This book is very relevant in the current culture of our world. It's an in-depth look at how life is forever changed in the wake of a family tragedy. It's a bit emotional at times, but very well written.


I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

This novel had a lot more depth than I expected. Aside from the mystery of the death of a teenage girl on vacation with her family on a fictional Caribbean island - which is enough of a teasing, twisting plot to entice you to read this book - we also get incredibly nuanced insights into race, class, grief, and the tourism industry. I loved how the chapters switched from one character's perspective to another so we got to see everyone's points of view and life histories. I will be thinking about this book for a long time.

I heard a lot about this book and was excited to get a chance to read it! The story is entertaining, though I never connected that much to the characters. I could see this being a popular book club read. Recommended!

This one took me a little while to get into. It doesn't exactly start out slow since the murder occurs fairly early in the story, but I just couldn't get interested in the beginning.

Once I got hooked, I couldn't put it down! This was a fantastic read, and I can't wait to see more from Alexis Schaitkin.

I was first drawn to Alexis Schaitkin's debut novel Saint X, about a wealthy teenage girl who goes missing during a resort vacation in the Caribbean, because of its similarities to the Natalee Holloway disappearance in the mid-2000s. Natalee's face was splashed across the news, and her disappearance became lore and a cautionary tale for young women everywhere about the dangers lurking in every corner of the world, ready to prey on the youthful and beautiful at a moment's notice. Growing up hearing stories such as these all my life, naturally, I had to read Saint X.

Saint X opens on its namesake - the island of Saint X - where at first glance, everything is lush, luxurious, and alluring. This playground for the wealthy is where Alison, the novel's missing girl, her parents, and 7 year-old sister Claire are spending a week's vacation during the winter of 1995. On their last night in Saint X, Alison goes missing, and when her body later turns up on a nearby island, foul play is suspected. Alison was last seen with two of the resort's employees, and the men are taken in as suspects, but later released. Alison's death goes unsolved, and her parents and sister return to their lives in New York City forever changed.

Fast forward to present-day, where Claire is now grown and living and working at a publishing house in New York. Claire only has faint glimpses and memories of the sister she lost, and when she stumbles across one of the men accused in the crime - Clive - she becomes obsessed with discovering the truth of what happened to Alison that fateful night, and who exactly was the sister she never got to know.

Saint X is a slow burn of a novel, and is all about the secret, private sides of themselves people keep hidden from the world. More a work of literary fiction than a suspense thriller, Saint X takes readers inside the heads of the novel's characters, gradually telling the story of Alison's fate at a languid pace, slowly and deliberately revealing bits and pieces of the characters and their motives. As readers learn more about the characters, the characters, in turn, learn more about themselves, making this as much a novel about exploration and self-discovery as it is about a crime that takes place on the sandy shores of a resort town.

Saint X is an unusual book, not quite like anything I have ever read before. With anecdotes from minor characters mingling with the foremost narrative as told in snippets by Claire, Clive, and Alison, all of the pieces of this edgy and atmospheric novel come together to create a vividly stunning read.

Sure to be enjoyed by those who are looking for something a little different, as well as readers who are into "buzzy" books, Saint X is destined to be one of this year's hottest reads.

Note - I listened to an audio production of Saint X, complete with a full cast of characters, which made for an enjoyable listening experience. I dislike when females read for males and vice versa, so I was pleased to discover that this wasn't the case with Saint X. This is the first audiobook I have listened to that incorporated sound effects, such as beach waves and an airplane jetting off the tarmac, which was a nice touch. This audiobook is recommended to listeners who want to lose themselves in the dark and murky depths of this sinister novel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I received an ARC digital copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

This story takes place in 1995 on Saint X an island in Indigo Bay. It seems to be narrated mostly by Claire with other people interjecting their point of view. The Thomas family is on vacation with other affluent families who can afford to escape the cold winter from which come.

Alison Thomas is a typical teenager attending Princeton and wishing she were anywhere but on a family vacation. Her little sister Claire (Clairey) is 7 years old and adores her older sister. The family lives in NYC and enjoying their time soaking up the sun at a luxurious resort. Just before the family is due to return to NYC, Alison goes missing.

