Wow! I’ve had Katy’s debut The Cloisters on my TBR shelf for so long, and you bet I’ll be picking it up immediately.

This book was a surprise ARC on NetGalley. I was in a rut, so I went to my shelf and picked the prettiest cover- boy, did it live up to its beauty!

I was hooked instantly. All the characters had me so intrigued. It’s hard to describe this book without spoilers. I loved Lorna and Helen. I loathed the other Lingates in such a great way- it made me root for Helen just that much more. Renata and Ciro were such great local secrets, and I’m so glad that Helen could rely on them.

I did get confused a few times, when they would jump into a flash back without any warning, but once you got used to it, they were a lot of fun.

So many twists and turns and I don’t think I saw a single one coming. So grateful for this book.

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review., and it sure deserved a great one!

The Italian island of Capri is a playground for the rich, old money and tourists, while the locals who live year-round on the island often comprise the staff. The disparity was clearly portrayed by an author I had not read before. The family spending summer at their estate behind gates with service staff, linen suits, sporty cars and glitzy gowns was filled with secrets. A young woman is surrounded by her family, but missing the mother she never knew who died on the cliffs here. Her father and uncle are caught up in keeping up appearances, family expectations, being seen at charity events. Her mother’s antique gold necklace, never found after her death, has reappeared. What follows is a tangled knot of blackmail, murder, betrayal and so many lies my head spun. The vivid personalities, splendid setting and atmosphere had me immersed in discovering what really happened to the mother and why. The plot held many revelations I would’ve never guessed. The beginning was a slightly slow start for me. Then I got attached to the young lady, money didn’t do her any favors. I wanted her to get answers about her mother’s life and death. A very well written mystery, kept me engaged and searching for motives. I would certainly read the author again.
Thanks to Ballantine Books Penguin Random House (via NetGalley) for providing an Advance Reader Copy of Saltwater by Katy Hays, publication expected 03/25/2025. The honest, personal thoughts and opinions stated here are all my own given voluntarily without compensation.

I'd pitch this as "Succession meets murder mystery"; a rich oil family has been going back to the villa on the island where one of their own, Sarah, mysteriously died, every year since. On this, the 30th anniversary of her death, all the secrets kept carefully buried are unearthed.

From the get go, I knew I would adore this book. I love stories of messed up rich families, and I love a mystery thriller. I absolutely enjoyed how Hays' portrayal of the corruption wealth brings and the tension of an unsolved death. We learn of the mysteries in both the timeline of the past and the present, and the jumping around in time was very easy for me to follow. Usually in books with multiple perspectives or timelines, I find myself favoring one over another. In this book, I was excited about each narrator equally as they all had intrigue. It felt like every character had so much hidden for me to discover as I kept reading.

The writing felt casual and easy to read. There wasn't much prose and mostly was kept very narrative about characters' internal experiences and the perception of those around them. There were moments I physically had to put my Kindle down as the tension in conversations was so palpable.

If I had to give any criticism, I would say that there were some moments of repetition that stood out to me like the repeated dropping of designer brand names, and a degree of suspension of disbelief being needed. None of that stopped me from having a great time reading though.

Definitely picking up The Cloisters after this (especially as an art history major).

Saltwater by Katy Hays is a riveting thriller that weaves family secrets, suspense, and the beauty of Capri into an electrifying novel. The story revolves around the Lingate family, who return to their opulent villa every year to escape the shadows of a tragedy. But this year, on the 30th anniversary of Sarah’s mysterious death, the appearance of her missing necklace sets off a chain of events that threatens to unravel decades of carefully guarded lies. The novel explores the dark side of family loyalty and the corrosive effects of wealth. The plot is twisty, with revelations that will keep you guessing until the final pages!

Intrigue, family drama, murder and more had me hooked on this story. If you like a good murder mystery I recommend this one when it comes out in March 2025. No spoilers but the only knock I give it is the twist(s) that were slightly unbelievable. But it made me want to be super rich and go to Capri!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

DNF

I always try to read at least 20-25% of a book before giving up on it. If I'm not captured or into it by then, I'm not going to waste my time with the rest. I thought it was poorly written and I didn't really care about the characters and who to root for. I was hoping the setting of Capri would really get me into it, but even the Italian seascape couldn't keep me interested in this story, unfortunately.

