Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a readers copy of this book. My reviews never contain spoilers and are freely given.
The story centers on a wealthy family named the Lingates. Their annual family vacation is on the island of Capri. It moves between two time periods, current day and 30 years in the past when the wife of one of the Lingates died. Now her daughter is looking to break the strict hold that the family has kept on her for 33 years. Her mother’s death was ruled an accident or suicide, but was it? To complicate matters further an assistant to the family who accompanied them to Capri has now disappeared.
The author creates a convincing picture of the storied lives of the super wealthy, how they cover scandal and close ranks to protect the family at any cost. Definitely a good read for anyone who enjoys a good mystery.

This was a miss for me. All of the characters felt one dimensional and under developed so it was hard to care about their stories. There was no real back story or personality to any of them which made the story fall flat. There were lots of twists and some I saw coming while others felt a bit ridiculous. Overall, this one didn’t work for me.

Sarah Lingate died in 1992 below the cliffs of Capri, leaving behind a three year old daughter. Her death is ruled an accident but the wealthy and private Lingate family has always been suspected of being involved. Every year after Sarah's death, the family returns to Capri. Fast forward to 30 years after Sarah's death and the Lingates arrive to the villa to find Sarah's necklace waiting for them. In addition to the family on this trip, there is also Lorna, assistant to one of the Lingate brothers, which adds a little twist to the normal family drama.

This sounds like a great setup which is why I picked up this book in the first place. It is really more of a family drama than a murder mystery. There are many points of view and they bounce back and forth in time which sometimes interrupts the flow of the book.

If you are a fan of unlikeable rich people doing bad things and being terrible people, you will probably enjoy this book. Perhaps it is just bad timing of when I am reading this book but I am just not in the mood to read about annoying rich people doing terrible things. There were plenty of betrayals and twists, including one that was somewhat surprising and required a bit of an eyeroll with the explanation, but overall, this was a good twisty family drama with terrible people for characters. I was interested in the resolution of the story even if I didn't really care what happened to any of the characters so I would recommend if you can get over some bad people.

30 years ago, a woman who married into an extremely wealthy family was found at the bottom of the Capri cliffs. Her husband was suspected, but the crime was never solved. Now, the whole family is back on the island for their annual vacation, and things get . . . weird.

This type of story has been told so many times before, but I really enjoyed this iteration. There were so many twists and turns I didn’t see coming, and the author does such a good job of teasing out the psychology and emotions of this toxic af family. It’s obviously hard to feel too bad for people living with obscene wealth, but the book definitely shows how trapped and caged it can make people feel, and the way it’s built like a house of cards. The relationships are believable and layered, and each character had just enough likability while being incredibly messed up that I wanted to follow their journeys.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review!

This was a solid thriller, but it fell flat for a couple of reasons for me. First, the characters just weren’t all that compelling. I felt disconnected from Helen and Lorna, and everyone else is just background noise. I wasn’t rooting for anyone really, because I didn’t care enough about anyone! This is a frequent complaint of mine when it comes to thrillers, but the best ones have me fully invested so I know it is possible to strike the balance. My other gripe was that I figured out the major twist wayyyy too early. It’s sometimes fun to predict a twist, but I don’t want it to be obvious that far in advance.

This was more of a slow burn type thriller, with a lot of focus on the opulent surroundings. It ends very dramatically, but in an eye rolly type way. It was just all too OTT for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House - Ballantine for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

2.5 rounded up!

Overall I generally enjoyed this but I found it a little challenging to stay engaged with. The twists were pretty decent and I found myself surprised with how things ended!

This book was a slow burn with dual timelines and multiple POVs. It took me a while to get into it as the author introduced the characters and laid out the history of what had happened to Sarah. Once it got going, it picked up and it ended with several twists that definitely bumped up my rating. Overall, it was a good mystery that kept me wondering if anyone was telling the truth and who did it.

Wow.. so many secrets, lies, & twists in Saltwater. Fans of White Lotus will absolutely love this! The setting in Capri is captured so perfectly. The tension & dysfunction in this wealthy family made the story so interesting. Every time I thought I had the mystery solved, there was another twist. There are many povs and timelines which felt chaotic at times but also kept it from being predictable. I had a hard time getting into it at first.. maybe because all of the characters are just sooo unlikable, but the slow burn really ended up being great!

Now here's the thing. Novels about wealthy people doing bad things? I'm here for it. Unfortunately, this book just didn't keep me interested. Once I reached the end, I enjoyed the plot twist, but throughout the book I found myself not wanting to continue. I thought that the structure of the book was hard to follow and a bit chaotic. The jumping from timeline to timeline the way it did left me confused most of the time. I also wasn't really getting the suspense as much as I'd hoped. The characters were interesting, but I just kept finding myself wanting to read something else instead of this one sadly.

Thank you for this ARC - I appreciate it!!

