Santiaga: A Freedom Tale

by Alexandra Anton

“A novel that rewards introspection and patience, a study on what it means to keep searching for connection, faith, and freedom.” -Publishers Weekly/BookLife

"A quietly fulfilling and even subversive read." –Kirkus Reviews

“Santiaga is a moving novel about self-discovery… Readers looking for an unusual female character who achieves spiritual growth through life’s practical complications will enjoy this poignant story.” –BlueInk Review

What if spiritual awakening doesn’t require leaving everything behind?

Santiaga: A Freedom Tale is a coming-of-age novel about a young woman’s journey of self-discovery after she walks away from her hometown with unanswered questions and in search of meaning. Drawn to a remote spiritual community in the mountains, Santiaga believes that devotion to a guru, a doctrine, or a man will make her whole. Along the way, she meets cunning seekers and troubled charlatans who put her in danger with their false wisdom.

After Santiaga gives birth to a daughter, she must reckon with motherhood and identity. When personal tragedy hits, she is torn between her devotion to her child and to her own soul. She plunges deep into self-examination of the tender human heart and, wanting more in life, she resolves to challenge centuries of male-centered religious teaching about the path to enlightenment.

Inspired by classic Buddhist fiction, and the first written account of a female Buddha, Yeshe Tsogyal from 8th century Tibet, Santiaga is a moving tale of a woman finding spiritual freedom and the sacrifice that comes along with it. The balance Santiaga ultimately finds is forged in resilience, self-love, and the brave act of choosing her own truth. Devastating, emotional, and introspective, Santiaga explores the conditions modern women face in pursuit of self-awakening.

Genres: Historical Fiction

186 pages, ebook

Published August 11, 2026

About the author

Alexandra Anton is a pen name. The writer studied creative writing at Columbia University and at Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference. She then earned a M.A. in creative writing from San Francisco State University and a Master of Communication Management from USC. She is a former book publicist for bestselling and award-winning authors at McClelland & Stewart/Random House and Simon and Schuster Canada. She is a U.S., Canadian and Italian citizen. Find her on Instagram and TikTok channels @SantiagaBuddha.

Reviews

[Lauralee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Santiaga tells the story of a woman’s spiritual journey. Santiaga had just lost her father during WWII. Shortly after the death of her father, Santiaga abandons her mother and joins her friend, Gloria, to learn the meaning of life from a guru. She quickly becomes dissatisfied with her life and with the guru. She eventually leaves her spiritual life behind and moves to the city, where she meets a famous actor. She becomes the actor’s lover and gives birth to a daughter. When she finds that her lover has betrayed her, she abandons her young daughter and lives by the river. Slowly, Santiaga begins to learn the true meaning of life.

Santiaga is a fascinating character. At a young age, she was independent. She leaves her mother to live her own life. I like how she questions the spiritual leaders and the charlatans. Santiaga is intelligent enough to recognize them as frauds pretty quickly. I also like how Santiaga views herself as a pilgrim in life searching for the truth. She tries to settle down with a man who doesn’t give her his heart, and it hurts her because she yearns for more. I hated that she left her daughter, and I did not understand her own actions. By the time she wanted her daughter back, it was too late. As a mother myself, I could never leave my daughter. Nevertheless, I found her to be a sympathetic protagonist.

Overall, this novel is about friendship, motherhood, and acceptance. The message of this book is to have faith in yourself. The characters were complex and realistic. The setting itself was vague and did not paint vivid descriptions. The story was written in a passive voice. Nevertheless, I found Santiaga to be an emotional and heart-wrenching read! I recommend this book for fans of Bride of the Buddha, Yashodhara, and Sophie’s World!
(Note: I read an ARC copy of this book in courtesy of the author. All opinions expressed in this book are my own.)

[Barbara Boyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alexandra Anton's "Santiaga" is described as a spiritual journey, a retelling of "Siddhartha" with a female protagonist to demonstrate the challenges a woman faces as a spiritual seeker that a man does not.

As a child, rather than play with other children, Santiaga meditated and sought spiritual growth with her likeminded friend Gloria. When they finish school, they leave home together to join a commune in the forest and follow a famous guru in pursuit of enlightenment. Over time, each come to the conclusion that they must move on because they have outgrown the guru and here, their paths part. Gloria follows another guru while Santiaga decides after years of an ascetic life, she must experience the material world. She moves to the city, works, and pursues a romantic relationship, which leads to having a daughter. She embraces motherhood, in part to contrast her own experience with an alcoholic mother who was emotionally unavailable but when the relationship with the father of her child fails, she abandons her daughter to find herself.