This one was just ok . I felt it could have done with some editing as there were to many characters and that plot progress ion was clunky but I did like the setting
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review book

4.5 stars. That was crazy good, with the emphasis on crazy! Just when you are certain you know where this is going, you realize you're only half-way through and there are at least a dozen different reveals yet to come. This is a story about rich people behaving badly, but within their own familly to protect their reputations. I've often said that I don't think I'd want to be obscenely rich. All I ever wanted was to go to the store and be able to buy what I wanted/needed without having to rearrange my entire life!! I can't imagine the amount of stress having all the monies would cause with the constant worry about losing it all and having to change your entire way of life. But, I digress. This is told in several POV's, which I enjoyed as the story unfolded. If you like watching wealthy people eat their own, you will enjoy this one!!

There is nothing I love more than a mystery/thriller about a rich family. The secrets!! The betrayals!! The family drama!!! I am sat. It was a slower start but as the twists were revealed I found myself not being able to put it down!! I am so excited for it to come out. I think a lot of people will love this!!! Also lowkey want to go to Capri now…

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for trusting me when an ARC of Saltwater by Katy Hays. Saltwater is about a wealthy family determined to protect its public position while struggling with the mysterious death a wife and mother, Sarah, in 1992 in Capri. Sarah's death was investigated but never solved. The book begins in the present day as the remaining family members and an assistant, are on vacation in Capri. Sarah's adult daughter wants to know what happened to her mother. The book goes back and forth in time between 1992 and present day to tell the story of this family and what led to Sarah's death. Despite going back and forth in time and the story being told from different perspectives, the book was easy to follow. It took me a while to get into this book but, once I did, I was impressed with how the story unfolds and the ending is certainly one that you will not forget.

I gave this book four stars rather than five for two reasons, it was a little slow in the beginning and some of the things that happen to Sarah, I don't believe are realistic. Overall, a good read full of family drama and secrets revealed.

Such a good read that I enjoyed! I'm so glad that I got the chance to read it early and will definitely be recommending it to multiple people who enjoy these types of novels. I enjoyed the characters and especially enjoyed the writing by this author. I'm excited to see what the author comes out with next as I'll definitely be reading it! Thank you to the publisher for my early copy of this book!

Helen grew up with her over protective family not giving her answers about the death of her mother on vacation, ruled accidental by the police. When she befriends Lorna, her uncle's assistant, she wants answers and Lorna is willing to help her but things fall apart, Lorna's disappearance mirrors her mother's leaving Helen with even more questions.

It was not a mystery in that there are no true clues to discover but it is mysterious and the ending is not what I expected but it is perhaps because I wasn't reading it as I normally read mysteries but it was enjoyable and exciting!

Saltwater, by Katy Hays, is a thriller filled with plot twists that kept me guessing until the very end. The Lingates, a storied family with skeletons in their closet, vacation on Capri every year, despite the fact that their family member Sarah died there mysteriously many years ago. Now her daughter Helen is uncovering family secrets while keeping some of her own. I really enjoyed this book, even though none of the characters were at all likable. What a riveting thriller!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC; all opinions are my own.

I have very mixed feelings about this book.

When Helen was 3 her moth died on the island of Capri. Helen is a Lingate, a prestigious old wealth family. The Lingates will go to great lengths to hide the truth.

The book was hard to get into, i was thrown into the middle of the story and struggled to keep track of characters and understand what was happening. However, the last half of the book was enthralling as the story kept unraveling at a steady but captivating pace. I found myself tied to some characters but others I did not care for. While the ending was somewhat guessable, I enjoyed it nonetheless.

On a side note, I love the facts about Capri and the islands of Italy!

