The Salt Oracle

by Lorraine Wilson

It's been seventeen years since the internet crashed and left the world broken...

On the Bellwether, a huge floating college safe from the politics and war of the mainland, Auli is part of a research team studying the Oracle - a strange, uncanny girl who channels dangerous ghosts. The scientists notate everything she says, using her to piece together maps, weather forecasts, and anything else that might make the region’s hazardous waters a little safer for shipping cartels and local fishermen alike.

Auli is horrified when her beloved mentor, Boudain, reveals his scheme to create more human Oracles, seeking to leverage the power of this unique girl into security for the Bellwether and perhaps even a return to a new, warped digital age. The very next day, she finds him dead.

Reluctantly promoted to lead her team, Auli begins an investigation into Boudain's death. Her scrutiny reveals the corrupt heart of the institute she has dedicated herself to, and as the ghosts and even the very seas around them start to mutate, she is forced to wrestle with a life-changing decision: save the Oracle or save the Bellwether - and all the lives that depend on it.

400 pages, Hardcover

Published November 6, 2025

About the author

Writer, biologist, photographer, herder of cats, drinker of tea. she/her.

A conservation scientist and third culture Scot, I live by the sea writing stories influenced by folklore and the wilderness. My books have won two SCKA awards and been finalists for British Fantasy Awards, the Kavya Prize and the Saltire Book Award, and longlisted for the British Science Fiction Awards. I have also won a British Fantasy Award for short fiction.
I have been stalked by wolves and befriended pythons, run the Rewriting The Margins mentorship scheme for marginalised writers, and can be found at https://linktr.ee/raine_clouds.

IG: @raine_clouds_writes

Reviews

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.75! I really enjoyed this one - an examination of scientific obsession and morality, of a post-apocalyptic ocean hungry for vengeance and the girl it chooses as it's vessel. Lyrical and academia heavy, set on a stormy research centre in a ruined sea, it's super plausible climate fiction with fantasy elements.

So much of this is a mash up of dark academia - obsession leading into questions of not whether something can be achieved, but whether it should - and autonomy. A girl kept in a cage called a scientific institute, kept locked in her own mind for the sake of humanity after a massive digital Crash took out the internet, and climate change rendered the seas almost impassable without forecasts. It’s a dark academia without any of the usual suspects, just pure claustrophobic pursuit of knowledge and results at the risk of the world, and morals, and values. I loved the fact that we got the perspective of the Oracle, and that her narrative story was woven so deeply into this that it became the heart of the book.

The power of storytelling is the key to THE SALT ORACLE: what we tell ourselves to keep ourselves sane; how we rationalise away terrible things; the depth of the truth and how easy it is to bury; the fault we lay at the feet of others, stories of loss and guilt and shame and heartbreak and trauma. Stories are central to this one, in more ways than it may first seem.

I loved the inclusion of topical issues alongside long-standing myths and stories about the sea - the duality of current climate change mixed with children’s stories, folklore and legends compounded the violence that the sea was trying to do to humanity. And don’t we deserve it?

What indeed happens when you pour violence into something, or someone, and tell them they’re monstrous?

What happens when the monsters, real or echoes, ghost, sea or girl, want to get free? How can you justify keeping anyone or anything in a cage and call it kindness?

- if you’re in doubt. Yes, I will be reading all of Lorraine Wilson’s work from now on.

Thank you Solaris Books for the arc, all thoughts are my own!

[Jamedi]

Rtc

[Angie Spoto · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Salt Oracle blends sci fi, the gothic, and folklore with such skill that I lost myself in its damaged yet hopeful world until the very end. It's a book that isn’t afraid of nuance, a story that imagines a world full of ghosts and monsters and confronts how the things that terrify us are made... and asks the question, how can such monsters be unmade? The Salt Oracle is rich and slippery and claustrophobic. It is a book for people who want to see the world differently, who want to lose themselves in the meanings between the lines, and go someplace that feels as strange and dangerous as our world but threaded through with hope.

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the world of The Salt Oracle the climate has broken down and the internet collapsed leaving behind digital ghosts - floating fragments of information like video clips, news reports, photographs - that can be lethal on contact.

The Bellwether is a floating college centring around the Oracle - a girl who can somehow connect to the ghosts or the fragments of the internet, providing rambling snippets of information to study.

