The magical Mediterranean island of Capri is the setting for Saltwater, a mystery-slash-drama revolving around the ultra wealthy Lingate family.

Saltwater takes on the popular “Rich people are evil” trope:

An arrogant family of uber-rich people are trapped together in a remote location. Someone does something bad and there’s a cover-up. Eventually they all turn on each other. We gleefully watch their demise and smugly think, despite our lack of wealth, we’re better people than they are.

If you enjoy this trope, you’ll love this book. There is excess, there are secrets and lies, there are affairs and other family dramas. All the ingredients of a juicy beach read.

The author does a good job of capturing the magic of Capri’s geography and atmosphere - the cafes in the Piazetta, the winding pedestrian streets, the jagged cliffs with steep faces, the glittering Mediterranean. While the island caters to the wealthy, the working class residents are the ones who clean up the dirt and keep the secrets.

The pace is a bit slow and the character development a little unbalanced, but it didn’t stop me from blowing through this book in three days.

I didn’t predict the ending. However, the ending is pretty unbelievable, so I doubt many will guess it.

Loved the mystery and suspense in Saltwater! Was a great fast paced read. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the ARC opportunity.

It’s got this perfect blend of mystery and self-discovery. Hays' writing is vivid and beautifully descriptive, making you feel like you’re right there with the characters. I loved how the book touches on themes of family, love, and the weight of secrets, all while keeping you hooked with some pretty unexpected twists. If you're looking for a story that's emotional, thought-provoking, and a little mysterious, Saltwater is definitely worth checking out!

Saltwater by Katy Hays singlehandedly pulled me from this years reading slump. It was such a sharp original story that I got instantly sucked in and enjoyed every minute of it. Helen and her family visit an estate in Capri ever since her mother passed away there in 1992 due to mysterious circumstances. Helen must piece together the reason why her mother died, and find whom is responsible. I was kept on my toes this whole story, and I didn't see the end result at all which made this a huge win for me. I can't wait to recommend this to all of my book clubs and friends to read, can't recommend enough!

Thank you so much to Random House Publishing, Netgalley, and Katy Hays for the advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was graciously given an advanced copy of Saltwater by Katy Hays on NetGalley from Ballantine Books and I really enjoyed it. I read The Cloisters also by Katy Hays and really enjoyed it, so I was excited when I received the approval on this one.
Saltwater is a twisty thriller of the have and the have nots on the island of Capri. The story is told from the perspective of Helen the daughter of a woman who was found dead below the cliffs of Capri when she was a child, and her best friend Lorna who has taken on the job of assistant to Helen’s uncle. Helen’s family is old money with lots of secrets that the family is willing to protect at all costs. What happens when the family and ‘the help’ go on a vacation to the same island where Helen’s mother was found dead?
This one did keep me guessing through to almost the end. I usually try to figure out the twist before we get to them, but this one did a good job with red herrings and kept you guessing.

A captivating read with a beautiful Italian setting centered around rich people and the things they’ll do to protect their own. The story is told from the perspective of three women, alternating between the past and present and slowly revealing what really happened to Sarah, who died thirty years ago, and Lorna, who is missing in the present.

The story can be a little slow at times, but by part two I was reeled in. I couldn’t help but root for some of the characters even though none of them were necessarily good people. I was on the edge of my seat by the end and was truly shocked by some of the reveals. This is the second book of Katy’s that I’ve read and it has definitely cemented me as a fan!

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was shocked from the start. It did slow down for a bit, but I pushed through, and it was so worth it to me. So much drama and secrets between this family. I felt so bad for how Helen had to live. The shocking twists at the end.. left me speechless. I loved this one!

I received this ARC from NetGalley and Random House / Ballantine Books to read/review. All of the statements above are my true opinions after fully reading this book.

If you are a fan of the TV show WHITE LOTUS then you are in for a huge treat - this book reminded me of White Lotus mixed with Succession.

The story telling is gripping as we follow multiple POVs trying to figure out this complex murder mystery …

The wealthy Lingate family is going on their annual vacation to Capri, Italy and their assistant Lorna is tagging along. A few decades ago, Helen’s mother Sarah was murdered on the family vacation while Helen was back in LA with a nanny at age 3…this has haunted her for her entire life. Helen has been sheltered and controlled by her powerful family - she needs answers about the murder, she needs freedom & she is craving to learn more about her mother.

This CRAZY story is full of twists ON TOP OF TWISTS and will keep you on your toes. It’s an unsettling feeling that keeps you turning the page to find out what the heck TRUE?! This high profile family has been keeping many secrets from each other and from the public — it was only a matter of time before it all fell apart, and it’s so satisfying when we finally do learn the truths. This book is full of so many characters that you just can’t stand - jealous & selfish rich people who are out of touch with reality: who only care about keeping up appearances. I was hanging onto every word and didn’t predict most of the twists…. the ending was a total mindfuck !!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. I look forward to reading more from Katy Hays & highly recommend this thriller!