Immediately, everyone becomes a suspect especially several resort workers with whom Alison befriended. Claire is aware of her sister’s late night escapades but always seemed to return before morning. Clive and Edwin are young and adventurous which is attractive to Alison who is bored with the tranquil island. Eventually, Alison’s body washes up on shore but the police are unable to determine what happened.

The years following her death overshadowed the lives of her family who never quite recovered from her loss. The family moves to Pasadena as they can no longer live in NYC with the reminders of Alison. Eventually, Claire moves back to NY but goes by the Emily I hopes of distancing herself from the past.

A chance encounter in a taxi cab sets Claire off on a mission to uncover the truths from the past. It begins to consume her daily life as she follows trails of what she believes will explain what happened to her sister.

The story explores how people want to present the best version of themselves to be accepted and valued by others. The ideas of success and actual success seem to vary greatly amongst people. It doesn’t matter whether you grew up with money or not, everyone experiences complicated and difficult situations in their lives. People believe what they want to believe to try to bring clarity to their existence. Needs and wants can often be jumbled ultimately influencing life decisions.

I'm pretty sure this was the longest 350-ish pages I've read in quite some time. And the thing is it started out great, but it quickly slows to a snail's pace that just does not work for me. I read to be entertained, to be wowed, even for a bit of escapism. This did none of those. I did push through in hopes that things would pick up and I would find more of what pulled me in at the beginning, but it wasn't to be. I think this one could've done with a lot of tightening up and relying more on some tension building. Instead, it's a rambling stroll that gets a bit away from the mystery it could've been.

Claire is only seven years old when her college-age sister, Alison, disappears on the last night of their family vacation at a resort on the Caribbean island of Saint X. Several days later, Alison’s body is found in a remote spot on a nearby cay, and two local men–employees at the resort–are arrested. But the evidence is slim, the timeline against it, and the men are soon released. The story turns into national tabloid news, a lurid mystery that will go unsolved. For Claire and her parents, there is only the return home to broken lives. Years later, Claire is living and working in New York City when a brief but fateful encounter brings her together with Clive Richardson, one of the men originally suspected of murdering her sister. It is a moment that sets Claire on an obsessive pursuit of the truth–not only to find out what happened the night of Alison’s death but also to answer the elusive question: Who exactly was her sister?
This was a book with a pretty good premise. It was a lot like watching the true crim documentaries on Netflix. However, there were times when it was a bit slow moving, which tended to irritate me. I recommend.
**I voluntarily read and reviewed this book

DNF this book. The writing style was not for me. I felt the story was written with far too much detail, dragging on and not progressing. The narrative style of the writing was so hard to get into. Referring to characters as “the fat one” or “the father” was extremely unappealing and made it nearly impossible to follow along or connect with the characters.

Unfortunately this did not work for me. Too slow moving, poor character development, and overall just didn’t engage me enough to keep going with it. I DNFed at about a quarter of the way through due to ultimately not really caring to find out how it all turned out. There were glimmers of good writing and an intriguing premise, but sadly just never came together for me.

So this book follows Clairey/Emily as she stalks, I mean, befriends the man who is accused of killing and raping her sister Allison while on vacation to the Caribbean. Sounds intriguing but this slow burn just ended up being a huge uphill battle to then fall flat. The author spent so much time describing Saint X and what everyone was doing but then didn’t spend near as much time with the aftermath. Started off so strong and I was so looking forward to reading this that I’m sad to say this one was just a disappointment.

