Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC! I enjoyed the theatrical and mediterannean vibes of this one. The story itself left some to be desired but I enjoyed the production and audio very much.

Writing: sure | Plot: had potential | Ending: the most exciting part

SYNOPSIS

Elliot Chase and his rich ass friends decide to spend Easter weekend on a secluded Greek island. And even though Jesus has risen, unfortunately one of their group has fallen. DUN DUN DUN!!!!

MY OPINION

Two quick things before I get into it:

1) If you have not read The Silent Patient, there are MAJOR FKING SPOILERS in the epilogue. There's a lowkey spoiler for The Maidens as well. If you don't want to read both books before this one, you can safely skip the epilogue. It doesn't bring anything extra to the book.

2) DO NOT EXPECT THE SILENT PATIENT 2.0. This is a completely different vibe and cannot be compared with his chart-topping debut.

This was def my most anticipated read for 2024; I considered it the tiebreaker between TPS (5 star banger IMO) and The Maidens (RIP to the trees that lost their lives for that book). Thankfully it was much better than his last.

Elliot Chase = Great Value Nick Caraway. I feel like he's tryna solidify himself as a "serious" author with this one; the book is structured like a play, he's doing thee most with the Greek mythology references, and Elliot breaking the fourth-wall and being an omnipresent narrator, etc. Did he do it? Idk. Do you think people knew Pride & Prejudice went extremely hard when it dropped?

The ending had more twists than a bag of pretzels or Simone Biles' floor routine. Some reviewers didn't like that. Some did. In the context of the characters and their backgrounds, I think it worked. They're actors — and if you've ever been around theatre geeks, you know the vibes — so all the drama seemed on brand. It was the most engaging and entertaining part of the story by-far.

FYI all of the characters are unlikeable. If you need someone to cheer for, turn on ESPN. Oh and the timeline is not linear. You're circling back A LOT.

Ultimately it was a middle of the road for me. If it had been any longer, I think the rating would've been lower. It's a quick read but it drags for 2/3 before chaotically charging to the end.

PROS AND CONS

Pros: better than The Maidens, interesting story structure, final third was more engaging, pop psychological facts about "inner child" were doin their thing

Cons: mid writing as always, Elliot Chase was trying too hard to be Nick Caraway, first 2/3 a little slow and repetitive

I disliked The Silent Patient. I hated this. Alex Michaelides is not for me.

🎧 Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio

I wanted to love this book, but I just didn't. What a winding tale of nothing. I didn't feel any connection to the narrator, and felt the plot was very lost. A lot of staircases to nowhere.

A patron recommended this book to me which is the only reason I didn't bail. I should have. I hated the protagonist with all his red flags. (view spoiler)

As for the plot twists, for the most part they were predictable. By the time the big unpredictable plot twist finally came around, I was so done with the story that it felt more annoying that surprising.

I actually liked the meta aspect of this story. It felt very movie like or theatrical and I could see this being turned into a screenplay for sure. I thought it was pretty fast moving and loved the story. I loved the narration of the audiobook and it made it a quick easy read.

Third time was the charm! I didn’t get the hype for Michaelides’ first two books, but “The Fury” completely hooked me. It was a slow burn in the best way possible, methodically introducing a fascinating mix of characters before the murder happened. The pacing felt deliberate, creating an atmosphere reminiscent of Agatha Christie. With the secluded island setting, I was hoping for a locked-room mystery—a subtle nod to *And Then There Were None*, one of my all-time favorites. Also, Alex Jennings as the narrator was fantastic. His measured, unhurried voice made the slow build even more enjoyable. I could’ve listened to him all day!

Lana Farrar is a famous movie-star who has decided to quit her "job" and become a recluse. She and several of her famous friends decide to take a last minute trip to a private island in Greece, as you do when you are a famous ex-movie star. As luck would have it, and as you could guess, the weather goes bad, someone is murdered and everyone is trapped, cut off from the rest of the world. I feel like this story has been done many times before, and much more successfully.

The book starts out with promise and then turns slow very quickly. Maybe my expectations were set way too high after the silent patient, but I was hoping for a lot more out of this lackluster story. There is a lot of set up that honestly seems to fall flat. There are parts of this book that are entertaining, but overall the pacing of this book left me disappointed.

If you haven't read The Silent Patient read that first because for some reason the author chose to put in a spoiler in the epilogue! The narrator of this book did an excellent job.

The Fury was very well done and I enjoyed the audiobook. This is the 3rd book I've read by the author and I will continue to read his books.
It was a very interesting story telling format and it hooked me right away. I recommend this one if you like a murder mystery between friends and frenemies during a Greek island vacation.

