Review of "When the Tides Held the Moon" by Venessa Vida Kelley

⭐ 5/5 Stars

“‘Your heart in my keeping,’ he whispered, ‘would always be safe.’”

A breathtakingly romantic and deeply emotional queer historical cozy fantasy, When the Tides Held the Moon is a story of love, sacrifice, and self-discovery. With some of my favorite tropes (forced proximity, found family, and forbidden love), this novel weaves a magical yet heartbreaking tale set against the glimmering yet ruthless backdrop of 1910’s Coney Island.

This book made me feel in a way few others have. Every scene dripped with longing and quiet intimacy, making even the smallest moments feel deeply romantic. Benny and Río’s love story unfolds so naturally, so achingly, that I found myself completely immersed in their journey. Their connection is tender yet powerful - a slow burn that simmers with passion and pain. The way they take turns being strong for each other, despite their own wounds, made their relationship feel even more profound.

The character development was exceptional - Benny’s journey from self-doubt to conviction was just as moving as Río’s quiet resilience and hope. Both characters wrestled with their traumas and desires in such a raw way that their love felt all the more earned. And lovable side characters in the eclectic crew of the sideshow added warmth and depth to the story, making the world feel alive and layered.

The last 20% of this book had my heart racing and aching in equal measure, and Venessa Vida Kelley wrote the happily ever after of my dreams. I cannot wait to hold a physical copy in my hands and see the beautiful illustrations in person. I’ll be eagerly following Venessa’s work from now on. If you love romantic, emotionally rich fantasy with unforgettable characters, When the Tides Held the Moon is a must-read!

I was generously provided an e-ARC by Erewhon Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own ♡

Review posted on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7397098461
And StoryGraph: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/7c3f1909-ec2f-4b1f-91b3-c1230528e8ab

When the Tides Held the Moon is a story about Beningo, otherwise known as 'Benny', a young Puerto Rican who for as long as he'd stepped onto American shores, had to melt himself like metal and be cast into the mold of the assumptions those around him perceived. His life takes a turn when he gets tasked with building what is his greatest work yet, and finds himself enraptured by the mystical being it is meant for. Here, Beningo is forced to evaluate his life thus far and build the courage to break through the shackles the years have laid on him.
This book was genuinely, the most beautiful story I have read. It is heartwrenching and following Beningo and Rio's journey was an emotional experience. I love this book so much for it's storyline is not only reminiscent of "Shape of Water" but it also confronts its readers, forcing us to see how there has always been a great divide between the working class and those who believe themselves to be above. The diversity in this story was so refreshing, with supporting characters hailing from countries like Russia, India, Germany, and many more. I adored this book and cannot wait for it to be out for the rest of the world to enjoy because it truly is a touching story.

TL;DR:
I quite enjoyed this overall, despite parts of it feeling a bit superficial, and the ending being a bit too vague for my personal taste. Lovely writing, will look for future works from this author, for sure.

Re-Readability:
This isn't a story that I feel like I would re-read in the future. I enjoyed it, but the characters and plot didn't grip me tightly enough, I guess.

Writing:
The writing was the standout element of this book, for me. There are some truly poignant and poetic lines in this that I looooved! Very interested to see more from this author. Without the writing being what it was, I'd probably feel more like a 3 star rating for this. But dang, the writing!!!

Characters:
I liked our MC and love interest a lot. Benny (MC) was definitely the most fleshed-out character (understandably, being THE main character). I really enjoyed the side characters/found family also, but they did feel more superficial overall. And the interactions Benny had with them -- the dialogue & everything -- made me question if the book was intended for an adult audience or young adult audience. There was a bit of depth lacking in the character work.

Plot:
This is a pretty self-contained plot -- we spend a lot of time with Benny hanging out with Rio, getting to know him, and he really doesn't ever leave that location or the hotel he's staying at. I didn't mind it, but I could see some readers feeling like the middle section slogs a bit due to that. The ending was a bit helter-skelter, for me. The whole plan with the tank and the wheels and then having to pivot to something else... it was all suddenly really chaotic and again felt slightly juvenile, I guess? And the ending was sweet, but also was a little bit too vague for my tastes. We didn't get much of an explanation about Benny's origins, and it was a big question throughout.

