I really enjoyed this book and especially the narration. I thought the back and forth between characters was great and had me guessing until the very end. While I did not LOVE all of the characters I wish there had been a bit more depth from them. I found Zoey to be a bit Whiney at times and Marianna was a bit boring.

he Maidens hooked me and kept me enthralled for the entire reading. Mariana is a psychologist who is still reeling from the death of her husband, when her niece Zoe ( whom she has raised from childhood) telephones from Cambridge to say her best friend has been murdered. Mariana is sure that Professor Tosca ( you know, the handsome, charming teacher all the girls have crushes on), is responsible and decides to solve the case. She has no sleuthing credentials however, so as you can imagine, her decision is fraught with red herrings.
Highly recommended for a quick beach read.
#Netgalley # TheMaidens

wow I hated this book. I'm so upset because I loved The Silent Patient and had such high hopes for The Maidens but it was a huge let down. How can a book about murder and secret societies be so boring? First off, the "secret society" was barely even a plot point. It was not as integral to the plot as the synopsis, and title!!!, led me to believe. At 60% into the audiobook I was wondering when the real dark academia shit was going to start and unfortunately it never did :(

The thing I hated the most was the big reveal. I will admit that I did not guess it, but I still hated it.

I did like that Theo Faber, the main character from The Silent Patient, made a brief appearance and it made me want to read TSP again.

For the first time in a long time, I agree with the preliminary reviews and promos for this book - The Maidens gives serious Secret History vibes.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of the audiobook of The Maidens. Hearing the separate, male voice of the serial killer was chilling and spine-tingling. I loved the spooky element this switch in the narration gave, and I think I would have missed it in the text version of the novel.

At times, The Maidens felt too clever for its own good: there are quite a few characters to keep track of and Greek myths to familiarize oneself with, but I loved the nods to The Silent Patient. I had somewhat guessed which characters would end up being the "bad guys," but the ending still left me feeling a bit icky. In all. a thoroughly entertaining and intellectual thriller.

Not the best, not the worst, but one that’ll just be okay for me. Part of me feels bad for how hyped this book was coming after The Silent Patient, because it was only an uphill battle in my opinion. But like I’ve learned, we can’t be comparing books! Although it’s the same author, each story is different.

Except, there was some crossover (which of course I loved). But it also felt a bit forced.

Content warnings: murder, betrayal, cheating, grooming of a teenager, rape.

The book started like the famous gif of Oprah: “YOU GET A CHARACTER AND YOU GET A CHARACTER AND YOU GET A CHARACTER!” It was like a big bowl of character jambalaya where we keep sprinkling more and more people in. In a way, it was a bit of a turn off with how many people I had to keep track of.

Knowing Michaelides has a background in psychology, I was a little underwhelmed by how Mariana was written. I felt like it didn’t do her profession much justice and didn’t compliment the premise of the story.

Despite my feelings above, I loved the quick chapters, I loved how quick it was and overall, it was an easy and consumable read. I definitely hope I don’t discourage anyone from reading it! Because honestly I want to know your thoughts.

Big thank you to Celadon books for the ARC and Macmillan Audio for the ALC!

Thank you Netgalley and Macmillan audio for giving me an advanced review copy of this audiobook.

This is now the second book I've enjoyed from this author. In this story, we follow Mariana, as she is dragged into a mystery at her niece, Zoe's school. A girl has been murdered, and Zoe tells her she thinks it's her friend Tara, who has been missing. Mariana, a therapist, is determined to help investigate the crime.

Mariana discovers that Tara was one of a group of young women called "the Maidens", a female-only group of favored students in professor Edward Fosca's class. Edward Fosca teaches Ancient Greek. Having just finished the Secret History before starting this, there were definitely some similarities.

The Maidens instantly move to protect their teacher, providing Fosca with an alibi and telling Mariana nothing. But Mariana is convinced, despite the lack of evidence, that Edward Fosca is responsible for Tara's death.

