Not gonna lie, I mainly requested this book because of how beautiful the cover is...

This book had a bit of a slower start, but it got a lot better after a while! I feel like I didn't fully take in the story because I was in a lot of pain when I read it, but it was still pretty good!
So glad I ended up requesting it, and I highly recommend it to other people!

This does perfectly what most historical romances (especially queer and/or BIPOC) fail spectacularly at.

It is at once a devastatingly beautiful and hopeful love story while also grappling honestly with the historical period it is set in. I am actually all for historical fiction escape—queer normative versions of the past, or stories where BIPOC are front and center in times when we were not—but this weaves the truth with the poetry of the love story in such a way that they are almost inextricable.

Beautiful work and will be recommending to everyone.

Thank you to Erehwon books for a free advanced reader copy of this book.

5 stars

What a beautifully written historical fantasy. If you get swept up in the whole “the greatest showman” craze and then later were like “Uhhhhh… wait, he was actually exploiting those people!” This is a great book for you.

Found family, commentary on how immigrants are treated in America, this book is a breath of fresh air when it comes to historical fantasy.

Magical, romantic, and lovely! Rio and Benny are the ultimate star-crossed lovers and their story is beautiful, bittersweet, and full of yearning. The historical setting is well described and researched, and at times I felt like I was right there with the characters. I appreciated how diverse the cast of characters is, and how Benny is adopted into their unique found family. The artwork is incredible! When the Tides Held the Moon is a gorgeous tale of reinvention, desperation, striving, becoming, and finding yourself and your people.

(4.5 stars, rounded up)

I had been looking forward to this book for a long time, and was delighted to find that it did not disappoint. In addition to its compelling historical setting and delightful cast of characters, it also had absolutely stunning illustrations throughout, and was a fantastic read from start to finish. I especially enjoyed the very strong character development throughout.

While first started reading this book as a digital advance copy, it never quite hooked me the way that I thought it would and so when I did read it through, it was a final physical copy that I read. I do think that this book is uniquely suited to a physical format, with the dual-colour illustrations and the gorgeous borders that surround the page at the start of each chapter (the borders slowly change over the course of the book along with the plot progression, which I thought was a particularly lovely touch).

I appreciated all of the main cast of characters, and thought that there was a good balance between developing the platonic relationships between Benny and the rest of the performers and the romantic relationship between Benny and Rio. My preference generally falls in favour of giving 'screen time' to the former, and I was very pleased to find that it felt like the platonic relationships were valued in their own right throughout, even as they also helped to advance the romantic arc of the story.

Another thing I think this book did really well was balancing action with calmer sections that allowed you to connect with the characters properly. A lot happened over the course of the book, but I still felt like I got a chance to see how all of the characters interacted with each other when they had a little space to breathe, which really helped to cement the found family aspect of the book. It meant that I truly believed in the trust built between the characters and so the payoff at the end seemed very much earned.

The best word I think I can find to describe this book is heartwarming. The core of it is all about making your own family, and trusting that they will stand with you when you need them the most, through all of the trials and tribulations that life inevitably brings.

Thank you the publisher and NetGalley for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed this book. I found it engaging, the plot was unique, and every character was memorable. I love an historical fiction novel that takes parts of history that are rarely shown. Coney Island in 1910s New York definitely fits the bill. Throw in fantasy elements and people/mermen discovering who they are, and the fact that they may not be so different? Perfect combo.

June has been the month of queer POC mermaid stories for me, apparently. (I've also read Skin of the Sea this month.) This one is a slowburn historical M/M romance between an orphaned Puerto Rican blacksmith and a kidnapped mermaid.

My favorite part was the worldbuilding around mermaids, how they are one with the water, they have their own religion, etc. It was interesting to learn about through Rió's conversations with Benny. At the same time, Benny became part of a found family of "freaks", the other performers at the circus who didn't fit society's ideal for whatever reason. There are also multiple queer side characters, including gender fluidity in a way that felt very historically appropriate.

I literally do not have enough words to explain how much I loved this book! Venessa Vida Kelley is a superb artist and author and deserves every praise!!!

This book got off to a really slow start, but god am I glad I stuck with it. I ended up going from considering putting it on hold to being completely enraptured with the full cast of characters and so invested in everyone's stories. I will absolutely be recommending this to everyone who wants a romantasy or a found family trope.

When the Tides Held the Moon was a fun, queer, found-family historical fantasy about a Puerto Rican man who joins a sideshow on Coney Island in the 1910s and falls in love with the merman the crew captured for the show. I had a few quibbles with it (and with the way it was marketed), but ultimately I had a good time with it and would recommend it to anyone who felt drawn by the premise.

Here’s how the book was introduced on NetGalley: “The Shape of Water meets The Greatest Showman in this beautifully illustrated queer historical cozy fantasy.” Those comps are perfect, but I wouldn’t call this cozy by any means. It includes real stakes (lives threatened) and heavy themes (lots of racism, homophobia, and even sexual assault). That said, the romance aspect is definitely toned down in a way I’d expect from more of a “cozy” book. So it felt like it walked a weird line between cozy and high-stakes at times. There were also some plotlines that I felt could have been better resolved, tbh.

