I’ll be honest, I’m having a hard time rating The Fury. Some parts I liked and others I disliked.

Things I liked:
- Unreliable narrator- you second guess everything while reading this book. It really keeps you on your toes.
- Flawed characters- the characters are purposefully unlikeable and it actually made me like them.
- The beginning- the beginning had me hooked. I needed to keep going and listened to half the book the first day.

Things I disliked:
- Unreliable narrator- (yes, I also liked this aspect) the narrator is so unreliable that at times it became confusing to follow along.
- The timeline- the story bounces around and it made it difficult to keep track of. I also disliked how parts were told multiple times with the addition of a few new things.
- Audiobook narrator- I hate to even say this because I’ve seen so many positive reviews of it but I didn’t like his voice and tone. It felt flat to me.
- Unrealistic- this is book is very unrealistic and over the top. I personally prefer more of a realistic thriller.
- The ending- I’m not sure what I was hoping for but it wasn’t that. Also, there’s a spoiler for Alex Michaelides’ The Silent Patient so if you read this one first it might ruin it.

It was certainly a unique book that kept me guessing until the very end. I highly recommend if you enjoyed Alex Michaelides other books and if you enjoy twisty stories told by an unreliable narrator.

I admit I was very excited when I learned Michaelides had written a new book but disappointed in The Fury.
It was so slow and and payoff so disappointing. Sadly I figured it out about halfway through and thought it was a rather painstaking journey to the conclusion.
I was not vested in the characters and the story was a bit boring.
I absolutely loved The Maidens and sad I did not feel that way about The Fury.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the audio ARC which I received in exchange for my honest review.

This book was a bit confusing. There were times I was interested in the plot, but there was a lot of backstory along with jumping around all over the place. It was hard to identify what happened in the book or what was made up by Elliot.

In "The Fury," there's a murder lurking at an island off the Aegean Sea, and our narrator invites reader to keep it that way for like over half of the story. It's pretty underwhelming having to experience similar feelings that I had when I read "The Maidens" rather than "The Silent Patient." Alex Michaelides's debut novel continues to be one of the best thrillers I read to this day, and I'm starting to believe that it's the closest to a thriller most innovative and inventive; and his other books are far from that.

The book focuses on what exactly happened at the island and the past events leading up to the incident, but it's the narrator, Elliot Chase, who explains in full detail and the other people who joined the trip alongside him. For one, I personally don't enjoy both the narration style and the character himself. Elliot comes out pretentious throughout the story, repetitively breaking the fourth wall and stating the "Before I tell you this"-s and "Let me remind you that"-s, and it doesn't make it any more engaging but rather comes out as the reader being dim-witted. And none of the characters didn't stood out to me that made me more curious to read and learn more of. However, the audiobook narrator, Alex Jennings, captured the insipid nature of Elliott Chase despite having a troubled past (which would've leveraged what could've been more interesting).


With the level of intensity readers are expected to see from "The Silent Patient" and "The Maidens", this is Michaelides's slowest — and it's not a good one. Both the plot and pacing felt all disjointed that once I got to the climax of the story, it's one of the two interesting things I took away from reading "The Fury." The other being the portrayals of Greek tragedy and people fated to be characters of fatal flaw, a running theme I see across Michaelides's repertoire. It's interesting to say the least, if you enjoy this type of subject.

I would probably not pick up his future books if I expect another let-down from a compelling synopsis in his next novel.

Once again Alex Michaelides hit the mark with this book. With all the twists towards the end of the book that I did not see the first one coming. I listened to the audiobook and let me tell you, the narrator Alex Jennings did a fantastic job of bringing Elliot to life and really made it feel like he was telling you the story while sitting next you at the bar.

The narrator was not great and the story was just so long and drawn out. I felt like it kept going on and on. I would find myself not paying attention. I was not a fan of the author's last book and this may be the end for me on him now.

Hell hath no FURY like a woman scorned. A woman who knows her worth and refuses to take a backseat to her assistant. Taking matters into her own hands, she decides she will not allow things to go on as they have. The narrator was great, it offered a unique point of view. I didn't enjoy the FMC, but I think that might have been intentional. Not my favorite of Michaelides' books, but I do look forward to reading another!