Themes:
Acceptance. Queer identity. Racial identity. Dealing with racism and xenophobia. Being othered. Found family. Living your truth. Love.

Stunning, heart warming, and spectacular in every way. Benny and Río are one of my new favorite couples, and normally I don’t really care for a sequel in romance, but for them… I’d eat up more of their story. When the Tides Held the Moon is found family at its finest, with the perfect blend of fantasy and reality.

An emotional and fantastical tale. This novel is emotionally raw and brilliantly written. This love story is perfect for fans of The Shape of Water.

When the Tides Held the Moon by Venessa Vida Kelley is nothing short of a literary masterpiece that captures the heart and soul of readers in a remarkably profound way, I found myself utterly enchanted by this exquisite tale that interweaves romance, identity, and the concept of found family where forbidden love, and the search for freedom intertwine against the vibrant backdrop of early 1900s Coney Island. Benigno and Rio’s journey is profoundly touching, filled with lush prose and stunning illustrations that truly bring their world to life. The intricate dynamics of their relationship,celebrates diversity and representation, struck a deep chord within me. This is a book I wanted to savour, and I found myself captivated by every page.

The romance between Rio and Benigno is a tender and deeply forbidden love that will capture your heart and leave you yearning for more. As an orphaned Boricua blacksmith falls for a captured merman, the societal norms and conventions of their world conspire against them, making their love feel like a fleeting dream. But what makes their love story even more poignant is that, in their own ways, both Rio and Benny are captives - Rio, literally imprisoned in a tank at Luna Park, and Benny, trapped by the circumstances of his life, his cultural identity, and the secrets he keeps. Despite the danger and uncertainty surrounding Rio’s captivity, Benny finds himself inexorably drawn to the merman’s kind and compassionate spirit, and the air is thick with tension as their friendship blossoms into something more. The unique community of carnies that surrounds them adds another layer of complexity, as it highlights the power of found family. Bound together by shared experiences and struggles, this motley crew showcases the strength that can be drawn from solidarity and understanding, illuminating the profound connections that can flourish even in the most challenging circumstances.

When the Tides Held the Moon is rich with themes that resonate deeply within the fabric of identity, freedom, and the complexities of love—particularly within the LGBTQ+ community. At its core, the novel beautifully embodies the profound struggle for acceptance and the yearning for individuality in a world often resistant to both. The theme of found family is another significant element in the story, particularly within the context of the carnival community that Benny and Rio inhabit. This chosen family formed among characters who share unconventional backgrounds emphasizes the idea that love and acceptance can often be found outside traditional familial structures. It showcases the importance of community support, especially for those who have faced rejection or alienation due to their identities.

I found myself completely immersed in its richly crafted world—a haven where imagination and emotion entwined seamlessly. From the very first chapter, I was swept away by the vibrant imagery of early 1900s Coney Island, where the salty air and the sounds of laughter mingled with the enchanting thrill of carnival life. Each sentence was adorned with lush prose that transported me to a place brimming with colour, vitality, and a sense of nostalgia. The characters, each so vividly drawn, became companions in my journey, allowing me to experience their hopes, fears, and dreams as if they were my own. I could feel the weight of Rio’s captivity and the longing pulsing through Benny’s heart; their emotions were palpable, drawing me deeper into their realities. The intimacy of their relationship captivated my imagination, and I found myself eagerly turning each page, yearning to uncover the next twist in their poignant love story.

The sense of belonging I experienced while reading was further heightened. When the Tides Held the Moon is not just a story I read; it is a world I inhabited, rich with emotion and resonance. Every page was a portal, allowing me to escape into the lives of Rio and Benny, and to reflect on the beauty of their love amidst adversity. This immersive experience left an indelible mark on my heart, and I walked away from the tale not only having enjoyed a beautiful work of literature but also carrying a deeper understanding of the values it embodies—values that will linger with me well beyond the last page.

I've been a fan of Kelley's illustration work for a long time, so I was really excited to see that they had written their own fantasy novel! Thank you for the ARC! :) I love the relationship between Benny and Rio. It's not often that you get to read a story with magical realism in the early 1900s (let alone any fantasy story set in that time period!) A great debut novel! :) I cant wait to read more!

