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.

This was a beautiful story because of the locale, Capri. Sarah Lingate is found dead at the bottom of the cliffs in Capri. Every year her family still returns to while away the days with booze and swimming. Her death is just a horrible accident, so they all say. Helen, her daughter, isn't sure but doesn't want to believe that anyone would hurt her mother, let alone kill her. But, then, 20 years later, a personal assistant to the family is found dead as well. There are too many coincidences to ignore.

I loved the author's descriptions of the family and the locale, but the wrapping up of what happened to both women was just too convoluted to believe. I wanted to love this but I couldn't.

My appreciation to NetGalley and to the publisher for this advanced copy.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Saltwater.

Here we go again; another narrative about a family of wealthy, privileged people with secrets and a mysterious death in their past.

Why do I keep reading these books?

Because I keep hoping an author will surprise me but there was nothing surprising about Saltwater.

All the tropes are here; unlikable one dimensional characters, gorgeous setting, affairs, adultering, boozing and drugging and jealousy.

The narrative is long and repetitive interspersed with flashbacks and POVs from Helen, the daughter of the deceased, Lorna, the family assistant, and Sarah, Helen's mom.

There is monotonous monologuing about secrets and if anyone can be trusted and how you can never really leave this type of family.

There is very little suspense and urgency and there are many characters and details about lavish parties and partying, none of which is new in these types of books.

Not surprisingly the pacing of the story dragged, there are enough red herrings to shake a stick at, and the twist(s) were easy to guess at, at least they were for me.

The action doesn't happen until the very end and it's SOO over the top so prepare to suspend disbelief.

Read this with a grain of saltwater.

This story sounded like something I would enjoy. I am disappointed as I felt like I had to push myself to read it. In the beginning, it did not keep my interest. The story flipped around from character to character and past and present. I find it very remarkable the way Kay Hays wrote it with all the flipping from character to era but you lost the connection to your characters while the story unfolded.
However, as you progressed through the story it did get where you enjoyed the read and wanted to know what was going to happen next. Brilliantly put together, I really had a hard time in the first half of the book I just wanted it to finish. So glad it got better and overall was worth the time to finish.
Thank you NetGalley and Publishers Random House for this ARC I think I might have liked the audio better.

Part family drama, part murder mystery, this Capri-based story continually piqued my interest because the way the author craftily withheld just enough details in each chapter as the story unraveled.

I saw only some of the twists coming, which was fun as a read.

However, I also felt like it potentially had one too many twists to make it more believable. It's fiction, though, so overall, it was a solid and enjoyable read.

This was my first book by Katy Hays, and I plan to read whatever comes next from her.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

It was the scenery of the idyllic island of Capri that drew me into the story, but it was the characters and mystery that kept me reading. 30 years ago Sarah Lingate was killed during her family's weekly vacation to Capri. It was ruled an accident at the time, but the members of the wealthy Lingate family, especially her husband were suspected of knowing more. Today, Sarah's daughter Helen is returning to the same villa with her family, and it seems her mother's death might be brought back to light when the necklace she was wearing the night of her death is sent to them at the villa. Will the reopening of her mother's case give Helen the chance to escape the family that has been making her feel like a prisoner her whole life? With lots of family drama and history set along a gorgeous backdrop, I absolutely loved this sophomore novel from Katy Hays!

You’re going to want to add this to your 2025 reading list!
Thank you, Penguin Random House and Ballantine Books, for the gifted copy of Saltwater by Katy Hays {partner}

Genre: Mystery
Format: 🎧📖
Pub Date:  3.25.2025
Pages: 336
Star Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆

“Why do men love to linger on a woman’s bad decisions but find it so easy to absolve themselves of their own?”

I decided to start Saltwater on a whim, and even though it’s a slow burn, I couldn’t put it down. There were so many situations and possibilities at play that I was captivated trying to combine all the pieces of the puzzle. I loved how Katy Hays told the story through the perspective of several characters - it gave the illusion that one (or more) of them was lying. But who? I thought I had all figured out at one point, but then my carefully constructed story fell apart. 

