Audiobook Review: The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

The Silent Patient
by Alex Michaelides
Narrator: Louise Brealey, Jack Hawkins
Published by Macmillan Audio
Publication Date February 5th 2019
Goodreads

"The perfect binge listen." — Yahoo Lifestyle
Instant #1 New York Times bestseller.
This program includes a bonus interview with the author.
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....
More praise for The Silent Patient:
“Absolutely brilliant… I read it in a state of intense, breathless excitement.” — Stephen Fry
“Smart, sophisticated storytelling freighted with real suspense - a very fine novel by any standard.” — Lee Child
“The Silent Patient sneaks up on you like a slash of intimidating shadow on a badly lit street. Michaelides has crafted a totally original, spellbinding psychological mystery so quirky, so unique that it should have its own genre.” — David Baldacci

Reading Progress

Review

The Silent Patient has gotten so much hype since its publication. There is now a movie in development. I had to see what all the fuss was about. Truth be told, The Silent Patient is a slow build. It is a novel you have to stick with but, the reader will be rewarded in return. As I read Alex Michaelides’debut I kept comparing it to Silence of the Lambs and Shutter Island. However, as I sit down to reflect and write a review, I feel it is more Hitchcockian. Dial M for Murder comes to mind and, like Alfred Hitchcock’s cameo, the answer is right in front of you, as long as you know where to look.

When I first picked up The Silent Patient I assumed it would be a predictable summer thriller. Yes, it did contain common plot tropes (note my references above) however, the idea of a murderer going silent was unique enough to put that aside. The slow build leading up to what occurred the night Alicia killed her husband is what keeps the reader engaged. I was kept alert to pick up clues, it is quite similar to finding Alfred Hitchcock boarding a train, winding a clock, or in a picture.

My one pet peeve was with the characters. My goodness, everyone at The Grove seemed incompetent. Where there should have been Nurse Ratched, John Dorian was at the reins. The incompetent nature of all who worked at the asylum was frustrating. There were times when I wanted to slap characters across the face and tell them to wake up and smell the coffee.

I wish I could say I was perceptive enough to guess the twist-ending but, I wasn’t. Despite my inklings, the conclusion caught me off guard. The finale between doctor and patient was frenzied and satisfying. There is no doubt that The Silent Patient is an incredible read.

Rating