Thank you to Hachette Children's Group, Hodder Children's Books and Netgalley for the arc of A Curse of Salt by Sarah Street in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

If you’ve read my previous reviews you will know I’m a total lover of a good fairy tale retelling, so obviously I couldn’t turn down Beauty and the Beast set at sea amongst pirates and villainy!

Sarah Street delivers a fairy tale retelling with a fabulous twist set in a world of list royalty, pirates, betrayal, infamy and more. The world building alone not only fits the tale to a tee but, also creates a sense of awe and magic, supported by a well crafted plot, that is actively paced and definitely delivers all the drama, romance, found family and more.

Street fills this world with strong, well crafted characters, including Ria, a determined, persistent and likeable character. She is self aware and recognises that she has a lot to learn, including about her own family, and she loves books. What is there to dislike?

The Heartless King fulfils the role of the Beast to perfection. His character delivers all the anticipated and expected characteristics but, the element of family is always there. Although, his wearing of the hood and cape was a tad opaque, and in my opinion was more appropriate to a character playing a character - think Dread Pirate Roberts in The Princess Bride.

If you’re a fan of a fairytale retelling, The Princess Bride, Daughter of a Pirate King, or simply a lover of a good pirate romance than you will adore Sarah Street’s A Curse of Salt.

It is a reimagined version of The Beauty & The Beast, but the setting is now the sea. I got hooked right from the first page. The writing is simply exquisite. The pace did slow down a bit in the middle, but the beautiful writing kept me hooked throughout.

Street paints a rich tapestry of pirates, adventure, and found family in this beautiful YA retelling of beauty and the beast.

I really felt the emotions of the characters and the depth of conflict and love in Ria. The setting of the Blood Rose was vivid and I felt as though I was on board the ship itself. You can tell that Street really has a way with world building. I do wish that the same time and dedication had been spend on the relationships between the characters, particularly between the Heartless King and Ria and even Ria and Mors.

Overall, I recommend this book to anyone who loves pirate adventures, fairy tales, and the dream of adventure.

magic and pirates, what not to love! I found this very compelling and I loved the emotions. Some parts a little over sentimental, but I can forgive that. I hope there is a follow on, and I can't wait to read it! Recommended.

Thank you Netgalley and Hachette Children's Group, Hodder Children's Books for providing me this e-arc in exange for an honest review. My opinion is my own and not influenced by others.

The description and cover of this book looked so good so my hopes were high. Maybe, because of that, I got somewhat disappointed. It was a nice enough read but nothing more than that.

The blurb of this book caught my attention immediately. I love a good retelling of fairy tales, particularly those with a twist, and this book did not disappoint at all. It is fast paced, with strong characters and plenty of drama.

Ria is a strong willed and determined character, determined to protect her family and do the right thing. I enjoyed her journey through the book, as she begins to understand her family history and where she really belongs.

Sarah Street has created a world that readers will want to come back to again and again.

This retelling of Beauty and the Beast involves plenty of pirates, swash buckling action and romance. It was described to me as being perfect for fans of Brigid Kemmerer’s Cursebreakers series and Sarah J Maas’s A Court of Thorns and Roses, and I absolutely agree.

Thanks to Net Galley, the author and publisher for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this!
It was like Pirates of the Caribbean meets Beauty and the Beast!
Aurelia sacrifices herself to the Heartless King in order to fulfill a debt made by her father and save her sisters. However, all is not as it seems and she soon comes to realise that nothing is as she thought and she is the key to saving more than one kingdom.

This book is well written and I enjoyed the way the side characters helped to carry the plot and the story along. This is great for those who love a romance but without heavy smut or dark romance themes. I particularly enjoyed the character development of the side characters. I will be looking forward to reading more from this author.

I really had high hopes for this book. I like pirates and a beauty and the beast retelling. Sadly, as is becoming habit, this retelling fell short. While the scenery and beginning bits were interesting, I found the pirates inconsistent. I don't see how these pirates, who were overall nice people, could be seen as evil for 300 years. Also, spoiler, but the goddess could have just killed them easily instead of getting all huffy.