But overall, net positive on this one. It was a little predictable but not in a bad way, and the found family vibes were excellent, as they always are. The pacing was good and the ending was exciting. I mostly listened to this on audio and I feel like that’s a really good format for it. Also, when you understand the title, you’ll squee!

This book was beautifully written, and the artwork is amazing. I've been a long-time fan of the author's art and was really excited to read this book! The imagery is so vivid and gorgeously written. I loved the historical setting mixed in with magic realism, and throwing in mermaids with some unique lore and I'm happy! This book was incredible.

I appreciated the use of Spanish in the novel and felt it added an additional layer of authenticity, and as a non-Spanish speaker, I found the balance written very well. This book had a strong LGBTQIA+, POC (specifically Puerto Rican), and found family rep. I appreciated how each of these were handled.

It felt timely to read a book about the plight of an immigrant during current times with all that is going on. It was hard to read about Rio's captivity, but that made the story even more powerful. The book deals with racism and sexism, and the dehumanization of everyone in the show, pretty much. The book also demonstrates the different levels that one can become trapped. I think the themes were handled well. It's important to have this in books so that we can learn from history and not repeat it.

I loved Benny and Rio each as characters as well as their romance. Their journey was a slow burn and slow coming together, gradually getting to know each other. They accept and see each other for who they really are. Their story was truly a beautiful one.

This book takes you on an emotional journey along with the characters, and of course, I cried. This book was incredible. I highly recommend this book and have ordered the physical copy so I can see the artwork!

So very beautifully written, with gorgeous art, and such a diverse and loveable cast of characters! I ADORED Benny and his found family of carnies. Of course, Benny and Rio were perfect and I loved seeing their relationship blossom! I will be reading EVERYTHING that Kelley publishes. Such a unique and phenomenal talent.

This is a beautiful book. The hardcover physical was also a pleasure reading, filled with blue and black inked illustrations throughout, hence grabbing a physical book once it was out. The art and layout of some pages were done a disservice in the ebook.
The characters were well fleshed out and the their relationships were built through detailed scene setting and world building. Various accents and languages used added to the immersion into the different cultures present.
Alas, the start of the book dragged for me. It was fun learning new phrases and the language used, until all the searching up made progress even slower while interrupting the build up and knowing which character is which. Not too much was used, but enough with personal knowledge gaps to have to search up on my own. At least searching up words to translate were easier through ebook at the cost of the illustrations and fun formatting (little pictures with text around them in the physical book)
Once I started skipping around, the relationships shown and descriptions were poetic as the actions and underlying plot thickens.
Overall, I may have been too impatient with the world building and learning about different language (which is fun and interesting). Perhaps with more dedicated reading time to relax, get into the headspace, and look things up, I could better enjoy the book. I could definitely feel the research and care that went into world building and really appreciate it.

“Río.” He mimicked my rolled R like a native boricua, “Why that name?” A River can be both devastating and beautiful. I shrugged. “It suits you.”


Benigno “Benny” Caldera knows an orphaned Boricua blacksmith in 1910s New York City can’t call himself an artist. But the ironwork tank he creates for famed Coney Island playground, Luna Park, astounds the eccentric sideshow proprietor who commissioned it. He invites Benny to join the show’s eclectic cast and share in their shocking secret: the tank will cage their newest exhibit, a live merman stolen from the salty banks of the East River.

More than a mythic marvel, Benny soon comes to know the merman Río as a kindred spirit, wise and more compassionate than any human he’s ever met. Despite their different worlds, what begins as a friendship of necessity deepens to love, leading Benny’s heart into uncharted waters where he can no longer ignore the agonising truth of Río’s captivity—and his own.
Releasing Río could mean losing his found family, his new home, and his soulmate forever. Yet Benny’s courageous choice may just reveal a love strong enough to free them both.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, thank you so much Hambright PR and NetGalley for letting me read this!! If you are looking for a great historical queer fantasy to read for pride month (or anytime!!) then please pick this up. A beautiful, fantastical story rich with character and a deep, poetic romance, this book will take you on an emotional journey through a time period laden with important history, outcasts, found family and a fight for freedom.

Benny is an iron worker from Puerto Rico, the story takes place in New York as he moved there to try and find a better life for himself. This book is set in a time when racism was (even more) rife and anyone who wasn’t white was treated as lesser as an accepted way of life. It’s important to have books like this written from the perspective of a non white person as it is a true portrayal of what life can be like for someone who is treated so differently, which is what happens to Benny. He has to work twice as hard to be given half the credit of his coworkers. They disrespect him and purposely cause him an injury, which is how he ends up with the menagerie. Although he can’t escape the looks and names he called he finds a family within the menargerie as they are all outcasts in society for different reasons.

