Not really for me, I can't put my finger on it but skim read a lot to get through it and find out why she was silent. It was a good twist at the end I definitely didn't see it coming.

This book began slowly and at one point I almost thought I should stop reading - however I have never not finished a book and did not plan to start now. Am I glad that I persevered about 35% of the way through and it became gripping in so much as I fell in love with Alicia and wanted to know why she had killed her husband. I could not put the book down and read well into the night to finish it. The ending was amazing and I cannot give enough praise to Alex as a debut author. Bring on many more like this but please try harder to reduce the slow start. The book shows clearly the amount of research into the world of mental health and especially psychotherapy and respective analysis.
I look forward to reading another one by Alex Michaelides.
As an aside the story deserves a full 5 stars but the really slow start has made me reduce to 4 stars.

I love well-written twisty psychological dramas, particularly those with flawed or unreliable narrators, but I’m quite picky as to which ones meet all the elements I require for a really good example of the genre. The blurb for this book certainly drew me in, as did its premise: a murderer who is unwilling or unable to offer any words of explanation as to her motives.

Alicia Berenson was a successful artist, married to a somewhat older, equally successful fashion photographer. The pair appeared to live an idyllic life, until the night that Alicia shot her husband, and then attempted suicide by slashing her wrists. Since the day of her arrest, Alicia hasn’t spoken, although she produced one last painting before her trial, which she titled Alcestis, after the Greek tragedy in which a woman who agreed to die in place of her husband is brought back to life but never utters another word. The self-portrait cemented Alicia’s notoriety and onlookers flocked to the gallery in which it was displayed, amongst them Theo Faber, a psychotherapist who goes on to obtain a post at the secure psychiatric unit where Alicia has been held since her trial six years earlier.

Theo has a number of reasons for being fascinated by Alicia, each of which becomes apparent as the story unfolds. He works with her in an attempt to get her to speak and is eventually rewarded by being gifted Alicia’s diary from the weeks leading up to the murder and by her production of a new painting after Theo secures for her some of the materials she requires for her art. From the diary – parts of which readers get to see before Theo – it seems that Alicia had been subjected to psychological abuse from her husband, unwanted sexual advances from her brother-in-law, and some downright creepy behaviour from other relatives and colleagues both immediately before the murder and further back in her past. Then there’s the matter of the man she believes to have been watching her in the days leading up to the murder, but whom no one else claims to have seen.

A victim of abuse as a child himself, Theo is determined to unravel the mystery posed by the original case, the diary, and the paintings created after the murder. He sets out to find everyone mentioned in Alicia’s account of events and discovers that several have motives for doing harm to either Alicia or her husband. Meanwhile, a separate plot thread details Theo’s suspicions – later confirmed – that his wife is having an affair, and the murderous thoughts that Theo develops towards the man he sees her with.

From early on in this story, it’s clear that someone else was involved on the day of the murder. While I didn’t manage to put all the clues into place, the solution, when it was eventually presented, made perfect sense. While few of the characters in this book were particularly likeable, all were intriguing and the whole story was a most satisfying read. I want to see a lot more from this author.

This is a really great psychological thriller and has everything that I want and look for in a book of this genre, The characters are well created and it's a well thought out story with an ending I couldn't for the life of me see coming. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this wonderful book to anyone who's looking for a brilliant psychological thriller.
And a big thank you to NetGalley and Orion Publishing Group for giving me the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

It took some time for me to get into this novel, and I nearly put it to one side, but I’m glad I persevered.

            The story is told mainly from Theo Faber’s point of view, who, from the start, is obviously obsessed with the silent Alicia. Although he is a forensic psychotherapist, at times I felt confused that he was acting like a detective in his investigation. I did not feel a strong connection with his character, the occasional exerts from Alicia’s diary felt far more real.

            I was, however,  intrigued by the plot and the ultimate twist was a sudden’ of course’ moment!

Did I enjoy this book? I’m not sure that I did as it made me feel so uncomfortable.

Is it a successful novel? Absolutely!  I believe the film rights have been sold and can see it being totally chilling on the big screen.

ALICIA
Alicia Berenson writes a diary as a release, an outlet - and to prove to her beloved husband that everything is fine. She can't bear the thought of worrying Gabriel, or causing him pain.

Until, late one evening, Alicia shoots Gabriel five times and then never speaks another word.

THEO
Forensic psychotherapist Theo Faber is convinced he can successfully treat Alicia, where all others have failed. Obsessed with investigating her crime, his discoveries suggest Alicia's silence goes far deeper than he first thought.

