The Crossed Keys Chronicle

Saltwater

Cover

Sometimes in the summer you just feel the need for something a little light and maybe a little mindless, especially if you've just finished a particularly long tome recently. Saltwater by Katy Hays fits this bill nicely. It also helps that I've read Hays' previous novel The Cloisters, which I really enjoyed, so I figured I'd be in for a good ride.

The story begins by introducing us to Helen Lingate, daughter to a wealthy family, and Lorna Moreno, friend to Helen and professional assistant to Helen's uncle Marcus. Thanks to her position and being Helen's friend, Lorna is invited on the family's yearly trip to Capri, Italy. It also happens to be the 30th anniversary of the mysterious and scandalous death of Helen's mother at the same Capri villa. As the chapter titles tell us from the outset, Lorna is also destined to go missing while on this trip, which we have to assume is somehow connected to the anniversary.

As we soon learn, despite the lack of any actual charges or convictions, everyone assumes that Helen's mother Sarah was killed by one of the Lingates. This leads to Helen being forced to have a very supervised life to avoid having to deal with any of the questions surrounding the death and any involvement her family had in it. As they embark on this year's trip, Helen and Lorna do have a secret plan whose goal is to secure enough money that Helen can leave the control of her family and start her own life, by blackmailing her family.

I think this is a great turn-off-your-brain thriller of a book, and I can certainly envision it as a Netflix show at some point in the future. There are an abundance of twists and turns in the story that definitely keep you guessing through most of it. My only real quibble is that I don't think it needs to explicitly have the countdown to when Lorna goes missing as part of the chapter headings. While it's certainly an important part of the story, I think it gives it a bit of an outsized weight compared to some of the bigger reveals later in the story.

If in these waning days of summer you are looking for a good beach read, I think you'll be very happy with Saltwater. It has all the twists and turns to keep you engaged, but you'll still be able to finish it before your vacation is over.