Written like a traditional five act play, The Fury by Alex Michaelides, is a story of murder, retribution and misguided love.

🧿Though not his first novel, The Fury was the first book I've read by author, Alex Michaelides.
🧿I enjoyed the narrative style, written and told by the main character, Elliot. With very little dialogue between the characters, most of the storytelling was directed towards us as the reader.
🧿I love a well-crafted unreliable narrator- even an unlikeable one- but I found Elliot's character to be underdeveloped, infuriating, and at times, just plain annoying. Generally, I was disappointed with the evolution of all seven of the characters- most fell flat for me.
🧿With a storyline based in the theatre, I thought the structure of the story written like a traditional five-act play was smart,
🧿There were plenty of twists and turns along the way, however the final "plot twist" felt more like a "plot flop" to me.
🧿In Greek mythology, the Furies are the goddesses of revenge and vengeance, so a Greek island made for the perfect backdrop for murder and intrigue.
🧿Given the early hype, I had high expectations, however I found this book to be a super slow burn that just never gave me exactly what I was hoping for. Alex Michaelides is clearly a strong, smart writer and although I didn't ultimately enjoy The Fury, I'm looking forward to giving his other books a chance.
⭐⭐⭐/5

Many thanks to NetGalley and to Celadon Books for the opportunity to read the ARC of The Fury in return for my unbiased review.

This book wasn't my cup of tea. While the book's format was initially intriguing, it lost it's appeal as the story progressed. This was a slow burn with an unreliable narrator, and the plot and pace was erratic and challenging to connect with. Stories within stories created a complex narrative, with characters that failed to stand out. While the final chapters began to deliver some twists and surprises, it was too late in the book to gain intrigue, and the ending overall did not do it for me.

2.5 Stars
This was just an okay read. The author brings back characters from The Silent Patient and The Maidens (his other works) and I'm not sure I liked that he did that (especially since I didn't read The Silent Patient and was not expecting this to have any ties with that book). I wish I got so much more from this book than I did and I can't spoil anything because it's an ARC, but I definitely was left disappointed by the twists and reveals - I just feel like there was so much missing for me. I didn't care for any of these characters at all and I found the first half of this book was slow. I really hated the way this ended as well and overall, I'm underwhelmed by this story.

Thank you NetGalley and Celadon Books for the ARC!

Y'all this one just wasn't for me. I went in blind and hopeful but it just wasn't it.
The format was different which at first I liked but that quickly fizzled out. Most definitely a super slow burn with an unreliable narrator. The plot and pace was all over the place. I just couldn't connect and wasn't really worried about what happened to the characters in the end.

There are many others who have enjoyed this one though so maybe go read some of their reviews or just jump on into it lol

Thank you to Netgalley, Celadon books, and MacMillan audio for the ARC and ALC and allowing me to read and give my honest review.

Would you even think twice about accepting an invitation for a getaway with friends on a private Greek island? NO! You wouldn’t, but hold on as Author Alex Michaelides takes us on an exhilarating ride of a getaway weekend filled with secrets, assumptions and ultimately murder. But, who did it?

Interestingly “The Fury” is told in first person narration, by Elliot Chase. Elliot has the honor of telling “his” story “his” way with psychological twists and navigating reality against fiction. I really enjoyed this!

A famous ex-movie star, Lana along with her husband, Jason, Kate, Agathi, Nikos and Elliot spend an extraordinary weekend together with twists and turns, deceit and drama. As events unfold, truths are revealed leaving you questioning the source and the viability of it.

Entertaining! A shave of Agatha Christie! Suspensful! Cat and Mouse! Brilliant!

I highly recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys a psychological thriller.
I enjoyed it and thought it was well-written. Alex Michaelides has a beautiful mind!

Thank you @celadon books for the ARC and @netgalley for the eARC @alexmichaelides

📖 The Fury
🖊️ Alex Michaelides

⭐️⭐️⭐️


A thriller around the murder plot of an ex-movie star, narrated by one of her best friends who witnessed it all.

Unfortunately this one fell flat for me 👎🏼

I absolutely loved Michaelides first two books, and I had such high hopes for this one. The narrator, Elliot, just did not do it for me. It was confusing with some lines coming from his POV, then others from other characters, but still like he told it, even though he wasn’t there!? I just couldn’t get into it.

A murder takes place on an excluded island (like a few other books I’ve read lately), and that is revealed at the very beginning of the book, with the rest of the book taking us through different timelines and character introduction, and why they could have wanted the MC dead.

I wanted to love this one, but I just did not. Maybe it could be your thing!?

