This version of the fairytale included ghosts, romance, an unreliable stepmother, an unreliable narrator, gods, goddesses, and magic. I was so focused on this story, that I was genuinely surprised when Annaleigh got a love interest (yay!!). Maybe this book would feel more generic if I was intimately familiar with this particular tale, but I was mesmerized page by page. I’ve never read or seen anything regarding the 12 dancing princesses fairytale. I honestly can’t remember the last time I was spooked while reading. I did not know what I was getting myself into when I picked this book up. All you need to know beforehand is that this doesn’t hold back from gore, it’s a dark twisted fairytale, and you should probably keep a light one while you’re reading. I highly recommend going into this story as blind as possible. With most books, I try to start them without knowing much about the plot. Through Verity, Annaleigh’s youngest sister, we learn about their deaths in very gruesome and grotesque detail. We learn quickly that a few of her sisters have already died, including their mother. The first chapter opens with the funeral of one of Annaleigh’s twelve sisters. It reminds me a lot of the real story of Cinderella, the version that is decidedly not told to children. This book, right off the bat, was a grim dark, twisted version of a fantasy retelling. I was caught like a fish, hook, line, and sinker.

The synopsis included some of my favorite things: a castle on the coast (I can practically smell the salt air), princesses, and fairytales.

The cover was so beautiful and intriguing I just had to know more about this book. I picked this book up from Target on a whim (during quarantine when I had to physically go into the store to pick up my prescriptions).

House of salt and sorrows book