Zárate’s The Route of Ice and Salt, a narrative interpretation of the classic Dracula, chronicles the Demeter’s fated journey by sea to England. The Captain has taken as cargo 50 boxes of earth. As the passage turns toward terror, he is increasingly tormented both by vivid memories of past events and the nearness of his sinewy crew.

Zárate’s novella is dark, gothic, sultry; the writing lyrical and smart, and at times poetic in its beauty. It easily holds its own for those who have not read Dracula recently, or ever. Elements of queer pining thread throughout, mixing inextricably with the pressing terror. The book is challengingly stimulating and fully engaging. At least for me, not something I could mindlessly escape to, but most definitely worth the effort it took to tear my focus away from whatever else was on my mind.

My thanks to Netgalley and Innsmouth Free Press for a free review copy of this book!

TW: Graphic descriptions of sex and sexual fantasies, homophobia and homophobic violence, self harm, death, gothic horror

"I sleep well, thinking of nightmares"

The Route of Ice and Salt is a literary gothic horror novella inspired by thoughts of what happened on the trip that Dracula took from Wallachia to England.

José Luis Zárate contemplates thoughts and connections between hunger, desire and thirst and what they might be reduced to when encountered with fear and isolation. The allegories between vampirism and homosexuality have often been discussed and this novella overtly links the two in a very graphic manner.

I would like to thank Innsmouth Free Press for publishing the translation of this novel, translated by David Bowles, so that I was able to experience this cult vampire novella.

I don’t know exactly what I was expecting when I requested this galley as I was sold by the pure fact that Silvia Moreno-Garcia was involved in the publishing of the novella and spoke so highly about it, however what I received when reading this was an introduction to a world that was foreign to me that felt both voyeuristic yet invited. The weaving of yearning for what you cannot touch and the fear from what you cannot see or understand was done so hauntingly that I was on the edge unsure what would be coming next.

If you appreciate literary re-imaginings, lyrical prose and gothic horror then this is the book for you.

*thank you to Innsmouth Free Press and NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

trigger warning
<spoiler> homophobia, internalised homophobia, trauma, lynching, suicide, mention of child prostitution </spoiler>

I am sure you know the story: Count Dracula travels via ship from Rumania to England, hidden in boxes filled with earth. This version is told by the ship's captain.

The captain is gay and troubled because on one hand, he picks sailors he finds attractive, on the other he picks those from colder climates so they'll cover themselves so they won't burn. He wants them, but is afraid that showing this might result in a deadly mutiny, so he tries to hide himself while having to interact with them daily. There is no escape - they're stuck with each other on board of the ship.

And then things happen. First, the rats go missing, which raises the question if they have plague on board, and if the animals are dying in hidden corners.

We only have the captain's thoughts - and his dreams. For this ace person, there was too much sexual content, but I am sure it'll appeal to other readers.

I found it interesting to read a story from this point of view, and yes, I have pondered what might have happened on this sea voyage in the past. Additionally, I want to mention that there is no need to have read Dracula before reading this one.

According to the foreword by Silvia Moreno-Garcia this is one of the few Mexican speculative novels we have, because the market appears to be saturated by works in translation, especially from the Englisch, so I was glad to have the chance to peek in there.
Because let's be honest, I may want to read novels from all the different countries, but I really want to read speculative stuff from all the different countries.

The arc was provided by the publisher.

I tried, I really tried to like this book. Book started out well Great writing, great descriptions. Then it got weird. Not weird in a good way but weird. I stayed with it for about 3/4 of the way then I had to stop. Not really sure what was going on. It was hard for me to follow what was happening. The writing was beautiful and I wanted to follow the premise. It was a great idea for a story but it went way of track. I may revisit the story at a later date but it wasn’t for me at this time.

TW: internalized homophobia, homophobic violence, graphic sexual content, blood and violence

The Route of Ice and Salt is about the captain aboard the Demeter struggling with being a gay man and the mysterious happenings on board as they travel from Varna to Whitby.

