Thank you to Random House Children's, Delacorte Press and NetGalley for an eARC of House of Roots and Ruin!

One of the most incredible books I have read this year. Absolutely unputdownable- I read in one sitting! House of Roots and Ruin is full of romance, mystery, suspense, and danger. From the beginning to the end, there's a sense of dread and excitement that keeps you on your toes at every turn of the page. House of Roots and Ruin is all I can think about and I can't wait to share my excitement with more readers! Add to your TBR's and add to cart!!

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read an ARC of this book. I absolutely loved House of Salt and Sorrow and I am so excited that their is a sequel. This story follows the youngest daughter as she travels and learns about her power and solve a mystery. This book is a perfect combination of romance, fantasy, and horror.

I really enjoyed this book. The vibes and atmosphere are great- dark, gothic, a mysterious estate. Fans of horror will enjoy this story! I was getting freaked out by it but could not put it down.

I really enjoyed the scenes where Verity is exploring the house and grounds. I wish it was a place I could visit; it is really beautifully described. There are a ton of twists and turns in the story particularly right at the end. I think this would have been slightly stronger if there was one or two fewer shocking reveals and instead make a couple of twists more shocking- really show the readers the impact on the characters.

I did not realize this was part of a series, and you can definitely read this without reading the first book since the events are loosely connected and explained for those who did not hear House of Salt and Sorrow.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Children's, Delacorte Press for an eARC of this book.

This is the 3rd book by Erin Craig that I have read and I have largely the same thoughts about this one as the other two. The author is very skillful is very descriptive and immersive goth settings and always has a big group of characters to follow. However, something always happens in the final 3rd of the book (the big twist and villain reveal if you will) and the story plot changes drastically (and not for the better imo). I think fans of this author will enjoy this book if they enjoyed the others.

First of all- thank you NetGalley for letting get an eARC of this amazing story.

Erin Craig does it again. They’ve e brought us a dense story that is filled to the brim with lore, drama, intrigue, magic and a beautiful twist and turn story.

If you loved House of Salt and Sorrows, please do not sleep on this one. Perfect for a good gothic read.

House of Roots & Ruin follows the youngest Thaumas sister, Verity, as she embarks on an adventure to Bloem to paint a portait of the future Duke: Alex Laurent.

However, this journey gets off to a rocky start when she learns that she's been seeing ghosts her whole life, and runs away from her sister's estate in the middle of the night to go to Bloem.

Once there, she finds out that despite their obvious beauty & decadence, both the Laurents and their family estate harbor darker secrets than she could've ever imagined.

Starting off with the settings, it was so fun to be back in the familiar estate of Highmoor (omg the nostalgia!). Then, once Verity arrived in Bloem, the imagery was breathtakingly beautiful!

The flora, the gardens, the house, the clothes, and just the general atmosphere were perfect. Once things took a darker turn in the second half, the contrast of the morbid descriptions made the story so much more entertaining!

Furthermore, there is so much drama!! From the romance, to (extremely) complicated family relationships, to the secrets hidden in plain sight throughout the house, I was thoroughly entertained throughout.

There are a ton of twists & turns, and my favorite one, by far, is the one at the end. I'm not going to give anything away, but WOW, that conclusion really got me!!

All in all, this was an excellent read, and I'm really hoping there are going to be more Sisters of the Salt books.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. My opinion was not affected by the free copy.

I'll be honest that I had no idea this was a sequel to "House of Salt and Sorrow" when I requested this. Once I realized this, I went back and read a synopsis of that book in order to refresh my memory. But honestly, this book can work pretty well as a stand-alone. You don't really need to read the first book to read this, as this takes place years later and almost none of the characters from the first book are in this one.

I'm struggling a little with my rating. There's no denying that this author excels at writing gothic stories. She puts so much atmosphere into her work, and the intensity keeps building and building in every moment. I love the characters questioning their reality and their sanity, and since it's in first person the reader has no idea what's real or imagined, either. It's fantastic. I think my problem is that I want to stay gothic instead of ending up supernatural with gods and so on.

I don't know why, but this author seems to hit some sort of weird wall once she gets to the climax. The story got pretty confusing once things started to be explained and revealed with a lot of "you were behind it! Wait no YOU were behind it!" Though at the same time, I also guessed where a lot of the story was going before things were revealed. One of the most confusing things was Alex's whole deal. It doesn't really make a lot of sense to me, but maybe it'll be explained in the next book.

I wish I could go into more detail on the book, but I don't want to spoil it for anyone. However, I will address the fact that Verity gets drunk at one point in the story and I'm fairly sure she is intimate with Alex. I don't know if they had sex since the writing gets super vague and flowery once things start leaning toward sex, but it still unsettles me a little that it's even a possibility. I also don't really like the final stinger of this book. Not because it's a bad stinger, but the implications behind it. Again, I can't go into detail, but let's just say it makes me very uncomfortable and disturbed that consent and abuse might be things to worry about in the next book.

