I very much wanted to like this book because of the subject matter and the location, but I struggled to get into it. The changing points of view and the changing time periods confused me from the beginning, and I had a hard time liking any of these people. But I stuck with it, and eventually I was drawn into the drama and began to understand the difference among the characters. By mid-way through, I didn't want to stop. The twists at the end took me by surprise, but I felt taken advantage of by them rather than appreciating them. I wish any one of these people had been likeable, but they weren't. They actually showed the worst of human nature and how money corrupts on all levels. I appreciate all the effort that went into creating this complicated book, and wish the author well. I would read future books that she writes.

usually it takes me forever to get into thrillers, and it took me a bit to get into this one especially. maybe it was the pacing for me? but overall once I got past the hurdle, the twist was good.

Took me awhile to get into it but absolutely worth the time because the twist at the end totally caught me off guard. If you’ve been to the Italian coast this will make you want to go back immediately (or visit for the first time!) Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Multiple points of view and timelines are not my favorite things in books but this one was pretty good. The characters and setting were really interesting.

Saltwater gives the feel of a modern day Agatha Christie story set in the sweltering heat of France!

Capi… The Rich… Murder… Mystery… Death… A Necklace… What do all these things have in common?

Let me tell you, they are the bases of the most diverting thriller, Saltwater!

Helen’s mom died when she was just a little girl, accidentally falling off a cliff in the beautiful villa on Capri. Every year her rich family travels back to that very spot to prove to the world (and maybe themselves) that it was just that an accident. But Helen is tired of being sheltered and shut up, she wants the truth, and this year, when a necklace (the one her mother was wearing at the time of her account), mysteriously shows up, addressed to her, she is no longer done with half answers and wants to dig for the truth.


With the help of her father’s assistant, Lorna, the mystery begins to unravel and many truths come to light. Was it an accident and so many more questions are answered. The twists and turns of this story were wonderful and I really loved the sweeping, almost romantic setting for such a tense murder mystery. Saltwater is a must read!

Interesting enough! The mystery is not entirely intriguing at first, but the characters and setting are. Very reminiscent of The Guest, but with more plot. I found it to be very slow moving, however

Saltwater was my first book by this author. Initially I didn’t think this was a book for me.-the multiple points of view and timelines seemed confusing at times. I’m glad I stuck with it as I actually enjoyed this thriller. It was very unpredictable and the ending was a shock! Loved the setting on the island of Capri. I didn’t care for most of the characters but still enjoyed reading about them. Overall this was a great thriller with quite a few surprises and very well written. Definitely liked the authors style. Thank you to NetGalley, Katy Hays and Random House for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

“Salt Water” is a murder mystery set on the Italian island of Capri. It’s not a book I enjoyed. But many others have.

Some 30 years ago, Sarah gave up her career as a playwright to marry Richard Lingate, one of two brothers from an “old money” family. The Lingates were so bound up in their wealth, and controlling, that Sarah soon found the marriage stultifying. After the birth of her daughter Helen, she wrote a new play based, in part, on the Lingates—much to Richard’s displeasure. During the family’s yearly Capri vacation, Sarah disappeared. Eventually, her body was found in the Mediterranean. Although Italian authorities ruled her death an accident, many suspect that Richard caused her death.

Now, as they’ve done every year since Sarah’s death, the family has returned to Capri. Sarah’s distinctive necklace-- missing since her death--arrives in the mail. Who sent it? What does it mean? Will the mystery of Sarah’s death finally be solved? Will it destroy the Lingate reputation? And will daughter Helen, now an adult, be able to escape the Lingate’s smothering control? And just who is Lorna, assistant to Richard’s brother Marcus, why has she accompanied the family to Capri, and what does she want?

Although I was reminded, at times, of Patricia Highsmith’s “The Talented Mr. Ripley,” and the film “The Last of Sheila,” (screenplay by Stephen Sondheim), two works I enjoyed, I was not a fan of this novel.

First, the story shifts amongst multiple points of view and various time periods, rendering it unnecessarily complex and often confusing. Every time I picked up the book, I found myself asking: When are we? Where are we? Who is this character?

Second, I found none of the characters likable, making it tough for me to engage with, root for, or care about any of them. It doesn’t help that author Katy Hays spills lots of ink and paints with a very broad brush “slamming the rich.” We’re told a lot about how the rich operate and what’s important to them and how selfish and self-involved and unfeeling and controlling they are. The possibility that someone wealthy might have redeeming qualities is barely, if ever, explored.

Third, I found the treatment of the Capri setting somewhat lacking. Having never been there, I was completely unfamiliar with the island when I started reading. Now, I have only a slight sense of what it might be like.

