This was a wonderful mystery with several twists. Everything I thought I knew exactly what was going on I was thrown completely off.
I really enjoyed it.

"My name is Elliot Chase, and I'm going to tell you a story unlike any you've ever heard."
Playwright Elliot Chase, an unlikeable and uninteresting character, narrates the story and addresses the reader quite often.
He tells the story of seven people stranded on a Greek island and one of them is murdered. Told in five acts, similar to a play.
More of a cozy mystery than a thriller to me with a group of unlikeable characters being horrible to each other. Nothing is as it seems and once the twists and turns begin I had to finish listening to see how it all ends.
This story involves drama, murder, the theater and unrequited love.
I really wanted to enjoy this more than I did.
Alex Jennings is a superb narrator.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an arc of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

I will start off on the positive that the multiple twists at the end were not predictable and definitely had me guessing up until the end. However, the first 60% of the book went on rather monotonously and without much character or world-building. I tend to like books with unlikeable / unreliable narrators, but there wasn't enough character building for me to care if they lived or died. For a novel set on a beautiful private Greek island, I didn't feel like there was much time spent on building that world either- it could have benefitted from going more in depth and edging towards more gothic horror territory imo. I felt a bit similarly about "The Maidens" but it seems "The Silent Patient" is the fan favorite so I will still give that one a shot!

I am a huge fan of Alex Michaelides. The silent patient is one of my favourite thrillers ever. However this book fell flat for me.

This story is set in a remote island where an ex movie star, Lana invites her closest friends to it every year. But this year, this vacation ends up in a murder.

The narrator is Elliot Chase and he narrates it like he is writing a play.

For me, the story felt repetitive as the same events were being told again and again from different perspectives and with additional details. And all the characters were unlikeable. Also, the plot twist did not really blow my mind at all.

Though I'll admit this book was so fast paced and highly engaging that I finished reading it in a day. But overall, an average thriller. I feel disappointed with this one.

“We are all the unreliable narrators of our own lives.”

Did I enjoy the book? Yes.

I love an unreliable narrator, I think they’re fun. I wish this narrator was a tad more unreliable.
Very well paced once you get past the first few chapters.
It claims it is not a whodunnit but an examination on why people do what they do- a whydunnit. But it is very much a whodunnit.

I listened to the audiobook and Alex Jennings performance was stellar! I would listen to another book read by him!

Ahh i just realized i didn't review this, though i read it about a month ago. I've read all of Alex Michaelides books, and this was DEFINITELY my favorite. I absolutely loved the writing style. We know from the very beginning that the narrator is unreliable because he's telling his version of the story. So basically the entire time we spend trying to figure out who's really good, who can we trust and who we can't. He constantly breaks the fourth wall, which made for a fun time.

And the twists! Holy cow...i kept thinking the book was over, but nope! Twist after twist kept me not wanting to turn the audiobook off. Also props to the narrator. Gosh he did a FANTASTIC job.

Thank you NetGalley for this advanced copy. I wish there was a way to rate the first and second half of this book separately, three and five stars. I did receive this book in audio, where Elliot narrates truly like he is speaking to you as a friend. Because of this, and perhaps because it was on audio and not print, it felt as if he talked himself in circles and belabored the point he was making multiple times, often getting lost in the backstory. I truly loved "The Silent Patient" and do not feel this had happened there. Throughout the second half, I thoroughly enjoyed digging deeper into the truths of the story (even until the end) with unforeseen twists and turns. Possibly the beginning of the book confirms what we find out in the end and I missed It?

I DNF'ed this book. I appreciate that the direct addressing of the audience was an intentional, stylistic choice, but It distracted me enough that I struggled to follow the audiobook easily. I will likely try this title again in print as I think the direct addresses will be less distracting that way.

This might just be my favorite of Michaelides books so far!

I don't typically like contemporary thrillers/drama that's a bunch of white people in he city, but this one is a very dramatic drama that nods to Shakespeare and Agatha Christie in a wonderful way.

This is one of those thrillers that in hindsight, I think I could have put together sooner. Like, it's super, super twisty, but the author did a good job being consistent with hints and messaging without those totally left field distractions.

I loved the Shakespeare vibes! It was truly something like The Tempest mashed with And Then There Were None and Glass Onion.

I listened to the audiobook via NetGalley and MacMillan Audio. I was wondering how the audio was so polished and perfect and wonderful sounding: it's narrated by Alex Jennings!!!!!! So good! Definitely recommend listening to the audio.

I DNF this audiobook. I got through over a third of it-and I re-listened to several parts. I found the story herky-jerky as it jumped through the characters. I kept feeling that if I stuck with it it would pay off, but I found this book so unenjoyable, I had to stop listening.

I wasn't sure what to expect when I picked up this book, especially since I heard mixed things about the author's last book. But I am so glad I picked it up. The writing was captivating and I was so invested in the story and especially the narrator. I can see why other people may not like it because it's slow paced and the way it's told can feel disjointed, but I enjoyed that aspect of the book. Nothing was surprising about any of the twists, but I was there to be in the narrator's head. This book is, essentially, a character study with murder.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of the audiobook for my honest review.

Twisty and turny throughout. This book proves that you do not always know your best friends like you think you do. What would one man do to be with the woman he loves?

3.5

I had a hard time deciding what I would rate this book. I thought it was different, and I appreciate a unique story. I didn’t see the ending coming either, and I thought it was really clever. Unfortunately, I was just so bored. I wanted Elliot to get to the point.

I felt the same way about The Silent Patient. It dragged, but I loved the ending. Perhaps I just need to speed up my audiobook next time.

