House of Salt and Sorrows

by Erin A. Craig

𝙒𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙗𝙤𝙧𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙖𝙡𝙩,

𝙬𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙖𝙡𝙩,

𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙖𝙡𝙩 𝙬𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣.

SYNOPSIS

The story begins in Highmoor, a majestic manor situated at the edge of the island. The People of the Salt are gathered yet again to mourn the tragic death of another young girl. As daughters of the Duke of the Salann Islands, the twelve sisters used to be known as the Thaumas Dozen, but following 3 previous passings, only 8 are left.

Annaleigh believes there’s more than just bad luck—or as the islanders say, a horrible family curse—to her sisters’ deaths. Determined to find out the true reason & put an end to the deadly rumors, she dives headfirst into the investigation.

Following ghostly visions & ancient legends of the Gods, Annaleigh finds a mysterious door in the midst of the mansion & an invitation to a grand ball too perfect to be true. As her sisters dance through the night in fancy gowns & elegant slippers with gorgeous strangers in exquisite masks, Annaleigh becomes certain there’s more than what meets the eye.

REVIEW

The Twelve Dancing Princesses is a German fairytale originally published by the Brothers Grimm. There’re various versions of the story often sharing similar storylines : A wealthy king discovers that the dancing shoes of his 12 beautiful daughters are always worn through as if they’ve been dancing all night. He then announces that whoever solves the mystery of the princesses’ dancing shoes, will be promised the hand of a princess & also the right to the throne.

Mostly the story ends with the “whoever“ solving the mystery & breaking the dancing curse, thus becoming king & marrying a princess. But here’s where our story gets different.

The perfect mix of it all—the thrill of racing against time attempting to solve multiple grotesque murders, haunting visions blurring the lines of reality, elegantly interwoven legends of the Gods & the tight-knitted bonds of the sisters—a refreshing & captivating tale to the end.