The author took a concept used in literary analysis before and turned it into a novella; that vampirism can be a metaphor for homosexuality, that that the themes of forbidden desire and outsiders considering them “monstrous.” It’s also important to keep in mind that this was written in the 1990s, so the “monstrous” angle shouldn’t be taken as outdated.

While this is a novella, I still didn’t expect to read this entirely in one day. I started it kind of late and expected to read maybe a third or half of it one day and the rest another day. But I was so caught up in the story, even though I’d already read Dracula and knew most of what was going to happen, I needed to know. There were parts where I was properly creeped out or grossed out.

Speaking of Dracula, you don’t necessarily need to have read the novel to understand this novella, but it wouldn’t hurt to know some key aspects.

Also, this is am extremely sexual novel. A lot of the captain’s internalized homophobia and guilt have to do with being gay is his sexual attraction to men. He has very sexual dreams and feels bad about it after, he can’t take his eyes off his crew if they remove clothing, so he requires them to keep it buttoned up.

There were parts were the writing was so lush, I just didn’t know what the author meant. I could still follow the story, but some of his thoughts were lost on me.

I rated this 3.5 stars. This is a really excellent retelling of one section of Dracula, it kept me on my toes, and it tackles the “vampirism as a metaphor for being gay” very well.

This was a slow unraveling book. I wasn't sure what to expect but I cannot resist vampires and queer stories. We follow the ship captain of the Demeter. I really enjoyed the horror in this novella. You are shown that something is not quite right and how the crew deals with this.

Please check out other reviews for TWs!

A reimagining of Dracula's Voyage, told by the captain of the ship, with his queer and sometimes predatory desires towards his sailors. Until nightmares and peculiar things start to happen on the ship too.

The story is short and intriguing, but I couldn't feel so much involved because of the writing style. I don't know if it was the translation, but the writing style seemed too peculiar for me.

I really enjoyed this book! A very unique spin on vampire tales! My first by this author, and it definitely wont be the last. I loved the translation, and i felt the author's voice was able to shine through. The nightmares were so vivid and the characters made the sea journey such an spine tingly setting.

This writing was terrifying and beautiful at the same time. Such a unique take on the Dracula story, and I appreciated the queer reimagining of it.

The genres I read tend to be all over the spectrum, but it is rare I dabble in horror despite a love for it in film. I was excited to remedy that with this ARC of The Route of Ice and Salt. Now, having read it, I can say I have never encountered any other novel where the character’s unique psychological experience was so intimately and surreally part of the world building.
The Route of Ice and Salt takes elements of internalized guilt over taboo lust and perceived sin to justify external happenings. Psychologically the monster, or “thin man,” isn’t really supposed to be a manifestation of that guilt. Instead those internal emotions make the protagonist, the Demeter’s Captain, more expectant and accepting of death or punishment. In addition to that, the body gore is so well woven into ornate descriptions of pleasure and lust that, as a reader, you feel a personal horror at having enjoyed the language. This parallels the Captain’s fear and revulsion over his own sexuality and desires, offering a unique perspective which allows you to understand him better as a character.
The result is a novel that is not frightening in any sort of overt slasher-flick kind of way, but is eerie and deeply unsettling.
The only thing I am sort of on the fence about is the identity of the thin man. I read the synopsis prior to reading the novel, which spoils who he is. However, had it not, there is no point in the novel itself beyond the foreword and afterword that actually plainly says his name, though it is pretty easy to figure it out through contextual clues. I think I would have vastly preferred leaving the reveal of it to the narrative as I think it would have heightened the suspense. That aside, I wholly recommend this book.

Thank you thank you thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this!

I have not read Dracula (looks like you don't have to for this story), and I don't know how this translation compares to the original as I have not read it. I assume it's translated near accuracy as David Bowles does not take these things lightly. That's my disclaimer.

I enjoyed this story. We see Dracula's voyage to England on The Demeter. We have a nameless Captain as the main character of this story. He is a gay man set in Dracula's time period, so that in itself is a big deal. He grows to love himself and yearns to fulfill his desires and fantasies. But he also has to deal with taking care of his crew in The Demeter and that itself is hard. He makes it to his destination, but it is most certainly a journey for everyone on The Demeter. It's a short book, but it isn't a breeze. You definitely have to pay attention to what the Captain is saying. The writing is superb. It's poetic, philosophical, horror, queer, and romantic. I'd definitely recommend this story!

