Anyone who knows me well knows that I absolutely love crime and detective fiction (it was my specialist topic when I was in University). So I was over the moon when I found out I would be getting an early-release copy of Alex Michaelides' debut novel The Silent Patient. My excitement was not for nothing either. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book - I finished it in just over two days!
The Silent Patient is a psychological crime thriller set in modern-day. It follows two characters: Alicia Berenson - the murderer, and Theo Faber - the psychotherapist who treats her. The thrilling mysterious element with Alicia's treatment is that since the day that she murdered her husband she has not spoken. She is silent. Theo believes he can make her speak again. We follow Theo as he embarks on a mission to discover the truth about Alicia's silence.
The Characters:
Michaelides has a skill in portraying characters. We are fully introduced to our narrator - Theo Faber - including his tragic backstory. We know not only Theo in the present but also his past, which makes the reader become emotionally invested in his character. Alicia is shown as highly mysterious with her determination to remain silent, but there's also something alluring about her - she wills you to want to know more about what happened.
The author uses side-by-side chapter-by-chapter portrayals of the lives of both Alicia and Theo. Alicia's life is shown through her past diary entries and Theo's through his narration of the present situation. You become equally invested in their lives as you learn more about Alicia's past and Theo's future. As such, when the two characters meet you feel an energy between them, as if you know something is going to develop and happen.
Many other characters are also introduced, but not so many that you are overwhelmed or become confused. Michaelides does well in structurally introducing new characters with about one chapter per new character. You meet the characters just as Theo does and, as Theo investigates them in relation to Alicia, it's easier to remember who they are and the part they play in this mystery.
Plot and Structure:
The plot of The Silent Patient is structured pretty much perfectly. You are given all the information you need to be brought up-to-date with the case as the murder occurs nearly six years before the present-day of the novel. Michaelides takes you through Theo's investigation whilst slowly building to the climax of the novel where everything is revealed. You become fully invested in this case. Like Theo, you too become highly interested in the mysterious Alicia and want to find out what really happened to make her become silent.
Throughout the novel, Michaelides utilises the use of Alicia's diary. When reading her diary, we see straight into Alicia's thoughts and discover her life before the murder. Alicia gives you thoughts and accounts of events through her diary which you are able to use as puzzle pieces to try to put together to work out what happened and why she is silent.
There is a twist that everyone talks about when it comes to this novel. Whilst reading this novel, I took down notes ready to write this review. To show you the effect the twist has on you, I am going to give you exactly what I wrote down after reading the twist: Honestly, my mind is blown. I'll have to let you guys wait and read for yourselves why my mind is blown. Honestly, I just need to read on to make sense of it!
The story is brought to a neat close. Sometimes, in crime and detective fiction, authors jump to the ending conclusion without much explanation or leave you with a sense of non-fulfilment. However, Michaelides rounds everything off, leaving no loose ends in the final part of this brilliant read.
The reason this novel reads so well is due to its structure: the dedication of each chapter to meeting and introducing a new character, the inclusion of Alicia's diary entries, and the balance between the two main characters' lives. Based on this one novel alone, Michaelides is a genius in crafting the perfect structure for a psychological thriller. I cannot wait to read more from him. I would highly recommend everyone to go out and buy The Silent Patient which is being fully released on the 7th February 2019.
I would like to end on a huge thank you to Poppy Stimpson from Orion Books for providing me with an early-release copy of The Silent Patient. Without Poppy, I wouldn't have had the amazing experience of reading The Silent Patient or have been able to write this review!
What did you guys think of this review? Does it make you want to read The Silent Patient for yourself? Should I do more book reviews? Let me know in the comments!
Scribble to you soon, Scarlett