The Salt Line

By: Holly Goddard Jones

Narrated by: Hillary Huber

"Great, near-future sci-fi...A propulsive, character-driven thriller...I really love this book."—Kelly Link, author of Get in Trouble and Magic for Beginners

In the spirit of Station Eleven and California, award-winning novelist Holly Goddard Jones offers a literary spin on the dystopian genre with this gripping story of survival and humanity about a group of adrenaline junkies who jump “the Salt Line.”

How far will they go for their freedom—once they decide what freedom really means?

In an unspecified future, the United States' borders have receded behind a salt line—a ring of scorched earth that protects its citizens from deadly disease-carrying ticks. Those within the zone live safe, if limited, lives in a society controlled by a common fear. Few have any reason to venture out of zone, except for the adrenaline junkies who pay a fortune to tour what's left of nature. Those among the latest expedition include a popstar and his girlfriend, Edie; the tech giant Wes; and Marta; a seemingly simple housewife.

Once out of zone, the group find themselves at the mercy of deadly ticks—and at the center of a murderous plot. They become captives in Ruby City, a community made up of outer-zone survivors determined to protect their hardscrabble existence. As alliances and friendships shift amongst the hostages, Edie, Wes, and Marta must decide how far they are willing to go to get to the right side of the salt line.

Odd, pointless story.

The set up is for an exciting post apocalyptic thriller.

What you actually end up with is a mediocre soap opera that ends without ever really going anywhere.

Many...even most of the characters die, but it all happens 'off screen' and you don't really feel anything, and neither do the other characters and despite all they supposedly go through, nothing really changes for the characters or the world afterwards.

Which is really too bad. The set up and premise are excellent...its a world I would like to read more about...just needs a different author to tell the story.

And OK Reed, but nothing special.

The story sounded great in the preview, but it was pretty lackluster. I’m not sorry I read it, but I was glad when it was over.

Great Story! Definitely recommend.

I really enjoyed this listen. Very interesting story with great characters that kept me invested throughout.

Great

Loved this book. Great, believable characters in an unusual situation. Excellent writing. I can’t wait for her next nivel.

Wish the narrator was a bit better

The speed the book was read was way too slow for me. Using the sped ups feature didn’t help.