Alex, Alex what have you done?. did you feel pressure to write another book? Did you borrow some of these ideas? Well, if you did, please return it. This is not worthy of you. It’s such a drop off the silent patient. I wonder if an alien author has taken over your typewriter. The only fury I feel is directed at your editors, releasing this poor excuse for a thriller.

This author knows how to write a top notch ending!!! I loved the way the book read like a play. The narrator Elliot came to life over audio. 5 glowing stars!

A unique and refreshing take on the locked room mystery, Alex Michaelides’s The Fury leverages a theatrical retelling and an unreliable narrator to deliver a wickedly clever third novel!

“This is a tale of murder. Or maybe that’s not quite true. At its heart, it’s a love story, isn’t it?”

Elliot Chase is an all-time great narrator and character. He’s a playwright by trade. He narrates the story as though it is a play in which he is the writer and narrator, but also a character. Elliot admits things are skewed by his perspective. The reader knows that Elliot may be an unreliable narrator, but he is so fun to read.

The play revolves around a murder at a private island off the coast of Greece owned by retired film star Lana Farrar. At the outset, the reader isn’t told who the victim and the killer are. The suspect list (and the potential murder victim) is narrowed to the seven people on the island—movie star Lana Farrar, playwright Elliot Chase, actress (and best friend to Lana) Kate Crosby, Lana’s second husband Jason Miller, Lana’s son Leo Farrar, Lana’s groundskeeper Nico Delakis, and Lana’s housekeeper Agathi Mavropoulos.

This is not a whodunnit, though it may feel like one, Elliot cautions the reader. So, what type of play is this? A love story? A mystery? A drama? You’ll have to read to find out—this is a book too good to risk spoiling anything!

The ending has several twists that I found positively delicious and wicked. I was captivated, I wanted to read it again. Elliot has a charm to him that is strangely enhanced by his desperate insecurity rooted in his childhood. He doesn’t merely want the reader to believe his take on the events of the story, he needs it.

I could go on about this book but I don’t want to risk spoiling anything! Trust me, if you are a fan of a bit of theatrics to your mysteries, this is the perfect book for you!

Alex Michaelides could write an obituary and I think I’d love it. I do love a story that keeps me guessing and this one did until the last page. Every so often, you think you’re smart and you’ve figured it out. You haven’t. Another twist, another turn. Amazing writing, phenomenal storyline. Definitely a must read, especially for fans of psychological thrillers.

I really enjoyed The Silent Patient and had high hopes for this book. The story line held great promise but I felt it was poorly executed. Seemed like the author made a timeline of events then just threw in a little dialog to fill it out. No true substance to the story.

"The Fury" by Alex Michaelides promises a blend of mystery and intrigue set against the backdrop of a secluded Greek island, where a group of famous friends find themselves in a deadly game of cat and mouse. Unfortunately, despite its intriguing premise, the novel fell short of my expectations, largely due to the unappealing narrator and pacing.

Narrated by Elliot Chase, the story unfolds through his perspective, but his character fails to engage. His narration comes across as self-serving and manipulative, making it difficult to connect with the unfolding events or the other characters. Chase's unlikeable nature ultimately takes away from the story, leaving readers feeling disconnected and disinterested in the outcome.

Moreover, while the plot sounds intriguing with its promise of secrets, revenge, and murder, it ultimately fails to deliver on its potential. The pacing feels uneven, with long stretches of exposition punctuated by sporadic bursts of action. 

Despite its flaws, "The Fury" does have some worthwhile moments of tension and suspense, particularly in its portrayal of the secluded island setting and the dynamics between the characters. However, these fleeting glimpses of “now we’re getting somewhere” are overshadowed by the overall lack of cohesion and depth in the narrative.

In conclusion, "The Fury" by Alex Michaelides may appeal to fans of the author's previous work or those drawn to psychological thrillers, but for readers seeking a more engaging and well-paced reading experience, this one may prove to be a disappointment.

Thank you to NetGalley and Celdaon Books for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Okay book but not good either. Narrator was terrible. Couldn't connect, wasn't grabbed by the story and characters. It felt forced into themes and the unreliable narrator especially was just forced and awkward. Didn't find the book compelling or spooky. Also found a lot of editing and grammar errors.