What an amazing story. The characters are so rich and full. This centers around a wealthy, American family who are on a trip to a small, Caribbean island for a relaxing winter break vacation. The children are 18-year-old Alison who attends an Ivy League school and her younger sister, Claire. The eldest daughter goes missing on the morning that the family is supposed to be traveling home. her story becomes the centerpiece of the family's lifelong story. How they react or process the events on that island.
"With the truth we will do what, become what? And in gaining the truth, what do we lose?...That in the end, you just have to decide. To live. To continue."
This is an intricate and highly interwoven story of love, loss and resilience.
Highly recommend.
#Netgalley #SaintX #CeladonBooks

If I'm being totally honest, I only picked up SAINT X because of its striking cover - those colours are so beautiful! (And I hope I did it justice!)
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SAINT X tells the story of Claire, a woman whose sister, Alison, mysteriously died while vacationing on the island of Saint X many years before. When Claire encounters Clive, one of the men accused of (but ultimately not charged with) Alison's murder, she decides to discover the truth of her sister's death once and for all.
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I really enjoyed this book! Alexis Schaitkin is an extremely talented writer - from the descriptions of beautiful Saint X and its self-important tourists to the complex thoughts and deep backstories of the main characters, I was pulled in right from the beginning. I didn't agree with many of the characters (as you can tell from what I wrote in my drawing!), but I still couldn't wait to see where the story would take me next. At some point towards the end of the book, I even thought that I'd be okay not finding out who Alison's murderer was because the story was still so entertaining and well-written, even without a big, exciting reveal.
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I alternated between reading this book on my phone and also listening to it on audio, and I really enjoyed going back and forth between the mediums. Thank you to @librofm, @macmillan.audio, @celadonbooks and @netgalley for the free copies (both online and on audio)! #partner

This book has quite the interesting premise, and although it seems at first glance that this will be your typical murder mystery centered around a pretty girl with privilege, it turns out to be so much more. My main gripe with this book is that it really started to drag in the middle. I found myself skimming through the paragraphs to get to the point. However, I think this is a solid debut novel from a new voice in literary fiction.

Saint X is about a family on vacation on the tropical island of Saint X. The older daughter in the family disappears and later her body is recovered. The book tells how the younger daughter handles the loss of her big sister. Lots of action keeps this story moving along at a fast pace. Read and enjoy but maybe wait until you're not vacationing on an island.

“Saint X” opens with a preview of what will come. Readers learn there are many versions of the Alison Thomas story, and now there will be another version of that disturbing, traumatic moment, one that separated events into before it and after it.

The omniscient narrator sets the tone with a present tense tone, instructing readers to look, to examine the vivid geography of this tiny Caribbean island. The account describes events about to unfold, comments on what is seen, and hints at what is yet to come. The manner is clinical, precise, and unemotional. The scenes are beautiful and multi-sensory; something is not purple but eggplant-colored; minutes do not pass but diffuse like perfume into the air. Readers want to go there, experience the island, relax, and enjoy. However, all that changes after the event, the discovery of a young girl’s body on the beach

The story of Alison Thomas, the family, the supporting characters, and island itself are complex and detailed. It is told from many points of view, and narrators weave in and out of the storyline, often unidentified by time, place, or person. It is up to the reader to interlace these complex parts into a detailed, complete whole. Everyone has part of the story to tell, and everyone played a part in the tragedy, but who, in addition to Alison, is the real victim over time. Perhaps all of them are.

Schaitkin created a narrative that is rich in dialogue and geography and still full of questions and uncertainty. Readers are as confused about what really happened as are the participants in this drama. In the end, the pieces fall together, but in the tale of a girl found dead on a tropical beach, there are no winners, only losers.

I received a review copy of “Saint X” from Alexis Schaitkin, Celadon Books, and Macmillan Publishing. The sense of place was dramatic, and the characters multifaceted. The multiple points of view made continuity difficult at times, but that also contributed to the intrigue. Who were these people? What part did they play in the drama? How did they get to today from 1995?

I think up front you cannot go into this thinking it is a thriller. It is not that other than there is a death of which the cause is unknown. It is a very slow burn type of book. Instead, I think you need to go into it expecting a read about those that do not get closure when a loved one suddenly dies, and if we can look at it from that perspective, as well as maybe this was supposed to be about how the loved ones grieve, how they become obsessed with finding answers and think that will help them finally move on, then maybe you will have the right expectations and enjoy this more than I did.

