Présentation de l'éditeur
Liars and Saints is an utterly compelling portrait of a family, the twists and turns of their lives unravelled with sensitivity and understanding. By turns laugh aloud funny and unbearably moving, this is a story that lasts beyond its final pages.
Set in California, the narrative follows four generations of the Santerre family from World War II to the present, as they navigate a succession of life-changing events. With wonderful characters and a strong emotional heart, Liars and Saints has a huge potential market in paperback.
Revue de presse
This remarkably assured debut novel ... succeeds in being both intimate in feel and broad in outlook ... moving, compassionate and amusing (Daily Mail)
Meloy has written an exquisite novel about the power of secrets -- and the redemption found in religion and love (Glamour)
A tale worthy of the Greeks ... While there is plenty of feeling its pages, none of it crystallises into sentimentality ... spare, sturdy prose (Observer)
Maile Meloy writes with both fearlessness and true compassion (Ann Patchett)
A beautifully written story about ordinary American life that's anything but ordinary (Company Magazine)
Wise, witty, and beautifully written,
Liars and Saints is that rare and wondrous thing: a literary novel you don't want to put down (Helen Fielding)
A spectacular first novel (New York Times)
Most multi-generational sagas are dull forays into sentimentalism, but in the aptly titled Liars and Saints, Meloy has written a corker (Amazon.com)
An irresistable tale that will stay with you long after your tan has faded (Mail on Sunday)
Quiet, unastonished precision ... an impressive achievement (Philip Roth)
All the outrageous twists ... of a soap opera. But Meloy writes with such delicate insight that somehow you believe in it, even as you race to the last page. (Marie Claire)
The best of the bunch ... a fine book (The Scotsman)
For a first-time novelist, she is astonishingly poised, moving through a large cast and a long chronology with a light, assured touch ... sharp and vivid detail (Lindesay Irvine, Press Association)
Sparse, gentle prose ... a lovely debut, treading a delicate balance between epic family saga and minutely observed literary portrait (Spectator)
Meloy gives her story shape and depth by writing from each character's point of view ... there is something refreshingly conservative about the design of this novel (Independent)
It's funny and moving and looks likely to appeal to the thousands of readers who read Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. (Radio Times)
Packed from start to finish, this is an excellent debut novel from Meloy and a real pleasure to read (Lucky Break magazine)
It makes you think long after you've finished it ... it's earned fantastic reviews and is worth a read (Woman)
The novel's success lies in Meloy's emotional literacy. There is an unflashy intelligence underpinning her writing ... which makes her ordinary, flawed characters breathe. Lies and their consequences propel the plot convincingly ... In its examination of the gap between faith and free will, Meloy has written a compelling debut about the search for truth. (Literary Review)
An absolute delight ... an unfussy and unshowy narrative ... effortlessly charming and engaging the reader without relentlessly flaggging up the skill involved ... a fresh and welcoming perspective on the aspirations and disappointments of the post-war generation ... a powerful love-letter to family bonds, ably illustrating the insidious nature of a Catholic upbringing (Zembla magazine)
Certain to be a huge hit ... This touching narrative speaks of love and tragedy, nagging guilt and prejudice, which is sensitively dealt with by this talented novelist (Devon Today)
Moving, sometimes funny, sensitively told, it is a mini-epic demonstrating the scope of tragedy in the absence of truth (Oxford Times)
This remarkably assured debut novel ... succeeds in being both intimate