This was my second Alex Michaelides novel after reading The Silent Patient. I found myself enjoying the story as everything slowly unfolded towards the big reveal. It was an entertaining read with an unreliable narrator. I did find myself slightly impatient towards the end with the constant change in what the real truth was. There were a lot of "Haha, psyche! That's not really what happened" kind of moments that dragged on a bit. Overall, it was a quick fun read full of lies and drama.

Thank you for the advanced copy @netgalley!

Rating: 3.5/5

At this point, I don't know if Michaelides will be able to capture the same mind boggling energy that he released with The Silent Patient.

Somehow ‘The Fury’ was my first ever Alex Michaelides book, and I’ll certainly be checking out his others after this.

‘The Fury’ incorporates so many of my favorite elements: unreliable narrator, a mysterious murder in a remote location, and a group of friends who all have a high-stakes secret. I thought the dual timeline was a very fitting way to tell this story, and it made it especially enjoyable to read as well. The story was dramatic and unpredictable without being unrealistic or over-the-top. I thoroughly enjoyed the plot twist, which I did not see coming at all, but the book dragged a bit after the twist. The chapters following the plot twist should have been more condensed because it felt like I was reading a lot of details that were not entertaining or necessary. Additionally, it felt like there were a few characters that were not necessary to the main plot of the story, and they needed to be either cut altogether or given more pivotal roles. The whole book, while it had a very entertaining plot, just felt slow.

Overall, it didn’t dissuade me from checking out the author’s other books, although I won’t personally be raving about this one to my friends.

Thank you to Celadon and NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for my review.

Thanks to NetGalley for an advance digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
To be honest--Alex Michaelides is an author that I want to love. "The Silent Patient" blew me away, and I think that it is undoubtedly a modern classic in the genre. People are still clamoring to discuss it and this is in the wake of a sophomore effort "The Maidens," and now his newest, "The Fury."
It must be challenging to come out of the gates with a masterpiece and then have to follow that up with something else. And kudos to Michaelides for continuing to write.
Honestly, this one was another okay-ish read. It follows a group of wealthy friends to an ex-movie star to Greece--and then the thrills and the suspense officially begin. Unfortunately, there isn't much character development for me to gravitate towards this one and the twists and the suspense barely raised my blood pressure.
I think this is a great beach read--something that is breezy and quick. The potential is always there for "The Silent Patient" level of execution, but he still hasn't captured that same magic for me.
It wasn't a great read but it wasn't a bad one either.

Rating 3.5 🌟 I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. One of my favorite books is the Silent Patient by this author. I still think about that book years later. So anytime Alex has a new novel I’m excited to read it! I felt about this book similarly as I felt about The Maidens. I enjoyed the book but it wasn’t my favorite. I read through the book super quickly. I enjoy Alex’s references to his other books. I just didn’t love how the story ended it left me wanting more.

I’ve been mulling over what to rate this for 2 days and I’ve settled on 3.75⭐️

The time has come again for movie star Lana Farrar to invite her friends on their yearly trip to her private Greek island, Aura. Everything is going swimmingly, her friends are enjoying themselves, until someone is murdered. They go chasing around the island to find the culprit, because surely it wasn’t one of them?

I am a fan of all of Alex Michaelides’s prior books, as I find his writing style gripping and easily digestible, and this was no exception. I was hooked from page 1, and I found the characters and plot super compelling. I love an unreliable narrator, and Elliot was perfect. I found the pacing a bit off towards the middle, and despite it being necessary for the plot I didn’t love the flashback scenes. The ending really shocked me but I can’t say I was satisfied, which leaves me at a 3.75 rating :) overall it was a super quick read and I would highly recommend to anyone looking for a short thriller!

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for giving me an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

When I first started this one I was so excited. I had read the author previous books and know to trust no one. The vibe with the island reminded me of an Agatha Christy read. There characters were not my favorite but the chapters were short making this a quick read. The epilogue was fun if you like Easter eggs.

