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A Sweet Sting of Salt
A Sweet Sting of Salt: A Novel | Rose Sutherland
20 posts | 11 read | 2 reading | 8 to read
Once a young woman uncovers a dark secret about her neighbor and his mysterious new wife, shell have to fight to keep herselfand the woman she lovessafe in this stunning queer reimagining of the classic folktale The Selkie Wife. When a sharp cry wakes Jean in the middle of the night during a terrible tempest, shes convinced it must have been a dream. But when the cry comes again, Jean ventures outside and is shocked by what she discoversa young woman in labor, already drenched to the bone in the freezing cold and barely able to speak a word of English. Although Jean is the only midwife in the village and for miles around, shes at a loss as to who this woman is or where shes from; Jean can only assume she must be the new wife of the neighbor up the road, Tobias. And when Tobias does indeed arrive at her cabin in search of his wife, Muirin, Jeans questions continue to grow. Why has he kept his wifes pregnancy a secret? And why does Muirins open demeanor change completely the moment shes in his presence? Though Jean learned long ago that she should stay out of other peoples business, her growing concernand growing feelingsfor Muirin mean she cant simply set her worries aside. But when the answers she finds are more harrowing than she ever could have imagined, she fears she may have endangered herself, Muirin, and the baby. Will she be able to put things right and save the woman she loves before its too late, or will someone have to pay for Jeans actions with their life?
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review
Sarahreadstoomuch
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Pickpick

This was way better than I expected! I don‘t even know why I had low expectations, maybe that‘s just been this book groups luck lately…. But a queer historical tale based in selkie folklore…. I loved the build up!

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DebinHawaii
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Pickpick

#ReadAway2024

I stayed up far too late for someone who has to be at the airport early tomorrow morning, but I did manage to visit my last book of September before midnight. I‘ll post my September recap in the morning.

I really enjoyed the beautiful writing, folklore & fantasy in this one & the character of Jean, a midwife & Muiriun, the young pregnant wife she helps & falls for. Lyrical & enchanting.

DieAReader 🥳Excellent!! 1mo
45 likes1 stack add1 comment
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DebinHawaii
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Happy Saturday! Back from my retreat & back to wifi & cell service but still having majorisdues with the Litsy iPhone app since it went out on me in the middle of leaving #5JoyFriday posts last Saturday. The only thing I can do is see my Litfluence but nothing else can be accessed or looked up. 😩 Litsy tech can‘t “replicate the issue” so no help at all. I guess with 8+ years with no issues except when the site is down for all, I‘ve been lucky⬇️

DebinHawaii …it‘s so frustrating & online Litsy without the app is cumbersome on my phone. Anyway, I will be catching up on everything including my own posts but I‘ll be slow.

Hanging at the coffeeshop with my computer this mid-morning to look at posts & plan my October reading for #HauntedShelf & just catching up on life as last week was all work.
1mo
BarbaraBB How frustrating! Maybe delete the app and download it again? 1mo
Larkken Very frustrating! This is what my iPad app screen looks like too. I hope you‘re able to get it fixed. (edited) 1mo
52 likes3 comments
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DebinHawaii
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Ahh, friends… it‘s 5 AM at the airport & I‘m heading to Maui for our company retreat. Internet & cell service are known to be spotty so I may be on & off for the next 3 days. Should be an adventure! 😬🤞🏼
Starting this one for the trip.

currentlyreadinginCO Ooo I liked this one 1mo
Lesliereadsalot You should be a food photographer! Everything always looks amazing and makes me want it whatever it is. 1mo
61 likes2 comments
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Kitta
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Pickpick

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Unexpectedly loved this! I borrowed it from my library through Libby because I liked the cover and title without really knowing what it was about. Glad I did!

Set in 1813, this novel is about a midwife who lives in solitude outside of the village and one of her patients, a neighbour, who seems to be going through a rough time at home with her husband.

Folktales, #lgbt, and feminist themes.

On the train back from Providence!

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks So pretty 😍 5mo
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vlwelser
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Pickpick

I liked this a lot. It's a queer selkie wife retelling.

#Aardvark @AardvarkBookClub

#DoubeSpin @TheAromaofBooks

AardvarkBookClub ☺️🫶🦭 5mo
TheAromaofBooks Great progress!!! 5mo
33 likes2 comments
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BookwormAHN
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Pickpick

I really enjoyed this book. It's a retelling of the Selkie Wife folktale. In this one, Jean, the local midwife, finds her neighbor's wife outside one night in labor. She helps her to her house and then delivers the baby, but when her neighbor shows up for his wife and child, more questions do too.

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vlwelser
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Good thing the library has a never ending supply of these fancy paper things with the words inside.

Actually this one is mine. And it's signed by the author. Extra fancy. #Aardvark

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xicanti
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A SWEET STING OF SALT finally engaged me a little past the 100-page mark! Hurray!

It‘s really gloomy out today and I think I‘ve caught a mild cold, so I plan to spend a goodly chunk of the afternoon reading my book while I drink hot beverages.

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xicanti
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I want to cook my supper and read my book. He wants me to give him seventy-three treats. Sigh.

