I had quite the weekend of non reliable narrators between watching Saltburn (still traumatized) and finishing this novel. I think my issue here is I keep hoping for another Silent Patient. While this novel was fine, it just didn’t live up to my expectations from this author and I just have to accept that at this point. Yes, it had potential as we followed a wealthy Hollywood star who is surrounded by a cast of suspicious narrators. We’re on a beautiful and private Greek island with all the trappings of an Agatha Christie novel and yet we’re continuously told it’s not going to be what we think. There is a double twist of sorts but I was most interested to see if the author would pull in his former characters from his previous two books and in what capacity than I was intrigued by what was occurring.

I will also echo that I did have trouble getting into this book but it was a pretty quick read after the first few chapters. I still have a lot of unanswered questions at the end of this, i don’t feel like everything was resolved and I’m unclear on where a majority of these characters ended up.

Thanks to Netgalley for the arc!
This was a 3 star read for me although probably closer to a 2.75.

Unrelatable characters, boring plot. I expected more from the author given the Silent Patient was amazing. Such a letdown.

Another great read from Alex Michaelides! After being a fan of his other two novels I was thrilled to receive an ARC of this book. The murder thriller plot may sounds familiar as it mirrors some well known trends. He takes the classic version of this story and flips it with the narrator, who albeit was not my favourite character at times. The Greek island this is set in becomes an additional character in the mix and adds another layer to everything. Always a joy to read!

I want to start this with a huge thank you to Net Galley for this ARC. I absolutely loved The Silent Patient and The Maidens, when I was approved I screamed!

The Fury is a trapped on an island murder trope with a lot of questionable characters. Lana is a retired movie star who invites her family and best friends to her private Greek island for the Easter holiday. Tension arises before the trip begins and once the boat leaves the guests things only get more interesting and deadly. Elliott, the narrator, is all over the place and takes you on a lot of tangents. With that said, he provides all the pieces of the backstory to where the real journey takes off.

While I did enjoy the story overall, the beginning was slow moving and a little hard to get into. The second half really drew me in and I had to know what happened next. I appreciated the bread crumbs of The Silent Patient and The Maidens.

The premise of the book is good. Everyone is trapped on an island and someone is killed. Who did it? I just didn't like any of the characters. I was able to figure out right away that something wasn't right with the narrator.

The Fury begins with our narrator, Elliot Chase sitting us down, buying us a drink and telling us a story. What follows is the story of reclusive actress Lana Fararr and those closest to her. The bunch go on a trip to a private Greek Island where a murder ensues. Do not think this is a "whodunit" type of book however. It has some of those tendencies, however, it delves much deeper into the why and how.

As much as I want to compare this book to his other works, I simply cannot bring myself to do so. The Fury is definitely not like Alex Michaelides' other thrillers---this one stands by itself. Even the synopsis tries to tell us that by stating it is, at its heart, a love story. This one grabbed my interest in the first few chapters and was a quick and easy read. I wanted to know how and why the characters ticked and Michaelides did not let me down. There was excellent characterization throughout the book as well as good narration from the narrator. I was weary of how the narrator being one of the characters in the book would go over, but this didn't affect the book in the end much for me. It actually made me like the book that much more. Great story, great concept, excellent read!

Thank you to NetGalley, Celadon Books, and Alex Michaelides for granting me an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Celadon for my ARC in exchange for my honest review. This book will be published January 16, 2024.

This is the third book I’ve read by this author, and it was definitely my least favorite. The plot sounded so good (a murder on a Greek Island) but I was completely bored, and sometimes confused.

The narrator often broke character to talk to the reader directly which was a clever concept but kindof weird. I don’t think it worked well.

The ending did pick up and revealed the murderer but by then I didn’t care. If not for the ARC I wouldn’t have finished it.

Such a wild ride. So many ups and downs and twists and turns. Nothing like anything I’ve ever read before.

