Until just a few months ago, Beleza, Indi, Oscar and Zulu traveled the seas with their parents. Their mom and dad were sicarios: poachers who hunt sea monsters for prestige, sport and (sometimes) money. But then Mom and Dad went away, leaving behind only their travel journal. The four siblings haven't seen them since.
Now, Beleza, Indi, Oscar and Zulu are all alone on a ship so small they "can't breathe without getting air that's just come out of someone else's mouth." Elder sister Beleza has taken on the role of captain, while 17-year-old Indi is first mate and caretaker, and the two are doing their best to hunt the seas and raise "the kids," 12-year-old Oscar and six-year-old Zulu. Indi, whose love for his siblings "sweeps [him] away like a tide," wants something more than this life for them. Beleza, however, has one driving focus: revenge. She wants to use the travel journal to find out which monster likely killed their parents and kill it in return. When a stop on land for information unearths a pretty Tunisian pirate named Hura and rumor of a giant, unkillable monster called El Diamante, the siblings' already dangerous world becomes all the more perilous.
Under 300 pages with extremely short chapters, Hannah Moskowitz's (Zombie Tag) Salt is a quick read with a swiftly moving plot. While monsters pull the reader in, it's the humans and their interpersonal relationships that are the true shining stars of this work. Pick up Salt for the sea monsters and adventure; fall in love with it for the exasperating yet endearing characters. --Siân Gaetano, children's and YA editor, Shelf Awareness