Land of Two Moons by D.L. Gardner

An intricately plotted political fantasy brimming with family tension as a father’s greed starts a war which the son wants to end

With a rare eclipse of twin moons approaching, political unrest bubbles to the surface and a mythical dragon prepares to return to its home world amid pleas for help. 

The book opens in the war-plagued Red Sands desert with Pattin, a conscripted soldier who has no intention of fighting in a war whose cause he isn’t even privy to. Fortunately for him, help arrives in the form of Kezia, the rebellious daughter of Duke Sebal. 

On the opposing side is Duke Balmier of Lodesmoor (a realm on the planet Unnilles), who’s on the verge of financial ruin and losing the war with Sebal over northern iron mines. And his heavy taxes and conscriptions haven’t done him any good among the people. A rebellion among the serfs is brewing.

Fueling his unease and usurping suspicions is how increasingly popular his twin children, Arthur and Hallie, are becoming with the commoners. Their sympathies spur them to defy their father, releasing arrested villagers and earning his wrath. As tensions rise and talks of treason begin, they’re unable to remain in what was once their home, so they both flee. Nell, their mother who’s growing weaker by the day, has a secret weapon that might be able to solve all their problems. If she can get it to help her, that is.

Defined by its twin moons and their gravitational influence on events, the planet Unnilles is atmosphere with celestial bodies shaping the psychology of the characters. The class divide is loud with Arthur expressing concern over his sister’s growing fondness for Paolo, a baker’s son, who he knows his father will never approve of. 

In the dust-choked terror of his trench, Pattin is “sick to his stomach…and with little to eat or drink.” The ills of conscription are felt—a mere conscript with no stake in the duke’s war. Risking his life hasn’t even earned him the right to know what he’s fighting for. And when soldiers eventually show up at Paolo’s family’s bakery to collect him, the fear is undeniable.

Arthur’s loyalty to his family can’t blind him to the moral failure his father’s rule has become, and this disillusionment is heartbreakingly clear as he sheds the cloak of the dutiful son for that of a fugitive. While in his friend’s workshop, he can’t help but wonder about its warmth which is missing from what he once called home. 

The gritty reality of trench warfare and the smoky chaos of riots is striking in D. L. Gardner’s Land of Two Moons: “When he tripped over a body, his heart leapt into his throat. It was a Wayman under his feet, a bolt in his side… Another boom sounded, and fire flashed from the hands of one of the robed men. Arthur watched a soldier fall.”

While the use of multiple perspectives enriches the story, there are also moments that interrupt emotional connection. For instance, for a large bit of the book, Pattin’s initial rescue by Kezia feels disconnected and dangles while readers wonder how it fits in the story until much later. Also, conversations—particularly between Enzo the mystic and Nell or Arthur and Gregorio the shepherd—are sometimes overly explanatory.

Notwithstanding, D.L. Gardner’s Land of Two Moons is a rich and ambitious fantasy novel that successfully builds a world trembling on the brink of magical and political upheaval. This is a delicate, intricate novel that rewards patient reading.