Member Reviews
Dawn B, Reviewer
I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review - Someone is murdering parents and leaving the children alive.. Danielle, a therapist is worried it is one of her patients. The stress of this causes Danielle to seek counseling for herself. What she discovers is sure to shock you! |
This book kept me guessing until almost the end. It has twists and turns. You start with a therapist who seems so innocent but has has a lot to unravel. Highly recommend!! #netgalley #steenaholmes #stmartinspress |
This is the first, but by no means the last, Steena Holmes book I have read. Having never read anything by the author I jumped into the unknown and it was great! Thriller/physiological mystery that will keep reads on the edge of their seats. Only slight negative for me was extensive gruesome murder details, I love thrillers but not so much gore. That aside a fantastic book! |
This was the first book I read by Steena Holmes. I usually do not read the Thriller genre much. I do step out my comfort zone sometimes. I heard about this book in a Facebook reader group and the plot was very interesting to me. I found it difficult to get into this story. The point of view changes with almost every chapter. While I think that is a great tool to keep the reader on edge, it also makes it difficult to become absorbed in the plot line. Honestly, my mind kept drifting and I stopped reading quite a bit and picked it up again later. I was interested, but this book was not one that I could not put down. I would estimate by the middle of the book I was more involved in it, and had several thoughts on the outcome, and the longer I read I was leaning to one outcome more than any other. My thought turned out to be true. I could state the reasons, but then I would give away too much and I do not want to do that. Overall, I think the book was well written, perhaps not totally in a style I like, but the story flowed well enough and it did keep my interest to complete the book. I want to thank NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for allowing me to read the ARC of this book. |
I struggled up to the chapter from the murderers point of view and had to stop. I don't enjoy reading murder scenes so that was the stopping point for me. I love thrillers and mystery but not murders. I had trouble being interested in what was happening before that chapter. Maybe it got better if you enjoy this kind of story. Thanks for the chance to read it. I won't share my review on social media since I didn't read the whole book. #ThePatient #NetGalley |
Linda S, Reviewer
A therapist must face her own worst fear - one of her patients is a serial killer.Dani Rycroft suspects someone close to her has a dark secret. In the confidential setting of therapy, her patients share their anxieties and fears. Now, with a string of murders in town putting her on edge, Dani's own worries come close to eclipsing her patients'. In each case, the pattern is the same: parents killed while their children sleep blissfully unaware in their beds. Her best friend, Detective Tami Sloan, is the only person she has confided in.Dani believes that there's still a secret one patient has yet to share. But which one Behind a familiar face is a stranger who'll do anything to hide their worst compulsions. The anxiety brings Dani to her own therapist's office, seeking counsel and comfort. But what is she willing to risk, and how much closer must she get, to stop them |
Oh- My- Gosh!! This is one psychological thriller that you just will not want to put down! "We all wear masks, hide our true selves, present versions of ourselves that we need to be in order to be accepted." Who was killing parents of small children and leaving the "littles" to survive without their Mom and Dad? That's what people want to know and why in this small town are murders being committed? Danielle is a therapist and she is sure that one of her patient's is the murderer. The dilemma is, what should she do?. She struggles with patient confidentiality and maintaining their trust while attempting to get what she needs to help the detectives. Her client's are challenging and exhasting! It is an intense book that had me dreaming of these characters and wondering which one "did it" as I turned each page! I have read Steena's other books and this is definitely a different Steena novel! |
Mary M, Reviewer
I've read a few Steena Holmes books, and this one is very good! Dr. Danielle Rycroft has three patients, Tyler, Savannah and Ella, that she sees regularly. All have mental health issues and each of these are described pretty in depth. All are different ages and have serious problems they discuss with her, as well as keeping journals of their thoughts. In the small town in which she lives, Dr. Rycroft also apparently has a friendship with a local police officer, Tami, who tells her some information about the ongoing investigation to catch a serial killer terrifying the town.. Dani Rycroft is very committed to helping her patients, and when she begins to fear one of of her patients is the serial killer, she shares this with her own therapist. Determining who the killer is, and why parents of children are being killed, is very well wriien and extremely interesting, although the ending is rather sad. The Patient is definitely a standalone book, but I would love to see a follow up book written that tells what happens in the future for Dr. Rycroft. Many thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest review. |
NOPE. It was just too many POVgoing on. The style was nota fit for me. It was ok, nothing stood out. I finally gave up on it. Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy to review. |
This book blew me away. I had suspicions but couldn’t quite wrap my mind around the twists and turns. This book is a totally different type from Steena Holmes usual genre but it was so good, I loved it. |
