2.5/5 stars

Claire is just seven years old when her college-age sister, Alison, disappears while on family vacation. The Caribbean Island of Saint X is supposed to be an escape from reality for wealthy tourists, not a place of nightmares. Several days pass until the discovery of Alison’s body on remote cay. Two local men, employees of the resort that Alison was seen hanging out with, are arrested. There isn’t enough evidence to charge the men and the timeline of events is unclear. The truth of what happened to Alison is something Claire and her parents go home without.

Years later Claire is working in New York City when by chance she finds herself in a taxi being driven by one of the men accused in her sister’s death. Claire starts down an obsessive path wanting to know everything about this man in the hopes that she can gain his trust and learn the truth. How has this tragedy impacted these two lives over the years?

This is going to be a hard review for me to write because I struggled through reading this book. Perhaps this is one of those reads that I should have put aside or decided to not finish.

This story launches as almost a fictional take on a true crime event. It’s one of those stories you remember from the news or have seen on the internet. A family vacation gone incredibly wrong. I was absolutely captivated by this portion of the story and was fully invested in what had happened to Alison. As the book shifts to present day, the story takes a turn for a work of literary fiction. The book is now no longer about the mystery of what happened to Alison, but the impact of her death on her sister.

I think the main problem for me was that I walked into this book expecting a work of crime fiction and a thriller. This book really does not fit the bill for either of those. There is certainly a crime involved, but at the core this is an in-depth character study into two people who were impacted by the death of Alison. It is the story of how that tragedy changed their lives forever. I genuinely appreciate what the story actually is at its core and think the book as a whole is very well done for the right audience.

I’m certainly a fan of slower-paced books when the methodical unraveling of a story is done with intention and to benefit the reader. For me, there was a lot of material in this story that could have been cut out. There was a lot of repetitive storytelling that didn’t work for me and made me slow down how fast I could read this book or how many pages I could read in one sitting. This isn’t a book I wanted to binge read.

At the end of the day I think anyone deciding to pick up this book needs to go into it knowing that this is a work of literary fiction. They must know that the pace of this story is slow. They must know that this is not a thriller, but a character study. With the right mindset I think this story is perfect and can easily hit its mark with a reader. Overall, Schaitkin’s writing ability was fantastic and extremely impressive for a debut book. I would certainly consider picking up another book from her in the future!

Disclosure: Thank you to Celadon Books for sending me a free copy of this book.

This title was given to me by Celadon Books and Netgalley to read before its release in February of 2020.

An island vacation ends in tragedy for one family when their eldest daughter is found dead. In ensuing chapters her sister tries to find out what happened.

I know the author worked hard on the writing and that I’m in the minority, but this book just didn’t work for me. It was much too long with many, many passages of narrative that didn’t move the story forward. I couldn’t find any sympathy for the surviving sister as she became obsessed with a taxi driver who had friended her sister on Saint X.

The ending was flat and unsuccessful.

Saint X by Alexis Schaitkin is a fabulous, gripping, and intricate thriller that has a dash of mystery thrown in to top off this delightful read.

There are several things that I love about this book:

1. I enjoyed the initial premise of the mystery surrounding the disappearance and loss of Claire’s big sister, Alison, and the questions that are presented secondary her death.

2. I find it fascinating that while I was initially drawn into the book due to the initial plot, I found that that is only a fraction of the journey through this book. One finds themes presented that take the reader through not only the young girl’s death, but also the aftermath: what happens to the interrogated, what happens to the family members after such a devastating and tragic loss, how one copes with not only a murder of a loved one, but also a murder that does not have an answer, and what happens/how said events affect individuals long-term.

3. I enjoyed the pace of the book, the twists and turns, and I was satisfied with the ending.

4. I also actually enjoyed (in a way) disliking some of the characters ( adult Claire and Alison). To find them imperfect, spoiled, and selfish made them more real to me.

5. I enjoyed being able to read alternate points of view, not only from Claire and Clive, but also little snippets from other characters as well. It gave the reader a better, well-rounded peak into this story.

6. I also enjoyed the descriptions of the landscapes of this imagined island in the Caribbean and of NYC. The author was able to actually create an image so that I actually felt as if I was there.

This is an excellent book that weaved a complicated and intricate tale that kept me interested till the end. Yes, this is a murder/mystery/thriller, but the author was able to add so much more. And that, ladies and gentlemen sets this book apart from others and will keep it fresh in my mind for many months to come.