So like I said, I'm torn. I was absolutely in love with the atmosphere and the gothic tone. I loved the implications of what Gerard was doing before the reveal and Verity questioning her sanity. Even the reveal isn't too bad because it has some great body horror going on. I just wanted the gothic stuff to keep going, and I didn't really care for some things that went on in the latter parts of the book.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy of this book! I absolutely love the narrative building style that Erin A. Craig utilizes. I discovered that one of my favorite genres of late is a fantasy novel centered around a mystery, so it’s not so much “let’s watch someone go on a journey to complete a task that only matters to this fictional world” but that echoes the universal longing for justice and investigation of crimes against loved ones that are so part of our world as well. Super book!

House of Roots and Ruin
Erin A. Craig @penchant4words
Sisters of Salt #2
Delacorte Press @delacortepress @randomhousekids

If you haven’t read #houseofsaltandsorrows I highly recommend it! Erin A. Craig latest installment is a breathtaking gothic expansion on the much loved first book.

House of Roots and Ruin lived up to all my expectations with its captivating storyline and with lush detailed world building. It’s definitely a twisty read, one that once you start you absolutely cannot put down.

The story starts off in an intentionally slow, in an ambiguous way as the author sets the perfect tone. Now this is the genius of Erin A. Craig, who deliberately gives you each piece of the puzzle, chapter by chapter. A hauntingly twisty read here that had me pretty much-questioning everything that was happening within the pages of this book. The way that the details were revealed to us was extremely well-done and the setting was creepily atmospheric which I totally loved. Craig’s writing is stellar as we follow the books heroine the youngest of the twelve sisters, Verity.

I was so excited for this book. I absolutely adored House of Salt and Sorrows and gave it a rave review on here and on my blog. I have been hoping Craig would return to this world, and when I saw that a sequel was coming I was quick on the draw to request it. Imagine my immense disappointment then at the review I am about to write...

I could not get into this book AT ALL. From the opening pages i kept wondering when the magic would happen - and for me it never did. I found it flat, the characters uninteresting, and the pacing to move at an absolutely glacial pace. I fell into the first book with the first lines and that excitement never left. It was dark and gothic and creepy and fascinating. This one had moments that flashed with that earlier brilliance, but on the whole I really struggled to connect with anything about it.

Verity simply didn't resonate the way Annaleigh did as a main protagonist. I found her relationships with everyone from her sisters to Hanna to Alex to feel forced and somehow implausible in ways I can't quite put into words (believe me, I've tried). I was irritated at everyone in this book and that feeling just kept growing as the story developed. This one just did not resonate with me at all.

I am in the vast minority here, but I wasn't even able to keep reading through to the end... I found myself turning pages and skimming whole passages just to see if it got more interesting or to hunt down the high points in language. They do exist but I was spending way too much time trying to find them for me to say that this was an enjoyable read and that is why I ultimately gave up on it..

ARE YOU KIDDING ME? IT ENDS ON A CLIFFHANGER? WITH NO FUTURE BOOKS? HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE? IM SO UPSET WHAT THE HELL IS THIS NO IM LITERALLY DISTRAUGHT WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO?? HUH?? okay but in all honesty this book was just as enthralling as House of Salt and Sorrows, DESPITE my fury with the ending. It’s not even open ended. I LOVE open ended. It’s freaking CLIFFHANGER. i haven’t felt this betrayed since the end of Mark of Athena. Fix the ending and I’d be recommending this book more.

I absolutely loved being back in this world and following Verity along for her own story. The atmospheric writing is stellar, as I've come to expect from an Erin Craig novel. I loooved the descriptions of the house, the prose, and the steadily unsettling feeling of something being...wrong. Not to mention the language of flowers which was utterly perfect. Some people don't love cliffhangers but I literally screamed i loved the whole ending so much. The last two chapters were ::chef's kiss:: I cannot wait to read whatever is next.

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC!

House of Salt and Sorrow was one of my favorite reads in 2022. Now House of Roots and Ruin is one of my favorite 2023 reads! Erin Craig has a way with words. Her descriptive nature puts right in the heart of the story. You find yourself getting goosebumps as you read along!