This is a bit of a slow start, but I really enjoyed how everything tied together, and it had a great ending. There are 2 narrators, who I really enjoyed listening to, especially the male narrator who was just the right level of creepy. There is a bit of a light-hearted element of romance that I enjoyed, and provided the levity needed in this otherwise tense and suspenseful story.

4 stars.

I was excited to read Alex Michaelides’ new book, The Maidens because I had loved his previous book.

While this was a good thriller, it wasn’t what I would consider great. The book kept me guessing the whole time and Just when I thought I had it figured out, I didn’t. While there was good character development for some of the main characters, there were also some characters that seemed random. The twist at the end was quite shocking but not exactly where I saw this story going and wish it had ended differently. At times it felt a little slow but then picked up quickly at the end which made it seem slightly rushed.

Overall, I give this book 3/5 stars.

Thank you Macmillan Audio, Alex Michaelides and Netgalley for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook before publishing in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own, and nearly all of them are positive, I couldn’t put this down.

I am going to give this 4.5 stars. It takes a lot for me to be impressed with a thriller or mystery, as I often find them to be predictable and tried. The tropes are nearly always the same, just rearranged. I didn’t feel this way at all this time.

Marianna is a widow who’s husband died over a year ago during a beach vacation. She and her husband had taken in their young niece as a child. Today, Marianna is a group therapist who received her training at university in Cambridge. Zoe is now attending university, and calls Marianna one day to tell her that her roommate, Tara, has been found dead recently. Marianna rushes to Cambridge to support Zoe, and finds that there is something much more sinister happening there, and that Zoe and a group of friends she is on the periphery of seem to be involved in some way.

Something I absolutely loved about this is that we have a suspect from the get go, and Marianna is intelligently and vigorously investigating this for reasons that make sense. Her thought process is reasonable and understandable, and she is only cast as unreasonable when things have gone horribly wrong and profoundly confused her view on things. Marianna is likable and easy to relate to and trust, as is Zoe.

I definitely noticed threads throughout that I could sense were connected, but couldn’t quite compute yet. I enjoyed this because Marianna was often picking up on the same things. When the twist comes at the end, the threads absolutely add up, but are nothing like what I had guessed was going on. It was totally captivating and enjoyable, and it kept me on the edge of my seat trying to figure it all out.

I don’t have very many qualms with this at all. All I would say is that Marianna is cast as unreliable a bit too early by law enforcement, for reasons that aren’t outlined. It also seems a bit nonsensical to me that she takes so long to share the postcards. I also would have appreciated a bit more development that would make the twist at the end seem like it makes sense specifically for the person whom the twist is related to. How surprising it is is mostly enjoyable, but I don’t look back on the characterization of this person and think “I didn’t see it before, but I actually totally do now” despite the threads and foreshadowing that pull together the plot.

Ultimately, these qualms are incredibly minor. I liked this Author’s debut, But I did not love it. This was a big improvement for me, and the best thriller I’ve read in a LONG while!

This is the second book that I have read by the author. This being a mystery, it is also, a who done it. Are usually don’t spend much effort to figure out who done it as I just enjoy the ride. Not to spoil the ending but I would say I did not see it coming. Well paced novel. Not exactly groundbreaking but enjoyable. Thanks to NetGalley for a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

listen, it's not that i think alex michaelides is untalented, that's not the case, the guy's premises are great, there's just always another story element that isn't advertised that takes up way more of the book than i expected, and so far, it's kind of the same story element? the protagonist's troubled relationship monopolizes both the maidens and the silent patient and i wish i knew it before reading both of them. the maidens is less secret society than it is about grief and memory and loss. i do love when authors intersect their work, having a continuous story world to play around in, and certainly i had the most fun when mariana's story brushed up against the silent patient.

Following in the footsteps of The Silent Patient, Alex Michaelides's novel "The Maidens" has received a lot of hype. Did it live up to that?

The narrator does a wonderful job of voicing the characters and places emphasis on the appropriate parts, driving the story forward. The author does a beautiful job of giving the characters personality and developing a plot.

I wasn't in love with it, but ultimately, I think that's just me. I was hoping for something more twisted than what was delivered. This is perfect for most people who love thrillers.

