Breakaway Books

Authored by Alex Michaelides; Published 2019; Thriller

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 🏖️🏖️

The Silent Patient forced me to wonder where exactly the line is between thriller and horror. This novel isn’t exactly full of jump scares, but I still can’t recommend listening to it while you’re at home alone.

The Silent Patient follows Theo, a therapist who is fascinated by the case of Alicia Berenson, a painter who was convicted of killing her husband and has been completely silent since the murder. Theo is devoted to helping Alicia speak again, but as he dives into her past to find the root of her trauma, he discovers more than he bargained for. This novel is a masterwork of suspense and mystery, the perfect book to keep you on the edge of your seat.

One of the reasons that I enjoyed the novel so much is that I find an unreliable narrator particularly compelling. In this novel, with the perspective shifting continually back and forth between Alicia and Theo, it doesn’t take long to realize that neither has the full picture of what really transpired the night of the murder—or is willing to share it. I quickly began to question just how transparent either one was, as they related the events of the narrative. It is, of course, slightly disorienting, but to me, this is a particularly enjoyable way to build suspense throughout a novel.

As Theo digs through Alicia’s past and her relationships with the other patients and the hospital where she has been detained, there are red herrings aplenty. Plenty of characters with motive to frame Alicia, plenty of patients who seem to know her secrets. Unsurprisingly, considering the profession of the narrator, the seed of the murder ultimately comes back to childhood trauma and its wide-ranging impacts on the victim. While the ultimate explanation of the murder felt a little implausible, it was certainly dramatic and made for a satisfying conclusion.

The Silent Patient is haunting, even disturbing at times, but if you’re looking for high drama and suspense, it definitely fits the bill.