Patchett, Ann. Patron Saint of Liars. ?p.

Every time I pick up an Ann Patchett book, I always want it to be Bel Canto.  And it never is.  Unless it says B E L  C A N T O on the cover.  But seriously, that was such a great book, and nothing else she's written seems to approach it.  Patron Saint was her first novel.  It has a very readable style and an unusual setting (a home for unwed mothers in '60s Kentucky), but the main character is hard to understand and ultimately unlikeable.