House of Salt and Sorrows

I voluntarily read and reviewed and ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
2.5 stars

DNF @ 38%

Okay, this is a hard one. I really wanted to like this one and there were moments where I thought I was going to start liking it, but over 30% into a book over 400 pages and I'm more annoyed and enjoying it, so I'm calling it quits. I'm not entirely sure if I would have preferred this if I was reading it on a cold winter day. See, this book is on the slower side which I'm not a huge fan of, but I do have more patience for gothic books when it is cold and not hot and muggy.
Besides the pacing, I'm also not a huge fan of Annaleigh. She felt like two different characters to me. At times gungho and ready to solve a mystery and at others silent follower. While I understand how a person can be both, the times she was silent just didn't work for me and seemed done more to make tension or drama.
Perhaps I'm also at a disadvantage because I've had to put this book down a few times, so I might be misunderstanding or incorrectly remembering past parts in the book, but the building romance had me so confused... at the possibility of a love triangle I decided to put it down.

This is super unfortunate and I've heard that it gets super interesting at the 50% marker, but I just don't have time to trudge through 250+ pages to finally start liking a book.

Now, I'm not saying other people won't enjoy this. There are so many creepy moments– this is what was making me want to continue reading. The atmosphere is really well done: it is creepy, dark, and lonely. There is a mystery surrounding the deaths of Annaleigh's sisters and their curse which is really intriguing. Are the Gods real? Are the ghosts?? What is the truth about the deaths and this door that brings the sisters to an amazing ball?
There is a lot to be interested in and the writing is well done. I won't be surprised if many people find this to be an amazing book.

Unfortunately, it just isn't working out for me.

4.5 stars This was an awesome book that I would highly recommend. I love good scary stories/movies (not gory but scary) and this book definitely had creepy vibes that sent a little thrill up my spine which impressed the heck out of me! A retailing of The Twelve Dancing Princesses with a haunting atmosphere and engaging characters solving a ghostly mystery, this was a book I devoured very quickly. Could not put it down.

This books started off atmospheric. The coastal vibes were lovely on a rainy day, but as the story progressed, the plot became unclear and all over the place. I couldn't remember who all the sisters were or tell them apart. Felt like I needed a key.
It was also quite slow and I lost interest half way so I stopped reading it.

I'm a believer that if a book isn't interesting anymore, it's time to stop and read something else that might be more enjoyable. There are too many great books out there to read one that's just meh.

I liked the twist and the horror that came from this. I liked the character of Annaleigh. We really see the struggle that she has throughout the book. The ending was not my favorite, but I don't hate it. It did seem to take awhile to get to the horror part as well. I am interested to read the next one.

I, figuratively, could not put this down. I finished it in one day, 400 pages inhaled like the salty brine of the sea! If I'm being honest if felt weak and maybe a little immature in some places, perhaps it could have been matured but that's my only reason to not score it higher. It was such a nice book, even with the horror and the tension and the fear it was NICE. It was good, I loved it, I'm so glad I found it. Definitely recommend for anyone who loves a bunch of Poe references and loves the idea of a moody little macabre mystery by the sea

The Twelve Dancing Princesses is hard to adapt, as it has way too many characters. House of Salt and Sorrows tries to eleviate the problem by killing off a third of the girls before the story even starts. It's not enough. Only three sisters matter (and one of the dead ones.) Trying to keep track of the rest is an exercise in frustration.

The worldbuilding is where this book shines. The story centers around islanders with ocean-centric religious practices. Humans don't have magic but their gods walk the earth and magic lingers some places.

Content warnings: Pregnancy and childbirth, lots of death, mild horror

3.25* the thriller side to this was sooooo good but the fantasy side was confusing and the insta love romance just wasnt it... will probably still read the next one for the thriller aspect tho my heart was racing

4.5 / 5 stars. I had a great time! I was genuinely kept guessing what was real and who the true murderer was right until the ending. I think the romance could've been a little more developed but it was still very sweet.

This book had so many plot twists I think I got whiplash...but in a good way. If you want a Spooky book without it being really scary plus having a huge plot twist, this book is for you. I actually really liked the protagonist because she was asking all the questions I was, and I instantly felt a connection with her.

There are some parts of the book where it gets muddled but it's an adventure all the same. I had no idea how it was going to end or how things were going to unfold so it was pretty thrilling to see events turn out. Overall, three out of five stars.

This is a retelling of the 12 Dancing Princesses fairytale. I'm actually not familiar with that fairytale, but my suspicion is this novel is a lot more creepy than that tale. In fact the novel really excels in two area's. The horror elements are genuinely quite creepy. I'm not overly familiar with YA Fantasy Horrors, but I enjoyed those elements here a significant amount.

