Thank you net gallery for the advanced copy of this book. This is the story of an immigrant who falls in love with a merman while catching him for a coney island exhibit. The book was charming, and I liked the found family with the carnival acts. I would definitely recommend.

When the Tides Held the Moon is a captivating and imaginative historical fantasy with a beautiful romance at its heart, set amid the carnivals and sideshows of 1910s Coney Island. I admit that I first noticed it because of its beautiful cover – and I’m not normally someone who takes notice of covers (I read exclusively on a Kindle so everything is black and white, and sometimes I get ARCs before they even have a cover!) – but after reading the synopsis and the unusual premise, I decided this could be one time it might be prudent to judge a book by its cover and read it – and I’m glad I did!

Twenty-two-year-old Puerto Rican blacksmith Benigno – Benny – Caldera works at a foundry in New York City, having emigrated there a few years earlier following the death of his beloved Tití Luz. His is not an easy existence; plagued by bad asthma (the thick, smoky air of the ironworks is suffocating and often leads to debilitating coughing fits), he lives in a slum tenement, and his brown skin and accented English mean he will always be the butt of his workmates’ jokes and will never be fully accepted by them – or anyone else for that matter.

The story begins when the manager of the foundry is approached by a client who has a commission with very specific requirements. He wants a large iron-and-glass cage balanced on a steel undercarriage with wheels, and ironwork on three sides, leaving one unobstructed viewing pane - and he wants it finished within the month. It’s a tall order, but Benny, already intrigued by the project, is persuaded by promises of promotion and better working conditions to take the job on.

He works tirelessly over the coming weeks, letting his imagination have full rein and crafting something beautiful and elaborate with moulded wave panels and shells and scrolls. It’s only on the day the cage is to be collected that Benny learns what it’s going to be used for when he sees the coach emblazoned with the words Morgan’s Menagerie of Human Oddities on the side.

The tank is headed to a sideshow.

Later that day, Benny finds himself meeting Sam Morgan and his performers at the port, where Morgan reveals that they’re going to procure the tank’s inhabitant – and that after tonight, the Menagerie will have its very own mermaid. Benny is sceptical to say the least, and thinks they’ll be returning home with an empty tank, but he goes along with it, waiting with the others as one of their number is set adrift in a small boat – and watching incredulously as the boat is slowly brought back to shore by a shadowy figure. Things happen quickly after that – the net is thrown and the creature is caught, a creature Benny is startled to see looks almost like a human man, the shock on his face surely mirroring that on his own.

Still stunned by the night’s events, Benny helps Morgan and his people get the tank back to Luna Park, and then heads home. But his conscience keeps pricking at him, and after a dream filled with visions of the water and of home and of Tití Luz, he knows what he must do – go back to Luna Park and find a way to help the merman regain his freedom.

He arrives at the Menagerie to see Morgan banging a pistol on the glass and yelling at the enraged merman, who is flinging himself furiously against the glass and sending water splashing over the top of the tank. When el tritón finally subsides to the floor, Benny is able to get a look at him, his long, copper-coloured hair, his blue/green skin and his long, deep blue tail. It’s a pose of dejection – yet when his eyes meet Benny’s there’s no disguising the cold hatred in them. And Benny supposes he can’t really blame him.

From here, the focus of the story becomes the slow-burn, tender romance that develops between Benny and el tritón - who allows Benny to call him Río. It takes considerable time and patience for Benny to gain Río’s trust, and their relationship is extremely well written as they grow closer and begin to learn about each other. The book is written almost entirely from Benigno’s PoV with a few short chapters from Río’s perspective, so he remains – rightly, I think – something of an enigma. Thus, the story is more concerned with Benny’s character growth and how he finds a new sense of self through his association with – and love for - Río, who is clever, insightful and so attuned to Benny’s emotions that he’s able to help him to see the truth of his own worth and to understand that he shouldn’t doubt himself. And even though Río is very well aware of Benny’s part in his capture, he understands why he did it and forgives him, coming to love Benny for his affectionate, hopeful nature and to trust in his promise to free him.

