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The Fury by Alex Michaelides
Thriller

The Fury

3peat author

Alex Michaelides is officially a 3-time author at BOTM, which is a pretty big deal!

by Alex Michaelides

Excellent choice

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Quick take

From twist-master Alex Michaelides, a gripping new thriller about a glamorous trip to Greece that takes a bloody turn.

Good to know

  • Illustrated icon, Icon_Psychological

    Psychological

  • Illustrated icon, Icon_Unreliable

    Unreliable narrator

  • Illustrated icon, Icons_Buzzy

    Buzzy

  • Illustrated icon, Icon_Glamorous

    Glamorous

Synopsis

This is a tale of murder.

Or maybe that’s not quite true. At its heart, it’s a love story, isn’t it?

Lana Farrar is a reclusive ex-movie star and one of the most famous women in the world. Every year, she invites her closest friends to escape the English weather and spend Easter on her idyllic private Greek island.

I tell you this because you may think you know this story. You probably read about it at the time—it caused a real stir in the tabloids, if you remember. It had all the necessary ingredients for a press sensation: a celebrity; a private island cut off by the wind…and a murder.

We found ourselves trapped there overnight. Our old friendships concealed hatred and a desire for revenge. What followed was a game of cat and mouse—a battle of wits, full of twists and turns, building to an unforgettable climax. The night ended in violence and death, as one of us was found murdered.

But who am I?

My name is Elliot Chase, and I’m going to tell you a story unlike any you’ve ever heard.

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Free sample

Get an early look from the first pages of The Fury.
The Fury

Prologue

Never open a book with the weather.

Who was it who said that? I can’t remember—some famous writer, I expect.

Whoever it was, they were right. Weather is boring. Nobody wants to read about weather; particularly in England, where we have so much of it. People want to read about people—and they generally skip descriptive paragraphs, in my experience.

Avoiding the weather is good advice—which I now disregard at my peril. An exception to prove the rule, I hope. Don’t worry, my story isn’t set in England, so I’m not talking about rain here. I draw the line at rain—no book should start with rain ever. No exceptions.

I’m talking about wind. The wind that whirls around the Greek islands. Wild, unpredictable Greek wind. Wind that drives you mad. The wind was fierce that night—the night of the murder. It was ferocious, furious—crashing through trees, tearing along pathways, whistling, wailing, snatching all other sound and racing off with it.

Leo was outside when he heard the gunshots. He was on his hands and knees, at the back of the house, being sick in the vegetable garden. He wasn’t drunk, just stoned. (Mea culpa, I’m afraid. He’d never smoked weed before; I probably shouldn’t have given him any.) After an initial semi-ecstatic experience—apparently involving a supernatural vision—he felt nauseous and started throwing up.

Just then, the wind sped toward him—hurling the sound straight at him: bang, bang, bang. Three gunshots, in quick succession.

Leo pulled himself up. As steadily as he could, he battled his way against the gale, in the direction of the gunfire—away from the house, along the path, through the olive grove, toward the ruin.

And there, in the clearing, sprawled on the ground . . . was a body.

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Why I love it

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

Are they giving all the facts? Are they who they say they are? An unreliable narrator is always a welcome surprise for me. As a reader, I love that feeling that I can’t trust my own intuitions. Alex Michaelides plays this game of deception with great finesse, and his latest narrator, Elliot Chase, is one of his most devilish creations.

The Fury is a bloody saga full of suggestive shadows and lies. But how did a simple Easter getaway come to all this? Lana Farrar, a reclusive ex–movie star, finds herself in a funk, so she invites friends and family to visit her personal island in Greece for the holiday. Tensions are high and everyone hopes for some much-needed R&R. Unfortunately, the island has other plans. A fierce storm blows in almost immediately. When its fury quells for a moment, it turns out a member of the party has been killed. As accusations fly, everyone tries to figure out who dealt the deathly blow and if they’re still out for blood. Along the way, readers’ attention and suspicions are pulled to and fro, and we come to realize our narrator and guide—Lana’s friend, Elliot—may not be giving everything to us straight.

As in his breakout hit, The Silent Patient, here Michaelides plays with reader psychology not just to raise the stakes but also to reveal essential truths about human nature. It makes for a potent and thrilling cocktail. Take a sip, I promise you won’t regret it.

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Member ratings (23,049)

  • Keimani W.

    Valdosta, GA

    This was the craziest book I’ve ever read! Both the author and the narrator played me so well, I was so sure I knew what happened. The twist was the most amazing part of this book. Loved it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

  • Sylvia G.

    Agawam, MA

    It was such an interesting twist on a traditional who-done-it murder mystery. Although I did see the murderer coming the whole ‘play’ aspect of the murder was an interesting little twist. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

  • Katelyn O.

    Newry, ME

    This book is a page turner with lots of and twists right up until the end. The writing style is great, I loved the way the narrator was talking to the reader throughout story. ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

  • Ashley B.

    Oceanside, CA

    Wow! This book is like if the tv series”you”, “none of this is true” by Lisa Jewell and “she started it” by Sian Gilbert all had a baby. Mystery, murder, lies, intrigue and so many twists! Must Read!

  • Sydney C.

    New Vineyard, ME

    Third novel is just as amazing as the others! I love the Greek tragedy 🎭 and the “who done it” that keeps you turning page after page. Elliot’s narration is clever and snarky. Excited for the next!

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