I have been a long time fan of Alex and this book did not disappoint. I was on the edge of my seat through almost all of the story. The twists towards the end were well crafted in true form of the author. I have recommended this book to fellow readers.

I really enjoyed the story overall. The narrator is really good! This is probably is my last favorite of all of his books though.

I was apprehensive after seeing so many negative reviews but I throughly enjoyed this one. I loved the interesting POV, the story broken into acts and treated like a play, and the many twists.
I also read via audio and I believe the narrator really helped to make this an enjoyable read. His inflections and intonations were great.

I'm a big fan of Alex Michaelides, but this was my least favorite of his novels. I did like the unreliable narrator and the tie in to previous novels.

Thank you NetGalley and Celadon Books for a chance to listen to the audiobook of "The Fury" by Alex Michaelides. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a slow burn. It's strange, it's messy, it's filled with unlikeable characters. It felt a bit repetitive at times, but it reads beautifully like a play and has an old-school vibe. I would consider this a psychological vacation thriller!

I was so excited to get a copy of the audiobook. I loved the author's previous book The Silent Patient and I had high expectations for this one. Unfortunately, I DNF'd it at 30%. I thought the character/narrator was really dislikeable. I love a dislikeable character, but this one just didn't do it for me. :(

I had high hopes for 'The Fury,' Alex Michaelides' third book, since I really enjoyed his earlier ones, 'The Silent Patient' and my favorite, 'The Maidens.' But this book didn't meet my expectations.

'The Fury' has a group of characters who, whether on purpose or not, are extremely unlikable. While their unlikeability is part of the story, it makes the book hard to connect with emotionally. The main character is especially unlikable and focuses a lot on another unlikable character, which made it hard for me to care about what was happening in the story.

Even though the book has some good twists and surprises, it was hard to enjoy them because I didn’t feel connected to the characters. This made the story feel a bit dull compared to Michaelides' other books. I was also disappointed that some issues from his earlier books weren’t addressed, especially since I expected a more polished story.

However, it’s clear that the author is passionate about this story. The main character is a screenwriter, which ties into Michaelides’ own background, and you can really feel the joy he had in writing this book. This passion adds an extra layer to the story, and the twists and character details help keep things interesting.

One thing 'The Fury' does well is pacing. The story moves along without getting boring, and the multiple timelines keep the reader engaged. There are lots of small details that make sense later on, which adds to the suspense. Despite my disappointments, I did enjoy the ending, which had a nice connection to Michaelides' other books and made me feel like I was in on a secret.

In the end, 'The Fury' may not be as good as his previous books, but it still offers a unique perspective, clear passion, and a good pace that fans of Michaelides’ style might appreciate.

Thank you, Celadon Books, for the advanced reader's copy.

I have enjoyed Alex Michaelides from The Silent Patient and The Maidens.
This book was unexpected. The narrator did a fine job of relaying the story.
I thought I had it figured out but the author surprised me! I should have known since he did that in the previous books as well.
The Greek scenery is amazing as well.

Have you seen this book everywhere? Well there is a good reason, it’s storytelling at its finest!

Pour yourself a drink, get comfortable and let Elliot tell you a story!
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BOOK: THE FURY
AUTHOR: ALEX MICHAELIDES
LENGTH: 298 pages 🧿 Audio 8 hrs 8min at 1Xspeed
Narrator: Alex Jennings
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I loved the setting of this book and the way the story is told. I never thought the book would work out the way it did. So many twists and turns. It made it so enjoyable to read and play along with it the mystery.
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I’m also glad I got to read it with the #sqaf bookclub - these are my people for sure! Check put their reviews too!
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I had the opportunity to drop this off @littlefreelibrary in my area and so did many others. I hope @celadonbooks knows how much we appreciate the opportunities to share books in areas all over the country to readers who may not have the resources to grab a new release especially before publication day. Also the audio was provided by @macmillan.audio and @netgalley so thanks for the opportunity to listen to Elliot suck me into his world for the evening.
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#qotd - tell me something good that’s happened to you this year so far - if been sick all week so I want to hear your good news, please!
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🏷️ #bookstagram #bookreview #bookrecommendations #booklover #bookworm #bookaddict #paperback #hardback #audiobook #mystery #psychologicalthriller #greece #suspense #twistsandturns #unreliablenarrator #slowburn #jammersbookstacks

This was a solid audiobook, though not my favorite of his. It’s a solid creepy book in his typical style on an island, and I’d recommend it if you like Michaledes.

I really liked the way that this was narrated, as if someone was setting the scene for you. This one had me in anticipation for what happened next