And here it is! My favorite book of 2023. Did you guess right?

The honor goes to Alex Michaelides’ oh my God I still cannot BELIEVE that twist thriller, The Silent Patient. 

What is it about? Years ago Alicia Berenson was a successful artist with a husband who was making a huge splash in the fashion photography world. To the outside, Alicia has everything; a good career, beauty, and a successful, handsome husband. So when she shoots her husband five times, London is more than taken aback. What’s even more startling? Alicia hasn’t spoken a word since. Not to the police officers, not to the investigators, or even to the hundreds of reporters and psychiatrists desperate to understand what happened that night. But criminal psychotherapist Theo Faber is set on changing that. Like so many others Theo has become obsessed with the case and desperately wants to know what happened. So he accepts a job at the forensic unit Alicia is being kept in. As Theo attempts to uncover the secrets behind Alicia’s quiet facade, the truth turns out to be more shocking than anyone could have suspected.

Why did I love it? The ending. Need I say more (and if you have read this book you know exactly why no more has to be said)? That twist at the end and the reason why Alicia killed her husband is still something I think about it. And I read the book almost one year ago! I don’t think I have ever chosen my favorite book of the year from the start of that year. The book has to pack one hell of a punch to crack not just the top three but even the top five.

Yet Mr. Michaelides does just that in this debut (a debut on top of it! What the hell am I doing with my life?) by crafting a story that is constructed so well it almost makes my head spin. Theo is a fantastic character who takes the trope of unreliable narrator and brings it to another level. Alicia too is unreliable and when you have that many characters you can’t trust, you know you are in for one heck of a ride. I do want to say more of why I love this book and why I will continue to scream about this book from the rooftops but the truth is I would be saying too much. Just take my word for it and read this book. Please, please, please!

With that my list for best books of 2023 has concluded. Were any of your predications on the list? What books did I miss? What was your favorite read of the year? Make sure to comment below and I look forward to seeing you in 2024 where we can start all over again. Happy New Year!