Throughout the years, Santiaga strives for spiritual fulfillment and seeks to reconcile the idea of being untethered with her desire for companionship—some of her happiest moments are in relation to others even though she shows harsh judgment toward those around her. She longs to find an answer to the question of supporting those she loves without completely sacrificing herself. As much as a spiritual journey, Santiago's story reflects the condition of being a woman.

The simply told tale carries a deeper meaning. Santiaga's responses to questions from other characters offer wisdom for all to consider. She was wiser and happier as a child when she was true to herself and spends her life seeking to return to that state of freedom.

Thank you to NetGalley and A Sweet House for providing an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

#netgalley #santiaga

[Book Bench · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some heroines announce themselves, and some you quietly get to know. Santiaga belongs to the second kind, since the author reveals her through choices rather than declarations. The setting is described vividly, and that spiritual, sensory grounding carries the whole story. The early chapters move kind of slowly as the world assembles itself around her, but as the story progressed I was interested in her small decisions.

The middle wanders in a couple of stretches where the story seems to be looking for its next gear, which happens in real life as well at times. There is an emotional honesty in how she wants things that are complicated to sort out, and I recognized parts of many women and myself in her contradictions.

The ending tied it all together and overall the book inspires spiritual reflection on the relationship in women's lives between self and motherhood.

[Helen O · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was drawn to Santiaga because I was mystified as to why following a spiritual path would cause you to leave your child. Mainly because in my own case having a child drew me the closest to it, plugged me (and her) into it in the most visceral and real way I’d ever experienced. But aside from the fact that every spiritual journey is different, I had also been fortunate enough to never get fully drawn into or following any dogma or specific belief system. The longer I live, the more of a blessing I realise that to be.

Reading Santiaga was fascinating, as is any well written, considered and crafted book on such a subject. Despite it being fairly obvious, I had never contemplated the fact that most spiritual paths have been created by, and for men. Except perhaps for Pagan type practices, which are much more plugged into the cycle of nature and us as part of that. Women involved in such understandings have also been vilified and killed by men for daring to see that. But the vast majority of spiritual belief systems subjugate women, see them as less than men, that they can never reach the same level of enlightenment as a man can. This is explored rather beautifully here, raising much to consider. Santiaga’s journey through a variety of life choices, spiritual learning and resultant experiences, her realisations that the spiritual, and the lessons therein can be found anywhere, in anything, lie at the heart of any authentic exploration, whatever our gender. Finding what we seek can often involve looking outside ourselves for some sort of ideal set of conditions or state of being, but that is never where we will find it, as Santiaga discovers over time.

It is relatable, honest, providing much for consideration, and this from someone who has lived a long time and devoured many a text. I have to admit I was a little surprised. I came to it expecting (rather foolishly) to need to be critical, but it’s always satisfying to have to eat your words because you’ve gained something you didn’t expect. As Santiaga herself might have said.

[Karen Axnick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would strongly recommend reading the Author’s Note at the end of the book, before engaging in the story. These few paragraphs describe the shift in perspective from the traditional male orientation of a spiritual quest for awakening to a more nontraditional female journey. Whereas, men have been free to pursue spiritual practices, often at the expense of personal relationships, women are challenged to bridge the gap between self-realization and culturally sanctioned responsibilities for family, specifically children.

So it is for Santiaga, the main character in this tale that unfolds from her teenage years to elderhood. Her journey is fraught with false gurus, betrayal, deceit, and abandonment. Her search for spiritual fulfillment is a hunger that cannot be denied even in the face of choosing herself or her child. The good news is that she ultimately finds peace and embraces forgiveness, but at a cost to her as well as her daughter.

For any woman on a spiritual journey, Santiaga’s story poses many thought-provoking questions and issues. This is not an easy read in the sense that the choices made have painful consequences at each phase of her quest. This novel is not a light, inspirational tome; rather it requires a depth of commitment to walk alongside Santiaga and to reflect on how her choices offer a mirror of the reader’s own journey in our contemporary culture to find meaning and fulfillment in a rapidly changing milieu that focuses on material success.

My thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the privilege of reviewing this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This review will be posted on Amazon upon publication.

[FD · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written, with clear echoes of Herman Hesse’s Siddharta , which is acknowledged. Flows really well and allows for a reflective yet easy read, with relatable topics, like motherhood, love, betrayal which can be dove into fully and experienced, by the reader. It fuses beautifully the modern world and all it’s temptations, understanding of others and quests on a spiritual journey , which are easily encountered. Written with a lovely tenderness.


THANK YOU NETGALLEY FOR THE ARC