The Maidens: The Dark Academia Thriller from the author of TikTok sensation The Silent Patient
£4.70£9.50 (-51%)
We all keep secrets. Even from ourselves.
‘A thrilling, heart-in-throat ride’ STEPHEN FRY
‘An absolute jaw-dropper’ LUCY FOLEY
‘Elegant, sinister, stylish’ CHRIS WHITAKER
‘Grips from start to finish’ HARRIET TYCE
* * * * *
YOU ARE INVITED TO JOIN THE MAIDENS.
The Maidens are Cambridge University’s most exclusive society, whose members are selected by the charismatic professor of Greek tragedy, Edward Fosca.
A SECRETIVE SET OF THE BRIGHTEST, MOST CAPTIVATING STUDENTS.
When one of the Maidens is murdered, grieving young therapist Mariana Andros is drawn back to the idyllic campus where she was once herself a student.
THE GROUP FROM WHICH EACH VICTIM WILL BE CHOSEN.
Because beneath the university’s ancient traditions and beauty is a web of secrets, jealousy and lies. And when the killer threatens the person she loves most, Mariana will give anything to stop them – even her own life…
From the #1 global bestselling author of The Silent Patient comes a spellbinding tale of psychological suspense, weaving together Greek mythology, murder, and obsession…
* * * * *
‘There’s definitely a flavour of The Secret History to Alex Michaelides’s second novel … The Maidens is a compelling read, and delivers its Hellenic thrills in style.’ SUNDAY TELEGRAPH
‘A book which screams ‘make me into a TV series’ … his writing, especially his characterisation, possesses a unique sparkle and more promise than most other writers.’ DAILY MAIL
‘Nothing short of genius.’ WOMAN & HOME
‘How do you go about following one of the biggest thrillers of the past decade? You write something even better.’ CHRIS WHITAKER, bestselling author of WE BEGIN AT THE END
‘Grips from intriguing start to horrifying finish … A brilliant achievement.’
HARRIET TYCE
‘A page-turner of the first order’
DAVID BALDACCI
‘The greatest campus novel since The Secret History by Donna Tartt … with a climatic twist that you will NEVER see coming.’
TONY PARSONS
‘A stunning psychological thriller … Michaelides is on a roll.’
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
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Additional information
| Publisher | W&N, 1st edition (26 May 2022) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Paperback | 368 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 1409181685 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1409181682 |
| Dimensions | 12.8 x 3 x 19.6 cm |
by Amazon Customer
I loved this book after reading silent patient. It flowed really well kept me guessing the entire time. I definitely didn’t expect the twist however the ending felt like a lazy, last minute decision. I did still enjoy the book overall but that ending definitely let it down.
by Talia
After loving The Silent Patient, I was excited to read Alex’s second book. I didn’t know what to expect and it was certainly unexpected. Set in beautiful Cambridge, The Maidens draws on Greek tragedies that I was unfamiliar with, although that didn’t detract from the story as they were all well explained. 36 year old Mariana is a brilliant group therapist, still reeling from the unexpected death of her husband Sebastian in a climbing accident. She travels to Cambridge with her niece Zoe who has asked for her assistance following the disappearance of her friend, Tara. Shortly after they arrive, Tara’s body is found. It is clearly the result of murder. Zoe believes her Greek History Professor, Edward Fosca, is responsible for her death.
There is a group of female under graduates called The Maidens. They are guided by and totally supportive of their Professor. It is unsurprising that they gave him an alibi for the time of Tara’s murder. Having studied at the University, Mariana is soon trying desperately to find out what happened to Tara and who is responsible for her murder. The Police advise her to leave the investigation to them and tell her to back off. Not used to being told what to do, Mariana ignores their warning. She places herself at risk of harm.
Her investigation allows us to see into Cambridge’s secrets and there is a lot of tension as we accompany Mariana as she delves deeper into the tragedy. More bodies ramp up the suspense and it is not until the very end that we find out the big reveal. I did not think the reveal or the twist was as good as the Silent Patient, however, I was shocked as events unfolded. If this is the style of his books in the future, I am already looking forward to Mr Michaelides’s next book.
by H.L
I read this quickly and had to skim over some upsetting details. It built well and the sense of menace became really unsettling. It is well written and constructed with a strange ending that reminded me of The novel Rebecca. For such a strong story teller I was surprised to be left up in the air in the last few lines by the writer and did not quite understand that. I am not really keen on dark crime novels so it was a little challenging for me in places but the writer really succeeded in creating a tense atmosphere. I could see the book turned into a tv film as it had a bit of that TV view of Cambridge University as a hot bed of crime. It was also interesting The Eagle, The Copper Kettle and Gardenia were all locations, very much City places which you know and the atmospheres were conjured up if you did but guessing not particularly if you did not know them as there was not too much description, probably to keep the story telling taut.
It is hard to quantify with stars because I suspect that technically this is very well written indeed but emotionally I just wanted to finish and get out of the world, which is not what I look for in a book where I want to be immersed in it. But that could just be a reaction to the dark genre rather than the book. I wanted to feel less sad and more uplifted but actually felt a little confused and wanted to be gone. Not sure that is how you should leave a reader as I don’t think I would try another book by the writer, however good they are.
by Makenzie
I love the “vibes” of this book, it was a cosy thriller that I was invested in from the first chapter. The twists in this were great and the characters were very interesting. I don’t think it was the most groundbreaking book I’ve ever read and the main character certainly acted in some questionable ways; the characters weren’t hugely developed and it definitely felt like certain characteristics/plot drivers were a bit of an afterthought, but I was happy to go along for the ride. This book is dark academia in the literal sense that it’s dark and twisted whilst set in a university but the darkness of the plot isn’t fuelled by academia itself. I would say this is more of a mystery/thriller with an academic setting but in that respect, this book definitely delivered.
by LIL
Enjoyed this book immensely, even better than his first which is praise indeed.
Beautifully drawn characters , the atmosphere of Cambridge so well described.
Unusual storyline but not one that veered off into the ridiculous , as some authors tend to do
Extremely satisfying conclusion.