On the positive side, the prose and dialogue are professional, clear, and readable, enough so that I’m giving it a three-star rating. And those who enjoy stories damning the rich, or piecing together a puzzle, may find “Salt Water” to be a mystery they can appreciate. I, unfortunately, could not.

My thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a complimentary ARC. All of the foregoing is my honest, independent opinion.

I remember really enjoying The Cloisters, Katy Hays' first book, so I was looking forward to reading Saltwater. It isn't bad, but since I enjoyed the other book so much I felt kind of underwhelmed by this one. It has two things working against it for me. One is that it feels overly complicated. The second is that most of the characters are very rich people that are used to getting whatever they want and not being held accountable for the messes they create. In it's most simple format, Helen is tired of being held under lock and key by her very wealthy family because of the mysterious circumstances surrounding her mother's death on Capri years ago, so she and her uncle's assistant, Lorna, hatch a plan to blackmail Helen's family and split the money - Helen to be independent of her family and Lorna to not have to work for them, or any other rich people, again. Except they're both keeping secrets from each other, and the family is keeping secrets about the death of Helen's mother thirty years ago. And then Lorna goes missing. Did she cut and run with the money? Did someone in the Lingate family decide she knew too much about the family's secrets and silence her? On the surface it sounds interesting, but the story kind of plods along without leaving the reader on the edge of their seat until a couple of late twists in the book. For me, the twists were interesting but not entirely surprising, and didn't significantly effect the main point of the book. There are multiple people in the family with means, motive and opportunity for the death of Sarah Lingate thirty years ago, but the situation with Lorna, despite happening during the active storyline seems almost an afterthought. A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book completely hooked me from the start. The Lingate family’s dark secrets, the mystery of Sarah’s death 30 years ago, and the gorgeous Italian setting had me flipping pages late into the night. I loved the premise—a wealthy family returning to their villa in Capri on the anniversary of Sarah’s death, only to find her missing necklace waiting for them. That twist alone set the perfect tone for the suspense to come.

The story is told through the perspectives of Lorna, Helen, and Sarah, and I thought the shifting timelines between 1992 and the present worked so well. The way the author wove in Sarah’s life, including her romance and marriage, along with the Lingate family’s secrets, kept me completely invested. I especially loved the vivid descriptions of Capri—it felt like I was right there on the cliffs, soaking in the beauty and danger.

The characters were another highlight for me. They’re messy, flawed, and so well-written that I couldn’t help but feel strongly about them. Some I rooted for, and others I absolutely despised. I really enjoyed how the author gave convincing reasons why so many of them could have been involved in Sarah’s death—it kept me guessing right up until the end. If I had one minor gripe, it’s that there were a lot of characters and threads to keep track of, but the payoff was worth it.

The twists and turns were fantastic! Just when I thought I’d figured it all out, there’d be another reveal that had me second-guessing everything. It made the story unpredictable and so satisfying to read.

The mix of family drama, psychological suspense, and that stunning Italian setting made this book unforgettable. If you’re into thrillers with rich atmospheres and plenty of secrets to uncover, this one’s definitely worth picking up!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Saltwater is a fast paced, wild twisty turn thriller about a family’s secrets in Capri, Italy.

The characters were a little difficult to keep up with the primary characters were memorable and I loved the unraveling of the secrets.

The end was a huge twist that I really enjoyed


Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. You too can read Saltwater when it’s released on March 25, 2025

SALTWATER is a family drama, mystery thriller that has lots of twists and turns that kept me on my toes. I didn’t see the twists coming and I love when that happens. The characters were not super lovable - I found them intolerable most of the book - but the story and writing made up for it.

Thank you to NetGalley & Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

slow thriller drama withsome really fun aspects and themes. would recommend it, it was cool. 4 stars. tysm for the arc.

A well plotted, twisty mystery loaded with family secrets. Two murders, decades apart happen on the Island of Capri - one is the wife of a wealthy man, and years later, a friend of his daughter's also drowns off the coast of the island. Are the two deaths somehow related? When a successful playwright plunges to her death on the coast of Capri, she leaves a young daughter named Helen. Helen struggles with the cloistered, controlling life of her wealthy family, and wonders about the night her mother died. Was it suicide? Murder? if so, who did it? The more Helen probes for clues with her new friend, Lorna, who works in her Uncle's office, the more she is convinced she needs a plan to escape - with money. When Lorna disappears, Helen is left to reckon with her family's secrets on her own - but will she survive? Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced reader copy.

A mystery/thriller set in Capri….how could I resist.

