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A review by richardrbecker
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
3.0
As a psychological thriller, The Silent Patient is a slow burner at best. Part of the reason being that Alex Michaelides' novel allows itself too much expansion at the expense of any truly thrilling or terrifying moments. It also includes a plot twist that can be partially guessed at too soon in the book.
As a result, the novel becomes almost procedural in its approach — a curiosity in the author's delivery more than that story itself. Therein lies the problem. The story, more than the writing, is always the real measure of a solid novel. And this one, while entertaining at times, doesn't carry the tension of a thriller, the who-done-what of a mystery, or likable enough characters to care about.
Without giving anything away, the book is primarily about a psychotherapist, Theo, who becomes obsessed enough with a public figure committed to an institution after allegedly murdering her husband. The patient, Alicia, is a rising-star artist who paints imaginative portraits — like a heavy woman with weight dripping onto the floor or her husband on a crucifix — in a photorealistic style (yawn). After the murder of her husband, she has stopped speaking.
Her silence provides enough cover to create some doubt about her guilt or innocence and forces our protagonist to take up some detective work. He interviews various friends, family members, and colleagues in an attempt to figure out what his patient isn't telling him. At the same time, he attempts to manage his own psychological issues, amplified by the knowledge that his wife was having an affair.
With all this tragedy borrowed from Greek mythology, you immediately wonder who you should feel sorry for: Theo? Alicia? Her husband? Someone else? Then you remember that's the problem with Greek mythology at times. Many amazing Greek tales never truly connect you to the immortal or mortal characters as they live out some cautionary lesson (or the random bemusement of another deity's design). They simply exist. So does The Silent Patient, a worthwhile read as long as you adjust your expectations for something more akin to a screenplay in today's oversaturated and overconsumed market.
As a result, the novel becomes almost procedural in its approach — a curiosity in the author's delivery more than that story itself. Therein lies the problem. The story, more than the writing, is always the real measure of a solid novel. And this one, while entertaining at times, doesn't carry the tension of a thriller, the who-done-what of a mystery, or likable enough characters to care about.
Without giving anything away, the book is primarily about a psychotherapist, Theo, who becomes obsessed enough with a public figure committed to an institution after allegedly murdering her husband. The patient, Alicia, is a rising-star artist who paints imaginative portraits — like a heavy woman with weight dripping onto the floor or her husband on a crucifix — in a photorealistic style (yawn). After the murder of her husband, she has stopped speaking.
Her silence provides enough cover to create some doubt about her guilt or innocence and forces our protagonist to take up some detective work. He interviews various friends, family members, and colleagues in an attempt to figure out what his patient isn't telling him. At the same time, he attempts to manage his own psychological issues, amplified by the knowledge that his wife was having an affair.
With all this tragedy borrowed from Greek mythology, you immediately wonder who you should feel sorry for: Theo? Alicia? Her husband? Someone else? Then you remember that's the problem with Greek mythology at times. Many amazing Greek tales never truly connect you to the immortal or mortal characters as they live out some cautionary lesson (or the random bemusement of another deity's design). They simply exist. So does The Silent Patient, a worthwhile read as long as you adjust your expectations for something more akin to a screenplay in today's oversaturated and overconsumed market.