Saint X by Alexis Schaitkin

I know you are asking, you started the alphabet challenge with X?  Aren't you supposed to read it in order?  I am laughing now because there was an important reason to start with X...it was a library book and needed to be returned! But honestly, I decided to read my alphabet challenge in random order, to allow the books to call to me when I needed them most.

The first chapter of Schaitkin's book had me perplexed. The characters were introduced in third person, and I found it cold. I couldn't connect with the characters and found I was craving this to get into the book.  I kept on, and began to discover how poetic and descriptive Schaitkin's writing was. She caught me then, breathless in moments like "Her sister is a secret whispered in her ear." pg 12.  Schaitkin had a way of capturing all the senses in her writing. I could hear, feel and smell many of the scenes vividly.
As the story unfolded, I realized quickly that Schaitkin had an ability to capture the human condition in all it's sin, darkness and struggles. She captured life's unforgiving relentlessness, the obsessions of the mind and the pains of the heart. The impact of how one traumatic event had unrelenting impacts; the spiralling aftermath for so many, the unravelling and destruction of the human psyche. She opened a rawness to her characters that made them real, touchable. "As if the land [was] weary with he burden of human secrets." pg 162. 
Saint X was a mesmerizing read, captured the depths of my soul as a trauma survivor. The ending blew me away. (No spoilers here!) When I closed the book I had to stop, hold the book and breathe out, knowing I will miss these characters in my life. I had a deep sadness for them. Brava to Schaitkin for creating a novel where empathy could be felt so deeply in real time.