Stevie‘s review of The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
Contemporary Psychological Thriller published by Celadon Books 05 Feb 19

I love well-written twisty psychological dramas, particularly those with flawed or unreliable narrators, but I’m quite picky as to which ones meet all the elements I require for a really good example of the genre. The blurb for this book certainly drew me in, as did its premise: a murderer who is unwilling or unable to offer any words of explanation as to her motives.

Alicia Berenson was a successful artist, married to a somewhat older, equally successful fashion photographer. The pair appeared to live an idyllic life, until the night that Alicia shot her husband, and then attempted suicide by slashing her wrists. Since the day of her arrest, Alicia hasn’t spoken, although she produced one last painting before her trial, which she titled Alcestis, after the Greek tragedy in which a woman who agreed to die in place of her husband is brought back to life but never utters another word. The self-portrait cemented Alicia’s notoriety and onlookers flocked to the gallery in which it was displayed, amongst them Theo Faber, a psychotherapist who goes on to obtain a post at the secure psychiatric unit where Alicia has been held since her trial six years earlier.

Theo has a number of reasons for being fascinated by Alicia, each of which becomes apparent as the story unfolds. He works with her in an attempt to get her to speak and is eventually rewarded by being gifted Alicia’s diary from the weeks leading up to the murder and by her production of a new painting after Theo secures for her some of the materials she requires for her art. From the diary – parts of which readers get to see before Theo – it seems that Alicia had been subjected to psychological abuse from her husband, unwanted sexual advances from her brother-in-law, and some downright creepy behaviour from other relatives and colleagues both immediately before the murder and further back in her past. Then there’s the matter of the man she believes to have been watching her in the days leading up to the murder, but whom no one else claims to have seen.

A victim of abuse as a child himself, Theo is determined to unravel the mystery posed by the original case, the diary, and the paintings created after the murder. He sets out to find everyone mentioned in Alicia’s account of events and discovers that several have motives for doing harm to either Alicia or her husband. Meanwhile, a separate plot thread details Theo’s suspicions – later confirmed – that his wife is having an affair, and the murderous thoughts that Theo develops towards the man he sees her with.

From early on in this story, it’s clear that someone else was involved on the day of the murder. While I didn’t manage to put all the clues into place, the solution, when it was eventually presented, made perfect sense. While few of the characters in this book were particularly likeable, all were intriguing and the whole story was a most satisfying read. I want to see a lot more from this author.

Grade: A

Summary:

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….

Read an excerpt.