Found Family tale set in the backdrop of Coney Island in the 1910s. Follows blacksmith Benny as he is commissioned to create a tank for a sideshow proprietor of Luna Park. As Benny joins the Luba Park family, he develops a deep relationship with Rio, a merman plucked from the East River who now lives in Benny’s creation.

1910's New York meets mystic merman in this lgbt romantacy. Benny builds an astounding iron tank for one of the Coney Island side shows in hopes of making it as an artist. When the proprietor sees his handy work he asks Benny along on a secret mission to fill the tank with, his hopes, of the next best side show exhibit. With the merman placed in the tank he built, Benny befriends Rio and finds deeper connections with him than any human he has met. Upon discovering Rio's condition Benny must decide if his budding career as an artist and new found family is worth more than his soulmate.

I loved this book! I loved the time era, the location, even the side show characters we meet along the way made this book so good! My only gripe is that it felt like the book description/synopsis gave away a lot of the story and it was a touch predictable. Without going into too much detail (in fear of giving something away) I cannot wait for everyone to read Benny and Rio's story and hope they love it as much as I did!

It's always so exciting when someone who you've followed for forever in the book community finally get's their foot int he door of the publishing industry. To witness that excitement first hand through a screen from Publishers Marketplace posts to cover reveals to finally, finally getting their hands on a copy of their own work.

Like anyone whose spent any amount of time on or around bookstagram spaces in the last few years I've seen and adored Venessa Vida Kelley's beautiful art, so when I heard she was realising a book with Kensington it landed firmly on my most anticipated reads of the year list.

Kelley's debut novel, When the Tides Held the Moon follows blacksmith Benigno “Benny” Caldera as he navigates the wild and often dangerous world of Coney Island's Luna Park in 1910's New York after the iron work cage he builds becomes the focal point of the show's latest exhibit, a merman stolen from the banks of the East River by Bennie and Luna Park's company of performers. However, as Bennie's life entangles more and more with both the sideshow members and the beautiful merman, Rio, he must contend with the price of Rio's freedom on his own life, and heart.

When the Tides Held the Moon is beautifully written, Kelley showcases a true talent for clean prose and well written dialogue. They bring an underutilised concept (a mermaid x human romance) new life in more ways than one. It's fantastically queer not just in its romance but in its cast of characters who are each diverse and expansive in their own ways. Kelley's effortless inclusion of representation in this novel is beautiful, the found family cast of Lunar Park's sideshow are one of the novel's stand outs and each of them are given rich inner and outer lives which serves to bring the world around Bennie to life.

I, however, couldn't help but feel that the book was too long in some places and spent too much time trying to tell too many stories - or rather trying to give Bennie a place in too many characters stories - for it to really stick the landing every time. This left the novel feeling a little long, with the main narrative often on pause for the sake of the smaller side stories. The book lost its tension often and that made it drag at points.

Overall, When the Tides Held the Moon is a solid debut for Kelley and I'm more than keen to see what comes next from the author.

Thank you again to Kensington and NetGalley for the arc!

First of all let me say one thing - that cover! Wow! I am in awe ... it's one of the reasons I requested this book.

The premise and the setting are interesting too. We're in New York in the 1910's at the height of the 'Oddity trend' where people would go and gawp and the strange and unusual. Benigno (Benny) is a Puerto Rican queer blacksmith and Rio is a merman. They meet, become friends, make more friends with their colleagues and fall in love. It's very sweet and the magical realism is done well.

The illustrations are absolutely beautiful - I want to paper my walls with them.

This a book that highlights diversity and love in all its different forms. I enjoyed reading about the development of Benny and Rio's relationship. There were moments of this book that felt a little slow to me, particularly the beginning.

All in all a lovely story. 3.5 stars

RATING: 2.5/5 STARS

Off the bat the writing in this book read as quite dense and I could not get myself engaged in the story. Love the author's art though, and the illustrations for this are gorgeous.

Beautifully written and very much enjoyed this book.
Only downside was not being able to understand when they started having a conversation in another language. Some translation would have been nice.