Running alongside the romance is the story of Benny finding a place to belong among the other performers, who have created a found family based on who they are as people rather than being predicated on looks, race, sexuality or any other external qualities. Benny, who came to New York in the hope of finding the person he used to be, has instead felt increasingly more isolated and alone, even more of a stranger to himself in a place that has “no better idea of what to do with me than it does of what to do with my island” – finds genuine friendship and caring among this motley company, and a feeling of safety in being with Río that he’s rarely experienced.

The writing is lyrical and almost poetic in places (the language around the romance is occasionally a bit flowery for my taste) and although there are a few instances where the pacing feels a bit ‘laggy’, I was invested in enough in the story, the romance and in the depictions of the lives of the performers and the hardships they face for that not to be too much of an issue. There are a number of untranslated Spanish words and phrases in the text, which I liked; having immediate translations breaks the flow, and although my Spanish is rusty it wasn’t so much so that I couldn’t work out what was being conveyed, plus there is a glossary at the end. Unusually, there are a number of illustations of key moments throughout (the author is known for their work as an illustrator) – I’m not sure they’re completely necessary, but they’re beautiful nonetheless.

The final chapters are tense and exciting as Benny and his friends work out a plan to free Río – and it’s bittersweet, knowing that in freeing Río, he will lose his family, his job and the (mer)man he loves. But he has to keep that promise - Río has the right to be free, even if that freedom is something Benny will never have for himself.

The ending is somewhat ambiguous, the author leaving it up to the reader’s imagination to decide what has actually happened, but rest-assured there is an HEA

When the Tides Held the Moon is one of the more unusual romances I’ve read recently, a love story about two men, caged and trapped by society and circumstance, finding the courage and determination to break free of the restraints that bind them; an exploration of outsiders exploring their roots and identity and what community looks like to them; and a story about finding home. I enjoyed it very much and am happy to recommend it.

Rating: B+ / 4.5 stars

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this e-ARC!

This was such a delightful read! It had the vibe of The Greater Showman x the 2018 The Little Mermaid film (yes very specific I know lol) but make it queer.

The book is set in Coney Island (cue the Taylor Swift song) in the early 1910s. The setting was beautiful and the way the author managed to capture the vibes and immerse the readers into the world was incredible. I truly felt like I was there experiencing it with our characters!

I'm not gonna lie the start was a bit slow for me but that's only because I was super excited to meet the merman!! But when we meet him oh my god I loved him so much. I loved Rio's chapters, the way he spoke, the way his mind worked and the understanding he shared with Benny even if they came from different worlds. The way Benny won over the creature he helped capture truly shows his kindness and gentleness. Their connection was beautiful, the hurt they shared and the hope they provided for each other. The lowborn romance was everything, their tenderness and the sweetness was so beautiful captured.

I loved the found family of misfits and the home, a place to belong, they created together.
Overall, this is such a beautiful queer love story that everyone should read <3

This was a book I struggled with, but I am happy I pushed through. The first 30% is where I struggled. First of all, it was hard to root for Benny in this captor-captive situation, it took him way too long to start planning Rio´s escape. Second of all, I do love the found family trope, but in this case, there were way too many people that I struggled to keep track of and they all just became mostly cultural stereotypes. I found them generally likeable, but I wasn't completely comfortable with their portrayal.
I am happy I did push through with this one, as I said because the pace picks up a bit, Rio and Benny´s relationship is better developed and the ending, while a bit predictable, did make me happy.
I have to also add that this is full of art and it was probably my favorite part of reading it. I love Vanessa´s style and seeing some of the scenes drawn really added to the overall enjoyment of the book.

One of the blurbs I saw for this called it “cozy,” and friends, it is definitely not.

I quite liked this, though I would say that the romance is one of the weakest points of the story. It’s a fantastical story set at an amusement park, with a cast of characters who are each facing their own problems. Our MC, Benny, is particularly interesting, as he changes and adapts throughout the story in ways that I found quite satisfying. I enjoyed the side characters, most of whom felt quite thoroughly fleshed out.

Río, as a character, was perhaps my least favorite, primarily because I didn’t always understand what was going on with him. He’s a merman/siren and there were a number of things about his speech patterns and convictions that didn’t feel consistent, and made me wish we got more siren lore. I’d have liked him more of he was less… human. The way he talks and thinks were oddly British, and there were times when he said or implied that something was true to the natural world, etc., that bugged me. There’s also a weird power dynamic there that felt inadequately addressed.

