While Saltswept was not at all what I was expecting, it’s a moving story with a group of characters which will transport you. I was expecting more of a pirate crew immediately on the high seas, but it’s certainly not like that. Keep reading this book review of Saltswept for my full thoughts.
Summary
A ragtag crew. A perilous quest. First, they need a boat. Next, they need to learn how to sail it.
A pirate faces the gallows drop. A farmer is given a terrible ultimatum to save her daughter. An acolyte ascends to priestesshood . . . only to find that a blessing really can be a curse. These unlikely bedfellows band together with an inscrutable pickpocket and a talking ottercat in pursuit of the most hopeless of to sail into the Maelstrom – a raging whirlpool from which no one has ever escaped – and the mysterious treasure hidden within it.
The quest will test their fragile allegiance to its limits, but there is more at stake here than getting the magic of the world is in peril, and the barrier between life and death has never been so thin. And in the Bastion, the seat of power in Paranish, the queen has an unquenchable thirst that threatens the world and everyone in it.
Can there be honour amongst thieves? Without it, they might never see another sunrise.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
Saltswept allows us to get to know each of our ragtag crew. We can see their disasters, their mistakes, and their fears spread across the page. At the beginning, like with a lot of multiple character books, it’s a bit difficult to keep everyone apart in our mind. The length of the chapters at the beginning also means we are flitting a lot between them. When we finally get a bit more of a handle, what we find is a story about adventure, but also which almost pulls them together. The characters are orbiting each other and as they are pulled together, it unfolds the larger story. It’s a slower start than I expected.
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I expected this pirate high seas adventure quest when in reality, it takes longer to come together. We see these threads of fate weave together and it’s unhurried. I ended up finding some which I really enjoyed, and there’s a variety of character dreams, and roles, to choose from. (Especially we love an otter cat). This debut has good foundational bones and if you go into it expecting a bit more exposition than I did, then I think you’ll fall in love with these characters and the world. Find Saltswept on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon (UK) & Blackwells.