The Silent Patient
**THE INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER** A New York Times 50 Best Thrillers of the 21st Century
"An unforgettable—and Hollywood-bound—new thriller... A mix of Hitchcockian suspense, Agatha Christie plotting, and Greek tragedy."
—Entertainment Weekly
The Silent Patient is a shocking psychological thriller of a woman’s act of violence against her husband—and of the therapist obsessed with uncovering her motive.
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....
- Pages
- 323
- First published
- 2018
- Language
- English
- Edition
- Ebook
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Shelved by 19 Litcadians
Reviews
Finished September 16, 2024
Bounced around for a while, deciding whether to give this 4 or 5 stars. I was slightly disappointed with the last page, but then the rest of the book had me hooked. I was obsessed and I just hope that my next read gives me the same feels!!!
- darkemotionalmysterioussadtenseMedium-paced
Started October 5, 2026 · Finished October 7, 2026
The 2 stars alone are for the writing, pacing, and plotline for majority of the book. Chef's kiss, it was really good. However, all of that fell apart for me when I got to the plot twist. I went into this not expecting anything really. Yes, I saw it on tiktok but I never got any spoiler's for it. I didn't even read the synopsis. I just went for it. And it was good! Until it wasn't... I love the unreliable narrator trope, but this felt... not very good. The Theo in the beginning feels absolutely nothing the Theo at the end. And I get it, they aren't supposed to. But I feel like there weren't even any clues. I had picked up on some slightly weird details, but in all honesty? I did not get suspicious of Theo, it just felt like minor writing mistakes to me T-T The plot twist and the ending definitely sullied my experience with this read. Is it the worst? No. The overall experience is pretty fun. But the last 20% was so disappointing to me. If you are the type of person who likes a twist that doesn't quite make sense or you don't mind a vague ending? This book is so up your alley and I think you will love it. If you are like me, and are not like that type of person, don't read this. It will leave you a little angry because the rest was SO GOOD and then it got ruined.
Finished November 17, 2023
Finished September 22, 2021
Finished November 11, 2020
Finished May 24, 2020
Finished January 16, 2024