Overall, though, this book has both plot and vibes, and I enjoyed reading it. I’m curious how much of the historical element is accurate, because the author does include several references to real things (the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire, for example), and sprinkled in a nice helping of old-timey slang.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an ARC of this delightful book. It looks like the physical copy is going to be even prettier and really lean into the art nouveauness of it all. 😍

🥹🥹🥹
I am a fan of magical realism and this book really excelled at it. This book was so beautifully written and I absolutely loved the art shown throughout the story as well. From the performers who become the found family Benigno always wanted to the love story between a Puerto Rican blacksmith and a merman, it was a stunning read.

When the Tides Held the Moon was as beautiful on the inside as it is on the outside. What an amazing debut! I can’t wait to read so much more from this author.

I thought this was a beautiful story. It doesn't really reinvent the wheel. It's predictable, and I think the pitch of "Greatest Showman meets The Shape of Water" is VERY accurate, but it's still a lovely story. The main point in this book's favor is the prose and the lushness of the historical setting. I think the illustrations do help with this (which are also quite beautiful), but the writing is just very evocative. Río's chapters are especially poetic. You can tell that Venessa Vida Kelley did a lot of research into the time period. I would also love to just bring up the dialogue for a moment. I think she is FANTASTIC at writing dialogue.

Would definitely recommend this to anyone who loves a book that feels like a fairy tale!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

When Benny is asked to make a glass viewing tank, he does what he’s asked because he doesn’t really have a choice. Little does he know that the tank will be used to hold a merman and that this merman will change his life.

The setting was done really well, especially for the time period that this book is set in. The actions of the characters made sense and some of the conflicts stemed from the time period. The reader doesn’t see a lot of New York because most of the story is set in the carnival but that’s okay because the descriptions of the carnival are really lush.

The characters in this book are really good. I enjoyed how different they all were but they were all written really well. All the characters seemed real and their actions seemed to match what the reader knew of them. I also loved the character artwork in this book as it really allows the reader to see the characters.

The plot of the book is where the book falls off a little bit. This book is a little bit vibes not plot because almost nothing happens in the book until the last 100 pages of the book. I mean things do happen and they are important to the ending of the book but it seems like when something happens it didn’t really change anything. There is also a twist in the story that is slightly forshadowed but I felt like it was only forshadowed in the last 100 pages of the book. I don’t know if I’m bad at picking up clues or something. I also thought that the twist wasn’t fully explained. It was lyrically written but I wanted a little bit more of a solid ending because the rest of the story was so solid in telling us what happened.

Overall, this story was really good and really well written. The twist was the only things that I had some issues with. I think anyone who loves fantasy, queer love stories, or historical fiction will love this story.

“When the Tides Held the Moon” by Venessa Vida Kelley is a showstopper of a debut—and yes, you’re going to want the physical copy for the gorgeous illustrations alone.

Set in 1910s Coney Island, this historical queer romance follows Benny, a Puerto Rican blacksmith who unexpectedly lands a gig at Luna Park and discovers he’s built a tank—not for a machine, but for a merman. Río isn’t just an exhibit; he’s thoughtful, guarded, and grieving. What begins as wary glances turns into a deep, soul-stirring bond, forcing Benny to confront the reality of captivity, love, and freedom.

This book delivers magical realism with heart, an unforgettable found family, and a romance that builds with tenderness and trust. The side characters shine, every page pulses with purpose, and the art? Absolutely breathtaking. Venessa Vida Kelley didn’t just write a novel—she created an experience.

A total must-read for anyone who loves heartfelt queer stories, beautiful storytelling, and historical fantasy that actuallybrings something fresh to the table.

