To call these stories is really stretching it. They are more like tidbits of a short story or a book blurb. This is really the number one reason why this book is only 3 stars for me. It's not that the writing is poor, or even the story ideas weak, all that is well done by Krystal A. Smith; but the shortness of each story makes me feel like I'm reading tweets about story ideas. Far too short for my liking.

Two Moons
The best story by far gives this compilation book it's name. Two Moons is a superb romantic story about the moon and an earth gal who fall in love. I adored the uniqueness of this and that the context pops up in a few other stories along the way. As the second book in the collection it's disappointing to realize that it was the best.

Representation
I think in every instance in this story it is a F/F relationship or a F/entity relationship. That may sound weird but I'm not sure what to call the moon or someone's heart (yes the heart as a conscious mind), or stars. So let's just say entity. These are actually the stories I loved the most. Not because I didn't enjoy the F/F stories but just because they were very, very unique.
Certainly if you want some super quick reads with some LGBTQ+ representation you will find a few here.
What did make me smile was when I realized that by putting in these entities as romantic partners or interests it could serve to normalize the lesbian or trans relationship stories for those that find them uncomfortable! If this is intentional or not I don't know; but I'd like to think it is because it's a clever way of changing perspective enough that someone might suddenly have an ah-ha moment.

Overall
I'd love to see a full short story or novel about our human girl and the moon. I'd also love to see the odd star story (last one) carried forward or given more context. I think there is a great short story there it just needs some substance and context. While I think Krystal A. Smith has something here, not a one of the stories included has enough to it to really be outstanding. And none of them are long enough to really remain in mind for very long.

Different... well done.... I wasn't quite prepared for this type of book, I assumed it was just short stories. I did enjoy many of the tales. They were well written. I can think of a few women I know who would appreciate these stories more than me, but I love short stories of all types and this one wasn't a disappointment at all. It's interesting, entertaining, and thought provoking. Good read actually!

What an amazing collection. These stories are powerful, often joyful, and centered around women who love women. After reading, I feel lucky that I'm allowed to look into the hearts and lives of the characters and share their laughter, struggles, and joy. Whether it's a woman in love with the moon, or shape-shifting foxes, or a woman who works for Death while hoping to reunite with her girlfriend, the settings are magical, haunting, and left me wanting more. Smith's prose is evocative, and I wish some of the stories were a bit longer because I wanted to spend more time with the characters. Overall, this is an enjoyable book and I'd recommend it to anyone looking for Ownvoices black/lesbian speculative fiction.

Two Moons : Stories is a collection of short stories about many things.

It was a very quick read and I enjoyed it immensely. The stories were very poetic, beautiful and I just couldn’t stop reading.
The characters were very interesting and the love stories too.
The poetry of it all is what marked me most.
I really want to read more from this author.

Disclaimer: I recieved this book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

It always feels just a bit unnerving, reading through a collection of different short stories from equally different authors, as you never quite know what you'll get - some might be right up your alley, whilst others might have missed your (subjective) field of interest entirely. Some stories I loved, adored even, and would easily have given 5 stars, whilst others felt like they fell somewhat short, to the point where, individually, I'd give them maybe 2 stars. So how then, to take on the book in its entirety?

I ended up with 3 stars, although it's really 3.5, but that hardly translates to a rigid five-star-system. The book is a collection of stories of black women, queer themes, and magical realism; though other than that, they're based rather widely appart both in characters and plot. And, as mentioned, whilst there were definetly good stories, others felt, in the lack of better words, rather flat and almost empty. The dialogue felt odd, and at times almost chunky, though whether that is a problem with the dialogue or my non-fluent English is beyond me.

There were though, again like mentioned, several good, strong stories, that might give young women good to read. Stories of magic, og godesses - both in contact with women, and within the women themselves; of women loving the moon, and being loved in return; of celestial beings just trying to get by.

Some favourites include Two Moons, Meena & Ziya, and Life Cycle. I'd also like to give Search an honorable mention, for being the second story I've ever found who manages to pull of a 2nd person narrator.

Although this isn't my favourites amongst the books I've been given, I'd definetly reccomend it to anyone looking for stories about women, queer women, and woc.

Though also, I would reccomend looking into content warnings, as the book covers several potential triggers (illness (both mental and somatic), terminal illness, hospitals, issues with infertility (both miscarriages and stillborn children), and death and loss of lovers, amongst others)

Definetly an interesting read - 3.5/5 stars.

Two Moons by Krystal A. Smith is a collection of short speculative fiction. Smith is a Black lesbian poet, and her poetic roots come through as she brings the figurative world of emotion into the literal, asking her readers to follow each protagonist in her soul's journey. While not all stories center on romance, this collection features Black lesbian and bisexual leads, some with disabilities. Trust that the range of representation here weaves organically into each story.

Most anthologies will be hit or miss; Two Moons is no exception. The weak stories fall flat mostly because they are so very short that they lack the development or tension needed to fully bring the reader into the concept. A few I forgot about when I was listing the stories out in my review notes. Overall, though, Two Moons offers a worthwhile peak in layered, extra-natural worlds. Smith brings us to a places where Earth and the heavens can be just a step and a whim away; young women can become goddesses; and the line between delusion, fantasy, and reality is really more of a semi-permeable membrane.

