First and foremost, the prequel novella is a requirement to fully appreciate this book. The plot in this is very different for Sierra Simone. It is impossible to predict, even though it is fascinating to wonder where the rest of the series will go. This book is very sexy and spicy and a great start point for this brand new series.

SImone's books are gaining traction at my library. I recently purchased the New Camelot and Priest series on Overdrive and they are popular. By that measure, I will probably buy Salt Kiss as well., however, I didn't love it. Mostly, I wasn't expecting a cliffhanger, but that's my own issue, not the quality of the book.

The prologue left a bad taste in my mouth. I didn’t like how it was supposed to be vague yet give us details about characters. It just felt like an info dump of backstory about characters that wasn’t relevant to the story. I could’ve skipped it and still understood what was happening just fine. It did nothing to entice me to the story and left me confused and not the good kind.

I didn’t initially realize this book takes place in the same universe as the New Camelot series. If I had known I might’ve made sure to finish that series before reading this because of character spoilers. I am actually quite sad that I had to figure out this way of character deaths. I assume the talk about a dead priest also alludes to Sierra Simone’s other series that I have not started. These tidbits of information didn’t need to be shared. Or at least it could’ve been more vague as to not spoil conclusions of series. My liking of this book took a big hit because of this.

Tristan admits early on to Mark that he gets too attached. When reading I can see subtle actions Mark does knowing that they will cause Tristan to become too attached. I wanted to warn Tristan what is happening but also I’m eating it up.

Tristan constantly compares himself to Strassburg and it’s exhausting to read. “Strassburg did this so I have to.” “I want to be what Strassburg was to Mark.” Etc. why couldn’t Tristan be himself. This kind of whiny character inner monologue really shows how juvenile Tristan is.

I also didn’t really understand the point of Tristan being a virgin. This story could have easily been told had he not been. And his promiscuous actions once he meets Isolde would also make more sense. You would think a virgin would have more control. You would also think a soldier would have more self perseverance and be rigid with his actions. Having sex with Isolde goes against what I imagine Tristan being. An actual love potion would’ve been more plausible.

When with the many plot points I didn’t care for I really did enjoy this book. There was tension between Tristan and Mark that kept me reading. The spice was on point and never too much. At one point I felt like I sat down to read and read 60% of the book without realizing it. For people who are already familiar with Sierra Simone’s worlds this is a great next read.

Sierra Simone has a talent for writing heartwrenching throuple romances with complex relationships, adventures, and plenty of spice. I can see this series becoming even more popular than her American Queen series (one of the first that I enjoyed of hers).

It was odd but in a good way. The chemistry was okay but most of it was just sex. Not really much plot.

I was personally excited and iffy on this novel. I loved her Priest Series but wasn't thrilled with the New Camelot series.

But whew I'm here for this story. It was engaging, spicy and all around everything I have loved from Sierra.

I can't wait for books 2 & 3. I am not sure where this is going and if Tristan will end up with Mark, Islode or both.

Shout out NetGalley for the ARC!

I have never read a romance from only the male’s perspective so this was a fun twist for me! Tristian is such an interesting “hero” stuck in between the conflicting feelings of love and hatred. This is the definition of uncertainty of unrequited love to a dangerous individual.

Tristan is dealing with a lot of PTSD from his time as a soldier and doesn't really care what he does with his life. He takes a job as a bodyguard for Mark, the infamous owner of a kink club, just for something to do. He doesn't expect to find himself drawn to Mark and his lifestyle, but he is. He really is...

This is just as spicy as I've come to expect from Sierra Simone and though I saw the twist at the end, I'm excited for what comes next. I need book two immediately!

Sierra Simone can do no wrong. I've read most of her series already so I was ecstatic to receive an ARC of Salt Kiss.

Like all of Simone's books, Salt Kiss was smart and beautifully written. Despite being a so-called "spicy book," the characters had depth, interesting storylines, and felt relatable. The one aspect that threw me off was that the summary seems to imply that Mark quickly asks Tristan to fetch Isolde from Ireland, but you don't actually meet her character until around the 70% mark. I was used to Simone's books usually having a female at the center, so it was an interesting change for it to be mostly a MM love story for the majority of the book.

That being said, I enjoyed seeing the dynamic between Mark and Tristan develop throughout the story and how they opened up to each other. Isolde was not what I was expecting and I can’t wait to see her character develop even more in the next book. The ending was a little cruel, but only because I want to read the next book ASAP. I will be impatiently waiting until book two is announced and released. I rated this a 3.5/5⭐ and rounded it up to 4⭐.