The Salvage

‘A gothic tale with a powerful sense of place and an eerie atmosphere’ Sunday Times

By: Anbara Salam

Narrated by: Angus King, Raghad Chaar

'A gothic tale with a powerful sense of place and an eerie atmosphere'
The Sunday Times, Best New Historical Fiction Picks

'A heady, entertaining brew...asks questions about guilt, superstition, desire, power, and historical inheritance'
Scotland on Sunday

It is 1962, and Marta Khoury, a trail-blazing marine archaeologist, has travelled to Cairnroch, a small island off the east coast of Scotland. An Arctic shipwreck containing the remains of a famous Victorian explorer has been towed back to the island at the behest of his wealthy descendants. Marta's job is to retrieve valuable artefacts from the vessel, deep beneath the freezing Scottish waters. But on her first dive, she becomes convinced she has seen a ghostly figure lurking in the wreckage.

When Marta discovers objects from the vessel have inexplicably disappeared, she must work to uncover their whereabouts before her boss - who is also her ex-husband - discovers their absence. As a series of unsettling and strange occurrences begins to unfold, Marta's work trip turns into a long winter as the worst snowstorms of the century sweep in and trap the islanders, and their ghosts, in an icy wilderness.

'With her signature wit and unflinching eye for historical detail Anbara Salam brings a remote Scottish island chillingly to life. The Salvage plumbs the icy depths of memory and colonialism and explores whether love can survive in the frostiest of outposts' Francine Toon, bestselling author of Pine and Bluff©2025 Anbara Salam

Critic reviews

A gothic tale with a powerful sense of place and an eerie atmosphere.

A heady, entertaining brew... asks questions about guilt, superstition, desire, power, and historical inheritance.

With her signature wit and unflinching eye for historical detail Anbara Salam brings a remote Scottish island chillingly to life. The Salvage plumbs the icy depths of memory and colonialism and explores whether love can survive in the frostiest of outposts (Francine Toon, bestselling author of PINE and BLUFF)

A rich, gothic mystery, The Salvage has a moody, salt-drenched atmosphere, and layers of intrigue that span centuries. I couldn't put it down (Flynn Berry, New York Times bestselling author of A DOUBLE LIFE)

An atmospheric gothic . . . a driven heroine . . . An unusual and gripping read

As chilly as the icy sea, as haunting as the prospects of ghosts, The Salvage is a novel to keep you up all night. Anbara Salam is a master of suspense. Be careful when you start this book, because you won't want to stop (Rene Denfeld, bestselling author of THE CHILD FINDER and the forthcoming THE TALKING BONE)

An immersive Gothic ambience and a sense of bitter cold so vivid that we can feel it chill our own bones as we read