Sunday, 20 March 2016

And about this time of every year, the line will go to the ocean pier, and walk right off into the sea, and then we fall asleep.


Salt to the Sea
Author:
Publication Date: February 4th 2016
Publisher: Puffin
~An (unsolicited) copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review~


Winter, 1945. Four teenagers. Four secrets.

Each one born of a different homeland; each one hunted, and haunted, by tragedy, lies…and war.

As thousands of desperate refugees flock to the coast in the midst of a Soviet advance, four paths converge, vying for passage aboard the Wilhelm Gustloff, a ship that promises safety and freedom.

Yet not all promises can be kept.

Inspired by the single greatest tragedy in maritime history, bestselling and award-winning author Ruta Sepetys (Between Shades of Gray) lifts the veil on a shockingly little-known casualty of World War II. An illuminating and life-affirming tale of heart and hope.




Salt to the Sea is the kind of book that sneaks up on you. Going in, I honestly don't know what I was expecting, as it says in the back, the story, the ship, is not a tragedy a lot of people know, I sure didn't. It may have taken me a while to get into Salt to the Sea, but once I did, and the inevitable happened, it snuck up on me how much I actually cared about the story, the characters, what it represents and what happened.

 I think the reason why it took me so long to get into Salt to the Sea is because of the perspectives, and how short the chapters are, we just start getting to know a character before it switches again in between, Joana, a Lithuanian, Florian, the Prussian, Emilia, the Polish, and Alfred, the German sociopath that reinforces Hitler’s ideology. But what I did love about the chapters, was how it held the suspense, we slowly get threads of their lives and secrets until they're sewn together. 

The characters, eventually (minus the sociopath) get easier to connect to, to feel for the characters and real lives that are lost to the sea in a bigger tragedy than Titanic, and honestly, I didn't know how invested I was until the end.

Salt to the Sea is a mixture of desperation and fear, a desperation and fear that nobody should have to go through or witness.



Rating: 4/5

                                

 


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12 comments:

  1. Amber Elise21 March 2016 at 13:51

    German sociopath? That seems a bit...cheap to me. Thanks for the review, I'm been curious about this one, but I'm still on the fence

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  2. Amber Elise21 March 2016 at 13:51

    German sociopath? That seems a bit...cheap to me. Thanks for the review, I'm been curious about this one, but I'm still on the fence

    ReplyDelete
  3. brandileigh200321 March 2016 at 15:08

    Ah! That sounds like way too many POV for me

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  4. Zoe N.22 March 2016 at 01:07

    My thoughts exactly! I feel the chapters were just so short and the POV changes were so rampant that it never really gave us enough time to truly connect to the characters, thus lessening the emotional impact the story has on us. I did love the historical aspect of it though - it's such a shame that a huge tragedy like this is so unknown. Thanks for sharing and, as always, fabulous review! ♥

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  5. Daniela Ark @ BOOKIVERSE (www.danielaark.com)23 March 2016 at 12:16

    I left two comments here yesterday! Where did they go :(
    well.. I said that books about WWII usually are about desperation and fear and sneak up on you. I'm glad you enjoyed even though it took you a while to get into it

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    Replies
    1. Unknown24 March 2016 at 13:34

      I have no idea, it happens sometimes, I lost comments on another review last week, but they're still in my emails, so I'll see it. :)

      Delete
  6. Daniela Ark @ BOOKIVERSE (www.danielaark.com)23 March 2016 at 12:17

    and I also said I can't over how pretty your header is! :)

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  7. Shooting Stars Mag24 March 2016 at 20:25

    I really do want to read this one! It sounds quite interesting, and I'm a sucker for a WWII novel. My sister bought this one, so yay! I just need to find time to read it. haha

    -Lauren

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  8. Shannon @ It Starts at Midnight27 March 2016 at 07:45

    I NEEEED this book in my life. I keep waiting to order it and frankly, I don't know why. I love an emotional book, and I really kind of feel like a good, cathartic cry is in order. I have no idea why. But yeah, I am definitely going to need to get my act together and buy this! Lovely review!!

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  9. Preethi27 March 2016 at 07:59

    I'm glad this ended up being a great book despite the fact that you had no idea what it'd be like going into it - this hasn't happened to me enough this year :/

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  10. Cyn @ Bookmunchies27 March 2016 at 23:58

    Glad you ended up enjoying this, it sounds like a pretty intense read! I actually had no idea what this book was about, I just remembered really liking the cover of one of the editions, haha. I'm definitely intrigued now!
    Lovely review, Kirsty!

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  11. Sophie Houghton16 April 2016 at 13:02

    Great review! I started reading my copy, but by the time I was getting into it, my version expired. I'll have to see about getting it again.

    Sophie @ Sophie Reads YA

    ReplyDelete

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