Two Moons excels in abstractions of problems the protagonists are working through: women falling in love with or being threatened by celestial bodies, drawing their strength from the weaknesses that have defined them. My favorites are “Me, the Moon, and Olivia,” “Cosmic,” and “Demetria’s Nature.” The first stars a woman recovering from a traumatic brain injury, whose therapist is struggling with devastating personal problems while the lead struggles to determine what is real. In the second, a former drug addict (and a literal star) is determined to redeem herself by protecting the heavens. The last, to avoid spoilers, I’ll only describe as a girl coming of age and finding out what is inside of her. And it’s mind-blowing.

A few of the stories hit the middle range; strong and interesting, but not as resonating as the ones mentioned above. The titular “Two Moons,” “Harvest,” “Life Cycle,” and “What the Heart Wants.” “Search” also hits a difficult balance between intriguing and lyrically. Plus, I have to give extra props for being able to pull off a story in second person. All of these are enjoyable on their own merits.

While a few of the stories could not hold my interest, they are still smartly conceived and could potentially reach the strength of the others. Because of this, I am bit of a rating bump. From the strongest stories, Smith has made me want to follow her work to see what she comes up with in the future. I’ll be hoping she continues in the genre of speculative fiction, and that she decides to expand some of her ideas into full novellas so we can see where she will go extending a concept to its final conclusions.

Blog review on SAF forthcoming.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

"She was, indeed, special. Too special to be normal."

Sapphicathon: WLWOC MC

This is a really beautiful collection of fantasy and sci-fi stories all with Black lesbian leads. Krystal A. Smith's language is absolutely gorgeous and really reminded me of why I love speculative fiction. It was really lovely and refreshing to read stories that didn't involve homophobia at all, but instead presented love between women as natural and deserving of happy endings. I'm so glad I had the chance to read this.

Search: Told in second-person POV, the protagonist searches for her true self.

Any One Out There: The Any Love project is a video matchmaking service. Josie watches Cora's video over and over as she travels through space.

Two Moons: This one was my favourite and I see why the collection was named after it! It's everything you've ever wanted from the 'moon lesbian aesthetic'. Selene is in love with the moon and Luna is in love with her too, but can they ever be together?

Meena & Ziya: Meena's girlfriend Ziya is a healer, but this takes its toll on her.

Catch Me If You Can: Jaleesa and her girlfriend Lomi are fox shifters.

Harvest: This was another of my favourites. Korinthia has had one miscarriage and two stillborn children by virgin conception (well, not virgin because of her girlfriend Maddie but you know what I mean). However, each failed pregnancy results in a successful harvest. I'm very much interested in infertility or near-infertility narratives done right and this certainly delivered. Also, talking rabbits.

What the Heart Wants: Saachi has spent a lot of time preparing to ask her girlfriend Mona to move in with her. When Mona refuses, Saachi feels unlovable, so she pulls her heart out of her body and he attempts to convince her otherwise. This was the only story I wasn't too sure about, as I felt Mona was wrongly painted as the villain. Not wanting to move in with your partner if you aren't ready isn't wrong or a sign that you don't love them, and the ending in particular felt unnecessarily cruel to Mona.

Life Cycle: Khalida works for Death in the hope that someday she will be able to see her girlfriend Celia, who was terminally ill, again. This was achingly sad and beautiful.

Me, the Moon, and Olivia: Nideana tells her therapist Olivia about the woman she sees living on the moon, but she may be able to help Olivia as well.

A Rose For Brescia: Brescia knows someone is stealing her roses and finally has a close encounter with the thief. This one had an excellent twist.

All The Light There Was: Soma considers her life and her relationship with her two sons.

Feeling Blue: Claire has a conversation with a piece of wall art which makes her reconsider her life choices regarding career and her ex-girlfriend Laney.

Cosmic: Esme, a secondary character from Two Moons, really shines here, and not just becuase she's a star. Bittersweet and thought-inspiring.

Demetria's Nature: Demetria discovers her true self.

Representation: All Black lesbian MCs (the word lesbian isn't used in any of the stories, but it's in the list of themes at the beginning).
Ownvoices/author info: Krystal A. Smith is a Black American lesbian.

Trigger warnings: sex scenes, illness, infertility issues (miscarriages and stillborn children), hospitals, terminal illness and death of partner, injury, fire, death.

Imaginative stories that will expand your horizons and take you places where only imagination rules. Strong female leads and spiritual exploration pepper these wonderful tales. A must read!!!

I am still enjoying this book but wanted to give my feedback before it was archived on Netgalley.

I'm more than halfway through and have loved every single story so far. I tend to expect stories with a darker tone when I think spec fic, but these stories have been an absolute delight - full of hope and love and even plain cuteness, which has been an absolute balm to my soul. Highly recommended if you're in need of some uncomplicated, lighthearted and happy-making reading.

I found this collection of short stories to be too wildly inconsistent for me to reap much enjoyment from. I usually like to read shorts anthologies contributed by multiple authors just for that varied writing style; there is bound to be a few I "click" with. This just wasn't the case here with many of the stories being a little too allegorical for my personal taste. All of the shorts are indeed quite short, which is a plus here because if a story is dull, it'll be over in just a few pages--unfortunately though I felt this way for much of the book before deciding to put it aside and move on to something new and much more enjoyable.

This is hard to rate - I liked the short stories but the stories were really short. It was hard to form a connection with the characters or really get into the story. I enjoyed the stories but wished that they were a little bit longer.

This captivating collection of speculative fiction stories did not disappoint! Krystal A Smith has established herself as an imaginative force to be reckoned with!