Thanks to NetGalley for an eARC of this book. Erin A. Craig does it again. She paints such beautiful pictures with her words and I definitely wish I could visit Chauntilalie.
We start off at Highmoor manor. Verity, the youngest of the Thaumas sisters is almost 18 years old. She is living there with her older sister, Camille, now the Duchess of Highmoor, and her family. All the rest of the sisters, who were alive at the end of House of Salt and Sorrow, have moved away. Verity wants to do some exploring of the world and is tired of Camille always denying her the ability to do so.
Verity doesn’t remember anything from her life before age six. She doesn’t remember any of her sisters’ deaths, her dad’s, or her stepmom’s. (If you read House of Salt and Sorrows, that means she doesn’t remember any of that.) She just remembers growing up for a period of time in Hesperus at the lighthouse with Annaleigh, Honor, and Mercy, while Highmoor was being rebuilt.
Mercy sends her a letter from the Duchess of Bloem, Dauphine Laurent, who wants to commission her to do a portrait of their son, Alexander. Verity wants to go and asks Camille for permission, but Camille denies her and reveals a secret as to the real reason why she hasn’t ever let Verity leave. Despite the secret she’s learned, Verity is still determined to go and leaves in the middle of the night leaving behind a note for Camille.
Verity arrives safe and sound and starts the groundwork for the portrait of Alex. She and Alex get to know each other over the coming weeks as they spend most of the days together. After the work for the portrait in the morning, the afternoons are spent outside enjoying the different sections of the vast grounds surrounding Chauntilalie.
Even though they’ve only known each other for a few weeks, Alex has fallen in love and proposes to Verity. She enjoys being with him but she’s so afraid that she is going to mess up that she is never in the present when he kisses her and isn’t sure if she loves him the same way, but she says yes anyway. She doesn’t want to go back to Highmoor and doesn’t really have any other place to go.
As she and Dauphine rush to plan the wedding, just over a month away because it has to be on certain dates that are important to the People of Bloem, and Dauphine doesn’t want to wait months for the next date, things start to change in a negative way. There are many dark secrets at Chauntilalie and Verity is even warned away and told of some of the terrible things that will come if she stays. However, Verity is determined to stay and marry Alex. What terrible things are the Duke and Duchess of Laurent hiding? Will Verity and Alex get married or will they be stopped from tying the knot? Read this Gothic horror masterpiece to find out what fate awaits Verity!

I'm a big fan of Erin Craig. House of Salt and Sorrows was one of the best books I read last year and I am so glad I got a chance to dive back into that world. Getting see Verity as an adult was awesome.

I loved this book! I am a huge fan of Erin A. Craig's writing since I picked up her first book which was a House of Salt and Sorrows. I am glad that she wrote this one as a follow up to a House of Salt and Sorrows.. I enjoyed getting to see read more of the world that she developed in that first book. This book did not disappoint. I liked that we got to see Verity's character grow from a little girl to being a young women. I enjoyed the gothic vibes in this story.

House of Roots and Ruin is a dark fantasy sequel that holds up well as a stand-alone novel while continuing the world building and character development readers craved after reading house of salt and sorrows.

Fans new and old to dark fantasy will find themselves drawn into the finely crafted tale that Erin A. Craig has presented here .

This was a fantastic follow up to the House of Salt and Sorrows. I think it was better in a lot of ways. Instead of trying to show horn her world into a familiar fairytale Craig takes us off the island and into the rich world she only touched upon in the previous book. As Verity found her wings my heart ached for the little girl she had been and the childhood she lost. I’m definitely looking forward to the next installment

I loved this second book and a glimpse into a now grown sister. Salt and Sorrows was a top book for me last year, so I loved continuing their journey and the growth of the world.

Craig offers readers horror and beauty mingled in equal measure as we get reacquainted with The Sisters of the Salt.

We find sweet Verity Thaumas still meandering through the halls of Highmoore. As a ward of her overprotective sister, Camille, she spends her days close to home, painting for pleasure and dreaming of a world outside of the estate. When an invitation is sent from the Duchess of Bloem, offering Verity an opportunity to travel to paint a portrait of the Duchess's beloved son, Verity jumps at the chance. Camille protests profusely and as Verity pushes back a truth to horrifying to believe is unveiled. Fleeing from the truth and the only home she's ever known, Verity finds herself in Bloem, in a world of opulence and and secrets. As she begins to paint the charming Alexander Laurent, an easy report blooms between the two but blossoming love isn't enough to make Verity forget the ghosts of her past.

House of Roots and Ruin is easily my favorite offering from Craig yet! She has woven a tale that is engaging, atmospheric, and so stinking bingeable! The gothic atmosphere is thoughtfully crafted, creating a constant feeling of dread. The juxtaposition of lush garden landscapes and glittering gown make the darker bits all the more terrifying!

Fans of the authors earlier works will fall easily into her telltale style of writing while enjoying a fresh story that will leave you clamoring to know....what the heck are those other sisters up to!!!????

Endless thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the early copy in exchange for my honenst review.