Story
The Silent Patient is about a woman, named Alicia Berenson, who has been accused of killing her husband by shooting him five times. She has remained silent for years after the incident and clams up whenever she needs to talk, especially about the murder. She is put into a home for especially dangerous people called The Grove where she is taught art and other creative subjects along with therapy to try and change her mindset.
Theo Faber is a psychotherapist who has a very respectable job that he decides he is going to give up on to move to The Grove and help Alicia with her treatment. He is fascinated by her story and wants to help her speak.
Review
Alicia Berenson is a very interesting character as she leads you to believe she is sweet and caring in her diary extracts that are leaked slowly throughout the book but causes a conflict in your mind as she is accused of a terrible crime. Theo Faber on the other hand is a very confusing character - most of the book excluding Alicia’s diary entries are written from his point of view. You are unsure of the character as you go through this book and he cannot be understood.
Overall, I would recommend this book, however, as it is interesting and not completely “see through”. It is hard to put down all the way through and it is one of my favourite “thriller” “mystery” books that I have read so far this year.
Verdict: ****
If you enjoyed this, you might also enjoy...
Other books like this include “A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder” and the “One of Us is Lying” series. These are also some of my favourites so far this year. They are all mystery/thrillers which help you get gripped into the stories.
Reviewed by Sophie, Sydenham High School