Review Detail

I'm a huge fan of YA horror novels and wow, just, wow on BLOOD AND SALT. This is one roller coaster ride into a centuries old world hidden in some Kansas cornstalks. Set within this cult is a 500 year old story of hate, loss, and ghosts seeking immortality. What's not to love?

What worked? The creeptastic mood of this novel has readers follow twins Ash and Rhys Larkin after their mother to Quivira, a mysterious town in Kansas. Add to this the ghostly presence of a girl that looks a lot like Ash that won't leave. This ghost shows Ash bloody things that might happen or had already happened. What's terrifying to Ash is how much the ghost looks like her!

Ash is someone who is loyal and won't give up on her mother after she leaves suddenly. What really works though is the chemistry between her and the hottie Dane. Seriously, this chemistry sizzles. Just his smell sets off longings and desires that can't be turned off.

Dane though has some secrets of his own. I loved whenever Ash and him were together. The pages literally ignite with passion. Liggett does a great job showing us two lovers that a centuries long curse can't tear apart.

The secrets within the cornstalks are horrific and chilling. The ghost of Ash's ancestor, Katia, has set up some kind of invisible shield so people can't get in or out. The cult within at first seems to welcome Ash and her brother but little by little cracks appear. Not everyone is what they seem. The villagers prepare her for a ceremony in which she will be the vessel of Katia to be reunited with her murdered lover Alonso. But there is much more going on here. Sinister forces along with a string of gruesome deaths seem to follow Ash along with visions that have her losing track of time.

There's some very vivid images that are haunting. Don't read at night without a light as these scenes are very descriptive as well as horrific.

Bittersweet forbidden love meets Children of the Corn with a ohmigod reveal that will have readers gasping. Bloody, powerful, and stunning, this novel had me wanting more!