Thank you @netgalley for the Advanced Reader Copy of The Fury by Alex Michaelides. This is a psychological thriller at its best! A group of seven people is marooned on a Greek island, and there is a murder. There are MANY twists and turns-so many that I had a hard time keeping up with everything. The unreliable narrator makes this even more confusing, which I think is the point. Glad I read it, but not a huge favorite of mine. #bookstagram #booklover #reader #bookblog #lovetoread #fictionreader #bookreview #bookrecommendation #readersofinstagram #bookloversofinstagram #takeapagefrommybook #readallthebooks #booksbooksbooks #booksofinstagram #bookwormproblems #bookaholic #booknerd #whattoread #readingtime #bookaddict #ilovetoread #ilovebooks #needtoread #readallday

This was an unusual book. It sort of reads like a play and there is lots of talking directly to the reader which takes some getting used to. It feels like there are stories within stories and while it's a bit of a character study, some of the few characters felt superfluous.

Many of the chapters end on "cliffhangers" - i.e. "and that was the last time we see Lana alive" or "if only I had known then what I know now..." type lines - which I'm not a big fan of when done too often. It often didn't help with the pacing, which I found rather slow.

I had a hard time getting into this book. Much of the first 15-20% was spent telling me that this was going to be unlike anything I've ever read, the next 60% felt like something I've read 10,000 times, and then the last 20% was a fun whirlwind of twists and surprises that I enjoyed but ultimately didn't save it for me.

I listened to this novel on audio and I think that was a great choice. Because of the theater aspect and the second person narration, the audio worked spectacularly. I also really enjoyed the narrator -- Alex Jennings -- and thought he did a fabulous job.

Overall, this ended up being an enjoyable read, but not one that will stick with me or that I'll be likely to recommend to a wider audience.

Thank you to Celadon Books, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the copy.

"We are all the unreliable narrators of our own lives."

The Fury, by master psychological thriller author Alex Michaelides, leads us to how warped and wild this writer is with his latest fiendishly fun tale of built up resentment, anger, greed and the ultimate act of violence, murder.

Elliot Chase, our cheeky storyteller, narrates his version of what happened on the private Greek Island of movie star Lana Farrar that led to murder and more twists than the windy storms on the island.

In the clever playbill sent by the publishers we are given quick introductions to the players of this unreliable narrated story. Eliot tells us he's a playwright and Lana's best friend. Famed actress Kate Crosby might argue she's Lana's best friend since they met first and she introduced Lana to her current husband, wealthy businessman Jason Miller. Also on the turbulent island is Lana's teenage son, Leo from another relationship. Rounding out the field is long time housekeeper Agathi and caretaker Nikos. Before we are halfway through one of them will be dead and one will have killed them.

Listening to the audiobook in between reading the novel I was blown away by award winning English actor Alex Jennings. His portrayal of Eliot was such a distinctive performance. His subtle confusions, "I am not sure where I am, the present or the past," added to the turmoil felt throughout the book.

The angry winds, known as The Fury, reflects the power of human emotions and how just as we can't control the weather, we often can't control our
feelings nor ability to tell an unbiased story. The first half sets up the perfect storm for a killing. The second half twists and turns every supposed truth into a whirlwind of an unreliable narrator.

I received a free copy of this book/audiobook from the publishers via #NetGalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

Alright, here’s my once-in-a-blue-moon thriller read! I don’t think I’ve read one since 2022! (The Storygraph says Killers of a Certain Age counts as a thriller - read late 2023 - but I disagree).

I enjoyed this one! The style is interesting: the narrator tells the story directly to the audience, as though we’re listening to a verbal story from an acquaintance. The character of the narrator knows a reader is listening to the story as they are telling it, and it’s obvious to the audience that the same character would tell the story differently if they were just writing it down for themselves in a journal. It definitely makes you think about why the character chooses to explain things in certain ways. (And why the author chose to have the character make these choices…).

The pacing is interesting too: the narrator tells us some parts of the story several times, adding a new piece of information for further context each time. The plot unfolds bit by bit. And the plot of this book – the reveals, the ups and downs, et cetera – are not about the murder. Those first two sentences of the synopsis are accurate: this isn’t a murder mystery. It’s a character study. The plot is about the main character. It’s a really interesting and neat way to tell a story, and as someone who doesn’t read a lot of thrillers and doesn’t mind that this one has pretty slow pacing… I enjoyed it. I think it’d make a great book discussion pick for the right book group.

(Thank you for the e-ARC! I have also posted this review to Goodreads and The Storygraph, linked here on NetGalley.)

This was my first time reading anything by this author. I’m one of the few people who has not read The Silent Patient, although after reading this book, I’m really excited to add that one to my reading list! As for The Fury, I really enjoyed this one. I loved the Greek Island setting, the unreliable narrator. I felt the pace was perfect and I enjoyed getting to know the cast of characters in the first half of the book. I thought it was very original the way the book is written in Acts. I loved the twists and for me the epilogue was the best part for me.

Many thanks to NetGalley and to Celadon books for the ARC for my unbiased review. I definitely recommend this book to other readers.

Thank you so so much Netgalley, Alex Michaelides, and Celadon Books for this superb masterpiece! What a way to start off January 2024. Wow, just wow!!! Amazingly written, intricately woven story. I enjoyed this story so much and recommend this to the highest! Stop whatever you are reading and doing and read this!!!

I love a murder mystery - the tension, the unknown, the clues. The Fury is a murder mystery narrated by one of the book's major characters. Initially, the narrator is likable, and funny, and makes for an entertaining book.

