Liars and Saints: A Novel (edition 2004)

Loved it! ( )

I know it's not a great book, but it was engrossing. The structure was formulaic, but each section was quite interesting, and most of the characters had life. ( )

In her debut novel, Liars and Saints, Maile Meloy explores family relationships, deceit, truth and religion through the Santerre family. Spanning over four generations, each chapter is told from a member of the Santerre family - some get more of a voice than others, but each person is enveloped in the conflicts that rock the family.

The story opens with Yvette and Teddy Santerre during World War II. We learn that the couple are deeply in love, but their young marriage isn't without struggles, compounded by Teddy's deployment to the Pacific theater. Teddy is insecure and jealous of his beautiful wife, and Yvette wrestles with her roles as wife and mother. The couple have two daughters, Margot and Clarissa, and the story moves quickly to when the girls become teenagers, and a particular night that would change the family forever.

At the surface, the issues facing the Santerre family are the stuff of daytime soap operas, but Meloy writes so eloquently, you hardly notice. The family members individually grapple with truth versus deceit. Is it better to spill the beans or keep things discreet? Sometimes, the choices the family made were ones they want to hide (even from each other), while others need to be aired out. True to life, you don't know if it is a good idea to disclose a secret until after it's done. Hindsight is always 20/20.

Liars and Saints is a solid debut, and I am not surprised to find it on the Orange Prize short list (2005). It's not without flaws, but its pace and story development are spot on. I look forward to more stories by Maile Meloy. ( )

I bought this as a present as part of a box set for my mother-in-law who as any good reader does, past it back when she was finished. I’m pleased she did as I might have missed this along the way. A simplistic cover and a fairly slim volume are not usually what catches your eye when book browsing. Not many people would love the Richard & Judy emphasis but I often find they make good holiday reading and this is exactly that.

At the first chapter I almost thought twice but decided it was short enough to keep going (another reviewer has mentioned this as well). For some reason the character of Yvette just didn’t appeal to me (as the young Yvette) but it all soon changed. I suppose with a book spanning 50 years you do need to start with the main two characters when the book is covering four generations (although the main content refers to three). In another writer’s hands the waffly rubbishy would have appeared about what they were doing for dinner etc, where as in this author’s hands it was quite simply delightful prose and the actual prose that mattered; not the mundane day to day stuff.

There are one or two cringe-worthy moments but I suppose the author is trying to develop the characters for the readers and these were perhaps the best way to do so. Really lovely, all tied up at the end. Well worth a read. ( )

I bought Liars and Saints on vacation, on the recommendation of Powell's staff, and I initially wasn't expecting very much. Usually, for starters, I like books that have more pages - I like o get very deeply into a book. And, I have an unfortunate trust problem with new authors - I am nervous about reading people I haven't read before because I expect to be disappointed. (There is psychotherapy in here somewhere, I just know it.) But Liars and Saints blew me away. The writing is perfectly sparse - simple, and clean, and yet not flat or boring; it's a hard line to walk, and Meloy walks it quite well. It reminds me a bit of Jeffrey Eugenides. This is a story of a few generations of family, and this particular one has a few more lies and dramas than you would believe is average - but yet, it didn't feel unbelievable. The characters were compelling, and I wanted to keep turning pages and find out what happened. All in all, it was a delightful surprise and a very enjoyable read. ( )