Song of the Saltings

'Song of the Saltings' is Rachael King’s latest atmospheric YA folk fantasy, that draws its power from landscape, superstition and resistance. Set on the isolated island of Brack, the novel follows sixteen-year-old Lotta, who has lived for eight years under the shadow of a sacrifice that should have claimed her life. Instead, the monstrous Glimm took her pony, subverting the island’s brutal tradition and leaving Lotta to be regarded with both reverence and suspicion.

King builds Brack with confidence: salt marshes, bogs, horses, harsh winters and a ruling Council whose authority depends on fear. The island’s annual sacrifice is not only a piece of folklore, but a mechanism of social control. Through Lotta and Moss, a hideling boy from an exiled community, the novel examines how cruelty becomes custom when people are taught not to question it.

The story moves with strong narrative pull, balancing mystery, danger, and a gently developing bond between its young protagonists. Lotta’s connection with the horses gives the novel tenderness, while both the Glimm and Jenny, the bog witch, bring unease without overwhelming the book’s wider sense of adventure. At times, some of the political patterns are familiar, but King’s language and world-building give them fresh force.

'Song of the Saltings' is well suited to readers drawn to folklore, wild landscapes, and stories of young people challenging inherited injustice. It is a polished and compelling addition to the Aotearoa YA fiction landscape.