Excellent 5/5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Celadon for this ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon and B&N accounts upon publication.

A haunting search for answers that may never be found. Almost twenty years have passed since Claire's sister Alison met a mysterious and tragic end on a tropical vacation. Now going by the name Emily, living and working in NYC fate steps in as she insinuates herself into the life of one of the men accused, but never convicted, of having killed her sister so many years ago.

Not a thriller, not necessarily even a suspense, this original book is more of a quest. You may find that along the way you become obsessed with the need for closure, much the same as Emily/Claire. With varying perspectives on the tragedy from minor characters interspersed throughout, the book offers a look at the many ways people deal with being associated with a trauma depending on their level of involvement.

Publishing in February 2020 just in time for winter break on the warm beaches of the tropics, I highly recommend this 5 star read for everyone.

I received an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review

This is a perfect book.

It’s less of a thriller than a literary saga where someone died, but you don’t miss the thrills because the narrative and the characters are so striking.

I’m jealous of people who get to read it for the first time

Alison(18 years old), her sister Claire(7 years old), and their parents go on vacation to the island of Saint X. When Alison vanished and is eventually found dead, the mystery surrounding her death changes many lives, forever. You might think that this will be Alison's story, but in fact, it revolves around Claire, the men who were last seen with Alison, and her parents( though Alison certainly is the catalyst for the story).
Many years separated Alison and Claire, and as an adult, Claire learns things about her sister that were not apparent to her 7-year-old eyes. When Clair unexpectedly meets one of the men who may have killed Alison, her carefully constructed world comes crashing down. Claire is desperate for answers and her single-minded obsession to discover the truth, no matter what the cost, may lead to her downfall.
Beautifully written in the then and now, the biggest tragedy may not be the loss of a young woman who had her whole life ahead of her, but rather the ripple effects that Alison's death had on those left behind. I was slightly surprised by the reveal about Alison's fate, but when I thought about it, it made perfect sense.
I don't know how Celadon does it, but they knocked it out of the park yet again with Saint X! A book where the hours just flew by until I reached the end. 4.5 stars.

The synopsis reads like a murder mystery, but this book leans more toward literary fiction so I think it's important to go into it with the right expectations. You will never find out exactly how Allison died, but what you will discover is how her death has affected those who knew her, however briefly.

This book was a mind fuck of unreliable narrators who were each sharing their own stories and projecting their own versions of Allison into their theories of how she died. I do feel like Clare's parts dragged on, but that may be because I found her the least interesting. I definitely wanted to hear more from the other characters. Schaitkin's descriptions are especially vivid and that is the best part because I felt so easily transported to a Caribbean island or the streets of NYC.

The audio is narrated by a full cast and I highly recommend.

Thanks to Celadon Books for my ARC and Macmillan Audio and Libro.FM for my ALC.

I will leave a review of this on Amazon or B&N on Feb. 18, 2020

I received a copy of this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher, thank you I really enjoyed the book and this is my honest review.

I wasn't exactly sure what to expect from this book, and was the first book I have read from this author. Actually I had never heard of them before. This book portrays things that have actually happened before but it isn"t about that event, wealthy family visits tropical island and one doesn't leave alive. Having said that, this isn't the main storyline in the book it is more centered around the younger sister what she grew up believing and what will transpire once she grows up by accident comes across one of the men she believes is responsible for her sisters death. What is truth, what is fiction that is up to us to decide from what we can gather from reading the book. I would certainly recommend this book to others.

Wow! It was impressive! It was unique! It was different!

Well, I have never been a great fan of anything slow burn but this brilliant author achieved amazing job and attracted my attention with the detailed, objective, photographic depictions and perfectly rounded characterization. This book is not a big mystery about unsolved case of a young woman’s dying. This is also not only about obsession of the sister she left behind or the grief of whole family recently changed their residents and trying their best to move on with their lives.

This story is mostly about racism, class differences and privileges. The story-telling captivates you and you just enjoy yourself to get lost in author’s long, meaningful sentences. First she takes us to non-exist tropical by showing us photographic, impeccably visualized details and make you believe that island and its rich visitors are real. And of course don’t forget to get your thickest coat and free your mind about the dirtiness, too much crowd, being hauled or bumped by several people because she also takes us a trip to show the realistic parts of New York ( definitely found my New York at those pages !)

