Roughly a year ago, I read ‘The Silent Patient‘ by Alex Michaelides and enjoyed it. So, ‘The Maidens’ has been on my radar since. When a beautiful copy of the hardback was to be found in my charity bookshop a month or so ago, I knew I could not leave it sitting in there, and it had to come home with me.
I am so glad that this book did come home with me as I absolutely loved it. This was the sort of thriller that really did have you on the edge of your seat and makes you read past your bedtime. I loved the fact that it was set around the academic world of Cambridge and that it drew on the ideas of Ancient Greece, its literature and philosophers. Alongside the fact that there always seems to be an air of mystery to that academic life, ‘The Maidens’ is a complex and thrilling read.
Alex Michaelides is very successful at planting red herrings or suggestions within his stories, which can lead the reader down a certain path. Suspecting certain characters and maybe even thinking that they have solved the mystery, however, I think the reader is rarely successful until the final pages of the book, when Michaelides actually reveals his culprit. I did not see the plot twist coming in this book and I think that is an additional reason why I enjoyed this story so much.
I absolutely can’t wait to read more from the pen of Alex Michaelides, I believe that there is a new novel heading our way soon, as I think his books will go from strength to strength. I thought ‘The Silent Patient’ was outstanding, but ‘The Maidens’ topped that, which is quite an achievement. These are atmospheric, chilling and thrilling reads – so, if you have not given either title a go, why not – because you are missing out.
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