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ELSEWHERE by ALEXIS SCHAITKIN

July 26, 2022

 

About the Book:

 

Vera grows up in a small town, removed and isolated, pressed up against the mountains, cloud-covered and damp year-round. This town, fiercely protective, brutal and unforgiving in its adherence to tradition, faces a singular affliction: some mothers vanish, disappearing into the clouds. It is the exquisite pain and intrinsic beauty of their lives; it sets them apart from people elsewhere and gives them meaning.

Vera, a young girl when her own mother went, is on the cusp of adulthood herself. As her peers begin to marry and become mothers, they speculate about who might be the first to go, each wondering about her own fate. Reveling in their gossip, they witness each other in motherhood, waiting for signs: this one devotes herself to her child too much, this one not enough—that must surely draw the affliction’s gaze. When motherhood comes for Vera, she is faced with the question: will she be able to stay and mother her beloved child, or will she disappear?

Provocative and hypnotic, Alexis Schaitkin’s Elsewhere is at once a spellbinding revelation and a rumination on the mysterious task of motherhood and all the ways in which a woman can lose herself to it; the self-monitoring and judgment, the doubts and unknowns, and the legacy she leaves behind.

 

My Review:

 

“A mother was a chance to hate someone as much as you loved them, caring and wounding, a push and pull that only tightened the knot that bound you.”

Beautiful. Hypnotic. Thought-provoking. Those are my immediate feelings after finishing this book. I love speculative fiction, so I jumped at the chance to read this very imaginative story. I’m also a huge fan of the author’s earlier book ‘Saint X’. And this cover has got to be one of the most amazing book covers I’ve ever seen!

I wavered between rating this one 3 stars or 5 stars. That is the kind of gut reaction I had to this dark story. I settled on 4 stars because the author is without a doubt a brilliant writer. Some of the scenes and characters felt a little one-dimensional but I still highly recommend this book.

The relationship between a mother and daughter can be the most important and also the most emotionally fraught relationship a woman will ever have. I actually said “a-ha!” to myself at the conclusion of this book. The plot is incredible and almost dream-like, as is the fictional Alpine setting. You never know what year or decade it is, but many of the habits and the phrases seem like they are from a long-gone era.

The disappearance of some women once they become mothers is commonly known as “the affliction” and the villagers simply accept it. In fact, they celebrate it. Where do the young women go? If you like books like ‘The Lottery’ and ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ then you will love this one. I read it in one sitting and I’m still thinking about it days later. This is a fascinating take on a dystopian society.

“You do not get to keep what is sweetest to you; you only get to remember it from the vantage point of having lost it.”

(Many thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read Elsewhere. All opinions are my own)

Categories : 4 Stars, Dystopian, Literary Fiction, Reviews, Speculative Fiction Tagged : Alexis Schaitkin, Elsewhere

SAINT X by ALEXIS SCHAITKIN

February 17, 2020

 

About the Book:

 

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 eighteen 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.

 

 

My Review:

“Did you ever wish something terrible would happen to you so the world could see how strong you are?”

Wow!!! What an impressive debut. I would not call this one a thriller per sebut instead is a wonderfully atmospheric mystery, with rich character development.

This is a slow-burn mystery, unlike any book I’ve read before. The story centers on the disappearance and death of eighteen-year-old Alison at a resort on the fictional island of Saint X. Told in multiple points of view and with alternating timelines, the story in particular focuses on the effects of Alison’s death on her younger sister Claire. Only seven years old at the time, Claire never really knew her sister, and remains profoundly traumatized by her death.

“You can’t bring the stars.”
“Why not?”
“You can’t carry them.”
“I’ll bring whatever I want.”

At the time of her death, the police on Saint X had quickly rounded up two of the resort’s workers Edwin and Gogo, who were possibly the last people to see Alison alive. But, it turns out, her death remains unsolved decades later. Alison’s death brought intense media attention to the family and for years remains the topic of online and public attention. The book shifts forward to Claire as an adult, and examines the different perspectives of those involved with her family. I did not expect such a profound examination of grief and class differences, and was pleasantly surprised and captivated by the story.

Claire becomes obsessed with one of the individuals who was accused of killing Alison. She has drifted away from both her family and her friends in her obsession to somehow develop a bond with her older sister. I loved the author’s incredibly vivid descriptions of life on a Caribbean island, and loved the different points of view. This book is not a fast-paced thriller but still kept me turning the pages until the very end! I could not wait to see where the story would end up. I enjoyed this book immensely and felt deep sympathy toward all of the characters.

Bravo to Alexis Schaitkin for an incredibly well-done debut novel!

Thank you to the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Categories : 4.5 Stars, Fiction, Mystery, Thriller Tagged : Alexis Schaitkin, Saint X

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