In the middle of 1990’s, the family’s vacation at a spectacular tropical island doesn’t end well as they expected. Their 18 year old girl Allison is missing. A famous actor and his girlfriend accidentally find her corpse in the waters of Faraway Cay. The police interrogate several people including blond boy hanged out several times with Allison and they couldn’t find any proper motive and let him go so this event turns into a local mystery that has never been solved.

Allison’s little sister (only seven) watches every move of her sister during their holiday as like she is the responsible one. She doesn’t care Allison promises her pineapples, shells or stars, she just want to have more time with her. One night, she falls asleep and when she wakes up she finds out that her sister will never come back!

So the story moves to the present time. We meet grown up Claire, living in the city never sleeps, trying to make her ends meet. One day she climbs into a cab and as soon as she finds out cab driver’s name: Clive Richardson, her entire life changes because the guy is the very same blond boy who has been questioned and released during their holiday. Claire’ obsession takes control of her to find out what happened to her sister.

What I truly like about this book: WRITING. WRITING. WRITING. Photographic, detailed, objective depictions. It questions the unfairness of privileges and inequality between rich and poor, races.

What I didn’t like about the book: Both of the girls were so annoying for me. (Allison in the past and Claire in the present.) I want to slap them or scream their face: “Get a life!” They were privileged pretentious spoiled girls that I really detest so of course I had really hard time to connect with them.

And about the ending: Of course it is not what I expected. But surprisingly I liked the conclusion. I know most of the readers won’t agree with me but I always enjoy to get a few steps behind an author’s brilliance, especially when it comes to solve a mystery or revealing a secret, big ugly truth.

Overall: Even though I hate the guts of the characters and fantasized to punch them 24/7, this book is promising, very-good written, highly anticipated, successful debut.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Celadon Books to share this one of the most anticipated books of 2020’s ARC COPY with me in exchange my honest review. And I truly congratulate Alexis Schaitkin with her brilliant debut novel.

This book was exquisitely written, complicated, and wonderful. It is hard to describe without giving too much away, but this book explores so many different topics, and though it covers both different topics and different viewpoints, the author is able to weave it all together so that it truly remains one narrative, broken up into different sides.

It incorporates past, present, and future into the telling of a story - and I truly adored all of the character development. It explores topics of grief, of loss, of privilege, and of identity.

I know I will read Schaitkin's future works.

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for the chance to read one of my most anticipated books of next year!

Before I begin my review I would first like to ask everyone to stand for a slow clap in reverence for Celadon Books.

👏 👏 👏 👏 👏 👏 👏 👏

The new voices they are presenting to the literary world are beyond compare. I've no doubt that all of my friends on Goodreads Island of Misfit Readers has AT LEAST one of their authors books on their Best of 2019 list.

So, kudos Celadon, you've made mine and many others year in books among the best yet.

Ahem, ok here we go...

_____________________

Simply stated, Alexis Schaitkin was born to be a writer.

Schaitkin chose to open up this story using a third-person objective POV and it was a phenomenal choice. I felt like a literal fly on the wall as I took my first taste of the characters in Saint X.

From there I have somewhat bipolar feelings about this story.

😃 I loved the seamless weaving of the multiple plotlines along with the random chapters featuring POV's from peripheral characters.

😟 However, I didn't care for any of the characters themselves. I never felt any real affection or aversion towards any of them.

😃 I loved that the author chose to build a fictional island for this story. I had no trouble picturing the resort with it's privileged clientele and the surrounding destitution just beyond it's lily white walls.

😟 However, I was lulled to sleep by the over descriptive world building when it came to the NYC scenes. Maybe if you're a New Yorker this would appeal to you but for me it was relentless drivel.

For me, the most affecting part of this story isn't the grief or obsession that is at the heart of the story. It is the underlying messages about race and privilege.

I saw myself in the thoughts and actions of this overindulged white family. Things I've said and done in an attempt to show how "woke" I am only succeeded in showing my complete and utter ignorance.

Schaitkin has given me an entirely new perspective and shaken and changed me in a profound way.

Isn't that what great writing is supposed to do?



