Wow, this is another excellent book by Rachelle Atalla. Like her last book, Thirsty Animals, The Salt Flats is brilliantly written and thrives on its world building and character development. No spoilers here, but I thought the thought-provoking ending was executed perfectly.

The Salt Flats is a taut and well-told tale about a couple heading to a mysterious retreat on the Bolivian salt flats.

It's difficult to pin down as a specific genre. Is it a book about climate change fear (guilt about climate change eats away at main character Martha)? A thriller? A literary look at a relationship? Or something in between all of the above.

It makes for a read that feels fresh and different, but tense and uncomfortable too. Finn and Martha have a lot of issues in their relationship, and within themselves, but they're hoping this trip will be the cure. It's not quite as simple as that though. There are two other couples on their way to the retreat and the other big personality there is Oscar, the leader/shaman, who is both mysterious and somewhat menacing. He encourages his students to push themselves further than they want to go, until they ultimately end up in a fight for their survival.

This is where the book tips almost towards horror - because no one knows where they are. No one is expecting them back. And there are some awful choices to be made.

Definitely a book that kept me thinking long after it ended.

Wow! I loved both Thirsty Animals and The Pharmacist, so was eagerly awaiting what twisty reality would come next from Rachelle Atalla. I was not expecting this, but what a read! Relatable human behaviour, set against a sinister backdrop and plotted so perfectly I had to stop myself devouring this in one sitting. Mesmerising and utterly addictive.

4.25*

I saw The Salt Flats being recommended by authors and reviewers that I follow and was immediately intrigued by the story premise of a struggling couple heading deep into the isolated Bolivian salt flats to repair their relationship at a mysterious retreat where things, inevitably, quickly turn to a nightmare.

This was a deeply human story with multi-layered and complicated characters all struggling with their own issues, seeking to overcome them by any means necessary.

I initially saw this being shelved as a thriller but in reality it is a deeply unnerving and hugely imaginative horror. It feels incredibly otherworldly with a tenuous grip on reality that leaves you wondering consistently if what you're seeing unfold in front of you is actually happening or if you, the reader, are also part of the hallucinogenic ride that the characters are going on.

I struggled a little at the start this with as I just couldn't get a grasp on what it wanted to be but once it clicked that this is as insidious a horror as you're likely to find, I was swept away with the story and the unfolding nightmare of the situation our characters found themselves in.

I love an isolated setting and this one is as isolated as you're going to find. The oppressive heat and desolate landscape are unforgiving and bleak that helps build a sense of fear and desperation for the characters.

The ending is surprising, sudden, open-ended and left me incredibly uncomfortable at what isn't said for the potential consequences of the actions of the characters. Whilst I never felt connected to them, the reality of what likely happened to them is where the true horror lies.

If you want to feel uncomfortable, intrigued, and out of reality then this is a book for you.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for a digital review copy of "The Salt Flats" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

Another haunting novel from Rachelle Atalla exploring a horror genre this time instead of speculative. This was unnerving, filled with a creeping claustrophobic tension with an almost cult-like wellness vibe. The Bolivian salt flat setting was unique and added to the feeling of isolation and fear. The ending had me gripped and surprised - and in true Atalla style, I was left with a sense of unease and discomfort. A thought-provoking, hallucinogenic thriller!

Finn and Martha are having marital difficulties and after hearing copious stories of the healing powers of a visit to the Bolivian salt flats and involvement with a therapy group, Martha persuades Finn this is the way forward for them. The novel is a bit of a slow burner but the tense atmosphere of impending disaster and a fight fir survival builds to a crescendo.

Finn and Martha’s marriage is in trouble and they book into a retreat for some guidance.
There are some interesting characters and a very tense atmosphere at the Salt Flats.
A trip that turns out to be a race for survival.
Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

Another claustrophobic thriller from Rachelle Atalla. The whole novel has this unnerving sense of foreboding drama, finely plotted and tense. I read this novel quickly perched on the end of my seat. Loved it.

Martha and Finn’s marriage is hanging by a thread, a combination of factors that have built up over the years. They take the brave decision to head to the Bolivian Salt Flats and the Salt Centre in the hope of enlightenment and healing under the guidance of shaman Señor Oscar. Four others make their way there with them, two couples, Londoners Hannah and Zoe and Americans, Rick and Barb. Will they all leave having shed their various burdens? Will they get the truth and enlightenment they seek?

Although I find the start a bit slow, the novel sucks me in and I become fascinated by the Salt Centre, Oscar and the varyious characters in attendance.
The place itself is an awesome choice in which to set a novel of this kind. The landscape is incredible, it’s lonely, desolate, desert like and unforbidding, giving off an other worldly atmosphere that matches the incidents which become more and more surreal. It’s so well described you almost feel as if you are there, not that I especially fancy it, I’ll just look at pictures, thank you although it is truly remarkable.

This is a character driven novel and they are all well portrayed, especially Finn and Martha. Martha has loads of issues, she’s riddled with anxiety, especially her concerns about climate change which is a theme and clearly close to the author’s heart, hence the choice of Bolivia. I find it hard to get a handle on Finn, he’s a complex enigma but the experience changes him and perhaps overall it helps him. Make your own mind up about Oscar and his methods!

Slowly, but surely you start to feel the darkness of the place, and there’s a distinct increase of fear in the air. There are many challenges too and as the retreat progresses the situation changes rapidly and the will to survive in this hostile extreme environment becomes the primary focus. There’s escalating danger with accompanying suspense and tension and numerous questions that may/may not have a right answer.

This is an immersive read, it’s very well written and obviously dark and bleak but it is very compelling.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Hodder and Stoughton , for the much appreciated in return for an honest review.

Darkly compelling with a Nordic-noiresque bleak landscape illuminated by the light of hope and the will to survive. A morally complex storyline. A set of flawed characters coping as best they can in extreme circumstances. Beautifully accomplished prose. Intelligent details and suspenseful plotting. This is speculative fiction at its most transfixing. For me, this is the author's best book yet.

I’ve read a few books by this author now, and I’ve loved them all! She’s great at writing compelling stories with a good, taut thread of climate anxiety running through them. This one takes place at a remote wellness retreat deep in barren salt flats. I can’t give too much away without ruining it, but stuff goes wrong! Think Nine Perfect Strangers but a lot more stressful and with more death… Tense, anxiety-inducing and attention grabbing, with a slightly bleak message. Just how I like ‘em! Out in August.