The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides: A review

I have resisted reading this book as it has solidified its spot on the best sellers list over several weeks. Something about the description of the plot just put me off. But the book kept nagging at me and finally I surrendered. Take me, Alex Michaelides, I am yours.

And actually, it wasn't bad.

The plot briefly is this: Alicia Berenson, a well-known artist, has been convicted of killing her husband, Gabriel, a fashion photographer. Gabriel was bound to a chair and then shot in the face five times. Afterward, Alicia slashed her wrists and thus they were discovered - the dead body of Gabriel and Alicia bleeding profusely.

There was never any question that Alicia had committed the murder, although a motive was apparently never identified. The investigation and the trial were complicated by the fact that the accused murderer either refused or was unable to speak. Now it is several years later. Alicia has spent those years in an institution for the mentally ill and during that time despite the best efforts of her doctors, she has not spoken a word.

Enter psychotherapist Theo Faber. He has been employed at another facility but he is aware of Alicia's case and is fascinated by it. When the opportunity comes to accept a position at The Grove, the place where Alicia is housed, he jumps at the chance. He is assigned to work with her and he begins the process, seeing no change in her behavior at first. But gradually he makes a connection with her and sees that he is making progress, although she still doesn't speak.

The narrative switches to the background of Theo's marriage, which he had thought was a happy one. But then he discovers that his wife, an actress, is having an affair. He becomes a stalker of her lover and finds where he lives, learning that he, too, is married.

The narrative is quite ambiguous regarding the timeframes of these two storylines and you have to read until almost the end of the book to see the connection in what is billed as a "shocking twist". Well, I admit it was unexpected although I recognized at least one big hole in the plot early on. Namely, Gabriel had been tied in a chair before being shot. Exactly how did Alicia manage to overpower him and do that? Why did the police apparently not question that? It just didn't make sense to me. There were other less obvious things that didn't add up as well. Let's just say the plot is porous.

One feels empathy for Alicia lost in her silent world and viewed as a challenge to be conquered by her psychotherapist. Theo, on the other hand, did not engage my sympathies. I questioned his motives from the first and found him to be quite self-serving in his actions. He is our main source for the story and he gives new meaning to the term "unreliable narrator". The other characters in the book are underdeveloped and not particularly memorable.

This was Alex Michaelides' first novel. He had previously written for films. It is a promising start, a good idea for a psychological thriller that was just a bit sloppy in the execution. But, on the whole, not a bad book. I wavered between a three-star and four-star rating for it and, of course, in the end, I decided to be generous.

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Poetry Sunday: Don't Hesitate by Mary Oliver

How about we share another Mary Oliver poem? After all, you can never have too many of those. In this one, the poet seems to acknowledge that it is often hard to simply live in and enjoy the moment, perhaps because we are afraid it can't last. She urges us to give in to that moment and fully experience the joy. Although "much can never be redeemed, still, life has some possibility left." Don't Hesitate by Mary Oliver If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it. There are plenty of lives and whole towns destroyed or about to be. We are not wise, and not very often kind. And much can never be redeemed. Still, life has some possibility left. Perhaps this is its way of fighting back, that sometimes something happens better than all the riches or power in the world. It could be anything, but very likely you notice it in the instant when love begins. Anyway, that’s often the case. Anyway, whatever it is, don’t be afraid of its plenty. Joy is no...

Poetry Sunday: Blackberry-Picking by Seamus Heaney

My mother was a farm wife and a prodigious canner. She canned fruit and vegetables from the garden, even occasionally meat. But the best thing that she canned, in my opinion, was blackberry jam. Even as I type those words my mouth waters! Of course, before she could make that jam, somebody had to pick the blackberries. And that somebody was quite often named Dorothy. I think Seamus Heaney might have spent some time among the briars plucking those delicious black fruits as well, so he would have known that "Once off the bush the fruit fermented, the sweet flesh would turn sour." They don't keep; you have to get that jam made in a hurry! Blackberry-Picking by Seamus Heaney Late August, given heavy rain and sun For a full week, the blackberries would ripen. At first, just one, a glossy purple clot Among others, red, green, hard as a knot. You ate that first one and its flesh was sweet Like thickened wine: summer's blood was in it Leaving stains upon the tongue and lust ...

Poetry Sunday: Hymn for the Hurting by Amanda Gorman

You probably remember poet Amanda Gorman from her appearance at the inauguration of President Biden. She read her poem "The Hill We Climb" on that occasion. After the senseless slaughter in Uvalde this week, she was inspired to write another poem which was published in The New York Times. It seemed perfect for the occasion and so I stole it in order to feature it here, just in case you didn't get a chance to read it in the Times . Hymn for the Hurting by Amanda Gorman Everything hurts, Our hearts shadowed and strange, Minds made muddied and mute. We carry tragedy, terrifying and true. And yet none of it is new; We knew it as home, As horror, As heritage. Even our children Cannot be children, Cannot be. Everything hurts. It’s a hard time to be alive, And even harder to stay that way. We’re burdened to live out these days, While at the same time, blessed to outlive them. This alarm is how we know We must be altered — That we must differ or die, That we must triumph or try. ...

The Nature of Things

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