I was instantly enchanted by the menagerie when they were introduced and I really loved reading about them, I could read a whole separate book about this little family of outcasts! I do wish we got more of them, the connection they each shared with Benny had some really sweet moments but it did feel slightly rushed at times. Side shows and the circus have such an interesting history and it’s something that I really want to learn more about. The whole book feels so well researched, it really paints such a vivid portrayal of the times.

Unfortunately before reading this I wasn’t as familiar with the US invasion of Puerto Rico as I should have been and so this book did prompt me to look into it more, this gave the book more depth for me. Benny is a really interesting main character, very kind, loveable and accepting of everyone around him we just instantly want to root for him. I found the use of Spanish throughout this book so immersive, I haven’t read too many books where another language is used so frequently (I definitely want to) but its Benny’s native language so its important for his character and it causes us as the reader to learn more instead of the author having to cater to us.

Now… the romance, oh my! This was a tender, slow burn. A true enemies to lovers journey. I liked the slow gaining of trust between both of them that eventually leads to a friendship and then love. They are both people who are isolated from their communities and so they could find comfort in talking to each other about this and their homes. The language that is used to describe their romance was just lyrical, so so beautiful and romantic, I couldn’t get enough. I liked that we got insights from Río, although of course I wanted more.

Overall this is an addicting historical romance with fantasy elements and a cast of dazzling side characters that could have their own spin offs! A beautiful and poignant fight for freedom and respect in a world that treats them as though they don’t belong, our main character struggles with trying to stay alive, finding a home, and his morals all whilst falling in love. I just loved this story, the illustrations were perfect and just brought me into the story further, the world building was amazing and this book was obviously very well researched. The only thing I struggled with was the ending was a bit open and loose. I know some people don’t mind this but I didn’t really understand fully what the truth of Benny was it was only hinted at throughout that something was different but never fully established but that might have just been me. I still would 100% read this book again!!

Benny, a Puerto Rican immigrant, trying to find a place for himself in NYC, instead finds himself helping a Coney Island sideshow capture a merman. Only, when he starts connecting with the merman, Benny must decide what his new family is worth. Is it worth the truth of who he really is? Is it worth the affection he finds with Rio, the merman?

I really enjoyed this! It‘s a very slow start, like glacially slow. But it's setting up all the fun side characters, who I adored, and the show itself. And honestly, I would read a novel about each of the other characters that Benny befriends. It may be slow at the beginning, but it‘s completely worth it when the plot really kicks in. And New York City was such a fantastically detailed setting.

I did end up predicting the twist. And I was left with a lot more questions than I usually like for a stand alone novel, but this was well worth the read, and is absolutely gorgeous looking to boot.

Thank you to both NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for this arc.

I went into this book excited for the mermaids, and came out crying about a lost boy who wants to be accepted and loved. This poetic masterpiece is a love story with hard hitting themes, impactful characters, and tender romance. I cry just thinking about it. I will definitely be reading anything Venessa Vida Kelley publishes in the future!!

read if you love:
- M/M romance
- Found family
- Merman
- Historical fiction
- Diverse characters
- NYC setting

Thank you to Erewhon Books, NetGalley, and Venessa Vida Kelley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Shape of Water meets The Greatest Showman in this wonderful and emotional fantasy romance set in 1910s New York. Benny is an orphan who will do whatever he can to afford a living, when he stumbles across a caretaker role at a local waterside attraction. His role? To look after the upcoming main attraction - a merman! Learning to communicate with with merman he names Rio, Benny discovers there is so much more to life as the two get closer and eventually fall in love.

This book is just so beautiful! The writing and illustrations are equally stunning. Everything was so well researched and developed, the time period, setting, and characters. Thrilled to have received this!

“I thought of what Igor said about Rio and me, water and fire. Whether or not humanity deserved it, Rio was the sort to pour himself out in compassion for humans. Me? I wanted to burn down the world.”

When The Tides Held The Moon by Venessa Vida Kelley was truly a special kind of novel. As it’s Pride month this was one of my picks and it did not disappoint. The subtle Puerto Rican Spanish words through out and the occasional graphic print made this story encapsulating and sucked you in. About a Puerto Rican young gay man trying to find his place in 1910 New York as a blacksmith when somehow he gets swooped up in the Coney Island sideshow life and ends up falling for a real life merman. It’s the greatest showman and little mermaid but if only they had a baby. It was kind, it was cozy, it was thrilling, it was romantic, it has found family. All the underlying themes and elements help steal this show, and it’s just about connection. Read this!! I could see this being one I reread over and over again the side characters were all super sweet. By the end I was fuzzy and warm and just happy.

This is one of my favorite reads of 2025. I absolutely loved it! I stayed up past 5 am to finish this book because I couldn't put it down.

The love between Benigno and Rio was so sweet and beautiful! I want more stories with love stories so pure and redemptive.

I'm obsessed, and I'll so be reading whatever this author writes next!

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for the free ARC.