* I recieved an ARC in exchange for an honest review. *

⭐⭐⭐💫

While vacationing on the island of Saint X, we are introduced to Claire and her family. From here, we follow seven year old Claire after her sister, eighteen year old Allison disappeared and was found dead days before departure. Many years later, Claire (as an adult) comes in contact with one of the men suspected of her sister's death, Clive. Claire's obsession with Clive grows as she becomes desperate for answers.

I really liked that it was told from different perspectives and the insights it provided. The story and characters were compelling and interwoven very well. While I enjoyed this story, it moved slow at certain points. It was overly descriptive that it felt tedious some times to read. This book is written with many layers of complexity to dissect. However, I would also like to counter that I was expecting a quick thriller before starting, so that could be why.

Saint X contains so many important themes pertaining to grief, family, race, identity, and privilege. Overall, I did enjoy the book and would recommend it to readers who enjoy slow burner, mystery/crime books. I also think it would make for a great book club discussion.

Thank you to @celadonbooks and @alexisschaitkin for providing me with this review arc in exchange for an honest review.

Updated 12/13/19: with thanks to Netgalley for approving me for the eARC as well!

“…There is nothing the truth can give you that you cannot give yourself… in the end, you just have to decide. To live. To continue.”

Above all, Alexis Schaitkin’s 'Saint X' is an exploration of how one singular event can reverberate in the most interesting and unpredictable ways. Claire was only seven when her 18-year-old sister, Alison, disappears on the island of Saint X. Years later, Claire has a chance interaction with one of the men who may have been involved. As she begins to become increasingly obsessed with this man and his secrets, her own ability to cope with her sister’s loss becomes untenable.

This novel is so much more than just its seminal event. It’s a whodunit, wrapped in a coming-of-age story, bound with threads of white privilege, implicit biases, and the comforts and complacency that come from socioeconomic privilege. It posits various ways that individuals process and deal with trauma and deceit. There are so many delicious layers to this story, so many truths, so many perspectives, and the narrative unfolds in an enthralling way.

In my opinion, 'Saint X' is a triumphant debut. I cannot wait to read what Schaitkin comes up with next.

**Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.**

Did not finish this one, but read enough to comment. The pace of this mystery is slooooooow. And, the narrative, full of flashbacks, is choppy. A fairly good story line, but overall just ok. The pacing and lack of sympathetic characters is the primary reason I moved on.

"𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒉! 𝑮𝒐𝒐𝒅, 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒆, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕? 𝑾𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒉 𝒘𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒅𝒐 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕, 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕? 𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒉, 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒐 𝒘𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒆? 𝑰𝒕 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒆 𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒃𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒚𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒅𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎."⁣
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⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ /5⁣
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I was over the moon to receive this advanced copy. I stalked NetGalley for this book, crossed my fingers constantly, thought about this book. I think I ended up willing the universe to make it mine, because the physical copy arrived with no notice and I excitedly accepted it. ⁣
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I thoroughly enjoyed this book!!! St. Croix is my favorite place in the world, and I got all those vibes. Reading about similar places, that might be familiar, helps the imagination.⁣
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I've seen some less favorable reviews about how it ended, but honestly I think it ended perfectly. I've had a rough two weeks, and this month is not shaping up to be as successful as others in terms of the count of books read, but having the ability to finally finish this book today, after having started it 13 days ago, I'm content with November (and 2019 in general, if I'm honest).⁣
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Thank you, Celadon Books (@celadonbooks ) for making me a very happy reader, and to Alexis Schaitkin (@alexisschaitkin) for putting this to life on paper.⁣

This book reminded me a bit of Searching for Sylvie Lee. One sister dies while on vacation and the other tries to find the answers of who did it and why. But, like Sylvie Lee there are so many flashback stories into people's childhoods you start to feel like they all aren't necessarily or relivant. ⁣
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Then there's the issue with race being brought up a lot and again, it's unnecessary. For example a white character brings up that she feels uncomfortable with a black waiter bringing them drinks. Her thought process makes it seem like she thinks she's better than everyone else for being so self aware as to think this, but I'm not sure what the actual intent was for including this was. ⁣
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This book was being classified as a mystery or thriller, but readers of those genres will be disappointed. It’s really well written, but may fit best if classified as literary fiction. Those that enjoyed The Dutch House or Ask Again, Yes may enjoy this one, but like those books, it was a miss for me. ⁣

This book is quite different than what I expected. Not nearly as “high octane” as most thrillers but I liked it a lot. Beginning story reminds me of the Natalie Holloway story but much different. The plot runs through a death of a teenager on an island vacation. Thee is a who dun it aspect, but the relationships and characters take center stage
The book focuses on the younger sister and one of the accused island boys and their lives after the murder. I thought the book was a bit wordy and seemed longer than it was. I would definitely recommend it anyway! Otherwise 5 stars ⭐️ would be appropriate. Celadon Books is my favorite publisher. They really do their research. I’ve read this one, Silent Patient, and A Nearly Normal Family, my favorite this year.
Thank you for the ARC. It was given with no promise of a favorable review.

