The Maidens

Title: The Maidens
Author: Alex Michaelides
First Published: June 15, 2021
Publisher: Celadon Books
Pages: 352
Genre: Mystery, Psychological Thriller, Thriller
Format: Hardcover
Source: Library
Rating:


Synopsis:

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.

Buy the Book: Amazon

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Review

The Maidens was THE mystery thriller to read last year, taking full advantage of the popularity of dark academia. It has been a while since I had read a good thriller, and I was tempted even to purchase the book due to the library hold list being absurdly long, but I’m glad I held off because I was really underwhelmed.

The story follows a group counselor named Mariana, recently widowed, who is called to her alma mater by her niece after a horrific ritual killing. She is shocked to learn immediately about a charismatic professor and a group of maidens that seem to worship him, and she becomes convinced that he is the culprit, but no one else seems to believe her. She sets out to investigate on her own, using her experience as a counselor and knowledge of the school from her years as a student. The chapters are short and snappy, and the story swings back and forth between the investigation, Mariana’s past about her husband, and then some chapters from the point of view of a killer. Despite the fast pace, I found myself bored at some points.

The plot itself was at times engaging but flawed and filled to the brim with obvious red herrings and questionable ethics about counseling. Perhaps it’s in part because of my unique position as both a trained counselor and higher education professional that I couldn’t get fully on board, I found myself nitpicking often about the way that both are portrayed. Mariana is an incredibly frustrating character, and it’s made worse by the fact that seemingly every man she comes into contact with wants to fuck her, and every one of them is a suspect. All of these red herrings were so weak that entire sections of the book could have easily been left out.

The real culprit was very obvious to me from the first time that they are introduced, but I continued reading to see if I was right, and if so, why. The one bit of praise that I will give the book is that the ending is good, I appreciated the message that the maidens, presented as antagonists throughout the story, are victims. Even though they are now all of age, the maturity and power difference between a barely legal young woman and a man thirty years or older is quite large, yet much of society isn’t that bothered by this.

I honestly have no idea why this book is so popular, or how it managed to score second place in last year’s Goodreads Choice Awards for the mystery and thriller category. Normally I’d say maybe it’s just me, but no, this book was honestly kind of average at best.

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