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 24,941 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

  • Silent Patient

    5
    By giovannadep
    amazing book… unexpected plot twist!!
  • Wow!

    5
    By hugguer 1217
    This had me on the edge of my bed every morning at 6am. I often had to stop reading it to start my day. The characters the plot twist was simply a visual movie playing inside of my brain. Although I wish in the ending I was able to put to rest that Theo got what was coming to him after he did what he did, but I get it another thought provoking ending!
  • Really good!

    5
    By person loll
    This is a great murder mystery novel so if you like that stuff you’ll love The Silent Patient.
  • Amazing

    5
    By Jskffknaqkrkfncnmam
    I couldn’t stop reading this book. The constant plot twists and the foreshadowing had a chokehold on me. I definitely recommend this book!
  • 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.“
  • Good but not great

    4
    By Jhos0522
    A mystery that evolves into another mystery, but does not end well. Overall good book, but not great!
  • 10/10 recommend

    5
    By H_renne99
    One of the most interesting books I have read, you never know what’s next!
  • Yurski (6/10)

    3
    By I barely read
    Pretty good, not like a crazy page turner but interesting ending?
  • Love it

    5
    By vayvay2222
    Love love love
  • I didn’t see it coming…

    5
    By cristgm
    Totally blowed my mind. 100% recommended 👌🏼