This is probably one of the most fascinating books I have read all year. I'm having so much trouble with this review because the experience of reading it is so hard to describe - this novella is less of a story, more of a feeling. Not that there isn't a story here, there is. It tells of Dracula's voyage to England on the Demeter from the perspective of the nameless captain. It's short, it's gothic, it's full of fear and death.

But more than that it is a book full of longing. Longing to love and be loved, to want and be wanted, to accept oneself and be accepted by the world for who one is. The captain is gay and has only ever experienced hatred as reaction to homosexuality, which is why he hides it from everyone including his crew. The first half of the novella especially focuses on his sexual desires that he knows would get him killed if people knew. It's such strong, intoxicating and poetic writing that you cannot but feel with him, for him.

The prologue already talks about the connection between vampirism and homosexuality in literature, and the novella plays with this in a very intense way. Vampirism is often used as an allegory for homosexuality, with both vampires and gays being considered monsters by society, both of them ruled by a forbidden, monstrous thirst and desire that bring only sin and death. The captain's journey from this belief instilled by the society he lives in and the experiences he went through to the realization that actually, there is no comparison to be made between the two, he is no monster, there is nothing inherently wrong with being gay is fascinating and hits hard. His choices at the end that tie in directly to what we know of the voyage from Stoker's Dracula is chilling, the imagery both horrific and strangely sensual.

This novella won't be for everyone - it's a strange little thing, very graphic when it tells of the captain's sexual desires, and it has a tendency to lose itself in its own poetic language which makes it hard to follow at times - but it is a unique reading experience. Knowing its history and its importance makes it even more of a joy to be able to read it in English now. And both the prologue and the epilogue are incredibly informative and interesting and deserve to be read as well.

In Bram Stoker's Dracula, a mysterious ship docks in England with no crew, only the captain-- dead, tied to the ship's wheel by his own hand. A bottle with a ship's log is found on board, recounting strange happenings on the ship.

The Route of Ice and Salt is the journey for the captain of the Demeter from Bulgaria to England, carrying only a few boxes of soil as far as they know. It was published in 1998 in Mexico and is just now being translated into English by David Bowles, and beautifully so. The writing is gorgeous and gothic. There is very little dialogue, just the internal thoughts of the captain. He remembers his affair with a man named Mikhail who was then persecuted and killed, he pines sexually for his crew but knows he cannot reveal his desires-- he is obsessed with his sexual thoughts. He has strange dreams, and weird things slowly start happening on the ship. Rats act odd, is it the plague? There is a lot of mist.

There is a lot of longing in the book, and toward the end quite a bit of contemplation of consent for gay lovers as well as vampires. It's a political commentary on both Bram Stoker's Dracula as well as homophobia surrounding it and in Mexico in the 90s.

"My ephemeral pleasures are not a stain; the fact that [Dracula] sacrifices others, anyone and everyone else, just to satisfy his Thirst... most certainly is."

and

"Sleeping together, seeking mutual pleasure in our bodies, should not have ended in blood.
'I'm not a monster,' I told the Demeter, gripping the helm in the midst of the fog.
I wasn't like him, like it.
And to prove it, I had to save my men."

The writing is gorgeous, edgy, dream-like, surreal, gothic, and fever-dream horny. It's absolutely worth a read, I highly recommend it and I'm glad it's available in English!

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a free ARC. My opinions are my own.

4.5 Stars

This book was absolutely incredible. It swept me up, and didn’t let me go until the very end. The writing is absolutely incredible, and is probably some of the most beautiful writing I have ever read. The only thing that pulled me out of the story were the strange sex fantasies of the captain, but putting those aside, this novella is absolutely stunning.