This book is the perfect beach read! It hooked me from the start but then was a little slow in part 1 of the book, Once it picked up in the second half I didn't want to put it down. There were a couple twists that genuinely surprised me. The characters were complex and a bit unlikeable but the story was unique and kept me engaged. I loved how the author added a few additional points of view as the book went on to reveal what happened to Sarah Lingate.

Edited this review, because I am realizing this book stuck with me. I read a lot of books, and it is rare that I am surprised by books and the turns they take. When I have been talking to my fellow book lovers I have told them to grab this book when it is out!

The Lingate family seem to be very rich and very secretive. They have always seemed that way and when Sarah married into the family she found out just how secretive and controlling they are.

It’s 1992 and Sarah’s body is found on the rocks. No one is arrested. The family has closed ranks. Her daughter, Helen, is only three years old and has a lot of questions thirty years later as the family arrives back at the house on Capri.
That seems rather morbid.

With the help of an assistant to one of her uncles, Lorna, Helen has plans to confront her family and escape all of them.

There were so many despicable characters in this book! All acting so badly!

The story was slow and repetitive in the middle but as expected in the end.


NetGalley/ RHPG/Ballentine March 25, 2025

ARC - Received from NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group for review. To be published March 25, 2025.

Saltwater does what I feel like many books in the genre fail to do these days: truly keep you guessing and invested. Some books you can see the character intentions and reveals right away, while Saltwater takes it’s time laying out every piece without giving you everything you need to complete the puzzle before the book is done.

It stars simple enough, with the gorgeous scenery of Capri as a background: The Rich; with their family secrets and the lengths they are willing to go to protect their own, themselves. While the narrative can feel slow at times - I felt that it only helped keeping me on edge, immersed in what was happening throughout the book and I kept trying to guess what the twists would be, only for the author to completely knock down every theory I had. I truly did not expect the ending, but it did such a wonderful job that I was truly appalled when I finished the book but completely satisfied.

This was an amazing read and I cannot wait to discover what else Katy Hays has to offer, truly one of my favorite authors now.

5 stars for this absolute gem! So much to love about "Saltwater" by Katy Hays. Thriller, family saga, lavish vacations on the Isle of Capri and a deep dive into the depravity of an uber wealthy, old money family that you will love to hate. Very "Succession" like characters.

The Lingate family, who returns to the island of Capri every summer because of or in spite of the fact that one of the daughter's in law fell to her death from the cliffs 30 years prior, leaving behind her husband and 3 year old daughter Helen. Adult Helen is determined to untangle herself from her family but their grip on her is tight. She is monitored 24/7 and while coming from a very wealthy clan is controlled by the short leash and allowance they give her. For this year's pilgrimage back to Capri she enlists a confidant (Lorna) who also happens to be her uncle's assistant in the family "business" and they hatch a plan to escape the family with enough money to secure their freedom.

Let's just say things don't go the way they were planned and Helen gets a lesson in just how far her family will go to protect themselves and their reputations. Twists and turns abound and I hope you'll be as shocked by the ending as I was. Just perfect I every way.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

2 1/2 stars. The wealthy Lingate family vacations on Capri every summer, even though Sarah, one of the sisters-in-law, died in a tragic accident 32 years prior. I'm not sure why I didn't like the book more than I did. It's the kind of story I like - a family drama, where everyone has secrets. The description sounded good enough, but the author made the story too mysterious at the beginning. I felt like I'd been dropped into the middle of a story, rather than the beginning of one - the author mentioned too many provocative situations, and there was too much to keep track of at first. I figured something big would happen, and it did, around 85% into the story, but by then I didn't care much for any of the characters. Many thanks to NetGalley, Ms. Hays, and Ballantine Books for the ARC of this title.

The book wasn’t poorly written, but at times I had a hard time staying with it. It was very slow, somewhat flat, and wandered off at times; that’s when I had a hard time knowing what was going on. The storyline was dark and very complex, but it was not a page-turner. I did not really connect with any of the characters, and that’s probably why I couldn’t keep them straight. The ending was very contrived, and I wasn’t crazy about it. I do, however, appreciate that the author put solid research into the setting.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review Saltwater.