I always love a good "rich people are terrible" story, and this one proves pretty interesting. We bounce between timelines and characters to build the story of Sarah Lingate dies, all of which tells a somewhat tragic tale of a series of bad decisions people must make and stick to.

I will admit that this was a bit too soap opera-y for me, especially how everything was resolved, but I did find it an interesting read. I also did not guess several of the twists, which is always exciting. I think Lorna is too much of a cypher given how much of the book is told from her mindset, and I enjoyed that we got to know Helen a bit more as the book went on. I have some questions about the titular Saltwater play, and in general on how everything was resolved, but overall this was an entertaining romp.

A wonderful story about secrets and the ways in which those secrets come to define our lives. The characters felt incredibly real and the plot moved forward with propulsive energy.

This book was on the slow side for me and the writing style wasn’t my favorite. The ending wrapped up two mysteries in the book, but the outcomes felt too similar to me.

Two timelines are followed and of course end up connecting in the present. They were confusing to follow at times.

Thank you to NetGalley, Katy Hays, and Ballantine Books for this ARC!

This starts out slow and mysterious. It has the same vibe as every psychological thriller you've read set on an Italian coast (or, in this case, island) - most notably The Talented Mr. Ripley. There's oblivious rich people and crafty friends/employees. Comparisons to The White Lotus can be shallow (code for "there are wealthy people!"), but this captured the same *tone* as the show. Also the sense that the plot is about to get crazy. You want to know what is going to happen, but also maybe you want to turn the TV off because who cares about these people, anyway?

To get to the good plot twists you're going to need to push through at least half of the book, but once they start coming they just. don't. stop. I found myself glued to the pages and reading well past my bedtime. The most satisfying part is that you get explicit answers to everything. No vague ending.

Written by the author of The Cloisters, Katy Hays, takes us through a family’s darkest secrets in this slow burn novel. The novel has a dreamy quality to it that winds itself through the book as it slowly drops bits and pieces of the Lingate family story. This is a well-written book with an ending that you didn’t see coming.

I'm just not feeling this one, I can't get into it the vibe or the writing style - probably a case of wrong time wrong book.

This thrilling drama draws you into the Lingate family and the secrets they have guarded across generations. The Lingates are the uber-rich, influential, elite Americans who descend upon Capri annually amongst speculation, envy and resentment. Lorna Moreno has been drawn into the secrets of the family as well. Intentionally insinuating herself into the life of Helen Lingate so she can find out what happened in 1992 when Helen’s mother, Sarah Lingate, was found drowned at the bottom of the cliffs of Capri. Now Lorna finds herself traveling to Capri and plotting with Helen to force confessions. Will this trip finally help Helen find out what really happened? The secrets begin to unwind but at the cost of another young life.

Intriguing and thrilling. A page turner that is worth reading.

You had me at Capri! :) This was a slow start for me, but when it picked up I could not put it down. This book follows the Lingate family (rich, yet quite the mess with a murder involved and a sketchy past) and told from the perspective for 3 different women. I loved the setting, the twists and characters. Really great book!

Excellent book with lots of twists. Highly recommend reading it. At first it did not hold my interest but it as I continued reading it was really good.

“Don’t you ever wonder,” Stan Markowitz said to me, “what really happened on that island?”

If you are looking for an atmospheric thriller, that will transport you somewhere else entirely, this is it. The events of Saltwater take place on the beautiful island of Capri, and the setting is so vividly described that you will feel like you are there. I could practically see the waves lapping against the cliffs along the Amalfi coast, could taste the negronis and the aperitifs on the cliffside patios, could feel the buttery Italian leather trimming the expensive sailboats and yachts…

”The place looks idyllic, but might be hell…”

Juxtaposed amidst all of that beauty and opulence, however, is the seedy underbelly of wealth: a family of millionaires who will do anything to keep their dark secrets; a long-dead mother whose death remains shrouded in mystery; and now a missing young woman.

“It’s so much easier to get away with it if you only do it once.”

The story was one twist after another, and there were so many possible suspects and lingering questions that kept me interested. It was an enjoyable book, with the way the double-mysteries slowly unfolded, but the final murder, and then the final twist (and then the epilogue, with the final-final twist) took things a bridge too far.

”It was always going to be one of us—all of us—that killed her.”

I found myself yelling out loud, “Are you KIDDING me?! You have GOT to be kidding me!” as the final chapters unfolded. A book that started out with the most lushly realistic setting ever, turned into one of the most ludicrous, not-at-all-believable endings I’ve ever read. So… go in expecting fiction. Other than that, it’s a fun read!

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A huge thank you to Katy Hays, Ballantine, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I found this book to be ok. I thought the plot seemed interesting. I also enjoyed the flip between past and present. I just felt like the story lacked any thrills or suspense. All the twists came at the end, but they felt out of nowhere.

This book was a decent read for me- a little slow in the beginning but then it picked up and I was eager to keep reading. I loved the ending!!