This book just was not for me. I read The Silent Patient and enjoyed it, but thought the writing could use some tightening up. Being this was his second novel, I expected better.

Mariana is upset her husband Sebastian is killed. Then talks to her niece, Zoe who is troubled and worried about her friend Tara. All are concerned about the Professor Fosca. So, Tara is dead and Professor Fosca has a secret society of Maidens. Woman to serve him. So, find out Tara is killed and was part of this cult. Who do you think everyone suspects is the killer?

I guessed very early who the killer was. This just was not well written or entertaining or much of a thriller. This is an author who got enormous critical acclaim for his first book. Sorry, this does not pass My ok to read meter.

If you enjoy it, definitely read on, but I wished I’d passed. Perhaps, next book will be different, but thinking I’m kind of finished with Alex. There are so many great books to read, why waste time on this one.

Sorry, I usually love the books I get, but can’t say this was one.

Thank you NetGalley, Alex Michaelidis, and Macmillan Publishing for an ARC copy of this book.

Unfortunately, I could not finish this. A DNF. I struggled through 30% and finally just have up. It's just so boring and full of useless "information". I feel like it was more h.ahowing he knows about certain things, rather than writing a good story. Very disappointing, especially considering I really liked The Silent Patient.

I loved Michaelides' first book, The Silent Patient, so I was very eager to read his follow up. He did not disapoint with this twisty tale of a psychologist named Mariana who is grieving the loss of her husband while caring for her college age niece, Zoe. When a murder happens at Zoe's college, Mariana is quick to take an extended visit and soon gets wrapped up in the mystery of the murder.
This was another fantastic book by Alex Michaelides. The twists were really well done and I was so interested in this book from start to finish.

Wow. Wow, wow, wow. Never saw it coming. I literally just put it down and there is a lot processing I still have to do. However, having not read "The Silent Patient" I'm going to get it off our shelves right now. This is my favorite kind of thriller - on the campus of an exclusive and ancient college campus with tons of literary foreshadowing. I did think Mariana was a bit naïve and I pictured Fosca being a "Hosier" type character. It was a fabulous read and I have a targeted audience who will love it!

Mariana Andros is a group therapist. She receives a call from her niece Zoe who is studying at Cambridge. A distraught Zoe tells Mariana that her friend has been found murdered in Cambridge. Immediately Mariana goes to her niece's side to support her through this tragic event.
During Mariana’s stay at the university she becomes suspicious of Professor Edward Fosca who teaches Greek Tragedy at the university. A select group of female students from his class have formed a group called The Maidens. Despite his obvious charms and alibi Mariana sets out to prove Edward Fosca is a murderer.
I was looking forward to reading THE MAIDENS because I was a big fan of THE SILENT PATIENT. While I liked THE MAIDENS I didn’t love it the way I loved Alex Michaelides first book. I thought THE MAIDENS lacked some of the tension that was so appealing from his first book. Overall I thought it was was a good read.
Thank you to Celadon Books and NetGalley for the change to read an advanced e-edition of THE MAIDENS.

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley.

I’m reminded of a lyric from PJ Harvey’s “Man-Size”. “Silence my lady head/Get girl out of my head” and I may have to do with the juxtaposition in the plot of girlhood/womanhood and how men in the novel just corrupt the absolute crap out of it. Or maybe that’s just me. It could be. Anyhow, the novel begins with Mariana holding a group therapy session and one of her patients over stepping his boundaries. Henry is not as important as he appears at first and actually he really isn’t, however he does serve as the first man we see who slinks through Mariana’s boundaries.

I would talk about the men however they aren’t very fleshed out (at least the living ones) much like The Maidens themselves. Fosca is just a creep. Fred is cute and clumsy (I actually liked him a lot). Henry is a creep. Morris is…well, you’ll see.

The Maidens, as I mentioned above, are not fleshed out. We just get Pretty Mean Girl #1 and so on. However that may be on purpose since the novel may have a mystery how we at its heart it is about the story of Demeter and Persephone and Mariana and her niece Zoe who in a since stand in for Demeter and Persephone.

I honestly enjoyed this novel. Even the out of left field twist, that made my stomach drop. The pacing is solid. Mariana is a likable protagonist who doesn’t do anything completely dumb that you’re yelling at the book constantly. I just would have liked more interaction between the Maidens and Mariana that wasn’t antagonistic.

