4.5 stars
Ooh, this was a good one! The book is being compared to Emma Cline’s The Girls, and Lauren Groff’s Fates and Furies, and since I haven't read either of those books, I have no idea if that is a fair comparison or not. While reading this book though I kept getting Celeste Ng vibes to the story so if you like that author, I recommend reading Saint X.
During a family vacation on the Caribbean island of Saint X, college student, Alison, goes missing. A few days later her body is found and two male resort employees are arrested. It's a huge story in the United States and the mystery deepens when the men are released because the evidence against them is flimsy. Alison's seven year old sister, Claire, and her parents return home, heartbroken and devastated. Years later, Claire wants answers as to what exactly happened the night of her sister's death.
I went a bit light on my synopsis because I almost think the publisher's synopsis gives away too much. Such a significant part of the story is Claire and her desire to learn more about her sister and everything that happened on the island and I feel like as a reader you need to watch everything unfold naturally in order to get the most out of the book.
There's obviously a mystery element to the story but that part was almost secondary to me as Claire herself was the driving force. The aftermath of her sister's death and how it affected Claire and her family was the heart of the story for me. However, what makes this book special is the fact that each reader might cling to something different from the story. The author does show the perspectives from time to time of other characters and without getting into spoilers, some readers might find the strength of the story to be in the chapters towards the end of the book. There's lots of themes the author explores and the fact this is her debut novel is rather impressive. It's good people, I highly recommend checking this one out!
Thank you to Celadon Books for sending me an advance copy in exchange for an honest review!
Ooh, this was a good one! The book is being compared to Emma Cline’s The Girls, and Lauren Groff’s Fates and Furies, and since I haven't read either of those books, I have no idea if that is a fair comparison or not. While reading this book though I kept getting Celeste Ng vibes to the story so if you like that author, I recommend reading Saint X.
During a family vacation on the Caribbean island of Saint X, college student, Alison, goes missing. A few days later her body is found and two male resort employees are arrested. It's a huge story in the United States and the mystery deepens when the men are released because the evidence against them is flimsy. Alison's seven year old sister, Claire, and her parents return home, heartbroken and devastated. Years later, Claire wants answers as to what exactly happened the night of her sister's death.
I went a bit light on my synopsis because I almost think the publisher's synopsis gives away too much. Such a significant part of the story is Claire and her desire to learn more about her sister and everything that happened on the island and I feel like as a reader you need to watch everything unfold naturally in order to get the most out of the book.
There's obviously a mystery element to the story but that part was almost secondary to me as Claire herself was the driving force. The aftermath of her sister's death and how it affected Claire and her family was the heart of the story for me. However, what makes this book special is the fact that each reader might cling to something different from the story. The author does show the perspectives from time to time of other characters and without getting into spoilers, some readers might find the strength of the story to be in the chapters towards the end of the book. There's lots of themes the author explores and the fact this is her debut novel is rather impressive. It's good people, I highly recommend checking this one out!
Thank you to Celadon Books for sending me an advance copy in exchange for an honest review!