The second element which is really paired with the first is the atmosphere in general. The author is quite talented at painting the world. She does a great job making you feel like everyone is really on this rocky, cold, island that survives off the sea. The type of place where the smell and taste of salt permeates everything. 

The plot lands slightly below these two for me as I was quite enjoying the mystery build up, but it did start to become quite predictable. I'd still say it was enjoyable though just because of the horror type elements through out it. I didn't really care much for the romance plot lines though. Extremely cheesy stuff...

The real let down for me though is the characters. The sisters for the most part are just slight variations on the same person. They are vain and boy crazy. Those are for the most part, the two things that define them. The only two exceptions are the main character, who is defined by one extra trait, and the youngest who is far too young to be interested in boys or status. If you took the name's out of the book, I legitimately don't think I'd be able to say which one was speaking at any given moment. I wouldn't say I enjoyed any of the other characters either outside of perhaps Fischer.

I enjoyed the creepy story/atmosphere enough though that this still hit a 3/5 for me.

This book kept getting worse and worse

OH MAN I have stayed up way too late to finish this but that was SO GOOD!!!!!!! There were so many unseen twists right at the end that I couldn't put it down!!!!!!!! HIGHLY RECOMMEND if you want a creepy fantasy/horror!!!!!!!!

[7.5/10 Rating] [2nd paragraph is NOT spoiler-free!]

This book was a delight to read, mainly because of the eerie atmosphere. I loved the way the author set the tone of the book– I believe that this book would be best suited to read on a dark and stormy day whilst curled up in a quilt. I enjoyed the writing and each of the characters, and especially loved the gruesome images the author painted of the things that were happening. I loved the whole horror aspect of Verity being able to see things (I loved how vivid the descriptions were for all the horror scenes). The book hooked me in quickly and overall I really liked it. So why did it get only a 7.5/10 from me?

[MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD]
I was quite disappointed to find out that the whole mystery about the deaths of the sisters was resolved the way it was resolved. The way it was built up made me expect some really mind-blowing
dark and emotional plot twists, so it was really disappointing to discover at the end that everything was due to some supernatural being. I understand that this is supposed to be fantasy and fiction but I felt that it would be way more impactful if the mystery did not delve into supernatural explanations for the things that were happening. It got extremely unrealistic (I know it's fiction but it just seemed really weird that suddenly OOh Cassius is some child of a deity and that all these killings were a result of the sisters' stepmother's bargain with yet another supernatural being). To me, it felt quite funny to read that as the book went from “oh man this is gon be creepy” to “its original eerie atmosphere is completely gone now.. what even is this development..?”

I also felt that the author's pace went from really good to kinda rushed. Suddenly everything was happening at once (the whole twins birth thing and suddenly the place is on fire and burning down at the same time?), and it was a bit difficult to understand what was going on in some parts (The line between reality and ‘dreams' was hard to distinguish (which can be a good thing but I felt the author could have elaborated and explained more about the whole dancing thing in a better way.) Also since we are on this topic, the ‘magic' gateway to the balls was kinda underwhelming to me. The whole book was slowly building up its eerie atmosphere and suddenly it kinda went poof when they found the magic gateway thing :/ Was really disappointed about it). I also disliked the fact that supernatural beings were so easily accessible? It's cool and all but it made the story feel extremely unrealistic (Random mortals are able to strike deals and bargains with supernatural beings so easily??).

Another complaint I have is the romance in the story. I like Cassius a lot but the romance was too predictable (saw it coming from miles away..) and also quite unnecessary. It didn't add a lot to the story, and it was a bit underdeveloped. It could've been written and developed in a much better way so it's quite disappointing. More things could've been done with Fisher as well– the relationship could've been developed more + his death, tho gruesome and painful, seemed underwhelming due to how it was set up. Right away when they wanted to find Fisher I knew he probably died. There could've been more development to the lore and plot surrounding Fisher's character and the balls.

OVERALL: I think anyone who likes eerie atmospheric novels with good descriptions should give this one a go! It was a great read overall and I enjoyed it a lot despite my complaints.

I really enjoyed this! It's creepy without being necessarily scary.
Very interesting! Will definitely need to reread in the next few years because it messes with your mind.

One part at the end was kind of wack, and I was like what on earth is happening right now. Still a very fun read, and it definitely takes you on a weird ride.

4stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I'm staring as a BookTuber- here's my channel in case you're interested: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqu1LgRVYr38sNpMmvqT5Ug

So yeah, this book was creepy! I picked it up expecting some goosebumps and girl, I got them! This is the perfect read if you're looking for something spooky, but yet with a great vivid setting and a charming main PoV.