Everyone wants to be loved by Lana, the beautiful, wealthy actress. But who killed her? Or maybe she’s not dead and someone else is? Who did what and why?

Fantastic read once you get past the slow beginning.

Thanks to the Celadon Readers for inviting me to be an early reader. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. The Fury is scheduled to be released on January 16, 2024.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I am sad to say I was a bit disappointed in this one. Its my least favorite Alex Michaelides book so far. And let me say, that doesn't mean this book was bad. It was fine and there were several things aspects that I really enjoyed. The main problem I had with this book though is that this was one of the slowest thrillers I have ever read.

I enjoyed that way the story was told and the psychological aspects Michaelides added in. This book could have been like 100 pages shorter and I think that would have helped honestly. Will this stop by from reading his future books? No, not at all. I will continue to read his works, this one was just a little disappointing.

And there it is...another reason Alex is an auto buy author for me. This was a great story of unexpected twists and turns.

I'd like to than NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was disappointed by the silent patient. I was exited to give the author another chance and unfortunately this book was also a miss for me.

I can see why so many people will love this, and I'll be so glad for all of you who do, but for me this was a 2 star read. I guessed the twists, the tone was off and the writing felt rushed. If you loved the silent patient, I think you'll like this one. if you didn't, donc pick this one up either. 💚

The Fury by Alex Michaelides is a brilliant work that defies definition. Written like a Greek tragedy in 5 acts, the novel features a narrator that is a shape-shifter throughout the book as he tells the story, becomes an active participant in the mystery, and seemingly dispassionately lends a sardonic commentary to the drama as it unfolds.
Elliot Chase, the protagonist, is a playwright who tells the story with dramatic flare, relating his dark childhood and his obsession with film actress Lana Farrar. Their lives intersect, and, as Elliot opines, “our tragedy was a direct consequence of our characters.”
This story is all about character—what motivates and why, the strength and failings of our morality and how that is forged.
The brilliance is in the structure of the novel and the prose. As the story plays out in 5 acts, the reader has a front-row seat, watching as the protagonist finally succumbs to his tragic flaws, and an equally flawed cast of darkly motivated characters propel the intricate plot.
I enjoyed the allusions to literary greats, from Heracleitus, and Euripedes, to Coward, Christie and Hemingway--such a rich group to use as inspiration!
The twisted plotting of love, obsession and lasting damage from childhood trauma and adult psychosis is perfect for this Fury!

Thank you to Celadon Books and NetGalley for the ARC. This is my honest review.

Alex Michaelides ability to write a thriller/suspense novel is like no other. I loved the Silent Patient so much that I stayed after my shift at work just to read the last few pages. First off, I would like to comment on the cover of this book, the evil eye being displayed on the front was such a brilliant and eye catching choice. After reading the novel it now makes even more sense to me. I don’t want to give away any spoilers but well done Alex Michaelides. I also really enjoyed the writing style and how it read like screen play. I loved the narration and how it felt like you were in a conversation with the narrator himself. I thought the character development was great but the pace of the novel itself was slow. I found the end a little predictable but at the same time chaotic. I did thoroughly enjoy this book but it wasn’t my favourite read by him. Overall the concept was intriguing, the character development was great and the writing was fantastic. I can’t wait to read more by Alex Michaelides in the future.

I'm sorry to say this will be my last book by this author. I didn't get the hype of The Silent Patient or The Maidens and this one was just another disappointment to me. I think the only thing I actually enjoyed about this book was the Greek settings.

I was intrigued when I first got into the book, the prologue drew me in and I was excited to see what happened and whose body was found. But this book could have been so much shorter. I hated the storyteller Elliot and it irritated me reading the entire book from his point of view. All of the "crazy twists and turns" at the end did nothing to impress me or shock me and I couldn't wait to finish this book. The only reason I'm giving it two stars and not a one star review was because I liked how the ending wrapped up. Did I enjoy the story as a whole though? Definitely not.

⭐ 3.5/5

The Fury, by Alex Michaelides, is a fast-paced whydunnit mystery, with short chapters.