When Auli's mentor dies in suspicious circumstances, she tries to uncover the truth: was it internal politics - someone trying to gain control of the Bellwether? Or was it outside forces attempting to destabilise the college? But it's soon clear that there could be an even greater threat - the ghosts are changing, their behaviour becoming erratic and even more deadly.

I haven't read the first book in this series, and for the first chapter or so I thought it was a mistake to go straight into this one, but it does start to make sense. It's a unique feeling world - climate breakdown and the loss of the internet has created a very different, unstable and dangerous world. The digital ghosts are interestingly weird and creepy. The Oracle attracts the ghosts, so the Bellwether is surrounded by them - imagine having edge past a floating video of sailors jumping from a burning ship or a new story of a natural disaster than plays on repeat. And if you touch it, you might dissolve painfully into pixels.

This is a kind of climate-horror, post-apocalyptic dark academia - part murder mystery, part academic politics. There's a slightly ramshackle feeling to the Bellwether, which, combined with the isolated setting at sea, makes everything very atmospheric and tense.

I ended up really enjoying this and will definitely read more from the author.
Thanks to Solaris Books for the review copy

[Annemieke / A Dance with Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Solaris and Netgalley for the review copy in exchange for an honest review. This does not change my opinion in anyway.

The Salt Oracle is a companion to We Are All Ghosts in the Forest. Set in the same world we see a different part of it.

The world was left broken after the internet crashed. Not just a loss of information but an extra creation of digital ghosts that can kill. Auli is on a research centrum that studies an oracle to gain information back. When her mentor and boss dies, it triggers events on research centrum they can never come back from.

This story is an interesting addition to this world. Where the first book felt much more personal, this book has a lot more politics. The child oracle also adds in a moral dilemma. Already using a child in this way would feel morally objectable to us. In this world where they need every little bit of information, it is not. But when it is discovered they have been drugging the child, that does become a discussion. Is it okay to take this much autonomy away from a person so that they are more 'managable' to get information from that can help the world? Does the one outweigh the many?

Our main character Auli is a little on the outside of the research center. Her division is scoffed at because to the others, it doesn't mean as much as what they do for the world. But when her division boss dies she is pushed to the foreground as she has to take his position. Not only that but she doesn't think he died naturally. This causes a lot of friction and discovery of secrets. She was a good character to follow for this story as she does question the morality of it all but she isn't very in your face. I think that was needed so that other elements of the story could come forward.

[Lyndsey Croal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stunning follow up set in the same world as We Are All Ghosts, bringing even more depth and intrigue to the digital ghosts and the dystopian world, but with new mysteries and moral quandaries. On the Bellweather, we find a strange world, woven with odd science and moral dilemmas - and ultimately finding hope against hope. The writing as always with the author's work is beautiful, rich and, atmospheric. The nautical setting claustrophobic and eerie, creating a locked room mystery like no other! Highly recommend if you like strange dystopias, dark academia

[Cathryn Melani (cat.inspired) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love this authors books. She has a truly unique way of entwining the world we know and giving it a scientific, dystopian twist that is just so believable. The writing is beautifully atmospheric and eerie.

The Salt Oracle was no exception. Set in the same world as 'We are all ghosts in the forest' but with different characters. This book features a beautifully constructed world set after the internet crashed and all the tech ghosts are loose in the world infecting humans.

This book combines some great aspects that make it totally captivating. Moral issues around the Oracle, friendships and who you trust, corruption, murder and romance. Filled with a diversity of characters, everything about this book while outlandishly brilliant and unimaginable was also just so believable at the same time.

I loved the multi POV aspects of this book, especially the ones from 'the girl' that you can't quite align at the start but then grow to make sense.

I didnt want this one to end and could have happily continued to follow these characters further into the story.

So glad to have read this one.

Thanks to Solaris books for my gifted paperback ARC and netgalley. All thoughts are my own.

[Frasier Armitage · Rating 5 out of 5]

If Guillermo Del Toro adapted Jules Verne like an Agatha Christie mystery, you’d end up with something like The Salt Oracle. It’s oceanic in its scope and beauty, and like the sea, it left me in a state of awe.

