Synopsis:
In Earth’s not too distant future, seas consume coastal cities, highways disintegrate underwater, and mutant fish lurk in pirate-controlled depths. Skipper, a skilled sailor and the youngest of three sisters, earns money skimming and reselling plastic from the ocean to care for her ailing grandmother.
But then her eldest sister, Nora, goes missing. Nora left home a decade ago in pursuit of a cure for failing crops all over the world. When Skipper and her other sister, Carmen, receive a cryptic plea for help, they must put aside their differences and set out across the sea to find―and save―her. As they voyage through a dying world both beautiful and strange, encountering other travelers along the way, they learn more about their sister’s work and the corporations that want what she discovered.
But the farther they go, the more uncertain their mission becomes: What dangerous attention did Nora attract, and how well do they really know their sister―or each other? Thus begins an epic journey spanning oceans and continents and a wistful rumination on sisterhood, friendship, and ecological disaster.
Review:
I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
There’s a special place in my heart for sibling stories, so when I heard about this book, I had to pick it up. While there are some dystopian/sci-fi elements throughout, at its core, Saltcrop is a tale about siblings and everything that type of relationship entails.
The story begins with Skipper (or Rosa, though no one calls her by her given name.) She’s the youngest of three sisters, owns a sailboat she uses to skim garbage patches for salvage, and has aspirations of traveling the world one day. She’s scraping to get by, and feels as though she’s looked down upon by her older sisters.
Then there’s Carmen, the middle sister. She recently finished school to become a nurse and is practical almost to a fault. She comes across as condescending at times (especially toward Skipper), though she really does mean well.
Last is Nora, the eldest. Nora is a scientist who is trying to engineer better crops. She’s brilliant, but not great with people. When she goes missing, her sisters go in search of her despite their differences, because she’s family. The sisters’ long journey makes them closer and forces them to have some of those difficult conversations that led to understanding one another better. I loved that part of the book.
I also found the premise of corporations controlling crop varietals solely for monetary gain (among other things) not only scarily plausible, but also a good backdrop for the sisters’ story. It’s a warning tale of what could happen if we allow it.
Overall, I liked this book. It isn’t fast-paced, but it’s thoughtful in its delivery, and sometimes, that’s just what a reader needs.
Saltcrop is currently available for preorder and will release September 30, 2025.
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