The Silent Patient
Ratings1,238
Average rating3.8
Great story, with some great twists that I totally missed coming my way.
Narrators performance was top-notch.
I read the first chapter and immediately knew what happened and what was going to happen. The writing style pretty much gave it away. Really didn't enjoy this one..
This is a book that I have been wanting to get my hands on for the longest time and I am so happy to say that it was worth the wait.
The Silent Patient was everything I was wanting it to be and more. The collection of characters that appear as Theo attempts to unravel what happened following up to the murder of Alicia's husband's murder was probably my favourite part about this. As you discover more about each of the characters you come across, you are constantly finding yourself suspicious of them all and that's something that I love, especially when it comes to this genre.
Being told from Theo's perspective and through Alicia's diary entries proved to be the best pacing that you can want from a book like this. I was constantly on the edge, chasing answers along with the other characters. Every time I turned the page I was ready to be hit with a new revelation.
The ending of this book genuinely shocked me. I closed the book and stared at my wall for about ten minutes (Picture Bella in New Moon where she is just staring out the window). I loved how everything tied together but how the ending also ended on a cliff note, leaving it open to interpretation of what occurred next.
I was originally worried that this book would end up being another Tiktok favourite that was overhyped but I am so happy that it wasn't. I'm so glad this was my 60th read of the year.
Jeetje wat een boek was dit! Echt mega plottwist die ik niet zag aankomen zeg. Wel echt heel goed doordacht. Het einde was goed, maar wel abrupt.
Schrijfstijl was ook heel fijn en ik vloog door dit boek!
This was definitely a page turner. I was hooked after a little while, wondering what was next and what the big twist was going to be. It was stupid. I hate this main character. I fail to understand the rhyme and reasoning behind his actions. I hate how much of a white knight he thinks he is, how he needs to “save” Alicia. This is what I get for listening to the masses.
I'd give it a 3.5 out of 5 stars. Some parts seemed completely pointless, and I was sitting there reading, thinking, “can we just get to the point? I get it, Alicia despises everyone in her life.”
slow at the start but it became a rapid page turner thereafter. i eventually guessed that Theo was an unreliable narrator and turns out i was pretty right! good stuff
The book held my interest throughout, It is well written and moves quickly. I would have given it a 5 star, but I figured out the end sooner than I would have liked.
Definitely the quickest read of the year for me. It's very similar to Gone Girl, except it wasn't as predictable (in my case). Pleasantly surprised.
The psychological bits rely on purely Freudian school which is a bit annoying at times, but it's not meant to be a psychological book anyway so that's ok.
Not sure what to say about this one, except I expected much more.
I was intrigued by Alicia's story at first. But as the story progressed, I started picking up some details that lead me to suspect someone. And I was hoping the story didn't go in that direction. Unfortunately, it did. And even though I didn't guess exactly what happened, I guessed too much of it. (if that makes sense)
Very middle of the road for me. The first half of the book had me hooked. The second part of it wasn't my favorite. So, it ended up being a 3-star read for me.
Though a great definition of a psychological thriller, The Silent Patient missed the mark for me in several ways...
The story is mostly narrated by Theo, a psychotherapist who set outs to treat Alicia. Since the murder of her husband six years prior, she hasn't spoken a word. What we know from Alicia's POV comes from her diary entries surrounding the time of the murder. Having read Alex Michaelides' other book The Maidens, I knew this would be a twisty story and to take every bit of information with a grain of salt. Unfortunately, having read The Maidens, I knew who not to trust almost instantly. Had this been my first experience with the author's writing, I feel I would have enjoyed it a lot more.
My biggest issue with the book wasn't so much the plot but rather a total disregard for authentic psychological practices and ethics. It was infuriating. There was also a lot of ‘schooling' on psychology, however, it wasn't congruent with what was being presented through the story and the characters. In turn, it made the book and its twists limitedly plausible. While I did enjoy this more than The Maidens, not much (and for different reasons). It was nevertheless a page-turner which is always nice to find.
THE PLOT
Alicia has the perfect life until one evening after her husband Gabriel returns home late from a fashion shoot, Alicia shoots him five times in the face, and then never speaks another word. Theo Faber is a criminal psychotherapist and he is determined to get Alicia to talk and explain why she shot her husband.
MY OPINION
I read this book in a couple of hours, so that says something. But after finishing it I was kinda mad. Everyone has hyped up the plot twist and I was dying to know what it was. I was suspicious of every character, but after finding out the twist I was honestly let down. I didn't feel connected to the characters and the writing really wasn't anything special. I think this book is between 2-3 stars, I honestly can't decide.
O livro inteiro é muito bom. O único problema é que o final é meio tiltante. Se você é como eu e gosta de suspense só por tentar adivinhar o final, você vai ficar bem decepcionado: ele vai de 0 a 100 em dois capítulos e o protagonista mentiu pra você o livro inteiro. Legal, né?
This one has gotten a lot of hype recently and it kind of almost lived up to it. It was really good. I knew there was a shocking twist and I almost had it figured out. It was really good and that ending ... man. I don't even know how I feel about it. Definitely could try some more books from this author. Would recommend to a friend.
5/5 - Absolute fantastic thriller mystery! This is an incredibly fast paced novel which once you get started you will find it very hard to put down! The twist at the end should have seen obvious but all my theories and guesses where very far off what the outcome ended up being. I especially loved the Greek Tragedy theme throughout the novel, makes want to see Alcestis on stage.
This was one of those books that I kept seeing everywhere. So figured it was time to actually read it.
I was worried that it wouldn't live up to the hype in my head, I'm so glad I was wrong. A couple of the plot twists took me by surprise and I definitely didn't see the end coming. So I really really enjoyed it. Definitely one of those books I think everyone would enjoy
this is a very hyped book but also a very hated book so i was wary... popular and hated? i'll probably hate it then right? wrong. I liked it! I loved the writing so much and the character development was great and i didn't guess what would happen half way through the book like i do with some mystery books and i only guessed 2 pages before it happened so yay?
the book creeped me out and actually scared me which was unexpected and i do think i'll have trouble shaking this story off me but that means it was a great read.... just a bit scary for me :((((
IM SO HAPPY I READ THIS !!!
the plot twist literally left me catching my damn breath on the floor. I literally GASPED.
and the ending ???? superb. id have cried & punched walls if what happened didn't happen.
the writing was also great, no unnecessary rambling, juste ce qu'il faut, did not feel bored at all.
no but imagine being so smart you create a chef d'œuvre like this ? damn god really has his favorites
IM SO HAPPY I READ THIS !!!
the plot twist literally left me catching my damn breath on the floor. I literally GASPED.
and the ending ???? superb. id have cried & punched walls if what happened didn't happen.
the writing was also great, no unnecessary rambling, juste ce qu'il faut, did not feel bored at all.
no but imagine being so smart you create a chef d'œuvre like this ? damn god really has his favorites