It’s no secret that I’m a massive Lorraine Wilson fan. Her previous books have always delivered beautiful prose, emotional resonance, and subtle power. For anybody else who adores Raine’s style of writing, you’re going to be very pleased to hear that The Salt Oracle continues this rich legacy of hers. New readers are going to fall in love with what she can do with a story, but it’s perhaps her most loyal readers that will get the biggest surprise from this book, and it’s all thanks to the pace she’s imbued it with.

When I say pace, you might picture a sprinter. There are thrillers out there that race with such breakneck speed to the finish line, they possess the kind of pace that makes Usain Bolt look like a slowpoke. This is not one of those books. But neither is it a slow meander around luscious landscapes or the gentle burn of an internal quandary. Raine excels at a glacial speed, but with The Salt Oracle, she’s written a story that actually moves. It may not sprint, but it definitely contains a sense of pace that adds an extra dimension to the book, and makes it differ ever so slightly from her other works.

This may be her first novel that prioritises plot, but that doesn’t mean to say that it’s lacking in character development or world building. The balance that’s struck between these elements is perfectly in harmony. It’s like listening to a trio of singers all delivering a complementary melody, heightening the beauty of the song. You’ll fall in love with the characters. Your heart will break and soar. But your mind will not be left behind as you’ll spend the entire book trying to figure out exactly who is responsible for the chaos that ensues, and what’s really going on below the surface.

In terms of Raine’s ability to weave beautiful sentences, every line in The Salt Oracle is a work of art. You won’t read a more lustrous locked room mystery when it comes to prose, or elegant dark academia when it comes to substance. The blend of literary experimentation and genre-conventional aspects are so well balanced that I cannot fault the telling of this tale in any way. It’s just a really beautiful book, okay?

As it’s a standalone sequel, you may be wondering: Do I need to read We Are All Ghosts In The Forest before diving into The Salt Oracle? The answer is no. But will it enhance the book if you do? Absolutely. The world of digitised ghosts where the Internet has bled into reality and is infecting humans is absolutely brilliant. How Raine tackled this in Ghosts blew me away. But the way this world has been expanded upon here left me even more stunned.

As to the mystery at the core of the book — its resolution and the eventual revealing of the true antagonist behind the primary conflict — I was left amazed. This doesn’t just give you a clever plot or a twisty murder to solve, it poses questions to ponder that will stay with you long after the final page.

Salt is a garnish that enhances the flavour of food. The Salt Oracle is aptly titled, because it does the same thing with the world Lorraine Wilson established in We Are All Ghosts In The Forest, deepening the flavour of her writing to absolutely delicious effect. If you’re looking for something dark and juicy to sink your teeth into, sprinkle your TBR with some of this salt.

[Elise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to Solaris for the advanced reader copy.

Rating: 3.5 stars

The Salt Oracle is a dystopian tale with an imaginative blend of sci-fi and heavy tones of dark academia. On paper, this is a perfect book for my tastes, though in the end I was left feeling slightly underwhelmed.

For me, it felt somewhat lacking in terms of worldbuilding (as I understand it is set in the same world as another of the author's books, perhaps there was more explanation there), though the concept was imaginative—the digital age come to an end, its data taking the form of 'ghosts' which appear as almost physical manifestations throughout the world, and a sea too perilous to cross without the aid of forecasts told by a mysterious child called The Oracle.

ᴛʜᴇʏ ᴡᴇʀᴇ ᴀɴ ᴀɴᴛ ꜱᴘᴇᴄᴋ ᴛʜɪɴɢ ʜᴇʟᴘʟᴇꜱꜱ ᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴀᴄᴋ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴏᴄᴇᴀɴ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ᴏᴄᴇᴀɴ ᴡᴀꜱ ᴀ ʀᴇᴘᴏꜱɪᴛᴏʀʏ ꜰᴏʀ ᴛʜʀᴇᴇ ᴛʜᴏᴜꜱᴀɴᴅ ʏᴇᴀʀꜱ ᴏꜰ ꜰᴇᴀʀꜱ ᴀɴᴅ ʙʟᴏᴏᴅʏ ᴇxᴘʟᴏɪᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴ ᴀʟʟ ᴍᴀᴅᴇ ɪɴᴛᴏ ɢʜᴏꜱᴛꜱ ᴛᴏ ʜᴀᴜɴᴛ ɪᴛ.