I’ve seen mixed reviews for the Fury and I think I fall somewhere in the middle. I didn’t love it or hate it, but I’m not entirely sure what I just read? It took me a little while to get into the book, but once I hit 25-30 percent, it flew. From this point, I has to know what happened and didn’t want to put it down.

The narration felt a little choppy but I wasn’t sure if it was meant to be that way because of Elliot. I liked the surprise of Lana not being dead, but it was very risky if he intended to murder someone and ultimately backfired. I would still be interested in checking out more books from this author.

Perhaps once again hoping to befuddle readers with a shocking twist, the author gives us a self-proclaimed unreliable narrator leading the reader through a tale in a very Gatsby-eque manner. The narrator, a playwright named Elliot, breaks the third wall and speaks directly to the reader as if sharing a drink at a bar. He hints repeatedly that SOMETHING bad is going to happen, but darned if it doesn't take a wicked long time to get there. Elliot makes multiple jumps back and forth across time in his narrative, often adding new information or even admitting that he had hidden or fudged the truth the previous time he told it. But, again, there is so much emphasis on what happened in the past (which is sadly quite slow and tedious) that by the time we get to what happened in the present, it's a bit disappointing. The whodunnit is unfortunately somewhat predictable, though the whydunnit is more interesting and entertaining.

The real problem is that where Nick Carroway is an engaging and relatable narrator, Elliot is not likable, and though we hear about his troubled past, it's not enough to fully explain why he does things or to make the reader engage with him. This detracts from the plot twists and any sympathy that might be felt for him throughout the events Elliot describes early on as "ones that destroyed my life". There is also a bizarre turn of events involving the eponymous Fury (I was disappointed that, despite the story occurring on the Greek Isles, the title is not referring to the Furies from Greek mythology, but rather a storm that frequents the island and a completely different Greek goddess ) that felt oddly out of place.

If you like a slow burn, this will probably be a book for you. But a thriller, unfortunately, it's not.
Thank you to the author, Celadon Books, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the audiobook ARC. Alex Michaelides is a talented author. I adored The Silent Patient, felt less passionate for The Maidens and now The Fury unfortunately did not resonate with me despite its beautiful scenery.

The Fury
By Alex Michaelides

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillian Audio for the advanced copy of this audiobook.

This story is about Lana Farrar and how happens to be a famous movie star world renowned. Every year she invites her closest friend to her luxury island by Greece. This year ends differently though.

I went into this story excited because I have read books by this author before and really enjoyed them. This story however, did not enthuse me. I guess I didn’t like how the story read/narrated by a guest, Elliot Chase. For some reason, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I had hoped.
Some books are better read than listening to and I believe this one is just this, one I should have actually read.

Thank you again for giving me the chance to review this audiobook.

A Private Greek Island, Movie Star, Lana Farrow; her family, husband Jason and son, Leo; friends, Kate, Elliott, and Agathi, and Nico who oversees the Island year round. So, 7 people and then one less because a Murder happens. We know this because Lana’s close friend, Elliott Chase tells us the story. The locals say that the island is haunted and doom is always close by. The water can be gorgeous, turquoise and translucent or the Winds can make it dark and dangerous, resulting in a rage called The Fury.

Lana invites her friends and family to come each Easter to get away and relax. Yet, that is not as easy as it seems. Each person is keeping secrets, and that creates tension for all. There is a severe storm so no one is able to leave the island and the Fury is not just from the wind and water. I like the way the author has Elliott tell us a story, but promises more to come. He is speaking directly to us and that makes for some juicy news. The story is broken into five acts like a play, so each time a different act comes, Elliott must tell some more information he decides needed to be told.

So, once this story gets started, I really just loved listening to this tale. There are many twists and turns as happens with these types of stories, but many that I could not anticipate. It was a nerve racking 24 hours on the beautiful island. This group really behaves quite poorly and it is hard to love anybody, but still killing is an extreme way to go of course. I enjoyed finding out the entire story and could not put the book down until it was all explained.

The problem I had was that it took 1/3 of the book to get to this enticing point. Before that, the book moved too slowly. There were just too many details about each person that bogged the book down. That is why I rated this book 4 Stars.

This worked really well as an Audio book and I loved the narrator, Alex Jennings. His voice was perfect for this. Overall, I enjoyed this book so much, but wish I could have jumped in 30% into the story. Alex Michaelides has a great way of laying out of story that I find unique and this one did not disappoint.

Thank you NetGalley, Alex Michaelides, and Macmillan Audio for granting a copy of this book. I always leave reviews of books I read.

Thank you to NetGalley for the copy of this thriller. It was quite the psychological merry-go-round. This book earned 5 stars from me for its masterful writing style though I did feel like it moved in circles throughout the storytelling rather than advancing forward. There was no figuring this one out, it kept me guessing the entire time and I appreciate when my head is still spinning at the end of a story — the author really accomplished that here.

Thank you to Netgalley for the Audio version of this book. I have to believe listening to this book made it far more enjoyable. Join this murder mystery, and listen to it play out with our cheeky storyteller, Elliott. I totally picture the narrator wearing a director's cape, and beret, wearing sunglasses and holding a martini! He is completely delightful. Elliott presents the series of events as if you are watching a play or a dinner murder mystery. You join him and all the other guests on a Greek island where we know a murder has taken place, but we don't know why or who did it. There are twists and turns along the way. I really enjoyed the audio version of this book. I think the only thing this book suffers from, is being longer than it needed to be, it could have ended a few chapters sooner. But I believe the listener (or reader) will be swept into the play (or series of events), love some characters, and hate others. And be happy with a satisfying ending.