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Psychological Thriller

The Silent Patient

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The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
Format: Book
Whose it for: Adults

Alicia and Gabriel Berenson lives seem perfect. She is a famous painter and he a top photographer. They are wealthy, beautiful and very much in love, yet one evening, Alicia kills Gabriel and then becomes selectively mute. The case becomes an instant sensation with everyone following it in the tabloids and wondering why she killed her husband and if she will ever speak again. Alicia is tried and convicted of murder and sent to a secure mental facility where she eventually meets Theo Faber. Theo is a psychotherapist who takes Alicia as a patient and becomes obsessed with getting her to speak and finding answers to the crime. Theo has clues to Alicia’s thoughts through her art work and uses it to unlock the mystery of that fateful night.

The Silent Patient is a dark and gripping thriller that hooks the reader and doesn’t let go until the remarkable ending. Find The Silent Patient in the catalog.

A Head Full of Ghosts

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A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay
Format:  Book
Who it’s For: Teens and adults

The lives of the Barretts, an ordinary family, are torn apart when their fourteen-year-old Marjorie shows signs of acute schizophrenia. To her parents’ misery, the doctors cannot stop Marjorie’s descent into madness. Their stable home soon devolves into a house of horrors. The family grudgingly turns to a Catholic priest for assistance. Father Wanderly recommends an exorcism; he believes the helpless Marjorie is the target of demonic possession. He also contacts a production company that is keen to document the Barretts’ troubles. With financial troubles approaching, the family agrees to be filmed, and thus become stars of The Possession, a successful reality television show.  

Fifteen years later, Marjorie’s younger sister, Merry, agrees to be interviewed. As she reminiscences about the events that occurred when she was just eight years old, secrets and painful memories emerge that contradict what they portrayed on the reality show. This book keeps you guessing throughout, making you question what really happened. 

Find A Head Full of Ghosts in the Catalog!

 

Unhinged

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Unhinged
Format: DVD
Who it’s for: Adults

This psychological thriller shows road rage at its dreadful form. We have all experienced road rage at some point in our lives and Tom Cooper (Russell Crowe) takes it to the extreme. Rachel (Caren Pistorius) is running late to drop her son off at school and work, when she has an altercation with Tom at the traffic light. She blows her horn at him because the light turns green and he fails to react. Life has dealt Tom some bad cards and Rachel compounds his problems by doing that. He apologizes to her for not realizing that the light had turned green, and expects one from her in return. Rachel refuses to apologize and this sends Tom off the rails. He becomes hell-bent on ruining her life and taking away everything that she holds dear and goes on a maniacal rampage. He wants Rachel to know that her words and actions have consequences and he wants retribution!

This thriller touches on the different problems in society and the increase in people’s stress levels.

Find Unhinged in the catalog!

 

 

The Fall

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Recommended TV Series
The Fall by Acorn Media
Who it’s for: Adults

Brief Synopsis: Psychological thriller where a senior police officer from England is brought to Belfast, Ireland to lead the hunt for a serial killer.

Review: I was on hoopladigital.com browsing the tag Crime. I was in the mood for a new police procedural to watch. The cover caught my eye when I recognized Gillian Anderson from The X-Files and Jamie Doran from Fifty Shades. I have not watched many British productions. The ones I have watched have been mostly comedies produced by BBC television. This is a drama produced by Acorn, which, judging by the promotional images, probably lacked humor. I had only watched two BBC dramas but I absolutely loved them (Sherlock and Orphan Black). They were not original story concepts (there are only so many). To me the stories were produced, written, directed, and acted in completely fresh and new ways. The Fall is a TV show about the hunt for a serial killer that focuses on the killer and the police officer hunting him.  I predicted The Fall would tell this unoriginal idea in a way that I had never experienced before that would leave an impression just like Sherlock and Orphan Black.

Thankfully, I guessed correctly. 😁

The Fall seemed like it would be a darker version of Dexter, the Showtime TV series about a serial killer. I really, really, really liked Dexter. I was a little concerned that there might be gore, graphic murders, or rape scenes. I checked the reviews and was assured that was not the case. The Fall was not like Dexter where I got to know almost every aspect of the serial killer and the detectives hunting him. In The Fall, the murder victims and the other people in their lives are not the relationships that captured my attention. I am not sure if it is because it is a British production or an aspect of their culture but even by the end of the series both main characters are still a little like work associates not close friends. The TV show did reveal some things about their personalities and relationships with others that kept me very interested. It was not enough for me to truly root for one or the other. It was a great story but not one that invested too many emotions for me except excitement and anticipation of what comes next. At one point or another, I felt sympathy for Paul, Gibson, the murder victims, the police officers Gibson showed up by being brilliant, and Paul’s family. However, unlike in USA tv shows where I truly felt an emotional connection with the characters, if Paul or Gibson did something out of character, I would be annoyed but not highly upset (like I was with the last season of Dexter. 😤 still mad about that disaster of a season!)

Another reason I decided to watch this show is that it is a British TV drama. The entire TV series ends fairly quickly. It only has 3 seasons (or series as they call it). I consider this a binge worthy series. Every season it felt like Gibson was going to catch Paul or he would turn himself in or something.  I must say that is very good production, writing, and acting when I know a TV show lasts for 3 seasons but almost every episode kept me on the edge of my seat. That is the only reason I binged it. Normally I take my time with TV series; watching 1-2 episodes a day; finishing it in 3 or 4months. With The Fall, I could not wait for my hoopla checkouts to renew. I got the physical DVD copies and watched the entire 3 seasons in about 2 weeks. BINGE. WORTHY. I looked for similar shows. I was told about the Netflix series You which is based on a novel written by Caroline Kepnes. I may check one of them out or both.🤷🏾‍♀️🤔

Find it on hoolpadigital.com or check out the series on DVD!

Fatale

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Fatale
Format: DVD
Who it’s for: Adults

This thriller will keep you on the edge of your seat from the beginning to the end! Do you know that a night of fun can become the worst mistake that you have ever made? A sports agent who suspects his wife is unfaithful is encouraged by his friend to have a one-night stand. This night of pleasure leads to dangerous consequences. He becomes a victim of betrayal, from the people that he adores the most. Not only does the lady that he had the wild night with turn out to be a detective, she has various issues of her own! If you enjoy provocative and suspenseful, psychological thrillers, you should watch this movie!

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