Book Review: THE MAIDENS by Alex Michaelidis

 

Title: THE MAIDENS

Author:  Alex Michaelidis

Read: September 2021

Expected publication: out now

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟1/2

 

Book Description:

 

Edward Fosca is a murderer. Of this Mariana is certain. But Fosca is untouchable. A handsome and charismatic Greek Tragedy professor at Cambridge University, Fosca is adored by staff and students alike—particularly by the members of a secret society of female students known as The Maidens.

Mariana Andros is a brilliant but troubled group therapist who becomes fixated on The Maidens when one member, a friend of Mariana’s niece Zoe, is found murdered in Cambridge.

Mariana, who was once herself a student at the university, quickly suspects that behind the idyllic beauty of the spires and turrets, and beneath the ancient traditions, lies something sinister. And she becomes convinced that, despite his alibi, Edward Fosca is guilty of the murder. But why would the professor target one of his students? And why does he keep returning to the rites of Persephone, the maiden, and her journey to the underworld?

When another body is found, Mariana’s obsession with proving Fosca’s guilt spirals out of control, threatening to destroy her credibility as well as her closest relationships. But Mariana is determined to stop this killer, even if it costs her everything—including her own life.

What attracted me to this book:

 

If I had any doubts as to whether I should read Alex Michaelides’ new book, then they were dispelled as soon as I found out that it contained some of my favourite themes: an atmospheric college setting, a mysterious cult-like group, a psychologist main protagonist / investigator. I was intrigued!

My musings:

 

I will say one thing for Michaelides – he sure knows how to deliver an unexpected twist! Even though, knowing this, I wasn’t fooled as much by the red herrings as I would normally be, and the final reveal didn’t pack as much punch as in THE SILENT PATIENT. If you were a fan of his earlier book, then you will be happy to know that the author links both books together very cleverly by including scenes and characters of THE SILENT PATIENT in the later part of THE MAIDENS. I have only seen this done a handful of times in other thrillers and loved the way he achieved this. If you have read THE SILENT PATIENT, then you will understand how this created an extra sense of foreboding to this story.

 

If you asked me what I loved most about this story, I would immediately mention the atmospheric setting in Cambridge (it was armchair travel of the best kind!). I had the privilege of visiting this ancient city in my wee youth, and Michaelides’ descriptions transported me straight back there. This was aided by the short, extremely readable chapters which made me read late into the night. The inclusion of Greek mythology into the tale also added extra depth and intrigue for me. Even though pitching an amateur sleuth like Mariana against a police investigative team who seemed to miss every single clue and piece of evidence was a bit farfetched to say the least, it did make for a unique angle an ordinary police procedural could not offer as easily, and I was happy to overlook the plot holes for the sake of entertainment.

 

My biggest gripe with the story was that a lot of time was spent on red herrings rather than the “Maidens”, which was a bit of a missed opportunity to further explore the dynamics of this strange group and their narcissistic leader. I felt that the characters of the girls remained flat and stereotypical and wanted more of Mariana’s insights into groups and cults to really delve into their psyches. I also didn’t care much for the ending and would have preferred a less shocking twist for the sake of a more believable finale (I may be in the minority here because other readers have loved this element especially, which just goes to show how diverse we are as readers). I think that up to the final chapters this could have been a five star read for me, because I was so utterly hooked to the story.

 

 

Summary:

 

All in all, THE MAIDENS was an intriguing murder mystery featuring a deliciously atmospheric Cambridge setting that made for the best armchair travel. Even though I felt that too much time and effort was spent on red herrings and the “killer twist”, I still felt that this was an extremely readable story. With a clever link to THE SILENT PATIENT, I am curious to see if there will be a Book 3 to follow on from here? In any case, I certainly will be standing in line to get my hands on the author’s next book!