Reviews with content warning for Kidnapping - The Salt Grows Heavy

This is a stunning fantasy horror novella. Khaw reimagines a version of The Little Mermaid where the prince wasn't so sweet and spins a tale, not about revenge, but about the aftermath. The mermaid (for lack of a better description or a name) leaves her husband's kingdom in ruins, accompanied by a plague doctor who is more than they seem. I adored the elegant and imaginative prose, and appreciated the complex motivation of characters who are unapologetic about their natures.

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imreallyjk's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective slow-paced

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

3.5

The prose was beautifully written despite the very gruesome subject. Not for the faint of heart but perhaps for those who need to break away from humanity for a short time…

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fox_at_the_circus's review against another edition

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challenging dark hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

I loved how poetic and flowery and even animalistic at points the writing of this book got. It really pulled me into the world and set the atmosphere of the story perfectly! And I love this world; even though the book is pretty short, it still felt like a developed setting with hints and more lore.
And I really like the two main characters and their relationship with each other, too. This is a story about two people dealing with their trauma together, healing together in a way, and supporting each other throughout it. They are not perfect or try to be, but they feel realistic and are loyal to each other. I especially loved the line, where the plague doctor calls out the "your trauma makes you stronger" bullshit.

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sofiadanielle's review against another edition

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dark tense

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.0

Almost docked it to a 3.5, honestly. However!!! Though I think the first 30 pages makes the story framework difficult to understand, I very much enjoyed the last 30 pages.

A critique I will stand by, though, is the use of overly complex, “flowery” language. While I do believe that this type of writing helped in creating that uneasy horror-esque feeling, I would’ve enjoyed the story written in a plainer way.

Feels very fever dream-like (said positively, towards the end.) Quite unique, and I adore the epilogue.

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valodniece's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Daaaaaamn. I'm not sure if Khaw intended this to be a criticism of the Russian state throughout all of its incarnations (imperial, communist, modern), but it certainly is. Set in the taiga, worshiping those who hurt you and cannibalize you and the belief that they will still somehow lift you up but never do... on the surface, sure, it is a dark and cannibalistic Little Mermaid retelling, told through the looking glass inspired by Lord of the Flies, but it really reads as more than that. Excellent work by Cassandra Khaw, and I will definitely be reading more of their work.

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ccrtb's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.0

Very interesting and gory spin on The Little Mermaid tale, though it has more to do with the happy-ever-after. Honestly could not guess where the plot was going to go so the horrors of the narrative were unique and surprising. Can’t fully explain why I liked this one. I just enjoyed it.

The writing is beautiful, but a little too embellished at times. It took me a few pages to feel like I understood what was going on because I was only three sentences in when I had already encountered two words I had no idea existed.

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gaeliloveweiss's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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laurareads87's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

4.5

"Mermaid. A word that demonstrates the ineptitude of human language, and the species' predisposition for ingantalizing the unknown. ... [P]alatability is prized over accuracy. It is easier to market a nymph than a viperfish."

The Salt Grows Heavy is a horror/fantasy novella of a murderous mermaid and a gender non-conforming plague doctor travelling through a near-dead kingdom, each with a traumatic past to contend with. Very well written, though it's hard to say 'beautifully written' when the subject matter is, very often, viscera. Heed the content warnings on this one - not for the faint of heart.

Content warnings: graphic gore & body horror throughout. Cannibalism is on page & described in detail. Blood, death, deaths of children, murder, violence, medical content, medical experimentation, misogyny, sexism, abuse, spousal abuse, rape (not on-page or described in any detail), kidnapping, mass murder, cult violence / religiously motivated abuse.

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