Disclaimer: I received this finished copy from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: Santiago: Chronicles of a Young Traveler

Author: Eduardo Rios Lasso

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 3/5

Diversity: Character with autoimmune condition, character with anxiety

Recommended For...: contemporary, fiction, travel, world travel, adventure, anxiety

Publication Date: June 6, 2022

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Age Relevance: 16+ (fatphobia, romance, human trafficking, religion, child abuse, death)

Explanation of Above: There is some slight mentions of weight and it leans into fatphobia territory. There is some slight romance in the book. There are talks about religion and human trafficking and child abuse are mentioned as well. There is also some death in the book.

Publisher: Zibarna Books

Pages: 345

Synopsis: SANTIAGO – Chronicles of a Young Traveler is a fiction novel, a coming-of-age story inspired by actual live events. The main character is Santiago, a 26-year-old Santiago fresh out of Law School in Panama that has always longed to see the world, but his anxiety gets in the way. But one day, after years of saving, Santiago courageously buys a ticket around the world. His parents think he’s crazy, but he takes a leap of faith and sets out alone. His grandmother played an essential role in his life and was very supportive.

Meanwhile, Santiago finds out his best friend Laura, who played a crucial role in helping him organize the trip, cannot join him for part of the trip as they had planned because she battles a recently diagnosed autoimmune disease. Will he regret his decision to leave her behind? Will their friendship survive or blossom into something more? On his journeys from New York to Lisbon, Paris to Sarajevo, and Istanbul to Bali, Santiago must overcome his shyness and open up his heart despite facing challenges, such as scams and confronting complex issues like human trafficking. Join Santiago on a journey of self-discovery and adventure like no other. 

Review: For the most part I thought this was a good book. It had a lot of great moments and if you’re a new traveler then this book would be the perfect companion for you to take with you on your journeys. The book did well to have a good story with a great plot line. I would have liked to see it a bit more, but it did well to get to the point. The story was easy to follow and it’s just such an easy breezy book, so you can pick it up and put it down multiple times so you can catch your plane or train.

However, I had a few issues with the book. I felt like the book did a lot of telling and not showing. The writing is a bit clunky and it doesn’t flow that well. There’s very little character development and world building, but that is a flaw in the telling not showing plan of the book. The MC also talked so much older than 26 and the way they acted was just very different than how I expected it. I think if the story was a bit more revised to paint a picture to the audience rather than to narrate one to it, then it would have been a better book for me.

Verdict: It’s good, but needs some work in my opinion.