And if she speaks, would he want to hear the truth?

There has been a lot of early buzz about Alex Michaelides' debut psychological thriller, The Silent Patient and it certainly doesn't disappoint. It follows the story of Theo Faber, a criminal psychotherapist that has taken up a new post in The Grove, a secure mental facility. He was eager to get the job because it would bring him closer to Alicia Berenson, a famous artist who shot and killed her husband Gabriel six years ago. Theo is fascinated with the case because, since the incident, Alicia has refused to talk and nobody knows her side of the story. She was convicted of her husband's murder but Theo is intrigued by what really happened that night and why she refuses to talk about it. He is confident that he can make her talk and he makes it his mission to investigate her life and the circumstances leading up to the shooting.

Before the murder, Alicia seemed to have lived the perfect life. She appeared to have the perfect job and marriage but from her diary entries that accompany the main narrative as told by Theo, we find out that her life was far from ideal. As her narrative progresses, we find out that a lot was going on in Alicia's life in the weeks leading up to the incident and Gabriel's murder may not be as simplistic as everyone assumed. To make matters more complicated, Alicia was previously diagnosed with depression and had a complicated childhood following the death of her mother so Alicia may indeed have had a psychological break. In addition, we find out that Alicia was indeed highly paranoid so she may have been pushed to kill by an unknown individual.

Following the murder, Alicia painted her most infamous self-portrait, Alcestis, named for the titular character in Euripides' Greek tragedy. Theo begins to draw parallels between the heroine and Alicia, thus making Alicia into a mythical character. We often wonder if Theo is confusing the real woman who has been convicted of murder with the mythical version of a woman wronged and sentenced to death by her husband. We get the idea that he is perhaps romanticising her situation too much, which leads us to believe that he may be an unreliable narrator.

Theo's narration is fascinating because he discusses his psychiatric beliefs and his methods for diagnosing and treating patients. Theo reveals his emotional fragility and that he is under a considerable amount of psychological stress having just started a new job. In addition, he has found out that his wife is having an affair and he starts to discover more about the man she is seeing. Due to his choice of profession and these stresses, Theo tells us that he often questions his own sanity. This is a clever tool because it leads us to question the validity of his narrative. His obsession with Alicia becomes unhealthy at points and we question whether there is something else propelling his investigation. He also often discusses the psychological phenomenon of the patient projecting their feelings onto the therapist and vice versa, which conflates both Theo and Alicia, thus again leading us to question his narrative and his feelings. Michaelides seems to go out of his way to make us question Theo's narrative and it seems to be an exercise in the unreliable narrator. And this is no bad thing. We have become accustomed to questioning the validity of narratives in both fiction and the media and Michaelides plays on the audience's tendency to do this.

Michaelides has described the book as "a psychological Agatha Christie" and I think this is a fitting description. Because of the book's psychological focus, it's a bit slower paced than many other thrillers I've read lately. There are often long passages of Theo's thoughts on psychological theories and his methods for treating patients. Yet, the book is no less compelling because of this. The film rights have already been sold so I look forward to how the book will be translated to the screen as many parts of the book work particularly well in the written word.

This was an interesting and gripping story. I have to admit, I didn't see the ending coming - which was refreshing.

Easy read; very good plot - intelligent and well planned. I liked the details about psychiatric unit and psychological focus in the story. Would make a good movie.

I liked the concept for the story. The content lets it down. Reminds me too much of a screenplay rather than a fully fledged novel. Characters and plot require work. Very good twist.

Really well written. Keeps you guessing. Moved interestingly between settings, people and scenarios. Thoroughly enjoyed.

Alex Michaelides impresses with his terrific debut, a twisted, multilayered, intricate, and complex psychological thriller of murder, obsession and madness. Famous artist, Alicia Berenson, married to well known photographer, Gabriel, shoots her husband five times and has not spoken since. After a plea of diminished responsibility, she has been incarcerated at a North London psychiatric facility of The Grove. Ambitious Theo Faber is a forensic psychotherapist, obsessed with Alicia having followed her story, and when a vacancy opens up at The Grove, he finds his way in. No-one has managed to get Alicia to open up, Theo sees himself succeeding where everyone else has failed. Alice may be silent, but silence can speak by other means, such as Alicia's self portrait that draws on Greek mythology where she depicts herself as Alcestis.

