The Silent Patient - Alex Michaelides

The Silent Patient

By Alex Michaelides

  • Release Date: 2019-02-05
  • Genre: Mysteries & Thrillers
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 25,675 Ratings

Description

**THE INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER**

"An unforgettable—and Hollywood-bound—new thriller... A mix of Hitchcockian suspense, Agatha Christie plotting, and Greek tragedy."
Entertainment Weekly

The Silent Patient is a shocking psychological thriller of a woman’s act of violence against her husband—and of the therapist obsessed with uncovering her motive.

Alicia Berenson’s life is seemingly perfect. A famous painter married to an in-demand fashion photographer, she lives in a grand house with big windows overlooking a park in one of London’s most desirable areas. One evening her husband Gabriel returns home late from a fashion shoot, and Alicia shoots him five times in the face, and then never speaks another word.

Alicia’s refusal to talk, or give any kind of explanation, turns a domestic tragedy into something far grander, a mystery that captures the public imagination and casts Alicia into notoriety. The price of her art skyrockets, and she, the silent patient, is hidden away from the tabloids and spotlight at the Grove, a secure forensic unit in North London.

Theo Faber is a criminal psychotherapist who has waited a long time for the opportunity to work with Alicia. His determination to get her to talk and unravel the mystery of why she shot her husband takes him down a twisting path into his own motivations—a search for the truth that threatens to consume him....

Reviews

  • So good!!

    5
    By B.b.1.0.1
    Could not stop reading, would never expect the ending!
  • Good

    4
    By boyder3
    Nice twist. Good length. Perhaps a bit too many details. Still enjoyed the read.
  • The Silent Patient

    3
    By la9312
    Basically I too would be silent But for real this book could’ve been better. I enjoyed it to start out and was eager to learn more. Once I found out the twist I was kind of let down and hoping for something more. “The story is centered around Alicia Berenson, a celebrated painter who inexplicably shoots her husband, Gabriel, five times in the face—and then never speaks another word. Her silence turns her into a media sensation, and she becomes a mystery that everyone wants to solve. Enter Theo Faber, a criminal psychotherapist who becomes obsessed with Alicia’s case. Years after the murder, Theo takes a job at The Grove, the psychiatric facility where Alicia is being held, convinced he can be the one to get her to talk. His quest to uncover the truth about Alicia’s silence leads him down a dark path as he delves into her troubled past, her art (particularly a haunting self-portrait titled Alcestis), and the events leading up to the murder. As Theo works with Alicia, the story alternates between his perspective and excerpts from Alicia’s diary, which provide glimpses into her life before the tragedy. These dual narratives create a sense of mounting tension as the layers of Alicia’s life—and Theo’s—are peeled back. Theo becomes increasingly entangled in the mystery, ignoring warnings from colleagues and the ethical boundaries of his profession. The novel builds toward a shocking twist that redefines everything the reader thought they knew about Alicia, Theo, and the events of the story.“
  • Second time I’ve read this

    5
    By Jewel....
    And it was worth it!
  • Happily confused

    5
    By sprice2022
    Such a good book I was enamored and read it in 2 days. Left me with questions but made me think and wonder…
  • Book

    3
    By 83will
    Good read
  • Was hooked the entire time.

    4
    By Kurra H
    Loved this book. I didn't expect the twice until the paragraph before it's reveal. May not be the best written, but thoroughly enjoyed reading it and finished in a few sessions. I ate it up so fast that I thought it was a short story.
  • Not sure the hype

    3
    By Mari RN
    Bought this look, lost this book. Final read it now years later, just ok. Psychiatry is a big portion, just ok
  • Twists and turns

    5
    By Lanena0890
    Had me glued to each page!
  • Plot twists

    5
    By Guuuuud app
    “Wow I did not expect that” is something I felt like I kept thinking with every new revelation. I thought I knew where it was going and then boom plot twist