When I had 25% of the story left, I was flying through it and couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. I had to know what happened to Sarah and if the past was repeating itself with Lorna.

And, y’all, it takes a lot for a book to surprise me, and Saltwater had me gasping at one point. It was so perfectly executed that I’d reread it to see what hints I overlooked in my first read. Katy Hays created the perfect mystery, and I can’t wait for 2024 for everyone to read it!

Read if you enjoy:
🤫 Lots of secrets
🇮🇹 Capris, Italy
🗣️ Multiple POV
📖 Slow Burn
✌🏼 Dual timeline
🎭 Family drama

I recommend reading Saltwater if you enjoyed reading The Villa.

I had really high hopes for Saltwater but, in the end, the plot didn't grip me from beginning to end. Characters started running together in my mind - and it started to feel super slow and unrewarding. I loved how everything began; it started with a huge aura of intrigue and mystery, which is totally my vibe. Sadly, Saltwater turned out to not be for me.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this e-ARC.

I very excitedly started this novel as I love a good mystery. Helen, the protagonist, a thirsty-something well-off individual is looking for a way to break free from her cloying extended family. But the Lingate family keeps her close -- as they have a secret. Almost thirty years ago, when Helen was three years old, her mother Sarah had an unfortunate accident while holidaying on the island of Capri. Ruled an accident by the authorities, secrets abound and nothing is as it seems.

I love psychological suspense novels and really wanted to enjoy this one. While the premise was a good one, for about three quarters of the book, I felt quite noncholant about the storyline. I felt the main plot twist was underplayed and it wasn't until the very end did I feel any kind of tension. I will admit the ending had a plot that that I didn't anticipate. But the on the whole I didn't find this novel a page turner.

My review is voluntary and my opinions are my own.

Sarah's death was an accident. Right? Is there something much darker going on? Hold on to your seat to find out!

This was a fun read! This book takes place in the Capri, Italy. Felt like I was there experiencing the beauty of this island! There were twists and turns I wasn’t expecting, (The ending had me gagged) but I loved it! I’d recommend this one for your next summer read! Perfect book to read on vacation because it will definitely capture your attention.

I really struggled to get into this one for some reason, it just didnt draw me in quickly. Readers who want a slow burn will probably enjoy but it just wasn't a good fit for me. Thanks for the opportunity to try out the ARC.

The premise was super interesting and I wanted to learn more about the characters but the switching between timelines was not super clear and it made it difficult for me to get invested in the book. I kept getting confused and that was distracting me from who the characters were.

It also made it hard for me to focus in the beginning. Once I would get sucked into the story we’d switch POVs and I’d have to get re-sucked into again. While the middle and ending picked up and I was able to enjoy the story, the beginning was a big hurdle for me to get over.

If you are a reader of older suspense novels, this reminded me of some of Mary Stewart’s suspense books, with the European island setting, family secrets, intrigue and a great sense of place. The island of Capri was described so vividly and its isolation was perfect for creating an atmosphere for this toxic family hiding so many things. I was honestly a bit confused in the beginning; I’m not sure the set up was done well. But once I got oriented and started piecing together the past and present storylines, it all mostly made sense. Some of the twists I guessed and some took me genuinely by surprise which gets harder to do the more thrillers you read. The twists are, of course, not entirely believable but they work for this kind of book. The characters are all just truly awful so definitely do not go into this expecting to end up rooting for anyone.

Saltwater by Katy Hays is a captivating and atmospheric novel that beautifully explores the tension between personal upheaval and the haunting pull of the sea. The evocative prose and vivid coastal setting draw readers into a world where mystery and emotion intertwine. However, while the story's psychological depth and slow-burn tension are gripping, some readers may find it a bit slow, with certain sections feeling drawn out. Despite this, Hays delivers a compelling and immersive read, particularly for those who enjoy literary fiction with a touch of suspense and richly crafted settings.

Haves and Have Nots behaving badly. There are secrets, sexual tension, and cliches about wealth. I think I'd have enjoyed this more with a cocktail poolside.