I'm pretty sure I'm one of maybe five people who hated The Silent Patient. I found it to be so S-L-O-W, and boring. I forced myself to finish because everyone told me how great it was, but honestly the ending was not worth the 300 pages it took to get there. At any rate, I decided to keep an open mind and give The Maidens a second chance. While this isn't a sequel, and you can read them in any order, it turns out the Maidens is first in the timeline, and there is a bit of character crossover. But again, both are completely stand alone books, so read in whichever order you prefer.

I both read and listened to the story, receiving advanced copies of both. I vastly preferred the audio version, and it did make my afternoon walks interesting. The narrators were easy to listen to, and you were easily able to identify new people speaking.

Now on to the story, Mariana is the aunt of Zoe, and due to a series of tragic luck, Mariana is also the sole guardian of her niece. Zoe calls from college, frantic about her best friend's murder. Mariana rushes to her side, and begins investigating the murder, which of course turns into multiple murders. What business does a therapist have in investigating a murder in another town? Absolutely none. Still people and detectives eventually give her access to a bunch of interviews, crime scenes, and witness interrogations. Absurd. Really the whole lot of it. So while I was entertained for evening walks, it's entirely out of the realm of reality. Still there is a good twist, and I wasn't bored to tears, so this one gets 2.5 stars, rounded to 3. Much better than the 1 I gave Silent Patient! Hopefully book three will be a bit more plausible, while still a good read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 3.5 /5
Alex Michaelides’ sophmore novel didn’t quite meet up to my expectations after the Silent Patient. The plot had a lot of potential but was overshadowed by a lot of unnecessary focus on academia and was completely trampled by the “twist” ending.

Potential spoiler Alert**
In order for an ending to actually be a twist there has to be some sort of indication of who the person or people are who are commuting the crime and then a shock to that assumption. Michaelides drops the ball by introducing a plot that was completely unthinkable and frankly unbelievable. It really loses its impact and disappoints all around.

Overall was pretty disappointed with this novel given how much I liked Silent Patient and definitely gives me pause to what else comes from Michaelides.

Alex Michaelides has quickly become on of the authors that I watch for new releases! This is the second novel that I have read by him and it was thrilling to the point that I didn't want to put it down! I love that he weaves so much information together and I never seem to see the ending coming! Recommended!

(Thanks to NetGalley for this ebook in exchange for an honest review.)

I read an advanced digital copy of this novel courtesy on the publisher through NetGalley. Review available on goodreads.

First line: Edward Fosca was a murderer.

Summary: Mariana recently lost her husband. She has been struggling to come to terms with his death and helping her patients. But when she receives a call from her niece she finds something to focus her energy on. There has been a murder in Cambridge and the dead girl is her niece’s best friend. It has shocked the town and the college. When Mariana arrives she immediately believes that the murderer is Zoe’s professor, Edward Fosca. As the investigation continues she dives deeper into the secrets of a group called the Maidens. How is Mariana going to protect her niece and find the killer?

My Thoughts: This book was such a mess. There were unnecessary characters that were intentionally there to distract the reader. Some were just thrown in the give her a hint of something which could have happened in other ways. Mariana felt like she was in a cozy mystery. She was trying to include herself into a mystery and solve it. I just do not know how I felt about this as a whole. I hope that his next book can live up to the first one.

FYI: Read The Silent Patient.

The Maidens is a slow burn mystery with dark academia vibes and Greek mythology references throughout. Mariana Andros is determined to prove that professor Edward Fosca is a murderer. Although the pacing is slow, I was never bored and was engaged from the beginning. I enjoyed the references to The Silent Patient and the eerie, academic atmosphere that was woven into the series of events that lead to a shocking and satisfying conclusion. I was fortunate enough to receive an advanced digital copy along with the audiobook. The narration was perfectly executed and added an extra layer of intrigue and suspense.
Thank you NetGalley, Celadon Books and Macmillan Audio for my advance copies. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Wow. I’m still kind of reeling from this book. It’s the perfect creepy, gothic mystery send shivers up your spine. I’ll try to tamp down my enthusiasm enough to give a plot summary.

Mariana, a group therapist, is still grieving the untimely death of her husband when she receives a call from her niece, Zoe, a student at Cambridge. Her close friend, Tara, is missing and she fears the worst. When those fears are confirmed, Mariana quickly begins to realize that Tara was involved in a unique group on campus: a group of all-female students who study closely with a popular Greek literature professor, known as “The Maidens.” Mariana immediately takes a dislike to the groups’ leaders, Prof. Fosca, but isn’t taken seriously. As things get more intense, Mariana is drawn deeper into the mystery and finds herself and the students in greater danger.