I flew through the pages and the story got really interesting by the end... but I can't scape the feeling that the pacing was a bit odd- somethings very fast and others entertaining a lot of small details.

All in all, a great read and I definitely recommend if you're in the spooktober mood

4stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I'm staring as a BookTuber- here's my channel in case you're interested: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqu1LgRVYr38sNpMmvqT5Ug

So yeah, this book was creepy! I picked it up expecting some goosebumps and girl, I got them! This is the perfect read if you're looking for something spooky, but yet with a great vivid setting and a charming main PoV.

I flew through the pages and the story got really interesting by the end... but I can't scape the feeling that the pacing was a bit odd- somethings very fast and others entertaining a lot of small details.

All in all, a great read and I definitely recommend if you're in the spooktober mood

This is a book club read for September 2021. I don't know if I would have picked it up otherwise. But I am very glad that I did. This fairytale retelling of 12 Dancing Princesses was a rollercoaster and so unique.

I'll begin by saying this book seems to be a hodgepodge of genres. It's fantasy with murder mystery, romance, suspense, and horror. It's layered and a few times I felt like I went from reading one book to a completely different one. I adored the MC. The sisters and other side characters all added unique personalities to this already unique story. There were so many twists and turns that I did not see coming and few that were spelled out in neons signs to me. However, even the ones I expected, their circumstances I did not see coming.

Overall a great read. The first half is a 3 star read but the second half is a 5 star. So it equals out to 4 stars. I recommend for those who enjoy fantasy, romance, and horror.

this book got wicked weird during the last 100 pages and i don't know if it was good or bad

Marking this read, though I stopped at the 12% point—the tension was already killing me—and skipped ahead and listened to the plot's crescendo and ending. Not really my genre, but had to know what happened so I could rest at night. Will likely do a full listen in the future.

This was going to be a solid 4 stars but then it got twistier and creepier and I enjoyed it more than I thought I would.

This was a phenomenal book. Let's say you're at a buffet. You take a large slice of murder mystery for your protein, add some medieval fantasy as your homey carbohydrate of choice, then portion out a hearty helping of mythology. To top it off you sauce up your plate with a juicy portion of love-story to tie everything together. Yum.

Forreal tho this story was amazing. It follows a family of cursed sisters, all dying of mysterious causes on an Island kingdom in a map not unlike Game of Thrones. One by one. They are against time to try to stop it and as the novel progresses, it is hard to tell what is reality and what is imaginary. The author's focus on plot and leaving little clues for you along the way to try to figure out what is happening was pure gold. Although I kind of guessed the end as it was happening (drats to the years of murder-mystery experience), it was a real whirlwind of emotions. Everything was woven together so vividly and colorfully. I was very impressed with this debut novel. I would highly recommend as one of the best books I read in 2020.

This was something unbelievable. A combination of multiple styles is something which makes this book really unique. Retelling of an unknown fairytale, detective story or a mysterious thriller? Maybe even a horror? All of that served to us in one book. Perfect reading for autumn evenings...

Ik was er van overtuigt dat ik dit boek de max ging vinden: een gothic aandoende hervertelling van een ietwat obscuur sprookje gedrenkt in mysterie en duisternis. Helemaal mijn ding!
Jammer genoeg ben ik toch een beetje teleurgesteld.

Het verhaal kende een sterke start en vooral de atmosfeer steelt de show. Ergens halverwege echter begon ik mijn interesse te verliezen, ondanks het feit dat de auteur wel heel intrigerende aspecten introduceerde. De wereld waarin het boek zich afspeelt klinkt heel interessant en ook al worden sommige dingen overdreven gedetailleerd uitgelegd, over andere zaken wordt dan heel snel gegaan, terwijl net die zaken uitdieping nodig hadden om me in het verhaal te houden.
De ontrafeling van het mysterie moddert eerst ook maar wat aan, om dan opeens in een sneltrein ontknoopt te worden op een gebrekkige, doch interessante manier.

Al bij al vond ik dat dit verhaal heel wat unieke, verfrissende ideeën introduceert, maar de algehele uitwerking en samenhang ontbrak om het verhaal te verheffen tot echt iets opmerkelijks.

This book had a great start and a very dark and interesting plot. The romance is cringe worthy and I didn't love the ending. It's part: fantasy, horror, and mystery.

This is a hauntingly beautifully story about 12 sisters who were cursed. The book gave me chills and some parts of it terrified me. If you like a dark fantasy with ghosts, gods and a little romance then I recommend this book. A fun and fast read.