✨SALTWATER✨

4.5/5 ⭐️

READ THIS IF YOU LOVE:
🕵️‍♀️ Who Dun Its
🌪️ Twisty Mysteries
💰 Rich Behaving Badly
👫🏻 Family Drama & Secrets
👯‍♀️ Dual Timelines & Multiple POV
😬 Diabolical Characters
🐢 Slow Burn

REVIEW:
Holy wow. I didn’t realize how much I needed this twisty mystery. It’s a slow build, but insanely worth it at the end. Katy Hays has a knack for atmosphere and I could picture everything so well. The rich behaving badly trope is absolutely what brought me in, but the character development and the lengths at which they all go is what hooked me. You follow Sarah, Lorna, and Helen throughout the novel and of course all their interactions with the Lingates. Are all the characters likeable? Absolutely not, but they’re so interesting and unhinged. I can truly say I didn’t see the twists coming. So much that I had to do a double take because it hit me that hard. I stayed up late (even though I shouldn’t have because I’m sick and need all rest) and it was incredibly worth it.

A huge thank you to Random House Publishing - Ballentine and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

I really want to go to Italy, and this just made me want to go more. The book started out kind of slow, but it picked up about halfway through. The rich behaving badly trope isn't usually my thing, so that may have been why I struggled with the beginning of the book. There is a lot of skipping around, which I think readers need to be aware of. Recommend if you are looking for a slow burn mystery with an amazing setting.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for advanced copy, and I give my review freely

This has all the trappings of a captivating novel: rich people behaving badly, a 30 year old family secret, lies, betrayal, and the dreamy island of Capri. At first, the plot felt slow and stilted. The characters were annoying and dull, and I wasn’t intrigued.

The first half was very slow and almost lost me several times. I stuck with it and am glad I did, because I enjoyed the second half a lot more. There was one juicy twist after another that made the slog of the first half worth it.

If you can get past the first half, the rest is really quite a treat and I kept turning the pages!

I also badly want an Italian vacation after reading this book!

Many thanks to Ballantine Books and Netgalley for the ARC!

I really liked this twisty, atmospheric thriller set in Capri. I’m a sucker for dual timelines and great twists, and Hays’ latest didn’t disappoint.

I received a digital copy of this book through the publisher and NetGalley for my honest review.

Reading Saltwater by Katy Hays was a challenge for me. I simply did not relate to or like any of the characiers- not one. That's usually a deal maker for me; if by the half-way mark I haven't made a connection, I'm likely to not finish the book. In the case of Saltwater, I kept thinking there is more to this story than meets the eye. Hays description of the beauty of Capri, her writing style and the surprising ending certainly made finishing Saltwater worthwhile.
In the summer of 1992, playwright Sarah Lingate, wife of the wealthy Richard Lingate apparently fell to her death in the wee hours of the morning after attending a party where many guests saw them arguing. Was it an accident, suicide or murder? Reputation is paramount to the Lingates so they return each year on the anniversary of Sarah's death. Is it to honor her memory as they say, or is it to convince people they have nothing to hide? There's too much to share without spoilers so I encourage reading the recently released Saltwater, to explore the the lengths the Lingates will go to to preserve: their reputations, their secrets, their weath and power. Thanks to NetGalley, Ballantine Books and Katy Hays for the opportunity to read an ARC of Saltwater; my review reflects my honest opinion. 4 stars

First I would like to thank Netgalley and Ballantine Books for the ARC of this novel.

This was a fun summer thriller. The setting was honestly my favorite part. It really brought the story to life and it was just a magical setting to tell the story.

I loved the twists in this book and the last one I didn’t see coming at all. I also love a story about rich people behaving badly and this worked well for me.

I do think it was a little slow for a thriller and it took me a while to get into. I also found it a little difficult to keep track of. With multiple POV’s and lots going on sometimes I felt lost in this story.

Overall, I enjoyed the book and if you are looking for a slow burn summer thriller this is the book for you.

3.5/5 stars rounded up to 4 for this review.

In 1992, Sarah Lingate is found dead below the cliffs of Capri, leaving behind her three-year-old daughter, Helen. Despite suspicions that the old-money Lingates are involved, Sarah’s death is ruled an accident. And every year, the family returns to prove it’s true. But on the thirtieth anniversary of Sarah’s death, the Lingates arrive at the villa to find a surprise waiting for them—the necklace Sarah was wearing the night she died.

This book had 3 separate timelines tangled together. I found it very hard to follow at times and had to go back and review characters. I think the meat of the story had potential but the execution of telling the story felt short for me. Due to the skipping around, I never felt truly connected to the characters.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book!

Wasn’t able to read this one digitally but I did order a copy of the book so will be reviewing it after I’ve read it. I’m really excited for it as I’ve only heard great things about it.

I didn't love it, but i didn't hate it. The concept and setting were fantastic. The cover was absolutely breathtaking. It was set up to be an epic past/present mystery thriller, but the characters killed the story for me. I felt no connection to any of them, and I was lost throughout part 1. I might not be in the majority, but I hate unnumbered chapters. This book was just part 1 and part 2, making the book feel neverending.

This was everything I wanted in a summer thriller. A beautiful setting, rich people behaving badly, and twists that kept me guessing. The first half was a little slow but it picked up in the second half and I couldn’t put it down

3.5 rounded up

Old money family drama with lots of twisty turns. Mo money, mo problems. Bet you can’t guess the ending!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced release copy in exchange for an honest review.