So this book has the perfect Gothic atmosphere that I love - the classical college setting! Ancient Greek mythology! Secret societies! Murder! I couldn’t get enough of it. The descriptions of the hallowed halls of Cambridge were impeccable and set just the right tone for the mystery, which was truly intriguing and had me scratching my head at points.

Speaking of the mystery - the solution really blew me away. I did not see that coming at all. I don’t want to say too much, but yeah. I was not expecting that. But I loved it. I wish we could have gotten a little more of an epilogue, but maybe that just heightens the mystery.

Mariana was a great character as well. She was obsessive, vulnerable, but true-hearted in a way that made her relatable. She had issues and was trying to work through them and only found herself working through some more issues, something we can all relate to, though maybe not on this scale.

I haven’t read the Silent Patient yet, but after reading this one, it’s moved to the top of my TBR pile. There’s some Easter eggs in this book alluding to that one, so it amps up the excitement. I also can’t wait to see what’s coming next from this author.

I’m always nervous to read an author’s sophomore novel, especially when their debut is so beloved. It’s just hard not to compare their previous work while reading. While I still like The Silent Patient better, The Maidens was still very enjoyable (4⭐️)

What I loved:
~Focus on group therapy, dark academia, and Greek mythology and tragedy – yes, please.
~Tension that slowly builds with the combination of short chapters. 
~Introduced a plethora of characters – all of them suspicious as hell. I literally thought everyone was guilty, which kept me from guessing the culprit.
~Set in the same world as The Silent Patient – love me some Easter eggs!
~Cambridge University as the setting provided a scenic backdrop to the story.
~ I really liked our main character, Mariana. She was capable, caring and just the right bit of flawed and broken.

What I didn’t love:
~It was hard for me to suspend my disbelief that the police and detectives were so inept at their jobs. I understand it’s key to the plot for Mariana to do majority of the investigating, but still...
~A cult-ish group of females who are clearly being targeted weren’t put under protective detail or sort of surveillance? Guess this relates to my above point.
~Some actions by key characters felt unnecessary, especially between Mariana and Edward. I think the author was trying to build tension between characters, but it didn't work for me.

Overall, I would definitely recommend picking up The Maidens! Especially if you’re looking for quick thriller, beach read or fun book club choice!

I am amazed at how well Alex Michaelides is able to surprise me with his endings. As I was reading this, it was haunting and powerful and just good but I couldn't figure out who the murderer was. Not only was i shocked at who but the twist along with the reveal completely blindsided me. I highly reccommend this to anyone who liked The Silent Patient as well as anyone who enjoys psychological thrillers.

After Michaelides''s debut novel I was looking forward to The Maidens. While his character development in this novel is strong, I had a hard time liking any of the characters. I wish I could say I finished the book but it just wasn't my cup of tea.

The Silent Patient deserved all the accolades it received. But as any sports team manager will tell you, it's difficult to go back-to-back with winners. The Maidens is a swing at it .... and a miss. Some of it is a downright slog punctuated by hysteria that does disservice to the plot. There are red herrings you can smell as soon as they appear, and loose ends that still have me wondering if there is a chapter missing. So Alex, regroup and come back with renewed energy and an effort worthy of your champion.

Another great book from Alex Michaelides. Enjoyed this one like I enjoyed The Silent Patient. Enjoyed the greek mythology intertwined with this story.

Alex Michaelides does not disappoint his fans. The audio book was amazing, story kept me at the edge of my seat. Alex had readers looking in all direction, with twist and turns that left my head spinning. Enjoyed every minute of it.

The author of The Silent Patient returns with this, a novel about the murders of several college students. Are the murders tied to the charismatic American professor? And what about the secret group of students he privately tutors, known as "the maidens"?

Michaelides elevates the mystery genre by writing smart, intellectual fiction that will keep you guessing until the final few pages when the truth about the maidens is revealed. There are also healthy doses of psychology and psychological theory interspersed, as Mariana, the aunt of one of the maidens, and a main character, is a group therapist and uses her talents to profile the person she presumes is the killer. The Maidens is compelling fiction, and a good choice for the beach read of 2021.