Alex Michaelides Novel Named Among 50 Best thrillers

Stay connected to Greek City Times for Free on Google News
Click NOW

Greek-Cypriot author Alex Michaelides has earned international recognition after his bestselling psychological thriller The Silent Patient was named among the 50 best thriller novels of the 21st century by The New York Times Book Review.

The novel ranked No. 36 in the list, which The New York Times compiled after asking 291 crime writers, editors, booksellers, librarians and avid readers to nominate their 10 favourite thrillers published since 2000.

The contributors included some of the biggest names in contemporary crime and thriller fiction, including Stephen King, John Grisham, Gillian Flynn and Lee Child.

Michaelides’ The Silent Patient follows Theo Faber, a London psychotherapist who becomes obsessed with the case of Alicia Berenson, a celebrated painter who stops speaking after allegedly murdering her husband.

Among those who voted for the novel was bestselling American author Blake Crouch, whose thriller Dark Matter also appears on the New York Times list.

From Cyprus to international bestseller

Born in Cyprus to a Greek-Cypriot father and an English mother, Michaelides studied English Literature at Trinity College, Cambridge.

He initially pursued a career in screenwriting, working in the film industry before turning to fiction. His debut novel, The Silent Patient, was published by Celadon Books in February 2019 and quickly became an international bestseller.

The book debuted at No. 1 on The New York Times Best Seller list and has sold more than 6.5 million copies worldwide. It also won the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Mystery & Thriller in 2019.

The novel’s success has now opened the way for a major film adaptation. Sony Pictures acquired the film rights in July 2026, with Annapurna Pictures and Plan B Entertainment attached as producers.

Michaelides follows with The Maidens

Michaelides continued the success of his debut with The Maidens, published in 2021.

Set largely at Cambridge University, the psychological mystery follows a therapist investigating a series of murders connected to an exclusive academic circle. The novel reached No. 2 on The New York Times fiction bestseller list.

The recognition for The Silent Patient further strengthens Michaelides’ position among the leading contemporary thriller writers, while placing his debut alongside some of the most influential novels of the genre published since the beginning of the 21st century.

(Source: The New York Times Book Review)

Stay updated with the latest news from Greece and around the world on greekcitytimes.com.
Contact our newsroom to share your updates, stories, photos, or videos. Follow GCT on Google News and Apple News.