<i>Saltwater</i> is a very messy tale about a rich family who fits the mold of thinking and living like they are exempt from the rules. In other words, they are well versed in behaving badly. They travel back each year for one week to their villa in Capri, which otherwise remains empty for the remaing of the year, even though someone died their 30 years ago and the case still hasn't been solved. But this year, someone new dies while secretly trying to solve the murder and trying to set up their own payday.
The story is told in multiple points of view along multiple timelines. At points, this style of writing was hard to follow and part of where the messiness comes into play. The characters also liked to jump back and forth between love interests. Because I occassionaly struggled with whose story I was following and when, I lost track of information and didn't bother trying to figure it out.
While I think this had great potential, especially with how Hays decided to end it, I wasn't crazy about the set up and the first half of the book.

I was SO EXCITED to get my hands on Saltwater. Rich, scheming people in a tropical locale? SIGN ME UP. And the cover - gorgeous! I could not wait to dive in. Unfortunately, this one didn't quite hit the mark. I thought this would be a book that kept me up all night reading because I just couldn't put it down. Spoiler alert - it was not. The pacing was SO SLOW and I had to force myself to keep picking this one back up to keep going. It has all the right elements, but just fell short.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you Ballantine Books for an eARC

This was a fun thriller that was perfect to read after craving something similar to White Lotus.

While this isn't EXACTLY like White Lotus, you do still have a rich family with secrets behaving badly in Capris, Italy. So, close enough. You won't get any deep, complex character studies but it is fast-paced, moving between 2 timelines, with a ton of plot twists.

This would be a great thriller to read on a beach vacation, when you're looking for something quick and entertaining.

Helen and her family vacation in Capri every summer. It's an ideal vacation spot except for the fact that it's also where her mother, Sarah, died when Helen was three years old. Sarah's death was ruled a suicide but Helen, with the help of the family assistant, Lorna, believes that it didn't happen as it was reported. They believe she was murdered. This summer Lorna is joining them in Capri and Helen is determined to finally find out what really happened.

The twists and turns in this book kept coming until the very last page. While I found a large part of the story unbelievable, I think it was meant to be that way in this wealthy world where more money really means more problems. The cast of characters was very well done, as was the slow unraveling of the mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the ARC of Saltwater.

This was a miss for me. I liked the island setting in Capri, but overall the storyline moved too slowly and I struggled to stay interested. I had a hard time keeping up with the timelines and POVs. I did love to hate the Lingate family.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for- Ballantine for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

As with any good thriller, you expect some twists at the end – however a few really did surprise me! Really enjoyed reading this.

*Provided a DRC (digital review copy) from the publisher for review. All opinions are my own.

I was drawn to this book because of its comparison to White Lotus, expecting an engaging take on the "rich people behaving badly" trope, which can be entertaining when done right. Unfortunately, this story didn't offer enough intrigue or depth to keep me interested. The characters felt flat, and their antics lacked the compelling edge that makes such narratives enjoyable. I was disengaged and ultimately decided not to finish the book, making it roughly 55% through. It just didn't deliver the captivating drama I was hoping for.

Thank you to Random House for a gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

Saltwater opens with the image of a newspaper story from 1992 about the tragic death on the island of Capri of Sarah Lingate, a talented playwright, wife of Richard of the wealthy Lingate family, and mother of three-year-old Helen. The Lingate family of Helen, Richard, and his brother Marcus and his wife Naomi vacation in Capri in the following years, despite the weight of the mystery of Sarah’s falling to her death. The story jumps from 1992 to the present, as well who is narrating the story, and includes Lorna, assistant to Marcus – not a family member but one entangled with the family. Sarah’s necklace, lost in the tragic fall, is sent to Helen, reopening the 30-year-old mystery as well as more family conflicts and schemes.

Tolstoy would have relished this “unhappy family in its own way” and their greed, envy, jealousy, lies, mystery, plotting, and violence. The family’s extreme, controlling adherence of “what’s best for the family” holds its characters, mostly all unlikeable, captive and smothered to ensure the family mystique and elite reputation. Each character’s motives and actions are increasingly revealed as their secrets unfold with breathtaking and surprising twists and shocking, even violent, turns. The description and history of beautiful Capri and ancient Roman Villa Jovis where the emperor Tiberius resided to enjoy his privacy and brutality are implicitly woven into the aura of the setting. Nearly Shakespearean, the characters and their ambitions and manipulations of each other offer a dearth of sympathetic characters and an intense and rewarding story. Engrossing and startling with deft writing, switching from character to character and the past and the present, the writer portrays through these characters the questions of who is capable of murder, how far would one go to protect family above all, and what justifies deceptions – or murder.

I am grateful to Ballantine Books/Random House Publishing and NetGalley for early access to this exciting book. This opinion is all my own.

Saltwater by Katy Hays
This is full of amazing twists!
A tragic death in 1992 haunts the thoughts of a daughter left behind. Sarah Lingate’s body found below the cliffs on the island of Capri changed the trajectory of a family.
They are drawn back to the mystery when the family revisits the area annually.
On the 30th anniversary of Sarah’s death, the family gets surprised with her necklace that disappeared long ago.
Another missing woman brings suspicions and questions back to the surface.
So much betrayal and so many twists will propel you as the reader from beginning to end!
I really enjoyed reading this one, it does have some parts that seem to drag but hang on for a wild and twisted ending! Loved it! 4/5
I would like to Thank NetGalley for the opportunity to review an ARC of this book!

I have to admit, for most of the book I felt as if there wasn’t enough to the plot. But the multiple twists towards the end made up for that and then some. I love the Italian imagery throughout the book as well. Definitely a great, slow burn thriller!