I say I want to read my book, but honestly… well. I don‘t dislike A SWEET STING OF SALT as of page 90. I can‘t point to any element and say, “I hate this,” but I can‘t point out anything I love (or really like), either. One of those. I‘ll give it a little bit longer, then consider whether I want to drift away from it. #gaymay

dabbe #cuddlycasey 🖤🐾🖤 6mo
Aimeesue I mean, his demand does not seem all that exorbitant, according to my dogs. (edited) 6mo
xicanti @Aimeesue Casey is always entirely reasonable by doggie standards. 6mo
Aimeesue @xicanti 😂😂😂 6mo
39 likes4 comments
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xicanti
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This week‘s library haul consists of the final volume of FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST and some exciting stuff for Gay May. I‘m amazed the librarians processed A SWEET STING OF SALT so quickly. They normally drag their feet on anything genre, but I guess they‘ve decided this one‘s literary enough to merit better treatment.

Then again, THE BAKER AND THE BARD has been out less than two months, too. Maybe they‘ve checked their genre processing bias. #gaymay

peanutnine Ooh the Baker and the Bard looks so cute! 6mo
xicanti @peanutnine I‘m really looking forward to it! I think I requested it after I saw it in a Book Riot Comics newsletter. 6mo
31 likes2 comments
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Kitta
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Yay voting day for #CampLitsy24

My choices:

- A Sweet Sting of Salt by Rose Sutherland
- How to Knit a Human by Anna Jacobson
- Clear by Carys Davies
- I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger
- Knife by Salman Rushdie
- Extinction by Daniel Preston

It was so hard to choose!

Getting excited for camp now and to see what the final books are! Thanks so much to the organizers @Megabooks @squirrelbrain @BarbaraBB

BarbaraJean So quick! I will need time to obsess over researching all the titles! 😆 Still, I‘m sure I Cheerfully Refuse will be one of my picks—and probably Clear as well! 7mo
BarbaraBB Great choices! I am still narrowing down all the books I want to read! 7mo
squirrelbrain Great choices! ❤️ Thanks for voting! Don‘t worry @BarbaraJean - plenty of time for obsessing and analysing! 🤪 7mo
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Megabooks Nice choices! I just popped over to the vote tally, and so many people have already weighed in. Exciting! 7mo
Megabooks @BarbaraJean I'm only 60 into looking into titles, and I've had the spreadsheet a day longer. 7mo
Kitta @BarbaraJean I already had 5 I knew I wanted to pick but that final one took a while! 6mo
monalyisha I voted for Clear, too. Fingers crossed! 🤞🏻 6mo
Kitta @Megabooks so exciting seeing everyone‘s picks! I can‘t wait to find out the top books. 6mo
21 likes8 comments
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AardvarkBookClub
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If you relate to any of these you should probably grab a copy 😉🦭🌊💘

#aardvarkbookclub #jointoday #codelitsy

mariaku21 I'm waiting for my library copy but I can't wait to read this one! 7mo
52 likes1 comment
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AardvarkBookClub
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Once a young woman uncovers a dark secret about her neighbor and his mysterious new wife, she‘ll have to fight to keep herself—and the woman she loves—safe in this stunning queer reimagining of the classic folktale “The Selkie Wife.”

#aardvarkbookclub #jointoday

currentlyreadinginCO I liked this one a lot 7mo
vlwelser So excited to dig into this one. 7mo
AardvarkBookClub @currentlyreadinginCO it was so atmospheric 💙 7mo
47 likes1 stack add4 comments
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vlwelser
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It was so freaking hard to pick 1 book this month. I ended up with the most unusual choice. Which is pretty on brand for me, actually.

#Aardvark @AardvarkBookClub

Megabooks I‘m excited for this one! 7mo
TheBookHippie 👀 7mo
30 likes2 stack adds2 comments
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Megabooks
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Does anyone else vote with their dollars when ordering from book clubs? I‘ve already read and loved James. (I am SO deeply behind on reviews!!) I bought it a) to support Everett, whom I love as an author, and b) because I want #aardvark to be incentivized to choose more books like it. Salt sounded interesting, and my library didn‘t have it, so it went in as well! I love the selkie myth.

vlwelser 💯 on both of these things. 7mo
Megabooks @vlwelser 🙌🏻🙌🏻 7mo
BarbaraBB Glad you loved James. I saw on IG Cindy didn‘t so I am curious where I‘ll end up! 7mo
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TheBookHippie Yes. Allll the time. 🙂 7mo
Megabooks @BarbaraBB I thought it was one of his best! 7mo
Megabooks @TheBookHippie awesome! 🙌🏻 7mo
59 likes6 comments
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rachelsbrittain
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Starting a new arc on my crack of dawn flight this morning

49 likes1 stack add
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rachelsbrittain
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monalyisha Oooo! Tag me in your review if you remember to! Sounds promising. 8mo
40 likes1 comment
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snapsnarlgrowl

Selkies and spinsters and sapphics, oh my!

currentlyreadinginCO I liked this one! 11mo
4 likes1 comment
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currentlyreadinginCO
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Pickpick

This beautiful book is a sapphic retelling of The Selkie Wife, an Irish/Scottish folk-tale in which a man compels a Selkie to marry him, causing her to long for the sea and her true home. Although I knew generally what the story was about, the plot kept me guessing. There are some dark elements here. I found the beginning a bit slow, but by 20% in, I was hooked. ( Thanks to NetGalley for the #ARC, full rvw on Goodreads.com/xtinalea )