Thank you @vkelleyart, @kensingtonbooks and @hambright_pr for the #gifted stunningly beautiful book. All opinions expressed are my own.

i’ve never seen a more accurate comp than the greatest showman meets the shape of water. hands down my favorite read of april, and probably one of my favorite reads of 2025 🥹

a blacksmith from puerto rico is hired to build a tank for a coney island sideshow, then roped into a scheme to catch a real, live mermaid for the show. he finds the family he’s never had in both the band of sideshow misfits and the captive merman, only to realize that doing the right thing may cost him both.

okay, review 3 of 4 today, let’s go:

what i liked
• kelley brings the 1910s coney island setting to life with lush words and art, painting a vivid picture of benigno’s world. this is so essential to a good historical fantasy for me—the perfect blend of history and magic, this time in the form of a merman captured from the east river.
• there’s nothing i hate more than instalove, so the slow, gentle development of benny and río’s relationship was a JOY. it was sweet and sincere and swoony and i loved watching the tentative trust and friendship between them blossom into more.
• “with it, for it, never against it.” the found family benny finds with the cast of the sideshow is very reminiscent of the greatest showman. at its heart, this is a story about loneliness and belonging, and these characters choose to embrace each other and benny.
• the use of spanish throughout the novel was an interesting, immersive touch. i had to stop and look up translations regularly (i didn’t find out about the glossary until i got to the end of the arc, whoops) but it really added to benny’s character and the exploration of his experience as a puerto rican immigrant.
• kelley’s gorgeous artwork only adds to the story. her illustrations, particularly the ones of benny and río, are just lovely.

what i disliked
• it’s over and i’m just supposed to go on with my life? rude
• if i’m going to nitpick, i would have liked to learn a little more—about the sideshow characters, about the family they created, about mermaid lore.

Thank you Erewhon Books and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

If you're looking for a book with LGBTQ+ representation, diverse characters, historical fiction, found family, and a down bad merman, then you're in the right place. Our story follows Benigno, a Puerto Rican immigrant who accidentally builds a tank for a merman, catches said merman, and ends up working and living with the band of misfits who want to add the merman, Rio, to their "Menagerie of Human Oddities". What starts as a way for Benigno to get off of his feet turns into a tale of found family, self-acceptance, and finding the kind of love you'd do anything for.

I absolutely loved Benigno and all of his flaws. As a bisexual woman of color, I related to his self-doubts brought on by his sexuality, ethnicity, and physical appearance. Although frustrating at times, his internal struggles felt very real and necessary for his character. Watching Benigno build his own harmony, accept himself, and fall in love was so rewarding!

Rio was such as sweet character. While I would have loved more tension between Benigno and Rio, I loved watching Rio lower his guard and let Benigno in. Rio did everything he could do for Benigno despite his restrictions, and I don't think Benigno would've come to accept himself nearly as quickly without Rio's love.

As for our side characters, Venessa Vida Kelley did such a wonderful job ensuring they all had their own story. Despite the book being in Benigno and Rio's POV, I was able to feel the found family in this book get stronger with each interaction the two of them had with the other Menagerie members. Each character in this novel felt very flushed out, and that is not an easy task to complete. In conjunction with the characters, I loved the historical fiction aspect of this novel. Kelley told this story in a way that educated me without taking me out of the story.

Kelley's characterization and story telling was incredible, and I cannot wait to see what she comes out with next!

I loved When the Tides Held the Moon so much. What a delightful story. It seemed to me to be both a story of embracing oneself and a romance. The chemistry between Benigno and Rio is wonderfully written, and the cast of characters is so fun. They all have their own personalities that light up the pages. I can't recommend this one enough.

1911 New York. Benny Caldera, an asthmatic blacksmith from Puerto Rico seizes an opportunity for the slightly better conditions in the Ornamental Ironwork Department over the structural department. He finds himself crafting an elaborate caged tank... one which will eventually hold a coveted prize for an exhibit at Coney Island's Luna Park: a merman captured from the banks of the East River. When he loses his Ironworks job, Benny finds a home for himself with the crew of performers, and drawn to the creature trapped in the cage. The closer Benny gets to Rio, the more he understands that his own identity as a queer immigrant from Puerto Rico is only part of his story as he begins to recognize himself as a part of a larger found family.

What a lovely romantic fantasy debut novel. I love the ability to pick up a historical novel set outside of popular eras and find that the author has paid a lot of attention and care to the details of worldbuilding. Venessa Vida Kelley is known for their character art, but showcases their skills as a writer capable of developing rich characters, even as a part of a large cast. The romance between Benny and Rio is closed door, but no less romantic for the pining, care, and sacrifices they make for one another.