I was very happy to get Saltwater from NetGalley, it sounded right up my alley. You can feel the heat and Italian atmosphere of the island of Capri. The setting was very well done. However I found it a bit boring in some areas. It is filled with zero redeeming characters including Helen and Lorna (especially Lorna). I understand the statement on extremely wealthy people in this entire novel but I still thought the twist was absolutely ridiculous and I actually lol’d and wanted to toss the book across the room. If I didn't have this weird compulsion to finish every mystery I start I wouldn’t have finished it.

Lots of people and publications seem to love this one a lot. Maybe I’m the weird outlier.

**Thanks to the author and Ballantine Books for the e-arc I received via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.**

WHAT?! 🤯 I can honestly say I was NOT expecting that twist. Wow!!

The character development and dual timeline within this novel was everything I needed to keep my attention and propel me through this book.

Do you enjoy suspense and mystery and deep lying family drama? If so, this is the book for you.

This book has such a strong sense of place — I could feel salt air on my skin and was CRAVING an aperol spritz. I couldn’t quit the mystery and found the characters delightfully infuriating. I think Katy Hays is perfect at infusing unease into her writing in subtle and creative ways. Loved it.

Synopsis:

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.

Haunted by the specter of that night, the legendary Lingate family unity is pushed to a breaking point, and Helen seizes the opportunity. Enlisting the help of Lorna Moreno, a family assistant, the two plot their escape from Helen’s paranoid, insular family. But when Lorna disappears and the investigation into Sarah’s death is reopened, Helen has to confront the fact that everyone who was on Capri thirty years ago remains a suspect—her controlling father, Richard; her rarely lucid aunt, Naomi; her distant uncle, Marcus; and their circle of friends, visitors, and staff. Even Lorna, her closest ally, may not be who she seems.

As long-hidden secrets about that night boil to the surface, one thing becomes clear: Not everyone will leave the island alive.

I was excited to read Saltwater by Katy Hays, but it fell a bit flat for me. The dual timelines and multiple POV's were a little difficult to follow. There really wasn't a redeemable character to speak of except for the rugged island of Capri. It was an excellent setting and really enhanced the scene for the murders. The ending was very twisty and saved the book for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the advanced digital copy of the book.

3.5 stars, thank you NetGalley for the arc!

Saltwater is a mystery/family drama surrounding the rich and famous. Beautiful descriptions of the Isle of Capri where the story takes place. Lots of twists and reveals the last quarter of the book that surprised me. I enjoyed the flashbacks and multiple POVs.

The first half of this book was soooo slow to me, I felt myself skimming a lot of it. I don’t generally read thrillers/mystery so if that’s something you enjoy, I think you’ll love this book.

"Saltwater" is a sun-drenched, secret-filled slow burn perfect for fans of rich people behaving badly. It's not a five-star review for me, but it's an entertaining read with doomed-vacation vibes.

Thirty years after Sarah Lingate died in 1992, her daughter, Helen, and the whole Lingate family return to the glamorous island of Capri. They never expected the necklace her mother wore the night she died to resurface three decades later.

You're in the right place if you're into family dramas with luxury backdrops and intergenerational tension so thick you could slice it with a gelato spoon. Saltwater is all about the messy entanglements that money, power, and old family grudges can bury… but never quite kill. There's definitely a vibe here - a little "Succession" meets "The White Lotus" season finale.

The setting is absolutely a character in and of itself. Hays describes Capri so vividly that I half expected to find a villa key in my pocket. And the characters are super dramatic, entitled, secretive, and deliciously flawed.

But here's where I'm torn: while the book had all the ingredients I love (death, secrets, high society dysfunction), the plot itself was a little too predictable at times. I saw a few of the big reveals coming before the characters did. I also struggled to get into the book at first - it felt like wading slowly into saltwater and waiting for the temperature to adjust.

Still, even if "Saltwater" wasn't my personal favorite, I can't deny Katy Hays knows how to tell a good story. She creates an immersive world and wonderfully tangled relationships filled with dysfunction. This was my first time reading Hays, but I'll definitely read more by the author in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group, and Ballantine Books for an advanced reader's copy; all opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This was a great mystery set in Capri, Italy with dual timelines diving into all the rich family secrets. There were a few parts that seemed a little slow, but then it picks up with a twisty ending. 🤯 If you love mystery, suspense, dark family drama/secrets this is for you!

I'm not sure why but I had difficulty following this one between the past and present characters. Lovely setting. Rich family. Murder. What else do you need?

This is a jack of all traits I guess you would say. This has Mystery, Thriller, Historical Fiction, Adult, Standalone, and Suspenseful. The side characters were okay. The pacing, plot, writing was lowered my expectations, and I didn't feel the thriller as much as the mystery. The setting is Chef's kiss and BEAUTIFUL!

Perfect if you like:
Who hurt your momma? Followed by I might hurt you.
Rich Society Vibes
Dark Secrets
Slow burn Suspense
Dual Time
Family Vacay Goes Awry but lets not discuss it....

Thank you so much to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this arc!

This thriller was rich people behaving badly with crazy twist and turns but not till the end of the book. This book follows multiple POVs in two time lines in the modern timeline we follow Helen as she comes back to the place her mother was killed years ago for a family vacation when her dead mothers necklace shows up questions about her death start to pop up. We also follow the mother in the past prior to her death, there are also about 6 other POVs of friends and family. I liked the idea of this book but I often found myself getting characters mixed up and having to go back and remember how they were all intertwined so it did get a little confusing at times. The book had great atmosphere and really made me want to go to Italy but it was a little slow paced in the beginning. The ending of this book was really well done and I didn’t see it coming. This was my first book by this author but I already have another saved to my TBR. I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishers for a chance to read this book for an honest review.