I wish I knew more about what lay outside the Bellwether station, but its isolation is key to creating an atmosphere of mystery and high stakes. Much of the conflict comes from the opposing ethics of the crew; their pursuit of knowledge above all else, the belief that the greater good absolves liability. These strong dark academia themes of moral ambiguity, ambition and tightly held secrets were what really attracted me to the book, and I think it's done very well.

ᴡʜᴇɴ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ɪᴍᴘʀɪꜱᴏɴᴇᴅ ᴄʜɪʟᴅ ꜱᴛᴀʀᴛꜱ ᴘᴜꜱʜɪɴɢ ᴀɢᴀɪɴꜱᴛ ʜᴇʀ ʙᴀʀꜱ, ᴀʟʟ ʏᴏᴜ ᴄᴀʀᴇ ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ ɪꜱ ꜱᴛʀᴇɴɢᴛʜᴇɴɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇᴍ. ᴡʜᴇɴ ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴛᴏᴄʜᴀꜱᴛɪᴄ ᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ɢʜᴏꜱᴛꜱ ᴍᴏʀᴘʜꜱ ɪɴᴛᴏ ᴀɴ ᴜɴᴋɴᴏᴡɴ ᴛʜʀᴇᴀᴛ, ᴀʟʟ ʏᴏᴜ ᴄᴀʀᴇ ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ ɪꜱ ɪɴᴛɪᴍɪᴅᴀᴛɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇ ᴏɴᴇ ᴘᴇʀꜱᴏɴ ꜱᴇᴇᴋɪɴɢ ᴛᴏ ᴜɴᴅᴇʀꜱᴛᴀɴᴅ ᴛɪꜱ ᴛʜʀᴇᴀᴛ, ᴍᴀʏʙᴇ ᴇᴠᴇɴ ꜱᴛᴏᴘ ɪᴛ.

As for characters, there are a lot of them. The main cast are fairly well fleshed out but I often forgot who some of the peripheral characters were. Auli, not the only pov but clearly the main character, was my favourite. Lacking in confidence, she is thrust into a new position of power and confronted with decisions she has never needed to make. It is her empathy that drew me in and had me invested in the story's outcome. The chapters of The Oracle herself were lyrical, dark and mysterious, doing well at setting the tone of the book. Unfortunately I just didn't connect to the characters as a whole as I would have hoped.

​🇸​​🇭​​🇪​ ​🇮​​🇸​ ​🇵​​🇦​​🇮​​🇳​ ​🇦​​🇳​​🇩​ ​🇩​​🇦​​🇷​​🇰​ ​🇼​​🇦​​🇹​​🇪​​🇷​ ​🇦​​🇳​​🇩​ ​🇱​​🇮​​🇬​​🇭​​🇹​​🇳​​🇮​​🇳​​🇬​, ​🇹​​🇭​​🇪​ ​🇭​​🇴​​🇴​​🇰​​🇸​ ​🇩​​🇷​​🇦​​🇬​ ​🇭​​🇪​​🇷​ ​🇩​​🇴​​🇼​​🇳​ ​🇦​​🇳​​🇩​ ​🇹​​🇭​​🇪​ ​🇼​​🇦​​🇹​​🇪​​🇷​ ​🇷​​🇮​​🇸​​🇪​​🇸​, ​🇸​​🇭​​🇪​ ​🇩​​🇷​​🇴​​🇼​​🇳​​🇸​ ​🇴​​🇳​ ​🇳​​🇺​​🇲​​🇧​​🇪​​🇷​​🇸​ ​🇹​​🇭​​🇦​​🇹​ ​🇧​​🇺​​🇷​​🇳​ ​🇭​​🇪​​🇷​ ​🇻​​🇪​​🇮​​🇳​​🇸​. ​🇸​​🇴​​🇲​​🇪​​🇼​​🇭​​🇪​​🇷​​🇪​ ​🇩​​🇪​​🇪​​🇵​ ​🇧​​🇪​​🇳​​🇪​​🇦​​🇹​​🇭​ ​🇹​​🇭​​🇪​ ​🇼​​🇦​​🇹​​🇪​​🇷​ ​🇦​​🇳​​🇩​ ​🇹​​🇭​​🇪​ ​🇨​​🇴​​🇩​​🇪​, ​🇸​​🇭​​🇪​ ​🇮​​🇸​ ​🇸​​🇨​​🇷​​🇪​​🇦​​🇲​​🇮​​🇳​​🇬​. ​🇧​​🇺​​🇹​ ​🇳​​🇴​ ​🇴​​🇳​​🇪​ ​🇭​​🇪​​🇦​​🇷​​🇸​.

