And truths far deadlier than predicted rise through the silence. But soon determination falls and slips into obsession. His past, something he has battled with constantly, will give him a standing others don’t possess. This is where Theo is determined to prevail. So many have tried to ‘cure’ her, help her, this femme fatale, entombed in her own silence but none have succeeded. The press and public have dogged all facets of Alicia’s case for years. Theo Faber, a psychotherapist from Surrey, believes he can peel back the darkness and dig up answers. And for the six years that follow, an unbroken silence unspools. For the trial and her eventual transfer to The Grove, a secure psychiatric unit, she remains empty. She is a blank space, a void, as if all the words have been emptied out of her. There are no tell-tale signs of remorse or grief or even anger. Then it was over.įollowing the murder, Alicia refuses to speak. In the aftermath, family and friends only confirm the obvious: they were the dream couple, no one noticed any signs preluding the tragedy, no one ever saw a subtext to Alicia’s behaviour, a savage intent simmering inside her bright facade. The murder wasn’t expected or premeditated. Or so it seemed before she took a gun – his gun – and killed him. Alicia, a successful yet troubled artist, adored him. Gabriel, a brilliant, sought-after fashion photographer, doted on her.

A swift and brutal conclusion to his life. Alicia Berenson shoots her husband one evening.

The silent patient book review