I was pulled into this story from the first words of the audiobook, and I walked lots of extra steps on my daily walk to keep listening.

Lana Farrar is one of the world’s most famous actresses. She’s beautiful, talented, and kind. Everyone who knows her is just a little bit in love with her. It’s Easter weekend, and the cold and rain of London is just too much. So Lana invites her actress friend Kate and her old pal Elliot to join her family in Greece. They’ll swim, they’ll eat, they’ll be rejuvenated.

However, they haven’t been on the island long before harsh words are spoken. And their sunny days are bedeviled by a wind so fierce, it’s practically another character in the story. Then somebody ends up dead.

You’re probably getting whiffs of Agatha Christie right about now, but two things are setting it apart for me: First, the characters are interesting and messy — they’re more than simply ‘the actress,’ the ‘rich guy,’ that kind of thing. They’ve got backstories. Second, what’s really selling me on this book is the narrator — both the one on the page and the actor performing the audiobook.

Lana’s friend Elliot is the narrator. In between dishing on everyone else, he confesses his own dark past. There are bits about his childhood and being an outsider that are genuinely moving — but mostly, his tone is delightfully arch and gossipy, whether he’s talking about himself or the others.

All of that is on the page, but phew! the British actor Alex Jennings is really giving it life. He’s been in plays for decades at the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theater, and his training is all there. The accent! The nuance! It’s a ride to listen to him unspool this story. Stylistically, it reminds me of Poe's narrator in 'The Tell-Tale Heart' — unreliable, a bit unhinged, but altogether irresistible

The book also has a very strong sense of Greece — I could smell the salt air and hear the furious wind howling.

This book was featured in my podcast The Library of Lost Time on January 19 — https://strongsenseofplace.com/lolts/lolt-2024-01-19/

Alex Michaelides once again offers twists, turns, drama, theatre, mystery, Hollywood, and an unforgettable island told by narrator Elliot as an unreliable narrator, as identified early on. This novel held my attention and left me second guessing up to the end. The audio version was well done!

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audio ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book was very challenging to read, the unreliable narrator, the jumping back and forth and was chaotic and confusing.

I truly enjoyed this audiobook. This novel did not compare to "Silent Patient", However, on its own it was very interesting, unpredictable, and had multiple twists and turns.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this ARC.
#MacmillanAudio, #NetGalley

What a great audiobook! The narration by Alex Jennings is outstanding. It was a slow start. (Here’s a tip—I usually listen to audiobooks at 1.2 or 1.5x speed. Stick to normal speed for this one.) Once I slowed down the speed and really started to listen, I was sucked in and listened every spare minute until it was over. Stick with it, and I promise you will enjoy it.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

A modern-day Greek tragedy is set to occur on a private Greek island. There are rich people, famous people, and everyday people. Love, lust, envy, and hatred collide to create a storm of murder and terror. Welcome to The Fury.

Alex Michaelides is one of my favorite authors because he combines a love for things he knows (psychology, theater) with a deep love for Golden Age detectives and Greek tragedy to write perfectly taut, unique, exciting novels. This was no exception.

This was absolutely a thriller unlike any I’ve ever read, and I loved it. I struggled in the beginning, but I think it was due to the audio (which I believe they updated and the new version is better), and when I went to the physical copy it was much better that way. A locked room thriller that flashes back to events leading up to the night of the murder, it was told from the viewpoint of Elliot Chase, an extremely unreliable narrator, admittedly so. I loved the format of this one and the narrator was great, this was quite the entertaining read. It is a little slow to start but I definitely recommend this overall.

Thank you to Celadon Books and Macmillan Audio for the copies to review.