In 1992, Sarah Lingate fell or was pushed to her death on Capri, where her wealthy family vacationed each year. Her daughter, Helen, was three at the time.Thirty years later, the necklace that Sarah was wearing the night she died is sent anonymously to the family as they make their annual visit.

Atmospheric and suspenseful, family drama, twists, turns, deep held secrets, the monied class behaving badly; they are all here. Who can anyone really trust? My favorite character in this novel is the island of Capri, beautifully portrayed by the author.This is a bit of a slow burn, but worth sticking with it through the end.

Salt Water
By Katy Hays

This book is a mystery/thriller. The absolute best part of the book is its setting – the Isle of Capri. I have been to Capri multiple times and I think the author nailed it. Capri is beautiful and mysterious, the perfect setting for a whodunit.

On the other hand, I did not like any of the characters. The Lingate family are a bunch of miscreants who may or may not have been involved in Sarah Lingate's death 30 years ago. The whole family – as well as Marcus' assistant, Lorna – are once again on the island, as they have been every year since Sarah's death. Everyone involved has their share of secrets and plots, including Helen, Sarah's daughter; her boyfriend Freddy; her lover Ciro; and her friend and co-conspirator Lorna. The fact that everybody is hiding things from each other, while adding to the tension, makes all the characters unlikeable.

The storyline is reasonably well done, keeping the reader guessing, but somehow, given these characters, I found I really didn't care.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book to read and review.

This book started out slow, but once it picked up, it really took off! I loved the ending—it was packed with twists I didn’t see coming. The story follows Helen, whose mother was found dead in Capri when she was a baby. You’re right there with her in this psychological drama as she digs into her family’s secrets, stirring up even more chaos along the way. It’s a gripping read once it gets going!

A great family suspense set in the beautiful island of Capri. The book is full of twists and turns that will keep you guessing and has some fantastic characters.
Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC.

Saltwater is a twisted, family drama set in the island of Capri. In 1992, Sarah Lingate is found dead below the cliffs of Capri, but despite suspicions that the old-money Lingates are involved, Sarah’s death is ruled an accident. Weirdly, the family returns to the island every year but on the thirtieth anniversary of her death, a surprise awaits the family at their home on the cliffs.

Katy Hays did a great job of creating a page-turning, suspenseful story. This is a closed "island" story, where the family and characters are entrenched in the island of Capri. She seems to bring the island to life, with the presence of danger around in every chapter. Her character development of the multiple POV and different timelines, adds so much to the story. There are twists and surprises throughout the entire novel and it had me on the edge of my seat. I do have to say that there were parts that were slow to me but still had an air of suspense. It was overall an entertaining and intriguing read. As long-hidden secrets about that night back in 1992 boil to surface, one thing becomes clear: Not everyone will leave the island alive. And boy are we surprised!

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine Books and Katy Hays for the eARC of Saltwater. Publication date for Saltwater by Katy Hays is set for 25 March 2025, I highly recommend this one!

The Isle of Capri, with its dramatic cliffs and luxurious allure, is a playground for the rich and a magnet for tourists. But beneath its breathtaking beauty, there's a dark undercurrent. In July 1992, playwright Sarah Lingate mysteriously disappears from a family villa after an argument with her husband, Richard. The next day, he returns alone, and Sarah is never seen again. Fast forward thirty years, and the Lingate family returns to Capri for their annual vacation. Helen Lingate, now estranged from her father Richard and the rest of her controlling family, is desperate to break free. She teams up with Lorna, her uncle's assistant, to escape the suffocating dynamics, but their plan soon spirals out of control, thrusting them into an even more dangerous game.

Katy Hays skillfully brings this tense, claustrophobic world to life. Her vivid descriptions of Capri—its sights, sounds, and smells—transport the reader to the island, capturing both its romantic charm and its sense of lurking danger. The story is a slow burn, filled with twists that keep you guessing: who's the predator and who's the prey? The Lingates are a truly vile bunch—entitled, manipulative, and deeply unsettling—and though you might think you know who to root for, the dynamics constantly shift, leaving you on edge. The suspense builds with each chapter, and the stakes grow higher as secrets about Sarah's disappearance are slowly uncovered.

While the plot is gripping and full of surprises, there are moments where the tension starts to feel drawn out. Some twists are more satisfying than others, but the mystery at the heart of the story kept me hooked. Hays has a talent for creating atmosphere and suspense, and while I had a few reservations, the overall experience was thoroughly engaging. "The Cloisters" proved her skill, and this book cements her as a master of psychological tension, delivering an unsettling, captivating read from start to finish.