The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides #Book #Review @orionbooks @AlexMichaelides @PoppyStimpson

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

Published by Orion Books

Publication Date: 7 February 2019

Genre: Crime/Psychological Thriller

352 pages

My thanks to Poppy Stimpson on behalf of Orion Books who allowed me an advance copy of this highly anticipated novel ahead of publication. All views are my own and unbiased.

Book Description:

THE MOST ANTICIPATED THRILLER OF 2019

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?

THE SILENT PATIENT is the gripping must-read debut thriller of 2019 - perfect for fans of THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW by A.J. Finn, THIRTEEN by Steve Cavanagh and THE GIRL BEFORE by JP Delaney. Publishing in over 45 countries, and with the film coming from Oscar winning Plan B Productions, THE SILENT PATIENT is the only thriller you need to read in 2019.

My Review:

The book starts with a prologue, a diary entry written by Alice Berenson more than a month before she shot her husband several times and then stopped talking.  The entries from this diary are interspersed with the main story all the way through the book and lead us to understand Alice's state of mind before the event.  Sometimes they help, sometimes they lead the reader on a bit of a detour.

Six years later and Alice is in a secure mental health unit called The Grove where her carers try to work with her to solve the mystery of her silence. She has moments of uncontrollable violence and is therefore dosed to the eyeballs with sedatives.

Theo Faber is a 42 year old psychotherapist working at Broadmoor who has followed Alice's case from the start and believes he is the one to unlock her secrets. Theo applies for a job at The Grove when a vacancy arises and following an interview with Indira Sharma, consultant psychotherapist and a panel of other doctors starts working at the unit. Theo recognises a young man named Christian,  who also previously worked at Broadmoor, who is currently main carer for Alice and we follow Theo's first few months working at the Grove as he gets to know the staff and patients. As time goes by Theo learns that funding for The Grove is under threat and the unit may be at risk of closure.  He feels that if he can crack the mystery of Alice's silence and get her to speak, this will validate the unit's existence and hopefully ensure it stays open.  He works with the others, offering his thoughts on Alice's case to Professor Diomedes - the man in charge - and persuades him that Alice needs to express herself through art. Christian resists Theo's suggestions, but the professor has overall say. Why is Christian reluctant to let Theo near Alice? One of many questions I had along the way.

There is very much a feeling that we are missing a huge piece of the puzzle as regards to why Theo believes so strongly that he can help Alice.  He manages to arrange meetings with Alice's family and friends in order to get background information and I couldn't help but have a bad feeling about his quest for knowledge. Why is he so intent on going above and beyond for Alice? Who or what does he think he will find by talking to these people and why do some of them react so badly when Theo starts sniffing around? The story certainly is a complete enigma for much of the book.

Various characters feature strongly throughout the novel and there were possible scenarios running through my head all the way through as to whether Alice was the person who pulled the trigger at all, if so why and if not who might have done - and why.  Will Theo manage to get inside Alice's head and succeed where everyone else has failed? If so, what will be the key piece of information which unlocks her? I'm certainly not about to spoil this for anyone, so all I will say is keep an open mind and your wits about you as this author is a master at his craft.  It's hard to believe that this is his first novel.

While I really enjoyed this book as it drew me right on in and messed about with my brain cells, I don't think it will be for everyone as it is a proper psychological thriller. In my opinion it will be a 'marmite' book which will divide readers as to its merits. I do recommend you give it a fair trial though, because you really will want to know what happened between Alice and Max Berenson on that fateful August afternoon.

Buying Link: Amazon UK -The Silent Patient

About the Author:

Alex Michaelides was born in Cyprus to a Greek-Cypriot father and English mother. He has a MA in English Literature from Cambridge University and a MFA in Screenwriting from the American Film Institute in Los Angeles. The Silent Patient is his first novel.