The Book:
The Fury by Alex Michaelides
Published January 16, 2024 by Celadon Books
Date read: December 29, 2023
The Characters:
Elliot – narrator, Lana’s friend, has feelings for her
Lana – movie star
Kate – Lana’s friend
Jason – possibly Lana’s husband
Agathi – Lana’s housekeeper
Leo – Lana’s son
Nikos – island local, has feelings for Lana
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The Plot (from Goodreads):
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 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.
How did The Fury end?
The Fury is what the island locals called the wind.
The Reveal:
At the end of Act 1, Lana was found dead after the household heard gunshots.
In Act 2, we find out that Kate and Jason were having an affair. Lana had found out shortly before she invited everyone to the island, because her housekeeper found Kate’s earring in Jason’s pocket. Elliot convinced Lana to invite them all there to confront them. We then find out he’s known all along, and wants to use this as a way to get Jason out of the picture so that he can be with Lana.
Lana wasn’t dead. She and Elliot had cooked up a plan to make Jason and Kate pay–a dinner theater of sorts in which they try to get the two to turn on each other and accuse the other of killing Lana. They brought in Lana’s son Leo to help with the acting.
Then we found out that Lana actually knew that Elliot was really doing this to be able to be with her. She had read his diary and knew he was manipulating her, so she told Kate. Together they decided to beat Elliot at his own game, play along with the act, and then turn it on him. I know they told Agathi and Leo about it, and I think they looped in Jason too but I’m not sure.
Elliot was obviously angry and embarrassed, so he shot and killed Lana.
The Ending:
In the epilogue, we see Elliot presumably in jail. He is visited by Mariana from The Maidens, whom he notes used to be his therapist. Mariana suggests that he talk to Theo, from The Silent Patient, who was also an inmate at the same facility. She thought that talking to Theo might help Elliot.
We also find out in the epilogue that Elliot had indeed killed Barbara. He’d published her play as his own.
The Review:
Alex Michaelides is back! Here’s where we stand: I loved The Silent Patient, and read it right around the time I was getting back into reading. I was a little bored by The Maidens. I’d say The Fury falls in between the two, closer to my enjoyment of The Silent Patient–so I definitely recommend it!
I really enjoyed how the story was told. The narrator, Elliot, tells the story like he’s chatting to a friend in a bar. This was especially effective on audio, and it made it such an enjoyable listen. It made me chuckle when Elliot would talk directly to the listener. The audiobook narrator knocked the performance out of the park! I’m so glad I listened to the audio version.
I loved the way the story unfolded. In Act I a scene is presented to the reader, and in each following act more perspective is revealed. The characters are very well thought out with a lot of background, and it’s presented in a way that is enjoyable to read.
The book is an extremely quick read or listen, and although I wanted more, I think it was the perfect pace and length to tell the story without too much fluff.
Similar to The Maidens, the book loosely nods to Michaelides’ previous two books.
Very well done!
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