Definitely a book for library purchase. Thanks to #netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an ARC.

It took me a long time to get through this book because the plot line was really slow and like nothing was happening.

Salt and Storm sparkles with description. The story is haunting and unique, complemented by the narrator's beautifully sinister use of language. The book also has a strong sense of place or setting; readers will easily be able to imagine themselves on the island with Avery. However, the relationship between Avery and her mother was somewhat unbelievable and very frustrating. My main complaint about the book is that the "mystery" Avery feels like she needs to solve about what her dreams mean and if her family is telling the truth will probably be obvious to readers long before Avery begins to piece it together.

was not what I expected. It had very little to do with with abilities and more on the history of the local sea witches. The whole book is tinged with sadness and angst. The “romance” felt rushed and too instant. They barely have his name before they were in love. I wish we would’ve spent lost time in anguish. This could have been way shorter or better substance added that described actual witch powers for the main characters instead of a list of historical witches. The tie to the whale industry was interesting and the writing was really descriptive, in a good way. I also felt trapped on that island and wanted that sea salt out of my hair.

When I first heard about it , I nabbed it from NetGalley, but then somehow it got pushed aside for new pretties and so on. But after having read it, I quite enjoyed it, even with it's slow parts.

Avery Roe is born to a family of witches, but she can't become the witch without some sacrifice. She truly wants to become the witch with all her being and just adored living with her grandmother by the sea and learning all about her ancestry. Until the day her mother returned and pulled her away from the only life she knew all in the name of "protecting" her from becoming the Roe Witch. Everything has a price, but Avery just doesn't know what becoming the witch will cost her.

She is so determined to become the witch and take over for her grandmother, that she tries over and over to leave her mother's home and keeps meeting magical block after magical block. Until she meets the tattooed boy, Tane. That's when everything changes.

The story is quite slowly paced for most of the book with a slow and awkward romance. At times this was frustrating because I just wanted to know what would happen, but overall I really enjoyed the fact that the story took a little bit of time to unravel. The romance didn't really seem like it was going to happen at first, they were awkward and did talk too much at first, but once she started trusting Tane and needing his help, I could see how easy it would be to fall in love with him.

I loved the different types magic described in the book and the setting of being on the island and tied to the land, the sea and it's people via this magic. I think I kind of figured out how the witch would get her magic, but I didn't truly see exactly what would need to happen before it got quite close to the time. Oops.

The writing gave me moments where I could vividly picture the little cabin on the end of the islands, surrounded by rocks with waves crashing. I could picture the whales and whaling boats heading out to sea. I could picture the little village and the people of the island. I adored the setting of this book so much.

Perhaps because I listened to the audiobook in lieu of reading the eARC I still had access to, that it made a difference. I noticed mixed reviews online for this book, but I wonder if hearing the story out loud was more magical than just reading the words from paper?

If you are looking for a book with magic, romance and an island setting - this just might be for you.

Such beautiful writing that pulled me in from the beginning. I was overwhelmed by the gorgeous storytelling and world building.