Great setting and side characters

This was one of my most anticipated books of 2025, but unfortunately, I need to DNF it at the 20% mark. I want to say right away that there is nothing wrong with this book. I really liked the 20% that I read: good prose, interesting plot, and a very likable main character that you sympathize with from the first pages. The reason why I can't continue reading is purely personal. I am Ukrainian, I live in Ukraine. Most people probably won't understand this, and they have every right to, but when a new character appeared on the pages of this book, the giant Igor from Moscow, I couldn't read any further. Like many Ukrainians today, I am very sensitive to the presence of Russians or anything Russian in books. I'm not saying that the author of this or any other book shouldn't write about Russia, but now, when Trump and his administration are selling my country to an aggressor that has caused me and millions of other Ukrainians so much pain and suffering, I want to avoid seeing Russians, at least on the pages of books. At times like this, I want to escape from reality into the fantasy world of books, but the appearance of this character reminded me of the world I live in. Perhaps one day, in better times, I will return to this story, but for now, unfortunately, it is not my safe place.

When the tides held the moon is a beautiful love story between Benny a Porto Riccan immigrant to 1910s new York who finds a job at a steelworks only to get tasked with building a cage for luna parks latest exhibit.
Benny somehow gets roped into catching the exhibit a merman who he calls Rio. The story of of Benny and Rios subsequent relationship.

The book is beautifully written with a great cast of secondary characters which create a fun oddball found family.

I thoroughly enjoyed the story, setting and characters the only downside was the Spanish conversation with no translation but this is a minor point.

This one wasn't for me, it was entertaining and it had some cute moments but all in all it wasn't my cup of tea.

It took me a while to make some progress, I felt like the first ten or so chapters dragged too much, but then once I read through them, the pacing improves a little, by the middle of the book I read the rest of it in no time.

My main problem is the relationship between Río and Benny, it felt rushed and underdeveloped. And I don't know, something about the power dynamic doesn't sit right with me, so honestly I wasn't rooting for them.


SPOILER


Like Benny holds so much power over Río and then when he literally thinks that he can't free Río because he would lose him forever. Like ??? I understand why he as a character feels that, but come on, how could you say you love someone and then feel like if you free them you would lose them. If you really love somebody and they're suffering and you have a way to free them, you do it at once, no questions asked, because seeing them suffer is worse than losing them.


END OF SPOILER


Another thing is that the writing most of the time, and especially in the first chapters, took me out of the story because of the words in Spanish thrown at random. Don't get me wrong, Spanish is my native language, so I understood it all right, but the thing is, they were words so randomly placed that it disturbed my reading. The phrases I understand, or I would've understood the words if they appeared in the moments where Benny couldn't find the right words in English, but yeah I know I'm being picky.

As for the secondary characters, some of them had a little backstory, but I would've liked to see them more involved in the plot. I understand the focus of the book is the romance, but I felt the secondary characters were there just for plot convenience, and also they were pretty stereotypical to my liking.

All in all, as much as it wasn't a book for me, it was entertaining once its pace picked up and the illustrations were beautiful.

In "When the Tides Held the Moon" we follow Benny, a young immigrant from Puerto Rico who's trying to make a living as a blacksmith in the 1910s New York. When he's tasked to build a special tank for the Coney Island fair, the sponsor of the tank is impressed by his work and hires him to be part of his crew - including him having to help to capture the "attraction" supposed to live in the tank. What follows is a beautiful and original love story that made me root for all characters involved and brought me to tears at various points during reading it.

What I really liked about the story was the setting in New York in the 1910s, as it gave me a glimpse into a time and social setting I hadn't read about before. The dynamic between the group of misfits was very well worked out, and their developing relationships made me quite emotional at times. The relationship between Benny and Rio was so, so beautiful and magical - I can highly recommend reading the book for the exploration of queer love in that sense.

I struggled a bit with the language at times, especially because occasionally there would be some words or phrases written in Spanish without any translation, which disrupted the reading flow at times, but especially the chapters in Rio's POV were absolutely beautifully and lyrically written.

I'd recommend the book to people who are fans of the Shape of Water and who'd like to read a different take on queer historical fantasy romances and the found family trope.

The story of Benny and Rio is a beautiful story of finding love where you shouldn't, or you think you shouldn't. Rio and Benny help each other in so many ways, and their love combines to create one beautiful tale of hope, family, and freedom. I cannot recommend this book enough.