Many Thanks to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for a fine read! Danielle, a psychotherapist, is also an avid Alice in Wonderland collector/reader. Living in a small town - Cheshire - she has 3 patients who see her regularly. Each of these patients is quite unique in their own way. Additionally, Danielle is a sleep-walker - particularly in times of stress. Her best friends; Tami (a police detective) and Sabrina (a baker/store owner) have never met each other. However, since a serial killer is now in Cheshire, naturally all of Tami's time is taken up. Danielle is feeling ill a lot of the time - particularly due to exhaustion and migraines. A riveting suspense story that will keep you guessing until the end... Superb! Recommend! |
Wow! What a story! This was certainly a page turner! Even tho I was pretty sure what was going on soon after starting the book, I still kept turning the pages quick! Definitely recommend, add it to your list! Thanks to Netgalley for the early copy |
I received an ARC copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for my honest opinion of it. I normally love books by this author and from reading the reviews, I felt like I read a totally different book. The ending was just too crazy for my taste and it ruined the whole book for me. |
I love Steena Holmes’ books! I can’t imagine how difficult it must’ve been to keep all of the characters and their stories straight. I really like when I am unable to predict what is going to happen. Unfortunately, I was able to predict this one somewhat, but I won’t give any spoilers. I still enjoyed reading this book, though. For an uncorrected proof I didn’t find any grammar or spelling errors. Thank you for that! I received a complimentary copy through NetGalley. All opinions expressed are completely my own. |
Debra K, Reviewer
OH MY Goodness, Steena Holmes: I feel like Alice when she fell down the rabbit hole in ALICE IN WONDERLAND! This book was the perfect blend of twists and turns that pulled me in because it was so masterfully woven together. I believed I was the Patients, I believed I was the Therapist, I believed I was the Serial Killer. The pages couldn’t turn fast enough for me. I kept reading late into the night with the light on. I just didn’t see the ending coming, I was so shocked and needed extra cups of coffee the next day at work. This story will stay with you long after the last page. I would love to live in a small town, by the park with shops named after my favorite characters in the book I loved as a child. |
Stop what you are doing and read this book!!! I do not have the words to describe how great this book is so I am not even going to try. Seriously, stop what you are doing and read this book. I promise, you will not be sorry!!!! |
The Patient was a great thriller that I could not put down. Good characters and storyline. I would read more by this author. |
I received an E-ARC through NetGalley. I’d like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to rad this fantastic book! This is totally different than anything of Steena Holmes’ that I have read before. However, she was meant to write in this genre. Anything I write here will not do it justice, other than to say that I can not wait for others to read it so that I can discuss it. I will be recommending this book to everyone for a long time. |
Shut the front door! This was pure genious! Madness all around! A therapist is facing her worst fear~ one of those she councils could be a killer! Sounds like this is a clear cut situation but looks are always deceiving. You know having had experience with malignant narcissist, sociopaths, psychopaths I know they push the envelope and the buttons. They are very cunning, deceiving, manipulative, and oh so darn believable. What if the therapist Danielle is the real danger? What if her life is at risk? Or perhaps their is another issue here especially if these individuals are processing long ago issues such as abuse from childhood. It's so hard to diagnosis as much of what's being dealt with is hidden and is only a sliver of the iceberg. Ava,Ella, Savannah, Tami, Tyler ( I hope I got them all all but one I purposely omitted) are all patients seeking treatment with their own unique stories and issues to be addressed. Ava is known as the Cheshire Mad Queen which is quite the treat for thriller readers. However, they all may share a common denominator one that may not be so easily recognizable. You see the Patients may be fine it may actually be a problem with the Therapist. So with hallucinations, delusions, paranoia comes fear and fear is rooted in evil ways... This plays out in such a way that even I never expected any of the various personas or personalities to clash or shall we say come to fruition. Perhaps a blackout would be best at this point but the feels of being unloved, unwanted, and quite frankly left out has taken its toll. What if one personality or persona from these individuals becomes dominant? Could their be a situation in which one of the patients is much stronger than the weakest link? What if betrayal is at the root of all evil? What if there are so many lies you are in a fog/haze and can't see reality? My word this is mind blowing, nonstop, frightful suspense. It will chill you to the bone literally as notes are suddenly being left for the therapist that alarm her along with kids books in rooms after their parents are taken out for good. Blaming, shaming, guilt it's all part of the mind of toxic individual. The problem here is we don't know which individual is causing the problem till the ultimate finale. Highly recommended reading! |
The Patient by Steena Holmes was disjointed and hard to follow the POV from the different characters. The premise was good but the characters were not very likeable. Others will probably enjoy the book, it just didn't resonate with me. Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book. |




