Reviews with content warning for Child abuse - Die stumme Patientin

Unrelated but this book made me realize that I almost exclusively read books written by women. I hated all the men in this book-- yes even Theo(the MC) before the plot twist, I thought he was pathetic. I also despised how the female MC wasn't taken seriously at all regarding her mental health and paranoia, but I think it reflects the real world where male doctors don't take women as seriously so kudos to the author for that. The characters are obviously written to be disliked so I have to begrudgingly say the character writing is good. Writing style was interesting, it feels ranty sometimes but that's purposeful so +1 point for that as well. Now let's get to the meat of the book; the plot. The way the plot points are connected is very interesting; you are left with a bunch of questions at the start of the book and the plot twist ties all those questions together. I guessed half of the plot twist since about 40% so I wouldn't say it's too shocking(I read virtually no thriller so my guessing the plot twist isn't a good sign). I really like the exploration of damaged people being unsalvageable and how therapy is merely a tool, not a solution. I enjoyed the book; it was a page turner and pulled me along a string to keep reading but I felt something was missing so only 4 stars.

Content Warnings

canivie's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book is a good one that keeps your mind working completely through the book. From learning about the characters and their personalities to trying to figure out what happened, it keeps you on your toes. I never would have expected the ending. Absolutely amazing!

Content Warnings

beccabookworm's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

The plot twist at the end succeeded in surprising me. It was a good ending.

I definitely suspected Theo, I just couldn't figure out how he was involved. The undisclosed time jump was certainly well done.

As annoyed and confused as I was whenever we came back to the plotline about Kathy, the reveal of why we kept coming back to it and why we should care was cool. And the why itself

- that the man Kathy was cheating with was Gabriel and the man who was stalking Alicia was Theo -

is a satisfying twist. It actually saved the book from a lower rating for me. However, it just doesn't make the lackluster journey of reading (listening to) this book worth it.

The tension throughout often felt forced because a character was being dumbed down to explain something simple and obvious to the reader

(e.g., Theo, the psychotherapist, being unable to recognize Alcestis' silence as anger towards her husband)

or because the tension was prolonged in a way that made me feel annoyance rather than suspense

(e.g., Paul revealing Alicia's father wishing her dead)

. I wasn't excited to know what happened next and just wasn't very thrilled by this thriller.

Content Warnings

lynnes's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious fast-paced

4.0

Content Warnings

nehaanna's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is the definition of a thriller mystery. There are unexpected twists that delve deep into the psyche of both protagonists, as the stand as foils to one another. The work is not bogged down with unnecessary psychological waxing as other works by this author do.

Content Warnings

cassafrassandfries's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I’ve had SO MANY people recommend this book to me - and it absolutely lived up to the hype for me. I feel like I have to preface this by saying I don’t read a TON of thrillers, so I really didn’t see the twist in this coming. I’m sure if you read a bunch of mystery and thrillers you’ll be like “I TOtAllY sAw THaT CoMiNg!” But I was enthralled. When I say I flew through this, I mean I read it in less than 24 hours and literally woke up early on my day off to get up and finish this. Story wise… can’t ask for anything more. I thought the story moved at a decent pace, the twist actually made sense, and it had me turning pages to figure out what happened. The story and characters were messed up - in the BEST way. I thought Michaelides’ (guys I can’t remember what to do with apostrophes and words that end in S - teacher friends plz help) writing was engaging. It was somehow both breezy but carried weight, and was captivating in the best way. I really loved it. I think this is my first 5 star rating of the year and I’ll keep thinking about this one. Overall, totally recommend. Thanks to Karen for letting me borrow this one!

Content Warnings

solymar's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

The whole book is basically a man with a savior complex & the result of that. I found him to be annoying honestly, because he’s the type of guy every woman knows and tries to avoid you know what I mean? I will say I didn’t see the plot twist coming so that was entertaining and the book definitely picks up around the middle. This seems like a good book for a long commute/plane ride.

Content Warnings

More...