Rounding up from 3.75⭐️

I wasn’t sure about this romantic historical fantasy set in New York in the early 20th Century at first but it won me over in the end.

Set in Coney Island amongst a side show menagerie, this book deals with some dark topics and I would check the triggers that others have highlighted as due to the the time and location there is a lot of prejudice at work against both our main character Benigno and the other side show acts. At first many of the characters seemed quite stereotypical, however we spent more time with them and I realised that this was likely done intentionally as these were turned on their heads as the book unfolded.

I loved getting to know Benigno and Rio, and whilst the trails they faced throughout the book were tough to read, their romance was done beautifully. The illustrations throughout really added to the story too.

—hot merman summer

—1910s Coney Island freak show

—Puerto Rican hero

—found family among the othered

The Basics:

Benigno "Benny" Caldera is a metalworker on the outskirts of his New York community, treated differently because he's Puerto Rican, brown, and "different". Roped into a madman's scheme to dominate the freak show scene with a real, live merman, Benny finds himself captivated with the being he calls Rio... who seems to understand him better than anyone, even his newfound friends in the show, can. But the longer Rio stays in the very tank Benny helps maintain, the clearer it becomes that there's a limit to how long he can stay away from home—and with Benny.

The Review:

Oh, you get two great things for the price of one here—beautiful writing and beautiful illustrations, both executed wonderfully by Kelley. When I read a book about sea people, I want something lyrical. Something seductive. Something that truly hammers home the sense of the separate, of being thisclose to home yet so far away. When the Tides Held the Moon nails those flavors perfectly, while at the same weaving a romance that's both melancholy and funny, sweet and striking.

There's an obvious parallel between Rio being far from home and Benny being far from Puerto Rico—neither one by choice. Kelley makes a great choice from the jump to make Rio understand Spanish; and yet, often he and Benny stick to English. Just as Rio finds it almost too intense to speak his mer name to Benny, so too does Benny have to ease into allowing Rio this vulnerability. They're kindred spirits, while at the same existing in the reality that, as hard as they're falling for one another... Benny is working for Rio's captor (to whom Rio refers as "the Shark"). He's protecting his love, but he's aiding and abetting in an imprisonment that's killing him.

Similarly, those in the freak show—well-drawn, complex supporting characters with their own motivations and contradictions—protect each other while furthering a system that hurts them. Because, well; what choice do they have? One character I won't name due to spoilers is a particularly excellent example of this paradox, and Kelley makes wise choices about their identity and place in the story.

This is a deeply empathetic novel, with a variety of characters who aren't white, who aren't straight, who have disabilities, who live separately from society for other reasons. And while they support each other and relate to one another, there isn't like... a one-to-one, simple "We're all freaks! There are no differences and no clashes and we're all equal!" perspective, a la The Greatest Showman. There's a lot of room for nuance here, and a clear "the road to Hell is paved with good intentions" sense.

And she does all of this while being careful to keep the focus on Benny and Rio's relationship—no easy task. It takes them a while to start getting to know each other, but once they do, the chemistry leaps off the page. Benny is so worried about letting people know who he really is, while at the same time deeply longing to live as he wishes. He's a super practical character, and has convinced himself that he accepts his lot in life... but does he?

Where Rio has the privilege of coming from a society totally world from ours, with different expectations—merfolk aren't homophobic, for the record—and power. But that's gone now, so all he can really do is go "Well that is STUPID, Benny" while trapped in place. It's like, tragic but funny at the same time.

And as their bond grows more intimate... Note that I didn't include a Heat Index rating in this review. Because it's honestly kind of hard to define? Kelley has a very unique approach to "But how do merfolk do it?" which honestly, I always appreciate. It almost felt freakier than anything I would've thought of. There are so many jokes and words I want to make up, but I literally can't without spoiling it.

The Conclusion:

Simply put, this is a beautiful fairy tale about love—the love of your lover, the love of your friends and family, the love of home. It's a very queer romance, and it's a romance with Benny's identity as a gay Puerto Rican man front and center. Which makes the ending... all the more satisfying. Can't wait to see what Kelley does next.

Thanks to Erewhon Books and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.