In a narrative that includes Alicia's diary entries, we learn of Alicia's past through Theo's investigations, as he goes over and above the call of duty to uncover what motivated Alicia by turning to those who knew her, from family to those from the art world. It turns out Alicia had a troubled upbringing, which included the suicides of her parents. Theo himself has a difficult past too, but as he digs deeper into the silence, what will he find? And will everyone welcome the truth? This is a fast paced thriller of secrets, marriage, and mental health issues. There are twists and surprises as the tension and suspense ratchets up. This is an intelligent, gripping and an utterly thrilling read with wonderful characterisation in both Alicia and Theo. Definitely a must read for those who love psychological thrillers. Many thanks to Orion for an ARC.

a wee summary

Alicia Berenson, artist, murdered her husband Gabriel, a well-known fashion photographer, six years ago and has not uttered a word since.

Theo faber, psychotherapist, had previously been working in Broadmoor before recently attaining a role at The Grove, a secure forensic psychiatric unit in North London. It’s at The Grove that Alice Berensen has been housed. With no progress being made by other professionals, Theo feels that he could be the one to get through to Alicia. He’s taken the role with the aim of getting Alicia to speak, to help uncover why she killed her husband, and why she has held her silence.

The story is told from Theo’s perspective, interspersed with Alicia’s own diary from the weeks leading up to her husband’s murder.

my thoughts

When I originally read the synopsis for this novel I added it to my 2019 wishlist. It’s a book that I found so hard to put down.

I was thoroughly drawn into The Silent Patient. It’s such an interesting concept – how can one help his patient if that patient won’t speak?

As such, I found Alicia to be such an intriguing character. With so many questions attached to her – why is she silent, why did she kill her husband, why hasn’t therapy helped? – I couldn’t put this book down until I’d uncovered all of the answers.

Michaelides’ writing held me captive. I liked how he slowly revealed the details, using Alicia’s diary to allow us an insight into her life pre-murder. I had many theories as to how and why the murder had gone down, and why Alicia stopped talking… every single one was wrong! I love that, when a book outfoxes you!

Easy to read, with an interesting concept and an unravelling story that will keep you guessing, it’s a great psychological thriller.

Alicia Berenson is found guilty of murder. She ties her husband to a chair and shoots him repeatedly in the face. And then she never speaks again. Six years later, psychotherapist Theo Faber is determined to cure Alicia, to make her speak again. Alicia is a famous artist, and Theo is more than familiar with her work. He becomes almost obsessed with the idea of helping her.

The Silent Patient is a three-part story. There is the diary of Alicia, which was written in the couple of months leading up to her husband's murder. Then, the present day story of Theo's attempts to cure Alicia, his investigations of what happened and his experiences at the facility Alicia is in, The Grove. The third part of the book is Theo's personal story, about his wife and their relationship.

In all the different parts of the story, there are many secrets and psychoses. All the characters clearly have issues, and their own agendas. The book is very mysterious all the way through, right up to the end. The author does a good job of building tension and secrecy. This is the main positive of the book for me - I was constantly guessing who had done this or that, there were so many unanswered questions.

I also liked the protagonist, Theo. He seems very human for a psychotherapist, and all of his feelings about everything and everyone are laid out in the pages. It's a very honest description of the character, which I enjoyed. The other characters, as seen through the eyes of Theo himself, are only half formed ideas of people. He doesn't know them, but he thinks he can analyse them and guess their motives, their reasons for acting the way they do. Which is his job, but doesn't necessarily mean he is always correct. The subject-matter of the book means that it is very psychological on the whole, but not always intellectually so. Sometimes it is about the psychology of fear, anger and confusion, which only adds to the tension.

Sadly, this book fell at the last hurdle for me. I was completely into it until the last 10% or so, and at that point I felt truly let down. The ending was unbelievably predictable, and disappointing. I just really didn't like it, and I didn't feel like it matched up to the quality of the rest of the book at all. I was expecting so much more - something exciting and surprising. Perhaps other people would be satisfied with the ending, but for me it was deflating.

Overall I did enjoy the book. The writing was good and I was truly kept guessing and intrigued - until the end. I wouldn't say it completely ruined it though, and it was still worth the read for the beginning and middle parts!

This was a fantastic psychological thriller and had me hooked till the end.

The story was about a famous painter who was married to an in-demand fashion photographer but one night when he came home, she shot him then never spoke again. She was placed in a secure forensic unit called The Grove in North London. Theo Faber was a criminal psychotherapist who came to work at The Grove and came to work with the silent patient to get her try and talk. Theo took it to the extremes and explored her life and contacts prior to the incident to find ways to get her to talk. There were issues at the Grove as she could be violent but she was heavily drugged which Theo tried to get changed and get to the bottom of a few things.

it was an enthralling book to read, the characters all had their own bit in the story and their reason to be there. They either liked her or her loathed her. Some were willing to help while others tried to make it as hard as possible for Theo to find anything out. One or two people at the Grove didn't help either so it all added to the entertaining mix. I can understand the hype surrounding this book as it was very well written and worth a look.