Ultimately, this book was not for me, but not every book will do it for you and that’s ok. Where I think, for me, it got a little sideways was in the aftermath of trying to deal with the loss of Alison. There were a lot of characters to sort through, the pacing was VERY slow in the middle, and we went on a couple of turns at the end that just didn’t seem necessary. All of this resulted in a journey that I wasn’t sure why I took.

That being said, the beginning was great, it set the stage quite nicely, I loved the tidbits at the end of the chapters with new voices that you weren’t quite sure who they were but they added to the mystery. However, by the end, there were so many of these, I was just confused. Case in point, I had the ending a bit wrong on a character and @abookwormwithwine had to help set me straight. The pacing at the end picked up a bit, which I was grateful for, but it wasn’t enough to change my overall thoughts on this one.

I still remember when Natalee Holloway disappeared; she was from my home state, her stepbrother was a college classmate of mine, and one of my best friends from undergrad was with her the night everything happened. That summer, it seemed like her story was everywhere — a constant fixture of the Today Show and cable news shows on slow days. I think that speaks to a fascination with stories like these, tourist disasters that scream for headlines like “Nightmare in Paradise!” To be quite honest, that was the main reason I picked up this book.

To be quite honest, I was not expecting the book that I got. At the description, I was expecting a quick-paced, fast read, one that was perfect for the beach on the cover. Instead, I got a lyrical examination of grief and loss, misunderstandings and misbehavior, that was somehow both overly done and a story that I didn’t want to put down. I’m both impressed and annoyed with the author.

Alison, our golden child, goes missing and turns up dead while on her family vacation to an idyllic (and fictional) Caribbean island, Saint X, struck down before she finishes her freshman year of college. The rest of the book is an explanation of what happened to all of the involved parties — her much younger sister Clairey, her waspish parents, the suspects, and others that crossed paths with Alison during her shortened life. Clairey — called by her middle name Emily in an attempt to distance herself from the tragedy — chances upon one of the suspects in her sisters death, quite by chance, and spends the next few months slowly stalking and befriending him in an attempt to solve the mystery. The perspective changes often throughout the book, so we get multiple perspectives and timelines and locations, but it isn’t confusing. It just paints a complete picture.

Admittedly, I was frustrated by a lot of this book. I found the writing and some of the exposition almost unbearably pretentious, and I didn’t really like any of the characters (yes, I’m aware that’s not the point), but I still felt drawn to finish the story. I was frustrated with how it ended up immediately after finishing, but after reflecting a few days (I had a hard time writing this review), I am content with it. It was the perfect ending for the story the author set out to tell.

TL;DR: Hard to read not because of the subject matter but because of overly lyrical prose and pretentious language, but still an absolute page turner that will make you think hard about privilege, tourism, and grief.

This was an interesting book, and different than I expected. I enjoyed it was a slow-burn that had me thinking from the start to finish. I was invested in the story, and curious to know what happened to Alison. This would be a good book for a discussion.

The first thing I was surprised to find when I started Saint X is that it is not a thriller. Instead, this book reads more as a tale of survivor's guilt. As a slate of different characters reflect on the death (murder? suicide? accident?) of Alison Thomas, you start to see the ways (big and small) in which a host of people can be responsible for a single death.

This book is also a wonderful look at the truth of a sensationalized tragedy, in the vein of Are You Sleeping. Schaitkin looks at how our cultural desire to gorge on personal tragedy has real effects.

Through Claire following Clive, we also get a deeply personal look at how PTSD continues long after an event and can have a deep impact on your life that can resurface without warning.

Saint X reminds me of Little Fires Everywhere in the way it takes a topic that could be a cheap thriller in the hands of another writer and turns it into a literary experience.

Disclaimer: As we continue the discussion of Own Voices in the book community, I want to give the advice to listen to Caribbean reviewers on whether the patois used comes across as authentic or offensive.

The one thing that kept me from 5-stars is a personal struggle with first-person narrative that doesn't serve a purpose within the world of the novel. The way this was written, I kept expecting it to be a manuscript Claire was writing, but it did not pan out and the decision felt a little wasted.

4.5/5