Review of The Crane Moon Cycle by J.C. Snow
The Crane Moon Cycle by J.C. Snow (2023) is a wonderful epic fantasy novel duology filled with queer characters, slow-burn romance, and a deep historical world.
Aili and Nora are preparing to ship out as military nurses, but before they do, they take opportunities to meet other queer women. In doing so, Aili meets an unusual woman and falls in love, only to have this woman vanish from her life. Finding her again involves an unreal world and plumbing the depths of their shared history. Along the way, they team up with other immortal beings with a shared and intertwined story of their own.
The two books in this duology span centuries, though they focus on two main time periods. The lengthy history, though, gives the tale a truly epic feeling. And the characters, though possessing varying degrees of immortality, feel very human and real, despite their long lives, which only adds to their complexity. The story is along the lines of a danmei (Chinese gay romantic fiction) with a very slow-burn romance with no explicit elements. This duology is great for fans of queer romance, historical fiction, and complicated, realistic characters!
The author provided me with a copy of this book for review consideration.
Like my book reviews? Subscribe to my monthly newsletter to get a recap of what I’ve read and reviewed each month!
Comments