The Salt Grows Heavy

"Khaw's poetic prose and stylish approach to gore make it a blood-soaked, unforgettable gem." --The New York Times

From Cassandra Khaw, USA Today bestselling author of Nothing But Blackened Teeth, comes The Salt Grows Heavy, a razor-sharp and bewitching fairy tale of discovering the darkness in the world, and the darkness within oneself.

A Best Horror Book of 2023 (The New York Times, Library Journal) - An Best Book of 2023 (NPR) - An Indie Next Pick

You may think you know how the fairy tale goes: a mermaid comes to shore and weds the prince. But what the fables forget is that mermaids have teeth. And now, her daughters have devoured the kingdom and burned it to ashes.

On the run, the mermaid is joined by a mysterious plague doctor with a darkness of their own. Deep in the eerie, snow-crusted forest, the pair stumble upon a village of ageless children who thirst for blood, and the three "saints" who control them.

The mermaid and her doctor must embrace the cruelest parts of their true nature if they hope to survive.

"This brilliant novella is not to be missed." --Publishers Weekly, STARRED review

"With this brilliantly constructed tale...Khaw cements their status as a must-read author." --Library Journal, STARRED review

Also by Cassandra Khaw:
Nothing But Blackened Teeth
A Song for Quiet
Hammers on Bone
The Dead Take the A Train (co-written with Richard Kadrey)

Author: Cassandra Khaw
Binding Type: Hardcover
Publisher: Tor Nightfire
Published: 05/02/2023
Pages: 112
Weight: 0.45lbs
Size: 8.40h x 5.50w x 0.80d
ISBN: 9781250830913


Review Citation(s):
Library Journal Prepub Alert 12/01/2022 pg. 14
Publishers Weekly 02/13/2023
Library Journal 04/01/2023 pg. 91
Booklist 04/15/2023 pg. 30
Shelf Awareness 05/12/2023

About the Author
CASSANDRA KHAW is an award-winning game writer and former scriptwriter at Ubisoft Montreal. Khaw's work can be found in places like The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Lightspeed, and Tor.com. Khaw's first original novella, Hammers on Bone, was a British Fantasy Award and Locus Award finalist, and their latest novella, Nothing But Blackened Teeth, was a USA Today bestseller, Bram Stoker Award nominee, and Indie Next Pick.