How it made me feel: 🧐 😵‍💫😊

A wonderful followup to the Silent Patient...a huge fave. Great characters and a delicious plot that you will really enjoy. Keep them coming Alex!

I was looking forward to this book, although I didn't enjoy The Maidens, I did like The Silent Patient so I was interested to see what Michaelides would do with this book. That being said, if you plan on reading The Silent Patient, do not read this book prior as there is a major spoiler in the epilogue.

I was interested in the plot of the story at first, but unfortunately my interest did not last. It might be because I just did not enjoy the narration of the book. The narrator was uninteresting and a bit unbelievable. I never felt like I got to know him. The plot seemed a bit messy and the characters were flat to me. None of them had any redeeming qualities and I didn't care for any of them.

It was also very slow-paced. I found it a struggle to get through until things started to happen. This book is only 320 pages but felt much longer. I felt like the narrator kept trying to build up more and more anticipation, that I started thinking "just get to it already." I saw this referred to as "anticipation fatigue" and I think that is a perfect way to describe how I felt. Because once I finally reached the climax of the book where shit hit the fan, I felt like the tension had been already drained out of me.

I give it some stars because once things finally pick up it was entertaining. Crazy, wild and a bit all over the place, but entertaining to say the least. It just wasn't enough for me personally.

Ex-movie star Lana goes away for a weekend trip to a Greek island with a group of her friends, and by the end of the vacation, someone is dead. This Agatha Christie sort of setup in an isolated location is done a lot in the genre, but Michaelides manages to keep it unique by giving us an annoyingly pompous, unreliable main character and a play inspired act-by-act sort of writing style and plotline.

While I found some of the drama to be interesting, I honestly just disliked the main character's narrative voice & being in his head so much that it made it a pretty unpleasant reading experience -- like, he was SO annoying! I understand that I'm not supposed to like him, but sorry, I don't want to read something where I'm actively thinking about how awful the main character is every time they think, lol. I did also find the twists and ending to this a bit underwhelming unfortunately, especially considering all the MC’s build-up to it - which, again, I UNDERSTAND he isn't meant to be reliable or liked but ugh, haha.

ANYWAY, all that said, I liked the other book by the author I've read and honestly, aside from the MC, didn't find this one to be too bad - I'll continue picking up his books and would recommend this to anyone who enjoys dark academia vibes, isolated whodunnits, and books with Shakespearean influences.

As I really liked The Silent Patient, I was eager to read this book. I found it disappointing.

The narrator, Elliott, is pitiable but ultimately unlikable. The rest of the characters are boring and lack dimension .

For most of the book the plot unravels very slowly. The end of the book has some surprises thrown in.

The author is a talented writer and I will happily read other works of his. Sadly, this wasn't for me.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC.

3.5 ⭐️
Lana is an ex-movie star that invites her two close friends along with her husband and son to her private Greek Island for Easter. This story is told in first person by Elliot, Lana’s close friend. He is an unreliable narrator and I wasn’t a fan of how this was told. You find yourself questioning every character in this story. There are some twists and turns and it was a fast read once it picked up! It was however very slow!! Alex is an amazing author and very clever writer. I’m still waiting for his next book that is as amazing as The Silent Patient! I will say I definitely enjoyed this one more than The Maidens. Great book overall!!
Thank you @netgalley and @celadonbooks for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I was really excited to receive an ARC of this book because I really enjoyed both of the author's previous books but was disappointed to find this book wasn't for me. I was very surprised by how much of the premise, plot, and exposition was similar, if not a carbon copy, of The Glass Onion - I am very curious about the timelines of this book and if it was influenced by that movie which was released over a year prior to the book's release.

Aside from a disappointing amount of similarities to an existing piece of media, I really disliked this book - the pacing was far too slow, up until a slew of twists that came too quickly and all at once right at the end of the book. I disliked the narrator, not for being unlikable but because he was so pretentious. The set up dragged on and felt like the author was trying to get from twist a to twist b without care for what fell between.

Another really good Alex Michaelides book. I love this twists, they always keep my guessing and on the edge of my seat. I couldn't put it down!