Happy Monday bookish people! Still me, with another book review. The third review of today is for House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A Craig. This is a retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses i believe and I was highly anticipating it so I’m glad I managed to read it in January.
In this book review I will give star ratings to four categories and I will write a little about each one. I will try to keep it as spoiler free as possible. I hope you enjoy my book review!
House of Salt and Sorrows Plot:
The plot of this novel is dark and enchanting. It has the feeling of a fairytale that is slowly merging with a nightmare. There are so many twists throughout this book I could not put it down. I made myself a cup of tea thinking it would be lovely to drink while reading but I was so hooked on the story that I forgot about my tea, anyone that knows me knows that me forgetting about a cup of tea is pretty much impossible. The dark atmosphere mixed beautifully with the whimsical elements of balls and new gowns and the churning sea. The story opens after a tragic event and the reader gets thrown into the middle of a story which is something I personally love. The slight hints of romance aren’t overwhelming to the plot but they add a nice layer to the plot. I enjoyed how as the story progressed it gradually got darker. I did feel that the ending was tied up too easily, there were a few elements at the end that I think were just used to make the ending the way it was however I still enjoyed it.
House of Salt and Sorrows Characters:
Annaleigh, the main character that you follow, is headstrong and determined to figure out what is happening to her and her sisters which gave her motivation and made me really feel that I wanted the character to succeed. I felt that each of the sisters, including the ones deceased at the start of the novel, are fleshed out well and given strong and unique personalities. None of the sisters were forgotten about and each had an important part to play within the story. I enjoyed the sibling dynamic this gave the story. As I mentioned there is a slight romance subplot which created different atmospheres for the characters.
Writing and Dialogue:
I loved the dialogue in this book. It felt natural and developed between the characters as the novel went on. It didn’t show the reader too much but gave all the information it needed to for the reader to realise what was going on, although I didn’t before the end which to me makes this book brilliant. The writing style was clear and easy to follow. It swept me along with the story.
House of Salt and Sorrows Overall Rating:
I had to give this book four stars. For me the ending, although still good, let it down slightly. This book did put me into a reading slump for a week and a half but I enjoyed every minute, the story, the sisters, the romance, all of it.
Blurb/Synopsis:
In a manor by the sea, twelve sisters are cursed.
Annaleigh lives a sheltered life at Highmoor, a manor by the sea, with her sisters, their father, and stepmother. Once they were twelve, but loneliness fills the grand halls now that four of the girls’ lives have been cut short. Each death was more tragic than the last—the plague, a plummeting fall, a drowning, a slippery plunge—and there are whispers throughout the surrounding villages that the family is cursed by the gods.
Disturbed by a series of ghostly visions, Annaleigh becomes increasingly suspicious that the deaths were no accidents. Her sisters have been sneaking out every night to attend glittering balls, dancing until dawn in silk gowns and shimmering slippers, and Annaleigh isn’t sure whether to try to stop them or to join their forbidden trysts. Because who—or what—are they really dancing with?
When Annaleigh’s involvement with a mysterious stranger who has secrets of his own intensifies, it’s a race to unravel the darkness that has fallen over her family—before it claims her next.
That’s it for this book review, I hope you all enjoyed it!
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