Reviews tagging 'Misogyny'

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

42 reviews

archaicrobin's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I have had The Silent Patient on my TBR for years and was initially very excited to read it. I first added it back when I was naive and thought that being in the Best Seller list actually meant something, but now I know it’s where mediocre and terrible books are highlighted for all the wrong reasons.

The Silent Patient is incredibly mid, it’s your stereotypical thriller that starts off fine, nothing groundbreaking, but unfortunately disintegrates into this poorly written mess. I was interested for about half of the book then it just tanked completely for me. 

The writing is erratic, the twist is confusing, the plot is slow and honestly boring, and the main character Theo is a dull man with white savior complex. Overall, I wouldn’t really recommend this, there are far better thrillers out there to spend you time on. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Infidelity, Misogyny, Gun violence, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Grief

emptzuu's review

This book is deeply troubling for me as a trauma survivor actively undergoing therapy. From the outset, I found it immensely unsettling. The narrator lacks credibility on multiple fronts – as a psychotherapist, an employee, a spouse, and simply as a human being. Michaelides' portrayal reveals a stark ignorance about mental health diagnoses, treatments, and prescribed medications. Moreover, the biases evident in the narrative contribute to a culture of misinformation that could dissuade individuals from seeking therapy or adhering to treatment plans involving medication. To put it bluntly, this is the worst book I've ever encountered, and I regret ever picking it up. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness and Misogyny

wickedgrumpy's review

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

I think I was unknowingly spoiled for this book years ago and had internalized the twist, even though I knew nothing else about the story, which made this pretty disappointing.

---

Content Warnings

Minor: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Torture, Body horror, Car accident, Child abuse, Classism, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Violence, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Blood, Bullying, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Grief, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Sexism, Sexual content, and Toxic friendship

vynlikesreading's review

dark mysterious tense

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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

Graphic: Murder, Gun violence, Suicide attempt, and Self harm

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Child abuse, and Drug abuse

Minor: Suicide and Misogyny

sareidle's review

dark mysterious fast-paced

• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Stalking, Murder, Confinement, Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, and Medical content

Moderate: Drug use, Car accident, Toxic relationship, Misogyny, and Panic attacks/disorders

maysshelf's review

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

The Silent Patient is a gripping book that, despite my eagerness to speed through, demanded a slower pace. At times, I thought I had the story figured out, only to be pleasantly surprised by an unexpected plot twist. What I admired most was the author's skill in achieving this twist without resorting to magic or unrealistic elements, merely a subtle turn of the clock (if you catch my drift). Categorized as a thriller, I found its essence nestled more in mystery, which only added to its allure. Overall, a compelling read that keeps you guessing till the end

I just didn’t like that she had a voice through the book, so she wasn’t “silent” from the readers perspective.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Murder, Mental illness, Violence, Misogyny, Gun violence, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment, Physical abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide attempt, Stalking, Self harm, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Infidelity, Hate crime, and Fatphobia

Moderate: Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Abandonment, Death of parent, Confinement, Car accident, Bullying, and Addiction

dalek_caan's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

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

2.5

This book was overall an okay read. It is definitely overhyped. The writing style itself was done well but that the plot and characters were lacking. In the beginning, I was incredibly confused by what year the book was supposed to be based in, considering the technology seemed modern but they were practicing psychology like it was the 1950s. Additionally, the plot from the beginning was clearly very focused on a savior fantasy. At the beginning of the book the main character says something along the lines of "This isn't my story, this is Alicia's," but then proceeds to spend most of the time talking about his own life and motives.

The ending somewhat redeemed the way the story was written, but it still rubbed me the wrong way until I figured out the direction the plot was going about 2/3 of the way through the book.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Confinement, Suicidal thoughts, Misogyny, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Murder, Forced institutionalization, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Infidelity, Death, Death of parent, and Child abuse

Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Alcohol, and Car accident

Minor: Animal death

waterbear0821's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

3.25

I enjoyed this and it was a very fast read. The writing was good and I listened to the audiobook and really enjoyed the narrators as well. It was quite riveting and there were some interesting twists. I am typically wary of

unreliable narrator books, but this one was so clearly crammed full of unreliable narrators, it was fun to speculate about what was really going on.

I have mixed feelings about the very heavy use of therapy jargon and reliance on a weird kind of Freudian therapy model, but it did give  the story a reflective weight. I liked the analysis of all the different relationships and also how trauma in life manifests in unexpected and sometimes frightening ways. One thing I could have done without was the reliance on misogyny, stereotypes, and slurs against women. It’s not that the author was promoting misogyny, but it was just too much for me and unnecessary (though probably not uncommon for this genre). 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Murder, Suicide attempt, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Stalking, and Suicide

Moderate: Misogyny, Car accident, Drug use, Infidelity, and Kidnapping

maroar's review

mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Sexism, and Misogyny

men1e's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Cursing, Death, Hate crime, Suicide, Violence, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Self harm, Alcohol, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Stalking, Murder, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Torture, Suicide attempt, Addiction, Blood, Car accident, Child abuse, Death of parent, Gore, Grief, Mental illness, Misogyny, and Medical trauma