SPOILERS AHEAD!!
When I picked up The Fury by Alex Michaelides a few months ago, I was practically jumping up and down with excitement to read his latest novel. The Silent Patient still remains as my highest-rated thriller of all time; I can still remember exactly where I was when I read that twist for the first time. Since then, thriller novels seldom hold a candle to what Michaelides created. However - I had high hopes for The Fury. Set on a private Greek island with the rich and famous as our main characters (or should I say suspects?), this novel had promise to deliver a star-studded and twisty summer mystery. While I would argue the story did accomplish that, unfortunately the ending fell flat for me.
Starting from the exposition (or so we thought), we meet our narrator, Elliot. Now the interesting thing about Elliot is that we are told to not trust a single thing he says right from the get-go. While I understand this plot device was used to create suspicion around everyone in the story and establish himself as an untrustworthy narrator, it made the story progress at a snail’s pace. I had trouble getting engaged in the first act of this book. I found the other characters much more intriguing and redeemable, even in the first act. This included our heroine, Lana Farrar, and her son, Leo. You can certainly tell in the first few chapters how obsessed Elliot is with Lana; the way the author thought this would be a surprise towards the end is downright confusing to me. We are also introduced to Kate Crosby, an actress and friend of Lana’s with some serious substance issues and quite possibly the messiest character in this book.
As we progress towards the second act (finally), we learn that everything we have been told may not be what it seems. This is where the resemblance Glass Onion begins. Not only are the plot and characters undoubtedly similar, the storytelling seems to mirror one another as well. The reader learns the “real” reason Lana has invited everyone (Elliot & Kate) to the island is to confront Kate and her husband, Jason, about their affair. Through the entire second act, it seems Elliot’s main purpose of narrating is to confuse us. It’s clear he has a high opinion of himself and wants to be the only man in Lana’s life (this will be proven later). I didn’t find the second act intriguing... at all? We learn about Elliot’s past tribulations as a child (who cares?), Lana and Leo fight about him wanting to be an actor (again... snooze), and Lana’s maintenance guy on this island is in love with her (could’ve seen that one coming). It’s the third act where the scene for the “big twist” is finally set and the curtain comes up for the final performance - and that’s what this whole plot has been. A performance of basically every member of this cast - Elliot, Lana, Kate, even Leo. This, by far, was the most exciting revelation of the novel.
I will hand it to Michaelides for the last few chapters of this book picking up the pace and providing the reader with twists and turns that are exciting. Unfortunately, even after I read the final recount of the series of events from the beginning - what ACTUALLY happened - I found myself asking why I should care. I didn’t have any real feelings towards any of these characters, especially Elliot and Kate. I didn’t care what happened to them or what was going to happen to them. Even at the final turn, where it is revealed that Elliot is the one who ultimately ended Lana’s life, I can’t say I was surprised! So we’re told he's a liar the whole time and he turns out to be... a liar and a killer?! Who would've thunk!
I will say, I did like reading the part where the rest of the cast outsmarted Elliot and made him believe they were going to kill him. I loved when Agathi, my personal favorite character in this book, got to throw the last stone into his theoretical coffin. As I’ve said, the twists in this book were there and they were thorough, it just fell flat for me. I’m left with a few questions after this read - did Elliot actually kill that perverted old lady he lived with (I hope so)? What’s going to happen to Leo now? How did Kate and Jason leave things? These are MAJOR parts of the story I felt we got no resolution to. The nod to The Silent Patient at the end was one of the only moments where my jaw dropped.
Overall, I give this story 3/5 stars. The setting, some of the characters, and the characterization of the island and the wind were all parts that I enjoyed. The storytelling was inconsistent, and ultimately, the narrator really dragged this down. I’d recommend this book for fans of classic Agatha Christie whodunnits, but be warned, the payoff of this novel will not leave you wanting more. I enjoyed reading parts of this book, but in my humble opinion, Michaelides has yet to top his debut novel.
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