When you start watching Saint X, on Starplus, if you haven’t read the book that is the basis of the story, you get the feeling that you’ve heard or seen this story in some true crime documentary and you’re surprised by the fact that which is not inspired by a true story. At least, not officially.

The series is about the disappearance and death of a teenager during a family trip to the Caribbean and how the trauma impacts the lives of everyone involved: survivors and suspects alike. In this case, Alison Thomas (West Duchovny, daughter of David Duchovny and Téa Leoni), but no one doubts that the story is heavily inspired by the case of the disappearance of the American Natalee Holloway. Natalee, whose body has never been located, disappeared in 2005 while on a school trip to Aruba, in the Caribbean. Natalee was last seen leaving a bar outside the hotel accompanied by Joran van der Sloot and brothers Deepak and Satish Kalpoe. Very similar to what happens in Saint X, but the similarities kind of stop there.

There are differences between the book and the series as well. In the book, as in the real case, it is never revealed what really happens to Alison, but the series clears up the mystery. With twists. Although the final alternative helps to avoid problems with the Holloway family or others involved, it can also be disappointing in the face of the great mystery that is formed in a non-linear narrative, where past and present are sewn together in a way that anxiety grows with each episode.

In Saint X, the book and series, the protagonist is not Alison, but her younger sister, Emily (Alycia Debnam-Carey), who cannot overcome the trauma and anguish of not knowing what happened. She’s dealing with mental health issues and a nervous breakdown, but when she bumps into one of the suspects on the loose and living in New York, she decides to investigate on her own. Obviously, the psychological risk is even worse than the physical.

The series would have starred Victoria Pedretti, but she ended up being (very nicely) replaced by Alycia Debnam-Carey. There are some characters that are unrealistically understandable, like Emily’s boyfriend in the present day or even her parents dealing with Alison’s immaturity, but it’s the complex relationship of the locals, especially “Gogo” (Josh Bonzie) and Edwin (Jayden Elijah), whose lives on the fringes of a wealthy resort hold the dramatic part of the story. They are the main suspects in the crime, although they claim innocence. Something happened and they are lying about something. Could it be the answer to what really happened to Alison?

We will have the answer (avoid the spoiler), but it may not be what you expect. Too bad life didn’t do the same for Natalee. She was officially recognized as dead in 2012 and Joran van der Sloot remains the main suspect and the only one with knowledge of what happened to the young woman, even without lack of evidence of the crime. There is a suspicion that she died accidentally due to excessive drinking (everyone testifies that she was exaggerating with alcohol) and the three buried her body or cremated it, which would explain why nothing has been found until today. Joran was convicted in 2012 of the murder of 21-year-old Stephany Flores Ramírez at his hotel in Lima, Peru and in June 2023 was extradited to the United States to face trial for extortion and wire fraud, with both charges linked to the disappearance by Natalee Holloway. Will we ever know what happened?

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