Saint X

A Novel

By: Alexis Schaitkin

Narrated by: Alex Hyde-White, Bailey Carr, Dana Dae, Dave Fennoy, Dean Gallagher, Denise Nelson, Ella Turenne, Josh Petersdorf, Kate Orsini, Melinda Wade, Prentice Onayemi, Ron Butler, Ryan Vincent Anderson, Tristan Wright

"Alexis Schaitkin's splashy debut novel, Saint X, is an audiobook lover's dream.... Queue this one up for a murderous, dreamy delight." (Paste)

Hailed as a "marvel of a book" and "brilliant and unflinching", Alexis Schaitkin’s stunning debut, Saint X, is a haunting portrait of grief, obsession, and the bond between two sisters never truly given the chance to know one another.

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? At seven, Claire had been barely old enough to know her: A beautiful, changeable, provocative girl of 18 at a turbulent moment of identity formation.

As Claire doggedly shadows Clive, hoping to gain his trust, waiting for the slip that will reveal the truth, an unlikely attachment develops between them, two people whose lives were forever marked by the same tragedy.

For fans of Emma Cline’s The Girls and Lauren Groff’s Fates and Furies, Saint X is a flawlessly drawn and deeply moving story that culminates in an emotionally powerful ending.

Praise for Saint X:

"Here is a marvel of a book, a kaleidoscopic examination of race and privilege, family and self, told with the propulsive, kinetic focus of a crime novel. Brilliant and unflinching, Saint X marks the debut of a stunningly gifted writer. I simply couldn’t stop reading." (Chang-Rae Lee, author of On Such a Full Sea)

“Richly atmospheric, by turns coolly satiric and warmly romantic, Alexis Schaitkin’s brilliant debut novel Saint X imagines a chorus of voices in the aftermath of the alleged rape/murder of a privileged American girl vacationing in an exotic Caribbean country. Part ’true-crime’ thriller and part coming-of-age novel narrated by the deceased girl’s younger sister, Saint X is irresistibly suspenseful and canny." (Joyce Carol Oates)

©2019 Alexis Schaitkin (P)2019 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

"Saint X is hypnotic. Schaitkin's characters...are so intelligent and distinctive it feels not just easy, but necessary, to follow them. I devoured [it] in a day." (Oyinkan Braithwaite, New York Times Book Review)

“Richly atmospheric, by turns coolly satiric and warmly romantic, Alexis Schaitkin’s brilliant debut novel Saint X imagines a chorus of voices in the aftermath of the alleged murder of a privileged American girl vacationing in an exotic Caribbean country. Part ’true-crime’ thriller and part coming-of-age novel narrated by the deceased girl’s younger sister, Saint X is irresistibly suspenseful and canny." (Joyce Carol Oates)

"Saint X, Alexis Schaitkin’s atmospheric new novel, is ostensibly about a young American girl who goes missing while on a family vacation in the Caribbean. But it is more than that. The book also unpacks timely social and cultural issues - about grief, truth, white privilege and our murder-as-entertainment culture.” (Washington Post)

Saint X

This book was so scattered. I couldn’t keep the characters straight. After trying to read it for some time, I was lost.
Margaret Bates

Anti climactic

A great story with a wildly disappointing ending. Fantastic voice actor performance, but the ending “reveal” is trite and very annoying.

Loses its way

Generally, was a decent story but there were so many perspectives and voices that it was confusing and distracting at times. I liked the premise but I never felt like it paid off in the end.

Saint X

I had an audible credit and I came across this book while I was searching. I actually really like this! The detail in this book was amazing!

Too verbose

Author goes into way too much detail that doesn’t move the story along. Could have been better.

Good story! Narration not the best-

Female narrator lisped which was annoying- maybe that character was supposed to have a speech impediment but not implied in the story? Otherwise, intriguing and enjoyable book!

Nice Thriller, Easy to Listen to

I enjoyed the multiple character story line and the frequent changes in perspective. Very entertaining and an easy listen.

This was not what I expected

The book started out good but then lost its momentum. There was a lot of information about the island & not enough answers about the death. To be honest I almost gave up 1/2 way through. I would not give it a thumbs up. to many questions left un answered.

Disappointing

Interesting story to start, following multiple viewpoints. This book ends with no real conclusion, which was frustrating and disappointing. Overall just a sad story.

So stinking good!!

Ok, so hear me out, the reviews saying this book is slow, I’m not sure what they were listening to. Everything is incredibly intentional with this story. It may not be the ending others wanted, but honestly it is the ending that is needed in the story. Not every tragedy has to be horrific. The writing kept me mesmerized. The stillness and softness of the performance was enthralling. I can’t wait to start listening to her other book.