In summer 1992, playwright Sarah Lingate falls to her death from a cliff on the island of Capri. Her family insists it was an accident, but they have been clouded in suspicion ever since. Thirty years later, after returning to the same villa every summer, her brother-in-law's assistant Lorna goes missing late one night. Sarah's daughter, Helen, is determined to find out what really happened to her mother and, now, Lorna. It read like a decent first draft that needed to be reined in and polished. It starts very slowly with a lot of vague details, which I imagine is meant to draw you in, but there wasn't enough information shared to really hook you. The main characters are various shades of terrible and lack depth. A couple of the twists are decent, but one is basically duplicated and seems totally implausible.

Who doesn't love a good mystery thriller read that happens on the beach? While I didn't read it during the summertime, I think this is a book that can be read at any time. The synopsis says who will leave the island alive or not alive and I hung onto that line for the duration of the book!
A great read I hope readers pick up in March.

3.5 stars

Saltwater had a great sense of atmosphere to it, being set on Capri and surrounded by the ancient Roman ruins. The story fills one of my favorite tropes - rich people behaving badly - and those two things are what made this most compelling for me. The mystery itself is a little unbelievable in the end, going more for shock value than reality.

just wasn't for me and was not a book I personally enjoyed. I know there will be other readers out there that this will fit their style a lot better.

This was a really fun read. Admittedly, the ending didn't quite work for me, but it was fast paced and I couldn't put it down for much of the book. Katy Hays is definitely an author I'll keep coming back to.

WHYYY did I wait so long to pick this up?! Holy cow this was great! There were so many twists and turns and I kept thinking “oh, I’ve got this figured out…” but nope. This was phenomenal. Not just a great mystery but also a great comment on family, wealth, marriage. Some real pivotal points in here. 10/10 would recommend. Can’t wait to buy for my friends!

Dark and twisted. Convoluted family drama mixed with some beach vibes. Kept my attention and kept me guessing until the very end

Beautifully written book about family and how far would you go to protect it. While I did see one of the twists coming, there were definitely more that caused my jaw to drop. The imagery was vivid and the plotlines well-woven. Definitely one of my top of the year.

I really wanted to love this book, but found myself struggling with the second half. The setting was beautiful and character development was strong. However, the twists were too much for me and just didn't seem believable. I would still recommend this book, especially if you're a fan of Bravo or tales of old money. I could see this being a fantastic beach read!

I love a whodunit novel. This one had so many interesting turns at first but the more turns that came up, the more confusing the book became. I didn't expect the ending, but I also don't understand how the ending worked at ALL. I sat there like "HUH?" Overall, a solid read.

Secrets, betrayals. Murder. A thriller set on the Island of Capri about the wealthy family, The Lingates who have come for a family retreat which is about to be shattered when the past and those secrets resurface. This book is a wonderful ride, fast paced told from multiple POV's and timelines which kept me page turning. I love a thriller that takes me to a setting where I would love to be, and an author that is able to transport you there and keep you engaged with the story and characters. So, if you also enjoy a good thriller, I highly recommend this one. I thoroughly enjoy this author and will now look to read anything she writes!
Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine books for the opportunity to enjoy this book!

Unfortunately I had to DNF. This was way too convoluted and I didn’t vibe with the style of writing

Absolutely loved this cover which made me want to read this book. This is a family drama (like over-the-top family drama!) mixed in with a bit of a suspenseful plot, all trying to answer was it homicide or suicide? Sarah has died off a cliff of Capri back in 1992 and what follows in a bunch of back and forth in time and characters - make sure to read each heading because otherwise you'll be lost. This family drama involves an incredibly wealthy family where the "drama" is supposed to stay within the family but it seeps out. Sarah marries into this family and has a daughter, Helen, who is one of the narrators of this story.

I did not like any of the characters. Helen is 33 years old but acts like she is 15 - she has to follow the family rules and cannot go anywhere on her own - I mean she's 33! Lorna, another narrator, has the role of "personal assistant" to the patriarch, Marcus, and she has her own vendetta but this is never really solved. Why is she doing what she is doing? The author talks a bit about Lorna's background but this is never really developed and I was left at a loss as to why Lorna acts the way she does and how vested she becomes in this family without a good reason as to why. Freddy is just a bizarre character who just seems to take up space.