This is an excellent novella to add to the Dracula lore. The queer subtext that has been prevalent throughout all vampire lore is put at the front in a lyrical and reflective way. I love the Dracula lore, so this was overall a really excellent read for me, and I'd recommend this book to anyone who is already familiar with Dracula and enjoys expanding on that legend. This really is a beautiful book, and I'd say my only complaint was the repeated usage of the racial slur for the Romani people. Some content notes to be aware of: homophobia, body horror, blood, death, gore, violence, and grief. Thank you to Netgalley and Innsmouth Free Press for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you, NetGalley and Innsmouth Free Press, for the chance to read this book.

The route of ice and salt is a translation by David Bowles and available for the first time in English and it's a reimagining of Dracula's voyage to England.
The story is told from the captain, who has handled dozens of crews and cargos, but this one is so different from the ones he was used to. Boxes of Transylvanian soil and slowly the voyage becomes more and more strange, with nightmares and Gothic omens and fears.
The captain fantasizes about his men, he wants to taste them, to satisfy his queer desire, but it's difficult and he tries to stop himself, while battling against these strange events.

The story is intriguing and interesting, but I couldn't get totally invested, because the writing style (or maybe the translation itself) didn't appeal to me. The captain's monologues were both captivating and a bit annoying, his thoughts predatory, sometimes, or that was my impression.

Overall the reading is a 3.5 stars, maybe a 4, because it's very peculiar and intriguing.

"Queer desire and pirates what more could you want?!" Well maybe actual characters with names? Sadly without them it can be a bit hard to follow otherwise it's a very well written book. Everyone has a different reading style so there is an audience for every book and some Queer will love it even though I had trouble diving in.

3/5 stars.

The Route of Ice and Salt is an interesting horror/thriller novel set on a ship called the Demeter where things quickly go awry in what should be a normal delivery. The writing, though difficult to get through really showed the eerieness of the story. Despite this, it was a struggle to get through because I found it hard to keep reading, having to take breaks multiple times which really created problems in the flow of the story.

While the writing really wasn't for me, it was sa compelling story I'm sure fans of horror and queer gothic literature will love.

DRC provided by Innsmouth Free Press via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Representation: gay protagonist.

Content Warning: internalised homophobia, homophobia, violence death, suicide.

The Route of Ice and Salt by José Luis Zárate, and translated by David Bowles, is a prelude of Bram Stoker’s Dracula filled with queer yearning and eerie symbolism. Zárate narrates what happened to the oblivious captain and his crew on the Demeter, during the journey that will bring the famous Count Dracula to England.

Despite its short length, I had problems keeping my focus and I felt the need to stop reading for hours before starting again which impacted my overall reading experience.

I loved, though, the vivid imagery the metaphors created in my mind, and the captain’s inner conflict, the evocative descriptions of his most physical desire and the contrast between the salt of the sailor’s sweat, of the water that soaked them, with the ice of the colder routes that forced the sailors in less revealing attires and helped quashing the cravings the captain harboured. I liked the juxtaposition of the captain’s hunger for other men and the vampire’s thirst for blood; how the captain, in spite of his homophobic upbringing, realises the distinction between himself and the vampire.

I also really enjoyed both Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s foreword and Poppy Z. Brite’s afterword. The latter cited an essay I would really be interested in reading.

I unfortunately had to DNF this book. I was so excited to be approved for it and was expecting it to be a new favourite. I read Dracula this year so a story about what happened on Dracula's voyage to England was definitely an interesting take for me.

I really wanted to love this and kept pushing myself to read it, but I ultimately had to DNF it. I think that it absolutely has the eerie, gothic vibes so many Dracula fans want and I really enjoyed that part of it. What made me DNF was the captains internal monologuing. I love horror and angst, but I found some of his suppressed desires to be off putting and a bit too unsettling. I know that internalized homophobia and suppressed desire is something that a lot of people experience and something that would be even more prevalent at the time this book was set in, but I was finding a lot of the internal thoughts of the captain to be making me uncomfortable and it became a real struggle to keep reading.

I think this book could be a 5 star for a lot of people, but sadly it wasn't the right one for me. I think I would need to be in a very specific headspace to read this. The book itself wasn't bad, it just wasn't for me at this time.