This is the first book that I read in over a month…Yikes… how sad! However, I am so glad that my first book of March was this one. This book has been recommended to me several times over the past few years and honestly I am kicking myself over the fact that it took me this long to get to it.
“Remember, love that doesn’t include honesty doesn’t deserve to be called love.”
Alex Michaelides, The Silent Patient
About The Book
Author: Alex Michaelides
Publisher: Celadon Books
Published Date: February 5th, 2019
Page Count: 336 Pages
Main Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Fiction
GoodReads Rating: 4.18
Format: Physical Book
“We are made up of different parts, some good, some bad, and a healthy mind can tolerate this ambivalence and juggle both good and bad at the same time. Mental illness is precisely about a lack of this kind of integration – we end up losing contact with the unacceptable parts of ourselves.”
Alex Michaelides, The Silent Patient
Synopsis
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….
Synopsis From GoodReads
“There’s so much pain everywhere, and we just close our eyes to it. The truth is we’re all scared. We’re terrified of each other.”
Alex Michaelides, The Silent Patient
Rating
Review
If I am completely honest with you, I went into this book with low expectations. I have heard a lot of mixed reviews behind this book, either you love it or hate it and I thought I was going to hate this book. To my surprise, I can see this being a contender for my 2023 top books!
This book started off kind of slow only because I wasn’t sure I liked the POV of the psychotherapist but as the story moved on the pace picked up and I flew through this book!
I would hate to spoil anything in this book for you if you haven’t read it yet, but let me tell you this, I did not see the twists coming! My jaw was on the floor for the last few chapters cause I just didn’t want to believe what I just read. If you are looking for a quick page turner you need to pick this one up!
“…we often mistake love for fireworks – for drama and dysfunction. But real love is very quiet, very still. It’s boring, if seen from the perspective of high drama. Love is deep and calm – and constant.”
Alex Michaelides, The Silent Patient
QOTD: What Psychological Thriller can you not stop thinking about?
“You know, one of the hardest things to admit is that we weren’t loved when we needed it most. It’s a terrible feeling, the pain of not being loved.”
Alex Michaelides, The Silent Patient
World of Bai 