The Patient is a contemporary domestic suspense novel set in Salisbury, England, about a middle-aged doctor who begins a relationship with a married patient, with deadly consequences. I’d read The Drowning Lesson by this author before, and had also 3-starred it, but liked the sound of this, especially since the heroine is a GP of approximately my age. It’s a well written thriller, and I did quite enjoy it, but I was put off by the universally unlikeable characters and predictable twists. 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.... Unfortunately, I've seen this particular twist done numerous times, so I was clued in fairly early to what the big twist would be, and without spoiling or giving anything away, the lay out of the narrative in the second half of the novel is what fully clued me in, because it was too neat and tidy to end any other way. I will say that I was so satisfied and pleased with the way the author chose to close out the final chapter, and regardless of being surprised by the twist or not, it was a classic wrap up that will stand the test of time over the years. Alicia Berenson was discovered standing over her husband - he’d been tied to a chair and shot in the face five times. Alicia gives no explanation and refuses to speak. She’s admitted to a psychiatric unit, ‘The Grove’ in North London, and six years later she still hasn’t spoken - not one single word!

Alan continues to hallucinate having meaningful talks with Charlie while sharpening an ointment tube to a blade. In a session, he says to Sam that he has to find meaning to his life and has to build relationships, and as a first step he has to rebuild his relationship with Mary, his ex-wife. When Sam complains that it doesn't work, Alan confronts him by saying that the real object of killing is not his victims or their actions but his father. Sam takes the message wrongly and decides to kill his father. Nathan and Rachel are invited to a house warming party at the newly renovated property in Old Salisbury Road. Rachel is surprised to learn that Luc and his wife Ophelia are the new owners. Celebrity scandal and a haunted lake drive the narrative in this bestselling author’s latest serving of subtly ironic suspense. Perhaps I’m imagining it. But I’m sensing something… Keep an eye on it. Any aggression or competitiveness interferes with the work. You two need to work with each other, not against each other.” A fantastic psychological thriller that starts off quietly and then hurtles along at top speed keeping you guessing all the way. I read it in two days which is always a good sign.The premise here is simply incredible; we have a woman named Alicia Berenson who is accused of murdering her husband and proceeds to clam up and keep quiet for the following six years, living during this time in a mental care facility called The Grove for highly dangerous folks. Enter Theo Faber, psychotherapist extraordinaire and flawed individual. He already has a respectable job elsewhere, but decides to transfer over to The Grove, even though it is a sinking ship, because he is obsessed with Alicia and solving the mystery behind why she murdered her husband. Along the way, we get snippets into Alicia's diary leading up to the murder, alongside of Theo's POV.

The Silent Patient might not be the worst novel I’ve read but it’s a badly written, poorly developed book. Worse still, The Silent Patient comes across as being both pointless and passionlessPrange, Stephanie (September 6, 2022). " 'Elvis,' 'She-Hulk: Attorney at Law' Top Weekly Whip U.S. Streaming Charts". Media Play News. Archived from the original on October 4, 2022 . Retrieved October 4, 2022. It is an incredibly well written and unpredictable psychological thriller and really hard to put down as it is so exciting, and love the mix of betrayal, obsession and nervousness and 'its worth the wait for the fantastic twisty ending.

Part thriller, and part romance, The Patient is a slow burn novel centered around a mystery. Jane Shemilt did an excellent job creating the settings and characters in The Patient. I loved the fact that part of the story took place in southern France. The author’s descriptions on Provence made me wish I were there. Overall I enjoyed this unique story and I look forward to reading more of Jane Shemilt’s work. The Patient will be a story that I will kit be forgetting anytime soon. I can see both thriller and romance fans enjoying this one! This was beautifully written and the characters came alive for me. Most of them were not that likeable although I did have some some sympathy for Rachel. It is so easy for women of that age to feel invisible and undesirable. The story is set in Salisbury, England and a small village in Provence, France. Alicia Berenson is such a mysterious, intriguing character and I was trying to figure her out the entire novel. I kept asking myself, " What is up with Alicia?"She is a famous, talented painter and happily married to her husband, Gabriel. They live in London and have a cozy life. Alicia Berenson is notorious for an event that happened in the past, but since that horrific incident Alicia hasn't spoken a word. Theo Farber, a psychotherapist, has heard of Alicia over the years through the news and is delighted when a job opening becomes available that would allow him to work directly with Alicia. Will Theo get Alicia talking again? What actually happened all those years ago?Serial killer kidnaps therapist” was obviously the elevator pitch from creators Joe Weisberg (the man behind the multilayered brilliance of The Americans) and Joel Fields (executive producer on that show and many others), and you suspect it attracted many parties who were keen to make a tense, claustrophobic thriller out of it, with a different escape attempt every episode and a terrifying showdown at the end. What The Patient actually aims to do is produce an essentially cerebral show, a portrait of an evolving (if forcibly so) relationship, that probes the limits of empathy, the different types of complicity, culpability and guilt, and the meaning of responsibility – as a father, as a therapist, as a creature moving through the world. One thing I did really appreciate was that, for me, this book encapsulates perfectly the warning we are always given about writing in first person - it has the advantage of letting the reader directly into the mind of the protagonist which allows us to examine thoughts, feelings and motives more specifically, but it means if a reader dislikes the character there’s a danger they’ll lose interest. But is he? Or is his fragile mental state being manipulated by someone with a sinister agenda of their own?