted justice for his brother. He was really determined to help Pippa prove Sal's innocence, yet he was also supportive and understanding towards Pip when she felt distraught. Their friendship was so wholesome, and I wholeheartedly enjoyed it. I can't remember much about Ravi's character, but trust me when I say he's great.

So I decided to dissect Sal's character with Andie's character because I don't have enough to say about the two separately. Sal was kind, selfless, and clever. He didn't have a good relationship with Andie, and it's sad that their relationship ended in his death because his family really cared about him. And Andie was callous, vulnerable and self-conscious, but seen as a beautiful victim by the public. So all I can say without spoiling is that Andie had a lot of secrets that she really didn't want anyone to know about.

Usually, I would dissect or give an overview of the supporting character's traits/personalities, but I can't do that well without spoiling, so I guess we'll leave it here. I adored everything about this book from the developed plot, to the fresh writing, and the intriguing characters. I'm really excited to read the sequel because I want to see how Holly Jackson can add more to this addicting tale. After reading "A Good Girl's Guide To Murder", I have no doubt that she will deliver in the sequel. I do hope that in the following book, not only will the main characters' personalities have development, but also the supporting characters' personalities as well because I'd love to learn more about them. This is truly is a nail-biting mystery that I would recommend to anyone, but be prepared for thrilling twists you wouldn't suspect.