Random Things Tours - The Maidens

 

TITLE: The Maidens

AUTHOR: Alex Michaelides

PUBLISHER: Weidenfeld & Nicolson

PUBLISHING DATE: June 10, 2021

PAGES: 352

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: 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.

MY THOUGHTS: I think I'm one of the few people who has not read The Silent Patient but I can assure you, after reading The Maidens, I definitely want to pick it up.  Mariana is living a quiet life as a psychologist in the small home she once shared with her deceased husband.  One evening she gets a call from Zoe, her niece who is studying at Cambridge, that a close friend has been murdered.  Mariana runs to Cambridge to comfort her niece but as more students begin to die, and a mysterious group led by a charismatic leader starts to emerge, Mariana finds herself deep in the middle of the investigation.  But will she like where it heads?

The Maidens was such a quick read.  I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. Sometimes I found myself rooting for Mariana and Zoe, and sometimes I cursed them for the secrets they were keeping.  Edward Fosca was the perfect creepy teacher preying on young students and some of the side characters were just enough to keep the reader guessing.

In the end, I can honestly say the twist threw me.  While it did bother me somewhat and I kind of wished it had played out differently, I totally commend the author for the shock factor.  I definitely didn't see it coming which is something I think a lot of us wish for when reading a thriller.  I highly recommend this one which is good because most of the bloggers I follow already have it on their radar.

Small notes - there is a pet death in this one which disturbed me.  However, it happens in a flashback and while I don't fully understand why that made it easier to read about, it did for some reason.  Guess it's just another  quirk of mine.

RATING: 4 PAWS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Alex Michaelides was born and raised in Cyprus. He has an M.A. in English literature from Trinity College, Cambridge University, and an M.A. in screenwriting from the American Film Institute in Los Angeles. The Silent Patient was his first novel and was the biggest-selling debut in the world in 2019. It spent more than a year on the New York Times bestseller list and sold in a record-breaking forty-nine countries. Alex lives in London.