What originally drew me to this book was the premise of gay mermen. What kept me reading was how great the story turned out to be.

Set in 1910s New York, this book tells the story of Benigno “Benny” Caldera, an orphaned blacksmith. Benny is just trying to get by until he unfortunately loses his job. Down on his luck, he is hired by the leader of the famed Coney Island playground, Luna Park, to help capture a merman for a new exhibit. However, as Benny gets to know the merman, he can no longer ignore the agonizing truth of Rio’s captivity.

This book really delivered in a way I didn’t expect. I loved how Benny was depicted and how the author fully fleshed out his character. It felt like we truly got to know both the boy from Puerto Rico and the man trying to survive in New York.

One of my favorite aspects of this book was the found family subplot. The cast of characters was eccentric and managed to make a home for themselves under unique circumstances. Even though they had very little in common, they still became a close-knit family despite their differences, and I found that really touching and beautiful.

The romance was really well done. The progression of Benny’s relationship with Rio felt organic as they went from enemies to friends to lovers. Their conversations were nuanced, full of emotion and passion, and I loved it.

The beginning was a bit slow for my taste—I wish we’d gotten into the meat of the plot faster. There were also moments when the dialogue didn’t flow as well as I’d hoped.

At the end of the day, this book was magical, romantic, and truly captivating.

Thank you to Hambright PR and Kensington Publishing for gifting me an arc of this book before its official release.

No excuses, I simply forgot to review this.

This was a lovely read: liked the romance, liked the characters and the writing style, and I loved the illustrations - the cover? Beautiful!

The best thing about this story is the romance to be honest - it was heart-warming but also gut-wrenching at times and pulled on all the right strings. And the standout part is the found family trope, which I am always a sucker for and here it's done so well that I desperately wanted to meet these people in person.

This book was everything I didn’t know I wanted in a Mer - story. 😍

It is the perfect combination of found family, historical, romance and fantasy all rolled into one. Rio and Benigno and their slow burn relationship was everything. The illustrations are superb. The descriptions of Coney Island made me feel like I was there.

When the Tides Held the Moon
Vanessa Vida Kelley
Published April 29 202
ARC Review
When the Tides Held the Moon was my first dive into an LGBTQ+ book. This story takes place back in the 1900's in NYC Coney Island. It combines fantasy with historical aspects and develops into a beautiful story about diversity, family and being true to who you are. It is a slow burn with minimal spice and a touch of forbidden love,
To anyone who loves a bit of fantasy I highly recommend this book.

Thank you so much to @HambrightPR & author Venessa Vida Kelley for the complimentary copy of the book!!

This book is OUT NOW!

Wow!!! This is not my usual type of book but I am so glad I read it. This book was deemed The Shape of Water meets The Greatest Showman and that is entirely correct. Now granted my memory of The Shape of Water is a little foggy but I do remember the main themes of the book and well The Greatest Showman is one of my all time favorites so naturally I was sold on the book! The part that made me nervous was the historical aspect of it and if you know me, you know I am not usually picking up merman books. I was nervous that because of the merman that it was going to be too fantasy and maybe high magical realism. I trusted a book friend's review of this and she ensured me that this book is easy to follow. She was right.

"Rio, you make me feel like I'm kissing the tides."
"Benigno, you make me feel like I am holding the moon."

I was able to follow this book from start to end with no issue. I thought this story was so original! I was enthralled in Benny's story and loved his journey throughout the book. He was this scrappy kid from Puerto Rico who was giving a name and sent to New York to start a new life. But as you can imagine, it was not an easy go for him. By chance he meets Samuel Morgan who commissioned Benny's employer Structural Ironworks to build a tank. When things go bad with them, he seeks out Mr. Morgan and from there Benny learns more about his business and meets a family of entertainers. See Mr. Morgan runs a stage show in Luna Park called Morgan's Menagerie of Human Oddities. And the merman is going to be the exhibit that saves them all from financial ruins.

I absolutely loved all the side characters in this!!! I thought there was just enough of them and you got glimpses of each of their personalities throughout the book.