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides is a really interesting psychological thriller - I was drawn into this mystery and definitely wanted to "figure it out!" But alas, I did not. I did not figure it out. Much like Silent Patient, I was totally thrown by the big reveal. That's a good thing if you're satisfied with the reveal. Unfortunately, I wasn't very satisfied with this reveal. But that's just me! Many have loved it! 

I did love how this story introduced suspects around every corner at each turn of the narrative, you learn something new and meet a new person that you think will be "it." This is a complicated serial killer murder mystery story with a crazy unique Greek mythology feature that provides a satisfactory level of sophistication for every reader. 

Thank you, NetGalley, Celadon Books, Macmillan Audio, for a copy of this book for review!

Overall this story was really good. The characters were really rich. I loved the historical context and the different timelines. Strong female narrator

In many ways this is your typical suspense novel, but the Dark Academia element added a lot of atmosphere and interest for me. It was a quick, engaging read and I thought the audio was well done and added to my enjoyment of the story. This is a solid 7/10 read for me and will be easy to recommend.

The only word I can think of when planning this review is "underwhelmed". I feel like I took a long journey with the narrator only to be left in the middle of a field with no where to go. I was very interested in the premise of this book and the plot had me hooked until the end. It felt rushed and forced.


I received an advance copy; all thoughts are my own.

An excellent 5 star listen! I loved the narration and oh the story line is so fantastic! It was fun trying to figure out who did it and piecing together all the clues throughout. The twists and turns and that ending! OMG So Good!

Well developed but very unlikable characters. Interesting plot twist but seemed a bit forced. Didn't flow well for me. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook

4.5 Stars

Alex Michaelides knows how to set a tone and atmosphere that is consistent but never stagnates. Being inside Mariana’s instinctual but obviously troubled mind wasn’t annoying, the way it could easily have been. The author balances the psychological competence and obsession in equal shifts while slowly revealing more of the main character along with the murder mystery.

The Greek Tragedy and Rites of Persephone overlaying the idyllic and historic University setting was just the right amount of creepy but scholarly. It was disturbing on all the right levels but never pushed to the point of outrageous. Along with the diary interjections between chapters, which added another level of mystery and access to a mind in the midst of psychopathy, it was an entirely eerie plot.

Not gonna lie, I had a strong inkling where it was going around mid-book but there were still enough sub-plots and characters woven in that I was driven to see how it all played out for the various individuals. To find out who was guilty of any number of infractions. And if Mariana would be harmed or if the truth would win out in the end.

It wasn’t an entirely perfect book, hence my 4.5 Star rating. I had a few hiccups near the end but overall, I found I loved it. I enjoyed the little “Easter eggs” that were sprinkled in and the tone was just too good to really quibble long on the couple critiques (sorry, not going to reveal any spoilers).

I also highly recommend the audiobook. The narrators were perfect and I never wanted to press pause. It was a great experience.

5 stars
This was a great mystery! I enjoyed it so much and I was completely surprised by the ending.

The majority of the story takes place at Cambridge University which is steeped in history and traditions. Michaelides does a great job not only setting the scene but develops the characters very well.

The main character, Mariana is a group therapist that is coping with the loss of her beloved husband. Her niece, Zoe is attending Cambridge and is like a daughter to Mariana. When Zoe's best friend is murdered Mariana hops on the first train to support Zoe. She decides to stay after she notices strange behavior from Zoe's Greek Tragedy professor, Edward Fosca. Mariana finds herself investigating the murder, putting herself in danger.

This was a such a roller coaster ride that I thoroughly enjoyed! The audiobook was so immersive, the way it was narrated and kept me listening for hours without a break, I couldn't stop listening!!

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very good thriller. Several times I changed my prediction about who the culprit was and even though I figured out part of the ending, half of it was still a surprise. I loved the Greek mythology interspersed. Overall. The Maidens was a page turner that kept me guessing and held my interest to the very end. I read an e-book version and I listened to the audio version. Both were great and the audio was very well narrated.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.