Reviews with content warning for Body horror - La casa di sale e lacrime

This book wants to be too many things at once and only succeeds marginally at tying them all together. It is certainly a romance with gothic tones rather than a gothic, and the chapter content splits between the romance and plot to the point you can nearly skip whole chapters of purple prose. Bloated though it is, there are some very nice creepy moments - that are immediately scuppered because it's time to pivot the plot again!
The twist on a twist on a twist just...it feels like a beta reader should have gone 'this one works the best, lean into THIS angle' and instead the author piled up everything that ever crossed her mind. The cast sprawls, the descriptions drag on without being punchy, and any moment the mc knows herself is overridden, made malleable by others to progress the plot.

I've seen this described as an example of unreliable narrator - ehhhh I disagree. Literally all you need to know is in the narration. Information is not withheld by the narrator, the narrator's opinion does not color the facts, there is nothing unreliable about it. If people use 'unreliable narrator' I can see it applied to a couple endgame chapters where there's a gaslighting, but again, it's not unreliable narration, it is an mc set up to have no self when challenged by others.

It's a ya romance with gothic overlay. Does what it says on the tin, but by the end you are apt to be exhausted by the pivot twist pivot turn of the back third.

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merle_bookdragon's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Really enjoyed this read and finished it in more or less 24 hours!

Definitely an interesting and more sinister take on the fairy tale of the 12 dancing princesses and it thoroughly messed with my head. When I thought I had figured out what was real and what was an illusion the whole thing was tipped over its head again.

I truly am happy that Cassius turned back up. I was scared for a while at the beginning that he might be the bad guy but I quickly he wasn't. Morella being the evil stepmother fit much better into the fairy tale but I thought maybe it would be a different take. It wasn't, but that's okay. I'm just happy that Verity lives because damn that girl had a rough time and I'm glad Cassius saved her.

ALSO so happy that Annaleigh got to be Keeper of Light at the end. It suits her so well and I think she will have a good future with Cassius there. Or at least that's what I'm imagining for them.

“Oh my darling Annaleigh, remember when you let the turtles go? Some things can't be kept." He cupped my cheek, and my tears trickled down his fingers. "Be brave. Be strong. You'll always have my whole heart.”

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chichalexisse's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

YAYYY! My first horror wohooOoOoo. My favorite part is all the kilig scenes and the last few chapters because it's so fast-paced, and Morella got threatened, suffered and died. I questioned everything, and at one point I said to france that I don't know anything at all.

I think it will be read mostly for the plot because I didn't get attached to the characters as much as I would like to. But I still liked Annaleigh and ofc Cassius, my half-god love.

My sweet Verity, I just wanna hug you. You didn't deserve every single one of those bad experiences.

Hi, fisher rip.

My favorite name out of all of them is Ligeia. (Fisher makes sense but…. huh? Hannah? why?)

Thanks so much for the rec france my sweet little book recommendator

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shannasbooksnhooks's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

"The rain came down harder, shrouding Highmoor in muddled grays. Great boulders at the bottom of the cliffs were tossed about by the raging sea like marbles in a little boy's pocket, their crashes blasting up the steep rocks and rivaling the thunder."
This was a fun book, and I'm glad I decided to give it another shot. ~~I don't think I was~~ ~~really~~ ~~paying attention when I read this the first time around.~~ I would definitely recommend this as a read. It's an amazing, unique retelling of the 12 Dancing Princesses story. Additionally, many tellings of the 12 Dancing Princesses fit best within the spring and summer months. However, House of Salt and Sorrows fits amazingly into almost every season and month. There were a few moments where I was questioning Annaleigh's actions, especially with how they compared to her words (even more so near the end). However, it didn't bother me too much since it worked within the story and how the characters interacted with each other overall.

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mysterymom40's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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slvt4b00ks's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

This book was such a treat. I have never really read anything tho close to horror. Definitely do not read at night if you’re prone to nightmares or scare easily. I love how many allusions there are to Edgar Alan Poe. There’s even a character named Edgar. This author has certainly mastered the macabre, I think mr. Poe himself would have loved this story. The ending had so many twists and turns, I was concerned that like our main character, I could not separate nightmare from reality. Please please please read this. I have no regrets other than that I wish I read this sooner. The book had been sitting on my shelf for a full YEAR, untouched. I almost feel as though the cover does not do it Justice.

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snowmuzu's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

HOSAS was okay. It had a promising start, and I was really into the atmosphere of the story. I liked the setting of the story as well as the world being inhabited by real, physical gods -- I just wished more time had been spent on fleshing out the world. Annaleigh's siblings, aside from Camilla and Verity, did not have their own personalities. Instead, the younger three were lumped together like the triplets, and I had trouble remembering who was who because most of the sisters were just names to me. The triplets being exactly the same personally peeved me. It is such a cliche that siblings born together must be 100% alike. As a twin myself, I can personally say that while we are very much alike, we have our own interests and hobbies.

The romance in this book was not my favorite. Annaleigh seemed to instantly love Cassius for no other reason than his attractive face (not that I can fault her for that). There was little growth in their relationship, and the kiss scenes did not move me.

Additionally, the ending of the book was too obvious. I guessed most of the ending about a quarter of the way in.

Despite my criticisms, Craig's writing was easy to digest, and the mystery of Eulalie's death was compelling enough to keep me mildly interested for most of the book.

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anielabooks's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

5.0

This book was such a rollercoaster for me. I came in with little knowledge of horror books and only the Barbie’s version of a 12 dancing princesses under my belt. Thankfully, the horror wasn’t very intense. I was so invested in the story the entire time and was very satisfied with the ending. I also loved the romance aspect of the book as I found myself falling in love at the same time as Annaleigh. I honestly did not predict the ending, which I liked. I particularly loved the motif of the sea turtles throughout the book; it really made the last few chapters that much more heart-wrenching. I’m so glad one of my followers recommended this book to me.

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