The Maidens is an intricately plotted, mystery-thriller for the discerning reader. It’s an atmospheric story set on Cambridge University’s campus merging cliff-hanging twists with artful suspense." And if the police weren’t going to pursue him, then perhaps Mariana – as a debt of honor to Zoe’s friend – could listen to this young woman’s story … and take her seriously.

On a few occasions other characters said to her something like – you are a very intelligent woman, and such a good therapist… And every time I would think – is she, though? Is she really? What exactly made you think that?

Plus, the whole story felt just a tad too dramatic to feel genuine. Which is not exactly untypical for dark academia, but there’s good dramatic and bad dramatic. And this one wasn’t exactly great. A tasty, if not always tasteful, tale of supernatural mayhem that fans of King and Crichton alike will enjoy. For the blatant disrespectful handling of psychology, mental health, pedophilia, rape, and grooming, this is not a book I would feel comfortable recommending.

So much potential… Wasted, unfortunately. Because instead of exploring these more than interesting topics, we were following a – let’s face it – dumb and unprofessional group therapist who decides she can solve the murder better than anyone else. The Maidens are Cambridge University’s most exclusive society, whose members are selected by the charismatic professor of Greek tragedy, Edward Fosca. no objections at all, because on this campus, *shrug*, that's just how students learn. when mariana was matriculating, she developed a relationship with her (female) advisor that continues to the present-day, but began with the same kind of boundary-blurring: They say you always chase your first high. And that's the way it is with me and Alex Michaelides. His first book The Silent Patient is one of my all-time favorites. I still remember the visceral experience of reading that book—the headiness of an unputdownable thriller, the gut punch of that reveal. It's seared into my memory.

What It Is About

The ridiculous jumping to conclusions made her seem very unprofessional. Her chase after Professor Fosca felt like a house of cards. Took a lot of effort to construct, yet it was so obviously easy to blow away. In Part II, Mariana learns more about Fosca and a group of his favorite students -- all well-connected and intelligent women -- who are part of his private study group. The women are referred to as the Maidens, a reference to Persephone, the goddess of death. In Greek, Persephone is referred to " Kore" which means " maiden". Tara had been one of them. In her sessions, she always kept out of the group’s way as much as possible. She only intervened when communication broke down, or when it might be helpful to make an interpretation, or when something went wrong.