Like the Greek tragedies that heavily influence this story, Mariana’s life has been full of tragic experiences.

With the exception of the notes woven throughout the novel from the killer’s mind, the reader experiences the events through Mariana’s point of view. Michaelides has created characters I didn’t mind not trusting. Most distinctive of all was the way they held themselves: with an obvious air of confidence, even superiority.” Alex Michaelides, The Maidens They all took care of themselves, and were made-up, well-groomed, manicured. Their clothes were elegant and looked expensive. “Unlike the other students milling around the faculty, these girls weren’t scruffy or eccentrically dressed. Oddly, The Maidens is full of unreliable characters, as well, but this time it worked for me. I wasn’t fond of all the unreliable characters. Unlike most other readers, I didn’t love The Secret History. And the one that gave me similar vibes is The Secret History. The Maidens is the dark, twisty novel rooted in mythology that I wanted from The Secret History.įirst, let me say that I have not read Alex Michaelides previous novel, The Silent Patient, so I have nothing to compare this book to except other novels. But Mariana is determined to stop this killer, even if it costs her everything-including her own life. 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 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? And she becomes convinced that, despite his alibi, Edward Fosca is guilty of the murder. 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. 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. 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.

The maidens by alex michaelides summary