The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides



I have never read a psychological thriller, so why now? The slow paced life during Covid-19 made me pick up this genre, and within the genre "The Silent Patient" caught my attention as Good Reads Choice Awards - Best Debut Novel. I thoroughly enjoyed the book, strong plot, tightly packed story...enough to keep it interesting. 

The book is a domestic tragedy. The main character Alicia Berenson is an artist living with her husband Gabriel in a grand house with big windows overlooking a park in one of London’s most desirable areas. Her seemingly perfect life comes to an halt, when one night she shoots her husband. Post that she never speaks again and after being convicted lives at the Grove, a secure forensic unit in North London.. 

In comes Theo, a criminal psychotherapist who joins Grove with the sole aim of working with Alicia. The way the author has built the relationship between Theo and Alicia in slow steps, is the soul of the book. As a reader you are convinced that Theo is almost in love with Alicia, esp as he struggles in his faithless marriage. In the end it turns out to be dark tale of obsession, of which I will tell you NOTHING....

The peek into other characters lives, as the story unfolds makes for an interesting read. It makes the book fuller and takes away from the claustrophobia of Theo and Alicia tale. 

So yes, go ahead and read this one - A thumping YES! 

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