So…okay…this was just…well…not that great. The structure is one used by so many thriller authors these days - let’s call it the onion approach. You know, when a narrator relates the story and then they relate it again but from a different perspective or because they reveal the first time they told it it was a lie. This happens five times in The Fury. FIVE TIMES. This book is basically the same story, told in five different ways…until you get to the inevitable ending which …I predicted from chapter one. I’m not boasting here. I wish I hadn’t been able to do that. This onion approach to storytelling can be very powerful and compelling but the key to it working is that the first time the story is told a strong bond between reader and character is built. The Fury doesn’t fail to do that, it makes a conscious effort not to do that. The narrator is completely isolated even as he speaks with you or interacts with other characters on the page. That removedness is intentional and it also doesn’t work in an onion of a novel. Not for this reader anyhow. Additionally, and without much detail because spoilers…the presence/idea/incarnation/reality/manifestation or what-have-you of “The Fury” was way under developed and then when it gets pulled out it just feels like an afterthought even though, using all my spidey-skills, and decades of reading student writing, I can clearly see that this whole novel was born of a setting and “The Fury”…but Michaelides let that slip away through the drafting process to center something else that would have been powerful and surprising if left off center, centered it just feels like an albatross. I know that’s cryptic but I don’t want to ruin anything. That other foundational idea though…the setting…he knocks it out of the park. The setting is a living, breathing entity - as much a character as any of the people. The development of the setting is this book’s shining star. I didn’t not enjoy myself with this book but it was just a do do read that I could pick up and put down without every feeling a pull back to it. I could easily have DNFd this out of simple nonchalance.

I was excited for another slow burn from Michaelides, though at times this one just feels slow. Such a great premise for a locked-room murder mystery on a private island, and the narrator was amazing, but I didn't ever get a real feel for Elliot and the other characters with the convoluted, unreliable narration of Elliot's character which hops around in reality and make-believe a little too much, though it becomes evident why at the end. 3.5 stars and I will still recommend this book to fans of Michaelides and mystery-lovers. Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the early listen in exchange for my honest opinions.

I expected to love this book. I did love the narration. But I found the story slow, the characters unlikeable. The twists anticlimactic. I did appreciate the clever unfolding of the story into multiple layers of truths. This was not a bad book. It was just overhyped to be something that, for me, it was not.

Well. This book has a few twists and turns along the way. It’s about how Elliot loves his best friend who married someone he does not like. He feels that her now husband is not worthy of her. So Elliot writes a play for her and him to act out to get her husband to leave his mistress and admit he is cheating on her, all while Elliot plants on her husbands mistress to kill the husband. It is a well written well played out play until Elliot’s friend discovers what the play he is writing in tails. So she decides to write a play within his play that Elliot is not aware of.

Poor Elliot feels so betrayed the same way his friend does when the truth comes out to what she did that he becomes the character from his play the kills his love.

Reading Between the Wines book review #5/130 for 2024:
Rating: 3 🍷 🍷 🍷
Book: The Fury
Author: Alex Michaelides
Available now!

Sipping thoughts: Alex, Alex, Alex! How do you come up with these different types of novels?! In this book, Elliot is the narrator who takes you through a tale of love, lust, lies, betrayal and murder. Nothing is like it seems but it is also a little predictable. I enjoyed this book but not as much as his other books.

Cheers and thank you to @MacmillanAudio and @Netgalley for an advanced copy of @TheFury.

#TheFury #AlexMichaelides #MacmillanAudio #advancedreadercopy #ARC #Kindle #Booksofinstagram #readersofinstagram #bookstagram #nicoles_bookcellar #bookworm #bookdragon #booknerd #booklover #bookstagrammer #bookaholic #bookreview #bookreviewer #IHaveNoShelfControl #ReadingBetweenTheWines #fiction #thriller #suspense #mystery #MysteryAndThrillers #GeneralFictionAdult

The first half was dull. The point of view is from Elliot and he is a very unlikable character from the beginning to end. I could not focus at all. I wanted to quit but I kept on and the second half started to pick up and the twists and turns came. The narrator was okay mostly but there were some scenes where I could not tell who was talking - he did not have distinct voices for everyone. But overall, this was a slow-burn thriller, keep at it and you will enjoy it.

Huge thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced audiobook copy.