I really liked the writing style. It was very different from what we usually read, with an unreliable narrator, speaking directly to the reader. It's kind of like reading a diary.

It read pretty easily, thanks to the short chapters and the good writing. However, it took a while for me to get into the story.
The plot separated in 5 acts, and I feel like the whole first act could've been dismissed. Starting around act 2-3, it gets much more interesting and that's when most the action starts.

I liked the ending (and if you've read his other books, you even get a small Easter egg at the end 😉), it was full of twists and turns, and I was really into it.

Overall, since I've read and loved his over books (especially The Silent Patient), my expectations were quite high and unfortunately, The Fury didn't meet them. Maybe that's on me! So I'd still recommend people to read it and give it a chance, because although I thought it was a slow start, I really liked the ending and I think it may surprise most of you!

Thank you @netgalley, @celadonbooks and Alex Michaelides for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

📆 Release date: January 16th, 2024

I very much looked forward to reading this book after having read The Silent Patient ( which was great). Unfortunately The Fury didn’t meet my expectations. The story is being told by a “narrator” who is also an integral part of the story. It started slowly and quite often as my interest was getting piqued Elliot “the narrator” would stop the flow of the story to interject his own thoughts and feelings before returning to the story. It read like a much longer book than it really is due to Elliot’s need to interrupt the plot-until about the last 100 pages which, although chaotic, gives credence to the real story of murder and unrequited love and has an unexpected twist at the end.

What a fun read! It starts off with a bang. A group of friends (if you would call it that) plan to spend Easter weekend on an island. Ultimately this trip ends in murder…. but who was murdered and who was responsible?? Was it one of them? Could one of them be a murderer??

The story is narrated by one of the characters and its structure is interesting. It’s like a story or play within a play – which I found to be different and intriguing. The Narrator gives us the background of each of the characters while planting suspicion on who the murdered and murderer is. This is not only about a murder, but also about the dynamic of a group of friends, fame, and childhood influences carried forward into adulthood.

With short chapters, I really enjoyed this. it was fun and entertaining without feeling sluggish at any point. I finished it quickly. The last Act, what a twist!!! I was slightly confused about the ending which left me with questions about what actually happened, pondering what it could have meant, however it allows for various interpretations which can you leave you thinking about it well after you have completed.

Perfect for all, but especially fans of mystery/whodunnit looking for a twist!

Thank-you to Celadon Books and NetGalley for the ARC!

The ending was great! The drama the secrets, this book had me intrigued from the beginning. Definitely a favorite

Alex Michaelides excels at spinning Greek history into each book. I love the eerie air of every novel. While not as good as Silent Patient, I liked it a lot more than The Maidens. I wish there was more character background showing the true nature of each character.there are some details but it was more “fade to black” than proven. Told in a narrative conversation style, it was hard to follow in parts. In all, it’s a solid 4 stars. More dramas than thriller.

The author of The Silent Patient and The Maidens is back with his newest mystery/thriller – The Fury! The Fury takes place on a private Greek island, where friends and lovers come to share a weekend getaway that ends, unfortunately for them, in murder. Unfortunately for the reader, this book misses the mark and fails to capture interest.

The first half of this book is boring. The narrator himself, Elliot Chase, starts off as quirky and likable, but soon becomes annoying and repetitive. It takes so long to set the scene and get all the characters to the island, and by that time the reader has grown uninterested in the slow-moving plot. The title of the book – The Fury – is explained in a clever way initially, but then the phrase “the fury” is so over-used throughout the novel that it loses its cleverness and shine.

The second half of the book somewhat redeems it. Where the first half was slow, the second half moves quickly and adds suspense that was previously missing. Parts of the ending are smart and witty, in Michaelides’ typical fashion that readers have grown to love.

If you’re looking to read a Michaelides book, I would recommend his other two over this one. I will still plan to read any future books by this author, but with somewhat lowered expectations.