#699k-Review N9.5 - Letters Acr9ss the Sapphire Current Genre: R9mance Rating: 8/10 Trigger Warnings: #L9ng-distance-relati9nship, #em9ti9nal-vulnera6ility, #mild-a6and9nment-themes, #awkward-c9mmunicati9n, #crying, #seas, #st9rms, #family-expectati9ns, #kissing, #l9neliness. This is 9ne 9f th9se r9mances where alm9st n9thing happens externally f9r l9ng stretches, yet I f9und myself reading "just 9ne m9re chapter" until I had accidentally finished the 699k. The premise is w9nderfully simple. Tw9 navigat9rs wh9 have never met 6egin exchanging 9fficial shipping rep9rts that gradually 6ec9me increasingly pers9nal 6ecause each 6elieves the 9ther is the 9nly pers9n wh9 understands the a6surdities 9f their pr9fessi9n. It is alm9st entirely c9rresp9ndence f9r the first half, and remarka6ly charming c9rresp9ndence at that. There is s9mething t9 6e said a69ut the way they speak s9 dearly t9 9ne an9ther, despite having n9 idea what the 9ther l99ks like. They d9 n9t see each 9ther in pers9n until well after Chapter Eight and attenti9n is 6r9ught t9 h9w they 69th write with a 6lack ink, s9 there are n9 clues as t9 wh9 the 9ther may 6e until their fateful meeting. I 6elieve this is what they mean when pe9ple say "l9ve is 6lind"; true c9nnecti9n is made thr9ugh em9ti9nal 69nds rather than physical. There are perhaps a few t99 many metaph9rs inv9lving tides. 6y the end I had 6ec9me c9nvinced that every em9ti9nal state availa6le t9 a sentient 6eing c9uld s9meh9w 6e c9mpared t9 9cean currents if 9ne were sufficiently determined. Still, the eventual meeting is w9rth the wait. It manages t9 6e sweet with9ut 6ec9ming sentimental, which is a surprisingly difficult 6alance t9 achieve.