Despite any niggles that didn't quite work for me, The Salt Oracle touches on a lot of my personal favourite themes. I would still recommend The Salt Oracle and will be keeping an eye on the author's work.

[Ergative Absolutive · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel like this deserves a higher rating on merit alone, because it's a very fine book. Wilson's writing is skilled and confident, and the conceit is novel and not over-explained: in some near-future catastrophe, all of our information technology becomes corrupted, transforming from books, computers, recordings, broadcasts, into digital 'ghosts', which hover in the air in fragments of leftover information, and can infect people, causing horrific deaths as living flesh is converted into pixelated nothingness. The titular salt oracle is a child who can interface with these ghosts, which is vitally important for a team of academics trying to recover something from the crash. One primary goal is recovering information from sea buoeys, because those buoeys are necessary for weather forecasts, and in the changed climate of the future even historical weather patterns are useless. Shipping and trade is completely disrupted. America has not been heard from since the Crash. War and disorder ravage the European continent. It's all very grim. But, similar to WIlson's first book This is Our Undoing, the dystopia is a backdrop to a much more personal, contained narrative of academic power struggles among the researchers in the sea-bound institution, whose whole purpose is to study the oracle, use the oracle to minimize, as much as possible, the devastation of the Crash. And, of course, Omelas-like, we find out how high the costs of that purpose will mount, and what people will do to hold to it, or to thwart it. Unlike Omelas, however, the price does not buy utopia, but a bare minimal improvement in a vast dystopia, which is an interesting adjustment to the moral calculus. Still, the shape of the ethical conundrum is familiar, which means it was less engaging than it might have been, and I got a bit bored waiting for people to plod their way through it.

[Chloe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Solaris for sending me a proof copy

This book had me hooked, right from the start there was a girl who told stories, songs and news from the past, a murdered mentor and a lot of ghosts. This is perfect for the dark academia lovers who want it in a sci-fi setting and dash of dystopian.

I do feel like certain parts of the world could of been explained a bit more, especially the part of the crash and how it managed to take out the internet and most tec, but I do understand whilst being a standalone it is a second book in a established world (I will definitely be checking out the first one because I need to know more about the crash)

The ghosts were intriguing especially with the different types like the story ghosts, news ghosts and coding ghosts all are unique and yet all can have devastating impacts on the humans for once they get infected there is nothing that can be done. It did take me a a few chapters to understand what the ghosts were mainly due to the limited worldbuilding.

I loved Auli, she isn’t afraid to keep to what her heart is telling her, especially when it comes to The Oracle and her own morals. We do see her grow as she becomes more sure of her abilities and her relationships with characters develop with a few being very sweet.

I loved reading the povs from The Oracle I felt like it really added to her story and as the plot develops it all starts to click together.

There was a range of characters with Auli, The Oracle and Raphaël being the main characters I would say and at times I did forget who certain side characters were as there are a few.

Overall it was a very intense, interesting and yet enjoyable read that really hones into moral issues, what makes a monster and can a monster be unmade.

[Harry Clark · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Salt Oracle is a sci fi dystopia set 17 years after the unexplained collapse of the internet. We spend time following the crew of the Bellweather, a giant floating college full of scientists and researchers as they try to harness the power of the Oracle. The Oracle is a mysterious girl who is able to channel ghosts, ghosts being fragments of technology that linger and can be deadly to humans. Through her ability to attract them, the Bellweather tries to piece together what they can and make the seas safe to traverse again.

Firstly I was absolutely entranced by the cover. It is a beautiful design and really caught my attention. It left me without any real expectations going in as it is abstract enough to not give too much away.

I found the writing to be extremely atmospheric. It felt like you were there on the Bellweather with them. You could feel the spray from the sea and the chill of the breeze. The ability to bring that kind of atmosphere to life and right off the page is impressive. I also really enjoyed the political manoeuvering and the scheming and plotting that takes place throughout. There is a lot of vying for power and posturing between the different people on the ship and you never quite know whose loyalties lie where and who can be trusted.