First of all, I want to say thank you so much to Celadon for my physical copy, Netgalley for my digital, and Librofm for me audio copy. I split reading this book between the three and it helped me finish the book quickly and I enjoyed it a lot. It wasn’t what I was expecting, but I liked it regardless.

I assumed this was more of a thriller, but it ended up being more of a family drama. The book starts with an 18-year-old girl, Alison, going missing while her family is on vacation on the island of Saint X. You get to understand Alison’s family in the beginning and that’s when I started getting into the family drama side of this book.

Alison’s younger sister Claire becomes obsessed with the case and trying to figure out who was involved. The book shifts to be about her grief and the loss of her sister. The book focused on the difficulty of losing someone and even though some people didn’t like that part, I felt that I could relate to it and it meant a lot to me personally. Having recently lost a best friend, this book did a good job discussing grief and loss in a relatable way. The loss of one person can really touch so many others and affect their lives in different ways, and this book did a good job of showing that.

I also think this book was thought-provoking in the way it talked about race, class, and economic status. It had many points to discuss and brought up important issues. The writing in this book was beautiful and descriptive and left a lot to think about.

Something I didn’t like about the book was the character’s personalities. It was hard to feel bad for Alison in some parts because she seemed spoiled and other parts I felt frustrated at Claire. The character's flaws do make the characters relatable, just not likable to me personally. I also felt the ending was a bit of a let down after Claire’s searching throughout the book.

In the end, I did enjoy Saint X and I was happy I had a chance to read it. I would recommend it to people that like family dramas, light mystery, or just a good story. 4-stars!

4 stars

This is going to be a very controversial book in that it will generate a lot of disparate feelings and lots of discussion. It's not your old school crime thriller/whodunnit by any means. (I wish I could have been warned prior to reading about the pace of solving the crime. It's certainly not the books fault, but the very fast moving beginning put me in the wrong headspace for what I was to expect from the rest of the book so it took work to pull me out.) It is a true, 21st century millennial work that is genre bending, unique in it's voice, it's structure and pacing. There are no likeable characters, and there is a lot of walking and watching. (I mean a lot of walking and watching.) However, overall, the parts that work THEY WORK. Let's discuss:

Let's start with the good:
- The first 70 pages and the last 60 pages are the brilliant bookends that make this book a 4 star read.
- The writing is whip smart and thought provoking - class, socioeconomic status, race...it's all there. My book friend Michelle wrote that 'this is book club gold' and she is completely right.
- The way Alison's death reverberates with every person she touched and those who witnessed her last days is genius in how it was depicted.

The challenges:
- I started skimming bits of the NYC sections. For a 340 page book, it got a little too descriptive for me and made it feel tedious at times.
- If character likeability is your thing, you might struggle.
- An ambigious ending, which can work for some and not for others.

While you might be confused and think, "This is the worst endorsement of a book ever, Michelle", I promise that this is something that I'm really glad I read. I think it really helped me mature as a reader. The author's acknowledgments gave insight into what the inspiration was for writing this and I think that really brought it home for me. I CANNOT WAIT to see what Alexis Schaitkin comes up with next. I will be writing to Celadon begging for an advanced copy because I'm so impressed by this being a debut.

I am extremely grateful and so appreciative to Celadon Books and Alexis Schaitkin for sending me a copy of Saint X to read and provide an honest review. Celadon Books has easily become one of my favorite publishers this year. I have loved everything I have read by them and appreciated their deliberate choices in what they publish.

Thank you also to Netgalley for the early copy to review honestly.

Review Date: 11/14/19
Publication Date: 02/18/20

I really, really wanted to LOVE this book but sadly, I just didn't. I loved the premise but the details bogged the book down at times. And I found myself skimming the story instead of enjoying the writing. I just wanted to get to the end. But even that fell a little flat for me.