Mehh. Story was weird. 2.5 stars

I don't give away spoilers in my reviews. I am admittedly not usually the reader who loves fantasy but I knew from reviews that I wanted to read When the Tides Held the Moon by Venessa Vida Kelley. The cover is eye-catching with the graphic of Benny and the merman. I loved the oceanic colors used for it. Benny is on his own in life after losing his aunt. He has come to America and is working as a blacksmith. Benny has difficulties with his breathing and being in an environment such as a metal shop really affects his health. Benny is a talented blacksmith and his art is noticed by the owner of one of the local amusement parks - Luna Park in Coney Island. Benny is hired to build a large tank for a new exhibit and isn't told of all the details. Benny finds himself becoming attached to the new exhibit - a real merman from the ocean. I loved Benny's compassion and moral struggles within himself and with the merman. The other characters in the book that make up the menagerie were also such a great group of characters to read about. My two favorite parts in this book were the illustrations and the storyline. The illustrations added to the story and worked together with the cover. I usually don't read much fantasy but this was such a good story. (from my Goodreads review)

One of the best books I’ve read all year

Ocean's Eleven in space. Yes.

This was an excellent ending to a series I've been reading for 8 years! I loved being reunited with these characters one last time and everyone's story ended in the way I thought it should have. I cried, it was adventurous and bizarre, and 830 pages flew by!

An amazing book that has fantasy and friendship and so much really good climax’s 10/10 recommend!!!!!;)

This book is a little like Lake Wobegon in some parts and quite dark in other parts.

I loved this book! It’s a great way to showcase the importance of friendship and the dangers of the dreaded “groups of popular jerks.” I don’t like the way it portrays 6th graders a s”cool,” when 6th graders are just like 5th graders, but the boys are more annoying. ;)

good

It's certainly not the worst book I've ever read, but I don't know why everyone praises McCaffrey so much if this is her normal writing.