The Salt Oracle was marketed as a standalone and whilst it is, I do feel the world building is slightly lacking. It took me quite a while to figure out exactly what the ghosts were, and whilst that does help add to the atmosphere, it makes things a little confusing for the reader. I also pictured the idea of a huge floating college a bit differently and was anticipating more of leaning into the academia aspect of it.

There is definitely a moral dilemma aspect to it. A sort of “Omelas” ethical quandary when it comes to the differing opinions on how to deal with (and imprison the young Oracle. Sacrificing the freedom of one to make a safer world for the many.

It is moody and atmospheric and one of those books that you feel somewhat engrossed in. The topsy turvy nature, the mystery, and the confusion all add to it. We are transported to a world without the internet and the author echoes that confusing and difficult situation by leaving things somewhat unexplained.

[Jemima Pett · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of those books where everything you need to know in the first chapter is explained in the blurb. The last line sets up the rest of the book.

To be honest, bits of code and html wafting about, ghosts fizzing with static and video clips, and infecting people so they die a horrible death… well that’s a lot to take in. Maybe I was just confused for most of the book. Underneath the layers of confusion there is a complex mystery unfolding, where some of the deaths might have had human assistance, or might even have been self-inflicted. The atmosphere, the worldbuilding of a set of floating laboratories and habitats linked together like an oil rig, with waves, storms, fog and occasional sunshine is all very well done.

The characters leave something to be desired. Apart from there being a great many of them, some are well characterised, and the vast majority aren’t. I’m not sure the editor did the wonderful job the author thanks them for, when there are scenes in a room with three or four people in it, where the pronouns create confusion.

The story is very good, the concept brilliant, but the writing leaves a lot to be desired. It ebbs and flows, the ease of reading, possibly along with the plot complexity. I ought to like the Salt Oracle. It has all the elements I enjoy, But I didn’t and it frustrates me.

[A Bookworm Crafts · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Salt Oracle takes place seventeen years after the Internet crashed, releasing digital ghosts around the world. We follow a group of researchers on a boat who interpret the ramblings of a young woman who can hear the ghosts in order to provide forecast results.

This is a beautifully written lyrical book. In the acknowledgements, the writer explains that she was looking to write a dark academia book without all of the standard tropes, and I think she has really managed to convey the ethical side of it.

I struggled a bit with the world building as it didn't seem clear to be initially (and a lot of the details were never defined). That said, I understand this takes place in the same universe as some of her other books, so presumably this would be a familiar setting for fans of work.

A recommended read for fans of Lorraine Wilson, lyrical dystopia and dark academia.

Thank you to Netgalley and Solaris for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Salt Oracle is a beautifully haunting blend of mystery and magic that feels like a dream.

Lorraine Wilson’s prose is lush, lyrical and steeped in natural beauty, with every sentence carrying a weight to it that makes you linger on the pages, breathing slower and deeper, almost like you could feel the ocean breeze if you do.

The atmosphere is thick with enchantment and melancholy and the ancient pull of folklore that adds an eeriness to the story. Lorraine uses this tension exquisitely, creating magic that is wondrous and dangerous at the same time.

At the heart of the novel are the characters.
They're deeply flawed and deeply human, drawn together by the strangeness unfolding around them, but also by the urge to belong. Their emotional journey is as strong and present as the mystery itself, tender and real.

The Salt Oracle is like a spell. It's gorgeously written and quietly spellbinding.

[A.K. Adler · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one is going to haunt me. The worldbuilding is amazing, one of the most innovative dystopian settings I've come across, weaving stories and myths with disturbing technological ghosts. The setting perfectly embodies the themes of the cost of our actions, both in terms of environmental destruction and personal relationships.

I found it interesting that the author characterised this as dark academia. Although I didn't particularly find the academic element to be at the centre of the story, it certainly has the 'dark' aspect of moral ambiguity. The characters are all striving for an ethical direction, but are faced with impossible choices, and they are so well developed that you can feel yourself in their shoes.

The resolution is both tragic and uplifting. The prose is gorgeous. It was painful in its honesty, sublime in its truthfulness, and tender as an open wound.