Virginia, now very old, recalls when she was adopted by a childless couple and taken to live in a remote house on the edge of the marsh at the age of ten and the tragic events of the next two years as England enters World War II. This is a slow-moving story, but I enjoyed the writing, the isolated setting, and discovering what happened to make present-day Virginia contemplate suicide and revenge. I think I would have liked more of an ending than we got, though. ( )

This story is told from the perspective of a newly adopted girl in WWII and the same person when she is 80-something living at Salt Winds. It‘s a somewhat slow, moody read about a tragedy the girl witnessed and its affect on her as she nears death, but its well written and good enough to keep your interest to the end. She’s a flawed character making bad decisions at both ages, which is frustrating but necessary to the story. ( )

Eleven-year old Harriet, an orphan, is retrieved from the train station by her new father, Clem Wrathmell, who decides that they will make the long walk to her new home, a house known as Salt Winds on the verge of a dangerous marsh. Along the way, they are offered a ride by an acquaintance, Max Deering, but Clem declines. A perceptive girl, Harriet sense some tension between the two men, and that becomes even more apparent when Clem mentions Max to her new mother, Lorna. The strained relationships between these characters form the core of the novel.

Brooks employs a framework that, personally, I am getting really tired of: moving back and forth between two time periods. (At least she sticks with Harriet in both the 1940 and 2015 chapters instead of having some scholar or descendant find a mysterious packet of letters or diary from the past . . . ) In the modern-day chapters, Harriet is an old woman who has decided that her time has come, and she plans to walk out into the marsh to die. Her plans are interrupted by the arrival of a young girl, who just happens to be Max Deering's great-granddaughter. Will Harriet finally have the chance to enact revenge on the descendant of the man she blames for all the loss and misery in her life?

My feelings on this one are mixed. I think the author did a good job of getting inside of the mind of eleven-year old Harriet, but most of the other characters came across as stereotypes: the patient, loving father; the distant, beautiful mother; the evil, arrogant rich man; etc. As to the elderly Harriet, if what Brooks wanted was a one-dimensional character whose entire life was shaped by the incidents of one year, she did that well, too, because I got no sense whatsoever of her personality or what had happened to her in the last 70+ years. I found the ending pat and disappointing. ( )

10 year old Virginia is adopted by Clem and Lorna, a couple who lives at Salt Winds, a house on the edge of the marsh. Virginia is warned from day one not to venture into the marsh, it's tides and sinkholes a constant danger. The book alternates point of view with an elderly Virginia, who is ready to die. Young Virginia find herself dodging the attentions of Max Deering, their widowed neighbor. When a German plane crashes in the Marsh, Clem ventures out to rescue the pilot. He never returns.
This book was a bit difficult to read. The story did not seem to flow well. Young Virginia appeared much older than 10. At 10, she wasn't a very believable character. Old Virginia was very hard to like, which made her sections slow reading. Overall, a bust. ( )

A gothic, atmospheric read that is a mash up of mystery, historical fiction, and coming-of-age. I enjoyed The Orphan of Salt Winds much more than I expected. The story was intriguing and it was well written.

Virginia is adopted by a couple, Clem and Lorna, who live in a secluded house on the edge of the marsh. Clem and Lorna’s marriage has many secrets and tensions that Virginia doesn’t understand and their wealthy neighbor comes frequently to visit. One day, Clem goes out into the marsh to rescue an airman that starts a crime so devastating that Virginia is haunted for the rest of her life. Many years later, a girl is outside of Virginia’s house and is keeping secrets herself. ( )