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A review by annettebooksofhopeanddreams
Hold Back the Tide by Melinda Salisbury
5.0
Something about Melinda Salisbury's writing style speaks to me. It's enchanting, atmospheric, it already gives stories a certain feel. So, when I saw her announcing this book I added it to the wishlist and when I discovered that this was the book in my Book Box Club, I couldn't be happier. Because, this means I get to talk to her about this book! How awesome is that?
And with this book she once again delivers. I'm gonna be honest here. For a long time I thought this was gonna be a four star read. I loved the atmosphere and the characters and of course the writing style, but it didn't have that extra spark yet. And then the last five pages came and that turned the book from an amazing read into a perfect read. The ending made the book, made the entire story, because it was so fitting, or maybe because another ending wouldn't have been working at all.
The story knows a slow start. Salisbury takes her time to build her world and she takes her time to introduce the characters. It's however far from boring. Thanks to the writing style and the dark and mysterious atmosphere the story is quite interesting from the start. From there it follows a very logical pattern towards the ending. Most of the reveals are built up and you can see them coming, although not that far in advance. I personally love and enjoy that. It gives me the feeling that the story makes sense, no matter how weird it might be.
Our heroine, Alva, is on top of that a really complicated and interesting character to read about. Her thought patterns are wonderful to read and follow and although she does takes risks at times I certainly wouldn't have taken if I were her, it made sense for her to do so. And although we miss a lot of history when it comes to her relationships with her friends, their interactions show a lot about who they are and who they can become and be.
I really can't wait to talk about this book with Salisbury in the chat in a few weeks! And I now wanna make sure I read a few of her other books I still hadn't gotten to too.
And with this book she once again delivers. I'm gonna be honest here. For a long time I thought this was gonna be a four star read. I loved the atmosphere and the characters and of course the writing style, but it didn't have that extra spark yet. And then the last five pages came and that turned the book from an amazing read into a perfect read. The ending made the book, made the entire story, because it was so fitting, or maybe because another ending wouldn't have been working at all.
The story knows a slow start. Salisbury takes her time to build her world and she takes her time to introduce the characters. It's however far from boring. Thanks to the writing style and the dark and mysterious atmosphere the story is quite interesting from the start. From there it follows a very logical pattern towards the ending. Most of the reveals are built up and you can see them coming, although not that far in advance. I personally love and enjoy that. It gives me the feeling that the story makes sense, no matter how weird it might be.
Our heroine, Alva, is on top of that a really complicated and interesting character to read about. Her thought patterns are wonderful to read and follow and although she does takes risks at times I certainly wouldn't have taken if I were her, it made sense for her to do so. And although we miss a lot of history when it comes to her relationships with her friends, their interactions show a lot about who they are and who they can become and be.
I really can't wait to talk about this book with Salisbury in the chat in a few weeks! And I now wanna make sure I read a few of her other books I still hadn't gotten to too.