The Salt Grows Heavy
ByPublisher Description
“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) • A Best Book of 2023 (NPR) • A Bram Stoker and Shirley Jackson Award Finalist! • 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.
Includes the bonus short story, "And In Our Daughters, We Find a Voice", set in the same universe.
Also by Cassandra Khaw:
The Library at Hellebore
Nothing But Blackened Teeth
A Song for Quiet
Hammers on Bone
The Dead Take the A Train (co-written with Richard Kadrey)
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Download the free Fable app

Stay organized
Keep track of what you’re reading, what you’ve finished, and what’s next.
Build a better TBR
Swipe, skip, and save with our smart list-building tool
Rate and review
Share your take with other readers with half stars, emojis, and tags
Curate your feed
Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communities3393 Reviews

Grace
Created about 9 hours ago
Josue
Created about 13 hours ago
mack 🦇🌿
Created about 17 hours ago
Maria Isabel 💋
Created 1 day ago
Julia Busato
Created 1 day agoAbout Cassandra Khaw
Other books by Cassandra Khaw
Start a Book Club
Start a public or private book club with this book on the Fable app today!FAQ
Do I have to buy the ebook to participate in a book club?
Why can’t I buy the ebook on the app?
How is Fable’s reader different from Kindle?
Do you sell physical books too?
Are book clubs free to join on Fable?
How do I start a book club with this book on Fable?