A clever thriller , with a fascinating mystery and a compelling central character, this was a real page turner that built to a surprising and hugely satisfying conclusion. The Silent Patient of the title is Alicia Berenson, a talented artist who has not spoken a single word since she killed her photographer husband by shooting him in the head multiple times. Her fame and notoriety have made her a curiosity, and psychotherapist Theo Farber is determined to help her, to be the one she finally talks to, so much so that he winds up working in The Grove, the facility where she has lived for the last number of years. As Theo begins to delve into the past and the events leading up to the tragic night, he discovers that several people have been hiding secrets for years, and his patience and perseverance starts to pay off when Alicia begins to open up to him.
This book is as tense as it comes, and it is a really assured and promising debut. The plot has been meticulously crafted, well thought out and executed with skill. The central characters of Theo and Alicia are compelling, and the use of passages from Alicia's diary is a clever way for the reader to get to know such an uncommunicative character. I do not want to spoil the reveal for anyone, but suffice it to say it was both surprising and satisfying.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

Well I didn’t expect that to happen! As Alicia keeps her silence, after murdering her husband, we find that quite a few people are happy keeping her that way. Full of red herrings and surprises, a definite recommendation from me!

Well, I didn't see that ending coming! What a gripping read! Narrated by Theo, a psychotherapist, he joins a facility in order to treat Alicia Berenson who was convicted of murdering her husband. Thing is, she hasn't spoken since the night her husband died. Can Theo be the person to get her to speak? As well as Theo's narrative, we're also treated to Alicia's diary entries which document the time leading up to her husbands death. We're never quite sure if she's innocent or guilty, my opinion changed throughout. I couldn't put the book down, it was so easy to read and the plot had me hooked from the beginning. The ending was a shock, and very cleverly done. Great book.

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides is a 4.5 star read.
Alicia Berenson was 33 years old when she killed her husband of 7 years, 6 years later and she hasn’t spoken a word to anyone since that night. Alicia’s life since childhood hasn’t been great, her mother killed herself and tried to take Alicia with her a few tears later her father committed suicide too, so everything she had was all wrapped up in her husband Gabriel so no one can understand why she did it.
Theo Faber is a forensic psychotherapist and he believes he can help Alicia to talk again and find out what happened that night 6 years ago, as Theo starts to work with Alicia he starts to see some important changes but he needs to dig deeper and starts talking to her friends and family to fill in the missing pieces.
This story captured my attention right away, at different points I thought I figured out what had happened,but I was wrong, so getting to the end and finding out why did happen really blew me away. I loved this story and look forward to reading more from this author.
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced copy of this book through Netgalley.

An interesting first novel by this author.The unravelling of the enigma that is Alicia Berenson, who is incarcerated for the murder of her husband and remains silent, is related through the eyes of Theo her psychotherapist and the diary that she has written and reveals to him. A complex tale full of complex characters most with background stories that could make them psychologically unstable and these are peeled away layer by layer to get to the unexpected denouement. The book kept me wanting to follow its tortuous path.

This is a book that’s garnering a lot of pre-publication praise and I can see why. It’s a story that grabs you from the beginning and draws you in. It has a widening cast of characters, who only reveal what they want to reveal, until you’re never really sure whether anyone is actually what they say they are.

It opens with a shocking murder, when Alicia, for no apparent reason shoots her beloved husband Gabriel, 5 times in the face. From that moment on, she refuses to speak, despite numerous attempts to get her to open up, by the professionals at The Grove, the psychiatric unit she is resident at. Theo Faber is a forensic psychotherapist who has been following the case and is convinced he can succeed where others have failed. To that end he applies to join The Grove and persuades the director to allow him access to Alicia.

What becomes apparent is that Alicia has a troubled past which would appear to hold the key to unlocking what made her shoot Gabriel. But it also holds the key to uncovering a wider truth and somebody doesn’t want that to happen. Theo is not without his own problems, which makes him a more driven and unconventional character. He, not always ethically, sets about ‘investigating’ not just Alicia but her family, friends and associates. All appear somewhat unreliable as narrators, with something to hide. So the race is on to discover who exactly is telling the truth. The revelation, when it comes, is one I defy anyone to have seen coming.

It’s a gripping tale of murder, madness and obsession – prepare to be surprised.