It all comes to a point decades after Sarah's death once again on the island of Capri where the family meets every year (for some reason?). There were some twists and turns that I didn't expect and was happy to find but this book just didn't captivate me the way I thought it would or the way I wanted it to - I guess I just didn't care about anyone - they were all spoiled people to me.

Thank you to Katy Hays, NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the eARC and the ability to review with my honest opinions.

Had to force myself to finish this one. A bunch of family drama with no likable characters. Also not sure why the author had three of the same characters get away with the same crime

Saltwater starts with a dead body, that of Sarah Lingate, it’s 1992 in Capri. The Lingates are well known, they are wealthy, and suspected of being involved in Sarah’s death. Officials rule the death as an accident, and to prove their innocence, they return to Capri every year. On the 13th anniversary of Sarah’s death, the family returns to the island with Sarah’s now grown daughter Helen, her father Richard and his assistant Lorna,  as well as boyfriend and rarely lucid aunt Naomi and controlling uncle Marcus. They arrive at the family villa to find the necklace Sarah was wearing on the night of her death waiting for them.  

   Not your typical murder mystery book, Saltwater alternates between the mystery surrounding Sarah’s death, and the disappearance of Lorna, who we learn in the beginning is missing. The story is told in chapters from different characters leading up to the hours of Lorna’s vanishing as well as that of Sarah’s demise.  

    Revealed is the very fractured family behind the facade, the controlling nature they have over everyone, how fragile it all is…and a family secret that set into motion the events that changed many lives. It was one of those books that was able to deliver several plot twists that kept the mystery going right up to the last page.  I’d say this is one for fans of White Lotus and Big Little Lies. Full of secrets, and a love letter to Capri.

Started slow but then I really started enjoying it around 30%. I now really love “historical thrillers”. Even though it was based in 1992 it’s in the past. But really enjoyed it

A dark and moody mystery set on the island of Capri, this novel is a page turner. With twists and turns throughout, I enjoyed this one immensely.

“Saltwater” is quite different from Katy Hays’ dark academia “The Cloisters,” but it still delivers with an overwhelming sense of dread and secrets that need to be uncovered.

There are two main POVs: Helen, the daughter of Sarah Lingate, who died suspiciously 30 years ago on the cliffs of Capri (accident? suicide? murder?). Helen's wealthy family insists on returning to the same perpetually rented villa/scene of the crime (?) every year. Helen is also the thirty-three year old prisoner of the Lingates, who constantly keep her under surveillance and control her access to money and travel (presumably to blunt the never-ending gossip and curiosity about her mother’s mysterious demise). Helen finally is starting to buck her family’s smothering presence.

The second POV is Lorna, Helen’s friend, but officially her uncle’s assistant. We know from the chapter titles that Lorna is missing. Lorna used to just be a local barista in LA who showed Helen some kindness and that was her gateway to the Lingate family’s graces — but Lorna obviously has some shared and not-shared secrets with Helen, Freddy (Helen’s purported boyfriend), and Stan, a business rival of the Lingate brothers.

A third POV occurs in 1992 — it’s Sarah’s, leading up to her death.

This book has a slow build, but complicated family mysteries take time to unravel. The island of Capri holds its own as an exotic character with crumbling staircases, deserted gardens, ancient Roman palaces, parties galore and an unreal lifestyle. The plot surrounds the return of the necklace that was missing from Sarah’s body. Intercepting her uncle’s mail, Helen,with Lorna’s assistance, knows that whoever sent the necklace has given her an unimaginable gift: the ability to shake up her family from within. There are a lot of twists and turns and characters drift in and out as viable suspects. I did not anticipate the ending (the “first” ending) and I pondered over the second act of the conclusion. But from the halfway point, I could not put this thriller down. 5 stars!


Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): NO Eye color is only mentioned once and those are blue eyes.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO Mentions of Capri: figs, lemon trees, olive branches.

Thank you to Ballantine and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy!

I typically like books that go back and forth on the timeline - this was an interesting twist as Helen is in the present in the beautiful setting and she is trying to solve the mystery of her mothers death at the same time you follow along on the night of Sarah's death. The life of privilege was laid on pretty thick. There were many suspects and suspicious people with suspicious actions to keep you guessing, The conclusion was a big surprise!

This is the second book I read by this author. This thriller is set in Italy and is very captivating. A who done it type of vibe which is great. Family secrets can be heartbreaking once discovered when it involves a loved one. Don’t want to give too much away but this was a great read. I need more from this author.