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eleanorefiore's review
3.0
✨ murder mystery that wasn't much of a mystery at all
✨ infuriating sister dynamics
+ Mary grated on my nerves. She's pushy, obnoxious, rude, and she belittles almost everything Georgina says or does. Reminds me a lot of my older sister back when she bullied me the exact same fucking way. I think she got on my nerves a lot for this reason.
Obviously I'm sympathetic towards her as the story goes on. But the beginning? She made it insufferable. At one point Georgina says that Mary makes her feel like she's home. Babe?? What?? At this point she's never been kind or compassionate towards you and has dismissed everything you've said and done. Is that home to you?
+ The murder mystery wasn't a mystery. Literally right from the beginning I knew who it was, and it made the rest of the book's pacing slow and stilted. At one point the characters are given the answer and yet still debate about it two pages later which was so frustrating.
+ The writing style is nice and the small town vibes are cool. Also I didn't hate Georgina or her romance with Prue, though it's a minor subplot. Also love the strong bond between Georgie and her mom!
+ I read this book because it was on a "asexual books" list and it features one aroace side character who barely shows up or has a role in the book. That'll be the third book this month that was listed as an "asexual book" and then had a super minor character as asexual. I hate it here. Why am I just digging for scraps??
Moderate: Sexual assault and Drug use
flora_araruna's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Violence, Gun violence, Animal death, and Sexism
Moderate: Rape, Drug use, Alcohol, and Sexual violence
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Vomit, and Pregnancy
tinybookwitch's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Animal death, Grief, Rape, and Sexual assault
Minor: Alcohol and Drug use
onceuponabookcase's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
- Summer of Salt by Katrina Leno is a book I've wanted to read for a really long time, so when it was chosen for my book club's June/July read, I was so happy to finally get to it! Unfortunately, I did have some issues with it.
- I absolutely love Leno's writing style. There's an ease to it which is just so enjoyable, you're kind of lulled and swept along on it's tide. It's a writing style I can trust in; no matter what I'll end up thinking of the particular story and plot, if it's written by Leno, I will have a really enjoyable reading experience.
- Summer of Salt is an extremely quirky novel. The plot mainly evolves around Annabella, the only bird of it's kind in existence, believed to have been around for 300 years, that comes to the island of By-the-Sea every summer. The Fernweh's are a family of magical women, who have their own special abilities, and they believe Annabella is one of their ancestors who turned into a bird - hence the bird being named Annabella. Because she's so unique, large numbers of bird watchers flock to the island of By-the-Sea every summer. But this year, Annabella's late. And then her broken body is found. Who killed Annabella, and why? And what is going on with Georgie's sister, Mary, who is suddenly acting strange? It's magical realism, and kind of strange, but I was loving it until the reveal.
- The reveal is something I absolutely feel the need to talk about, because I think it's kind of problematic. So click for spoilers, but people may want to read trigger warnings before reading this book.
- I loved the queer representation in this book! Georgie is a lesbian; Prue, her love interest is attracted to multiple genders; and Georgie's best friend Vira is ace/aro.
- While I was a little disappointed with the romance - it's a very slow burn, and has very little page-time - I loved how it was handled. By-the-Sea is such a small town, everyone knows Georgie is a lesbian - and that other characters are queer - and it's not a thing. Georgie has never had to question how someone might react to her being a lesbian - and if another girl might be attracted to girls, too - before. Is Prue flirting with her, or is she just friendly? Am I being too flirty? <i>What is she thinking?</i> I loved it.
- I did think Summer of Salt was going to be more witchy than it was. The description had me thinking, as well as having special abilities, the Fernweh women were also witches in general. Potions and spells, herbs and moonlight rituals, etc. But basically, Georgie and Mary's Mum's special ability is creating potions. And while they do come up a few times, it's not really anything major. So I was disappointed with how witchy it wasn't.
- But I really enjoyed all the background aspects to this story, overall. Just the point. The reveal. I personally really wasn't ok with that.
Graphic: Animal death and Animal cruelty
Moderate: Rape
Minor: Drug use
waterlilyreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Drug use and Alcohol
honeyhistory103's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
*Spoilers* What truly made this book worth 4 stars instead of 3 to me was the absolutely beautiful way Leno handled the topic of rape, especially within a YA novel. The subtle character shifts that caused confusion for other characters in the story, the secretive nature surrounding it rang with a truth to them. What I loved most was the no-nonsense, absolute accountability that came for the perpetrator in the end - the ending that was deserved.
Moderate: Rape, Vomit, and Drug use
Minor: Death of parent, Drug use, and Gun violence
laurenwerlinger's review
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
While the themes of the story are clear, they often come across as heavy-handed where author Katrina Leno had the opportunity for more subtlety. The middle of the book felt aimless and unfocused. Leno tries to incorporate different storylines and characters, but often they are disjointed. The romance that occurs between two characters is rushed and not very compelling.
However, the book is redeemed by the atmosphere it creates. Leno draws the reader in to the island of By-the-Sea with beautiful, grounded descriptions of the island and its people. I also loved the soft magic system and the way the magic tied into the theme of trauma.
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Drug use, Sexual assault, Rape, Vomit, and Gun violence
Slut shaming, victim blaming