I’m not sure how to even review The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw. This is one of the strangest stories I’ve ever read and I really can’t tell you if it’s strange in a good way or strange in a bad way… but I’m leaning toward strange in a bad way. To sum this novella up, a plague doctor and a mermaid go on a gory adventure. That’s basically it but I’ll continue my thoughts below. Since this is a novella, this review will be spoiler free.
Synopsis:
You may think you know how the fairy tale a mermaid comes to shore and weds the prince. But what the fables forget is that mermaids have teeth. And now, her daughters have devoured the kingdom and burned it to ashes.
On the run, the mermaid is joined by a mysterious plague doctor with a darkness of their own. Deep in the eerie, snow-crusted forest, the pair stumble upon a village of ageless children who thirst for blood, and the three “saints” who control them.
The mermaid and her doctor must embrace the cruelest parts of their true nature if they hope to survive.
My Thoughts:
- Rating-
When I read the synopsis, I assumed this would be a creepy Little Mermaid retelling but unfortunately, that’s not really what this is. The main character is a mermaid, and her past is alluded to a couple of times but never elaborated on. I wanted to know about her life in the sea and her family but the author chose to leave those details out. Her daughters are also mentioned a few times but they disappear from the story early on. The main focus is the journey that the mermaid and plague doctor are taking together. They stop in a small village where the plague doctor is possibly from (it’s never clearly explained) and then a lot of crazy, gory cultish things happen.
Both the plague doctor and mermaid felt very flat to me. Neither have names and we’re given bare minimum details about them. The language in this book was also highly irritating. It was like reading a thesaurus. I don’t mind big words and purple prose but that’s all this novella was. It was distracting and not enjoyable. I truly felt dumber after reading it🙃
Final Thoughts:
I would LOVE a spooky Little Mermaid retelling or mermaid horror in general but that’s not what The Salt Grows Heavy is. This isn’t the worst story I’ve ever read but I don’t recommend it. It took me a couple of weeks to finish it and that’s crazy for a novella. If you have any better recommendations in this genre, please let me know! Thanks for reading🖤
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