I ended up not liking this book though because he narrates the same events just told in different circumstances, several different ways. I don't want to give too much away.

This book has a very Unusual Suspects kind of ending - a surprise for sure.

Many, many thanks to NetGalley and Celadon Books for gifting me a digital ARC of the new novel by Alex Michaelides - 5 stars!

Let's meet our narrator, Elliot Chase, a screenwriter. He's on a private Greek island with his best friend, former movie star, Lana Farrar. Also there are her husband and son, a close friend, and two employees. But Elliot will tell you this isn't quite an Agatha Christie locked-room mystery you're about to embark upon. Someone will die though.

I loved this book! Just like Elliot promised, I felt like I had just pulled up a seat and was listening to him tell me a story. He tells us the backstories of all the characters, but again in a way that felt cozy and interesting. And interested I was - I couldn't put this one down. Structured like a play (a Greek tragedy), It's creative, it's atmospheric (the wind off the island, called the fury), it's tense and surprising. Bravo, Mr. Michaelides!

This book holds many a twist. I never knew where it was gonna go. Elliott was definitely an unreliable narrator, I didn’t trust him from the start. The pacing was done very well, and I think the ending is what made me like the book. Overall, it was a good, easy, fast read.

This was an extremely slow burn with an unsatisfying ending. I liked the originality of the narrator speaking directly to his readers; his audience. Making you feel a part of the story he has written about a murder. But the narrative keeps changing as it goes on, switching between fiction and the truth, twisting the story to satisfy his needs. Most of the book was slow and the narrator rambled on, distracting from the main story. He gives a lot of introspection and it gets overly descriptive, which was quite boring. I've decided this author is not for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for this eARC

"...the Aegean wind to menos, which means "the fury in English."

So, what is Alex Michaelides latest book, The Fury, about? There is the primary protagonist, Lana Farrar, a reclusive ex-movie star who invites a small party to spend Easter with her on a small Greek Island. They are are rather trapped due to the elements, and it is during this time that secrets. lies and revenge are slowly unravelled. As the story develops, there is the point of view of Elliot Chase, and how he tells this story in the most unusual of ways.

Having received a physical copy of this book from Celadon, I was eager to sit back in my recliner and read it. However, I took the chance that I might be approved for the Audiobook on NetGalley, which I am thankful that I was. It was excellently narrated by Alex Jennings, especially as the unseen character Elliot Chase delivered much of the story from his point of view.

As is quite often the case in any mystery/thriller, our characters in The Fury have secrets, deceit, lies and more that pop up just about on every page. This lends well to fabulous pacing. Factor in the many twists and turns in Alex Michaelides third book (The Silent Patient in 2019 and The Maidens in 2021), I definitely enjoyed it, albeit his first two books performed better for me.

A question that may come up is what does Elliot Chase have to do with Lana Farrar, and also, how does one of the seven guests who were invited to the island end up dead? Just like in his first two books, our Greek author mixes in a bit of Greek mythology, which lends itself no doubt to excellent research that works well to blend the past with the present.

With Elliot's form of narration, it was very easy to feel connected to the story, especially as the locked room trope was the premise. I truly enjoy books that have unreliable narrators and with only so many guests (on the island in this case), so everyone was suspect which left me guessing during much of the book.

Another reviewer compared the style of writing and storytelling to the Netflix movie The Glass Onion, and I definitely agree with that comparison, so I just had to include that thought in this review. Makes me want to re-watch both Knives Out and The Glass Onion.

I look forward to the next book Alex Michaelides writes and hope that I can continue to read his work for years to come. He is a gifted author and I am eager to watching his growth and development as he pens these thrillers for his readers.

Many thanks to Celadon Books and to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

3.5 stars

I’m very conflicted about this one. It starts as a typical closed door murder mystery set in a Greek island. I’m not that big of a fan of this type of story. Then suddenly we are transported back to New York for some background story and character development. I really enjoyed getting to know the characters despite the fact that they were equally unlikeable. What really killed the story for me was the narrator. Constant back and forth trying to create tension and suspense. It happened this way no actually it happened that way and on and on we go. I thought it dragged and didn’t deliver surprises the way it should. I was just surprised that I was still reading the book. By the end I was utterly exhausted.

Okay, so this is such a tough review for me to write because I don’t know how to express my thoughts on this one. I was for sure hooked and couldn’t wait to find out where this was going. I really loved Lana’s character but hated everyone else and yet I still really enjoyed this book for its uniqueness and wit. This is so unlike Michaeline’s other novels but I still felt it was “his” story if that makes sense. The Greek tragedy aspect was well done as was the use of past and present timelines. I did bail on the audiobook (couldn’t get behind the narrator’s voice) so I would say read this one instead.

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for the ARC! A much anticipated novel from the author of The Silent Patient - one of my all-time favorites. Great writing from a perspective authors don’t really give. You are being told a story by Elliot, who makes you feel like a friend. I really enjoyed this.