Ria was an okay MC, but I did find her inner monologue tiring at points. I will say that the story was generally well written. Overall a promising debut but fell short for me.

Beauty and the Beast but set at sea? A strong premise which fell down on some of the slower paced sections - but an enjoyable read neverthevless.

I had high hopes for this book because it was a branded Beauty and the Beast retelling. It starts out fast but slows down about halfway through. What bothers me is the abrupt change of scene, but I still enjoyed it. Thank you to Netgalley for providing the free ARC! I hope to read more by this author in the future.

I did enjoy the Beauty and The Beast inspired but make it on a ship with fantastical writings and beautiful plot. It was an easy read to fill up my free time. The synopsis got me hooked, it was quite fast at the beginning but a bit slow in the middle. I got lost a few times because there's so much character to remember, but it was worth it. It was good!

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!

The scents and sounds of the sea are never far away in this beautifully written YA fantasy re-telling of Beauty and the Beast. Ria offers herself to the Heartless King in place of her father and finds that he is not the monster everyone in the land has come to fear.. I liked the role of "the sea" in the story; I thought it was an lovely original idea, drawing in battles with creatures from the deep.
Ria's past is shrouded in secrecy and I felt a bit lost in the middle of the book: I think this was a reflection of Ria's search for answers when none are forthcoming. Gradually the pieces fall into place, building to a tension filled final few chapters.
Thanks to Net Galley, the author and publisher for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

i really enjoyed this book! normally, i am very apprehensive over fairytale retelling, but this was fantastic! Ria is such a cool FMC - she is so sassy and i love it. the cover dragged me into this book. i am such a sucker for stunning covers and i will always judge a book on its cover.

not going to lie, i’m still thinking about the interaction on page 188. the squeak i let out when sebastian said that… my heart couldn’t take it. ALSO HOW CUTE IS SEBASTIAN’NS NICKNAME FOR RIA??? reading this launched me back into my childhood. i always loved to read about pirates so my inner child is so happy with me. street was able to make the story of the beauty and the beast her own and i adored her writing style. i’ll have to read more by street in the future!!

this book was so well written and i’m so happy i got to read this. the world building, description and imagery was done perfectly. thank you so much to sarah street and hachette for allowing me to read this book prior to publication.

I always love reading fairytale retellings so I was so excited when I learned that A Curse of Salt was a retelling of my favourite fairytale, Beauty and the Beast. I really loved the author's twist on the classic story and thought she made it unique. I really liked the characters, specifically our protagonist, who I thought was very well written. I adored the writing style and was hooked from the very first page! Overall, a fabulous debut book.

Fans of To Kill a Kingdom will love this exciting new YA fantasy!

I inhaled the book, it was right what I needed! The story of Ria and the heartless king is breathtakingly sweet, well written and absolutely absorbing. For all the fans of fairytales and readers of Tessonja Odette. A Curse of Salt is a very nice new approach of retelling the beauty and the beast story, builing up on that structure Sarah Street managed to get her own story out that was as enthralling as the first time hearing the original.

4.5/5 stars! First off, the cover of this book is so beautiful. I hadn't even realized this is a Beauty and the Beast retelling. Overall this was a really enjoyable book. Ria is all sass and protectiveness, but she had met her match in "The Heartless King." I enjoy pirate stories and the author did an amazing job of bringing life at sea to life. My only gripe is that having blood-stained hands and being afraid to connect so shutting people out doesn't really seem like enough for him to be the bad guy that turns good. But overall, I would highly recommend this book.

I received an advance review copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

A Curse of Salt by Sarah Street
The synopsis said this book is a Beaty and the Beast retelling; or find love to break a curse. There are no original stories, but I like how this retelling took place in the sea and with pirates making it feel like a new story.

The sea, and its characteristics were used as descriptive adjectives. Chief’ s kiss, I love details like that in books.

The main character, Ria, is a confident character, trying to protect her family and get some questions answered. She is doing her best with the information she has.

I wasn’t clear on why the “Heartless King” was considered a monster. He seemed more stand-offish, nothing he did in the book made him a monster. Also not clear why he wore a hood for the first half of the book. He was and then he wasn’t because it came off.

Overall good book, I would recommend