Faith: A Novel

"[Haigh is] an expertnatural storyteller with an acute sense of her characters' humanity." —NewYork Times
 
"We have the intriguing possibility that the nextgreat American author is already in print." —Fort Worth Star-Telegram
 
When Sheila McGann setsout to redeem her disgraced brother, a once-beloved Catholic priest in suburbanBoston, her quest will force her to confront cataclysmic truths about herfractured Irish-American family, her beliefs, and, ultimately, herself.Award-winning author Jennifer Haigh follows hercritically acclaimed novels Mrs. Kimbleand The Condition with a captivating,vividly rendered portrait of fraying family ties, and the trials of belief anddevotion, in Faith.
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It is the spring of 2002 and a perfect storm has hit Boston. Across the city's archdiocese, trusted priests have been accused of the worst possible betrayal of the souls in their care. In Faith, Jennifer Haigh explores the fallout for one devout family, the McGanns.

Estranged for years from her difficult and demanding relatives, Sheila McGann has remained close to her older brother Art, the popular, dynamic pastor of a large suburban parish. When Art finds himself at the center of the maelstrom, Sheila returns to Boston, ready to fight for him and his reputation. What she discovers is more complicated than she imagined. Her strict, lace-curtain-Irish mother is living in a state of angry denial. Sheila's younger brother Mike, to her horror, has already convicted his brother in his heart. But most disturbing of all is Art himself, who persistently dodges Sheila's questions and refuses to defend himself.

As the scandal forces long-buried secrets to surface, Faith explores the corrosive consequences of one family's history of silence—and the resilience its members ultimately find in forgiveness. Throughout, Haigh demonstrates how the truth can shatter our deepest beliefs—and restore them. A gripping, suspenseful tale of one woman's quest for the truth, Faith is a haunting meditation on loyalty and family, doubt and belief. Elegantly crafted, sharply observed, this is Jennifer Haigh's most ambitious novel to date.

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“Ms. Haigh—through sleight of hand, a compelling array of characters and top-flight writing—is remarkably successful in making us want to read on. Faith is so emotionally rich, and its story so deftly delivered, that we’re absorbed. . . . Engrossing.” - Wall Street Journal

“FAITH is so emotionally rich, and its story so deftly delivered, that we’re absorbed.” - Wall Street Journal

“Expertly wrought. . . . Ms. Haigh, a subtle, serious novelist who happens to have a flair for capturing troubled family dynamics, never allows FAITH to become predictable. . . . Gripping. . . . Substantial.” - New York Times

“With thematic echoes of John Patrick Shanley’s Doubt and the atmospheric tension of a Dennis Lehane thriller, Haigh’s exploration of the private aftershocks that follow a public scandal feels unusually resonant and humane.” - Vogue.com

“Haigh brings a refreshing degree of humanity to a story you think you know well, and in chapters both riveting and profound, she catches the avalanche of guilt this tragedy unleashes in one devout family. . . . Faith certainly isn’t a thriller in any conventional sense, but it’s an incredibly suspenseful novel.” - Washington Post

“With an exquisite sense of drama and mystery, Haigh delivers a taut, well-crafted tale that potently but subtly explores myriad gray areas within essential issues of truth and trust, punishment and absolution. Indelibly rendered characters, suspenseful pacing, and fearless but sensitive handling of a controversial subject will make this a must-read for book discussion groups.” - Booklist (starred review)

“Haigh explores the intersections of public scandal and personal tragedy in her superb fourth novel. . . . At its broadest, this is a frank and timely story of familial and institutional heredity; at its most personal, the novel is a devastating portrait of a priest who discovers that he’s also a man.” - Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“With an exquisite sense of drama and mystery, Haigh delivers a taut, well-crafted tale. . . . Indelibly rendered characters, suspenseful pacing, and fearless but sensitive handling of a controversial subject will make this a must-read for book discussion groups.” - Booklist (starred review)

“You probably never imagined you’d read the words priest and page-turner in the same sentence, but we’re here to prove you wrong. Haigh’s fourth novel draws you in despite—or maybe because of—its unlikely protagonist. . . . You’ll be hypnotized until you know where it stops.” - Self

“Haigh’s fourth novel draws you in. . . . You’ll be hypnotized until you know where it stops.” - Self

“This haunting tale by bestseller Haigh is ripped from the headlines—and heart-wrenching.” - People (3 1/2 stars)

“Both riveting and profound. . . . An incredibly suspenseful novel.” - Washington Post

“Expertly wrought. . . . Ms. Haigh, a subtle, serious novelist who happens to have a flair for capturing troubled family dynamics, never allows Faith to become predictable. And her book, while gripping, isn’t really summer reading. It’s a substantial novel that happens to arrive in time for summer.” - New York Times

“Haigh deals with complex moral issues in subtle ways, and her narrative is beautifully, sometimes achingly poignant.” - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“Luminous. . . . The novel has the magnetic, page-turning quality of a detective thriller, but the clues here lead not to objective proof but to insight into a family both vividly specific and astonishingly universal. . . . . Wise.” - O magazine

“A masterpiece of tension and tenderness.” - More magazine