I love Benny's relationship with Sonia and Matthias the most. Sonia is young and stuck in this role as the face of the Oddities. Morgan uses her to get money from rich men who help fund the side show. She doesn't want this life but she feels like she has no other options. I did feel bad when she thought she found a good guy in Benny (which don't get me wrong he is a good one) but Benny is gay. Matthias was who he confided in the most. They had meaningful conversations and I love that the Matthias was working on his memoir throughout the book. It just was a fun side thing he would do. He felt like the "dad" of the group.
Between the two of them, they really took Benny into the family and taught him about their life in the show and guided him. Benny felt like he could trust them the most.

By the end of the book all the characters were there for Benny and Rio - keeping it vague so you can see why & how!

"Cause the prettiest girl in Brooklyn wants me, but my heart wants someone else. Someone who knows me better than any human alive - including me. And I don't even know his name. All I know is that he misses the moon. If I could, I'd ride a rollercoaster to the sky just to steal it for him."

The romance between Benny and Rio - gahhh my heart!!!! Benny just loved Rio for who he was - merman and all. I love their incaldenstine meet ups and how they bonded over music. It was so cute when Benny would play the guitar for him and they would trade off lyrics. Rio taught Benny how to swim and how to control his breathing (Benny has pretty bad asthma). Their relationship was just so sweet. You could tell they just needed one another. Benny had no family until he met those on the side show but Rio was taken away from his family (his mother was killed) and they just had this sense of loneliness until they met. And I thought the end was very beautiful.

My biggest issue is just a my own personal pet peeve (not reflective of the authors writing or the story itself) but I hate long chapters. The chapters on average were about 15-20 minutes on my kindle. As much as I loved the book, it took me a while to read because of the longer chapters.

As if this story wasn't original enough, because the author is a talented artist we got to see their work sprinkled throughout the book. The drawings are incredible and added that extra touch to really help set the book apart from other novels out there. Plus it's always nice to see the images that you are trying to imagine especially the one of all the performers.

I highly recommend this book!

When the Tides Held the Moon by Venessa Vida Kelley - ARC REVIEW

Happy Mer-May!! And what better way to kick off the month than to talk about this gorgeous book 😍

I've been anticipating the story of Benny and Río since I purchased some artwork of the two a few years back from Venessa's shop. As a result, I admit that I held off reading WTTHTM because I was worried I would be disappointed especially when a few reviews I saw noted some valid concerns with characterization. I can not speak for everyone but I felt like the representation was thoughtfully done. With the whole idea of an Oddity sideshow playing into what society thinks is weird and unacceptable, this group of outsiders has not only found a way to make a living off of people's judgment but has found a home amongst each other.

Seriously, the found family between the Menagerie members, Benny trying to find his place in the world, the commentary about not fitting into societal standards, and the growth of Benny and Río - were all just absolutely beautiful! Not only is Venessa able to capture a world of emotion within her artwork but they also weave it perfectly into their story evoking those same feelings amongst the words on the page.

WTTHTM published April 29, 2025 - My physical copy arrived in the mail yesterday and I am 100% going to do a reread so I can see the illustrations alongside the story.

Thank you @kensington.parties , @erewhonbooks , and @netgalley for providing an e-galley copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC!

I LOVE this book!

First of all, I adore Benny. He isn't perfect and doesn't always make the right decisions, but it's easy to see where he's coming from and his flaws just make him all the more relatable.

My favourite part of this book is by far the romance! The way Benny and Río's relationship developed felt so natural and organic. I love their dynamic, and how tender and loving they are with each other!!!😭😭

I also loved the cast of the show and their found family. They are diverse and come from all walks of life. I appreciate that they have their own personalities and feel like individuals, and are not just token stereotypes. The romance is the main focus of this book, but Benny gets to spend one-on-one time with each of them, and we get to learn about each of their backstories and how they came to perform in the show. Benny doesn't exactly hit it off with them at first, but over the course of the story, they grow and come together.

The art is also really good! They are so detailed and fit the vibe of the story. My copy is an eARC, but I imagine the illustrations in the published physical copies would be so much better than the tiny pictures on my phone screen.

Overall, a fantastic debut. I can't wait to read more from this author!