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goonie01913's review
2.0
I was really into the first half of this book but by the second half the shifting focus of the plot to a mythological creature just wasn’t as strong as the social commentary and government/corporate use of social media outcry to manipulate crime and punishment.
entazis's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This book is so good, it gave me the chills reading it! In the world where one wrong sentence on your social media can "intice" rage of enough people, you can get thrown into a very private and very isolated island prison, where you have absolutely no contact with outside world. Cut out like that from the society, put into a giant cage, this "criminals" are left on their own.
The premise is very interesting, thought-provoking, and smart--showing us the worst way current trends in social media, surveillance society, data mining and sharing, invasions of privacy, private prison industrial complex, and outrage culture could end. The scariest parts of our current reality, from acepting all sorts of terms and conditions on phones just to acces things like gallery, to public shaming of people we perceived did something morally questionable, in this book gets completely new and terrifying dimensions. T. C. Parker gives us a bleak and horrifying look into the dystopian world of digital Panopticon, and I haven't even touched on the folklore monster yet.
It's so easy for me to love this book. It's a horror book that plays with some of my favorite elements: folklore (I would definitely call this folk horror, I don't know if it's marketed like that but it has everything: the isolation and loneliness, the closed society with weird rituals and sacrifices to the monsters of folk tales, the power of stories and belief), very relevant topics, evolution of Panopticon theory, criticism of late capitalist society and multinational corporations that feel very old fashion sci-fi (which I had a whole lecture on) but that doesn't make it less true. And it's sapphic!
There's the sense of complete helplessness through whole book and it has nothing to do with supernatural monsters. But it's also a lot of fun to read. And I did read a part of it on a beach, which was a great decision.
The premise is very interesting, thought-provoking, and smart--showing us the worst way current trends in social media, surveillance society, data mining and sharing, invasions of privacy, private prison industrial complex, and outrage culture could end. The scariest parts of our current reality, from acepting all sorts of terms and conditions on phones just to acces things like gallery, to public shaming of people we perceived did something morally questionable, in this book gets completely new and terrifying dimensions. T. C. Parker gives us a bleak and horrifying look into the dystopian world of digital Panopticon, and I haven't even touched on the folklore monster yet.
It's so easy for me to love this book. It's a horror book that plays with some of my favorite elements: folklore (I would definitely call this folk horror, I don't know if it's marketed like that but it has everything: the isolation and loneliness, the closed society with weird rituals and sacrifices to the monsters of folk tales, the power of stories and belief), very relevant topics, evolution of Panopticon theory, criticism of late capitalist society and multinational corporations that feel very old fashion sci-fi (which I had a whole lecture on) but that doesn't make it less true. And it's sapphic!
There's the sense of complete helplessness through whole book and it has nothing to do with supernatural monsters. But it's also a lot of fun to read. And I did read a part of it on a beach, which was a great decision.
tracyreads's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
lauriereadslohf's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
oOOOOOh this book! I loved it so very much! It was so unique to me and it kept me enthralled from beginning to end. I don’t want to ruin it by telling you all about it so I’ll do my best not to do that. To be completely honest here, I was a little worried after I glanced at the blurb because I’m not really a huge fan of what it was saying. It was talking about prisons and conspiracies and, well, I didn’t think I would fall in love with the story but the best thing happened and I immediately did just that. I’m so thankful for my friends who put it on my radar with their positive reviews because it’s one of the best books I’ve read this year and I’d like everyone to give it a read.
We meet strangers Robin and Jack as they’re traveling to an island and we quickly learn they’re not on any kind of lavish vacation! Salt Island is enclosed beneath a wire mesh cage penning them in on all sides. Sounds very much like a prison island, eh? Yeah, that’s because it is even if they’re told it’s a “place to reflect”.
It’s all very mysterious and the reveals are doled out slowly. What is this island? Why are they here? What terrible things have these people done?!! And why aren’t they allowed to speak to the 100 or so locals still living on the island? What the heck is going on?
My overly dramatic notes are filled with “What is happening here?! I will perish from the suspense!!” But it is sort of true. Once this book gets its hooks in you, it will be hard to stop reading until you learn everything and you’ll have more questions with every page you turn. It read a wee bit like the best kind of Black Mirror episode. Greed and a mix of modern technology fucking things up blended with an ancient . . . well, I’m not going to tell you that part. I absolutely AM NOT.
It’s a horror novel so expect things to get bloody. There’s a pretty big warning sign right off the bat. They’re not allowed any outside communication with the world. That means no cell phones, no CB radios, no rabbit ears, no nothing! The island also smells very bad. Soon a dead body is found. They may or may not be seeing very strange beings wandering around in the shadows after darkness. Now imagine having no option to leave and being completely left in the dark about EVERYTHING. That’s the situation these people find themselves in and it gets terrifying rather quickly.
I enjoyed nearly everything here except the bit in my CW below and I can’t find anything to complain about - not that I was looking but you know I can be a picky witch sometimes (yikes, wish I weren’t like this but I am what I am). The author takes her time developing her characters, revealing their backstories, building the relationships and trust between them. The circumstances are wild but also completely believable. When the ahhhh!! oh-my-gods! things begin to happen you’re invested in these people and it’s too late to turn back!
There’s action, there’s adventure, there’s a terrifying ancient *nope still not saying* and an excellent cast of strong women who must bond together to outsmart the evil situation they’re stuck in. I recommend it with my whole heart or at least what’s left of it.
We meet strangers Robin and Jack as they’re traveling to an island and we quickly learn they’re not on any kind of lavish vacation! Salt Island is enclosed beneath a wire mesh cage penning them in on all sides. Sounds very much like a prison island, eh? Yeah, that’s because it is even if they’re told it’s a “place to reflect”.
It’s all very mysterious and the reveals are doled out slowly. What is this island? Why are they here? What terrible things have these people done?!! And why aren’t they allowed to speak to the 100 or so locals still living on the island? What the heck is going on?
My overly dramatic notes are filled with “What is happening here?! I will perish from the suspense!!” But it is sort of true. Once this book gets its hooks in you, it will be hard to stop reading until you learn everything and you’ll have more questions with every page you turn. It read a wee bit like the best kind of Black Mirror episode. Greed and a mix of modern technology fucking things up blended with an ancient . . . well, I’m not going to tell you that part. I absolutely AM NOT.
It’s a horror novel so expect things to get bloody. There’s a pretty big warning sign right off the bat. They’re not allowed any outside communication with the world. That means no cell phones, no CB radios, no rabbit ears, no nothing! The island also smells very bad. Soon a dead body is found. They may or may not be seeing very strange beings wandering around in the shadows after darkness. Now imagine having no option to leave and being completely left in the dark about EVERYTHING. That’s the situation these people find themselves in and it gets terrifying rather quickly.
I enjoyed nearly everything here except the bit in my CW below and I can’t find anything to complain about - not that I was looking but you know I can be a picky witch sometimes (yikes, wish I weren’t like this but I am what I am). The author takes her time developing her characters, revealing their backstories, building the relationships and trust between them. The circumstances are wild but also completely believable. When the ahhhh!! oh-my-gods! things begin to happen you’re invested in these people and it’s too late to turn back!
There’s action, there’s adventure, there’s a terrifying ancient *nope still not saying* and an excellent cast of strong women who must bond together to outsmart the evil situation they’re stuck in. I recommend it with my whole heart or at least what’s left of it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
errantdreams's review
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
T.C. Parker’s Saltblood is a curious tale in which ancient superstition and horror smack head-on into a futuristic prison. Now that there’s a company capable of scraping ridiculous amounts of information about any person out there, it’s been given an algorithm: get too many “outrage units” and you get sent to a special prison on an island off of Scotland. Robin has been sent there after participating in a rally–the lack of context behind a photo of her in a rally made her look bad in a way that spurred a lot of online outrage. She arrives at the same time as Jack, who’s an alcoholic. A kind-of warden named Hampton is in charge, and the “guests” (prisoners) lead simple lives in tiny huts with cruddy food. Bill and Carol, who’ve become a couple since arriving, like to greet the newcomers. Chuck Valentine is a TV preacher who denies his own sexuality. Julia designed a memory implant that killed people. Sat is a programmer who knows more about the island than she’s saying. Hampton has at his disposal the sullen Islanders–the natives of the island who’d been reassured when the Vanderhalden company bought the island from the Scottish government that they would all have work.
There’s a wild copper “cage” all around and above the island to keep any kind of signals in or out–kind of like a Faraday cage. The island has caves, beaches, and mysterious standing stones, and the only place the prisoners aren’t allowed to go is the Islanders’ village.
This process of convicting people based on outrage means that, as Chuck points out to Robin, they’re “all celebrities here.” Most of them were convicted in the court of public opinion, and we know how fickle that can be. Incorrect people can be targeted. Photos and videos can be taken out of context. We all screw up now and then, only in the modern world that can go viral and upend your life. The copper cage, the algorithm–there’s a great touch of paranoid near-future sci-fi here. Not only does it exist side-by-side with a disturbing creature haunting the island, but it’s having an interesting effect on that creature. It’s unusual to see those two types of story combined, and Parker does it well!
Conspiracy theories abound. Vanderhalden seems to have its grubby hands in a lot of pies, and various people on the island start to realize that many of them have Vanderhalden in common. When a person is beaten and left for dead, and Robin sees him die, a countdown seems to start. Hampton is lying about what happened to the person and he knows Robin is aware of the truth. It wouldn’t take much for him to get rid of her.
There’s a bit of gore, but not much. I can’t think of any other content warnings that might be needed. I will note, however, that there’s some good lesbian rep in here. I really enjoyed this book and recommend it to readers of any of the genres mentioned!
goblinsstolemybrain's review
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
el_stevie's review
5.0
Chilling thriller
On a bleak and desolate island, people are imprisoned according to how much outrage they've triggered on social media - scarily possible in our current times when people are hounded on these platforms for perceived wrongs (often without regard to facts, context or truth). Against this backdrop exists a legendary monster. When Robin arrives in the island, it soon becomes a battle of survival, with both the 'prison' governor and the monster after her and her friends. Well-paced, chilling and atmospheric - I can still hear the waves crashing in my ears.
On a bleak and desolate island, people are imprisoned according to how much outrage they've triggered on social media - scarily possible in our current times when people are hounded on these platforms for perceived wrongs (often without regard to facts, context or truth). Against this backdrop exists a legendary monster. When Robin arrives in the island, it soon becomes a battle of survival, with both the 'prison' governor and the monster after her and her friends. Well-paced, chilling and atmospheric - I can still hear the waves crashing in my ears.
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