// The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

I remember how stunned I was after reading The Silent Patient last year. Alex's ability to present such a perfect debut novel had me waiting for his second one desperately. One cannot deny how gorgeous the cover of The Maidens is; one look at it and you know there's Greek Mythology involved. When the book was out, I was albeit very excited but my interest in the book ended with the cover. I'm aware of this being an unpopular review but when it comes to thrillers I cannot settle for something less.

The story is set in a haunting atmosphere with Mariana as the protagonist. When Mariana receives a call from her niece Zoe about her friend's murder at the University of Cambridge, she instantly rushes to be by her side. The description of the University is quite vivid and the many references to Greek Mythology seems to initially elevate the story to only come crumbling down in the later chapters. Soon after Mariana's arrival there are more murders that claim young women studying at the University. While the story covers the murders that pile up at an alarming rate, we also see Mariana coming to terms with a recent loss. Her past is plagued by the Bringer of Death, Persephone and she senses her presence everywhere at the University. There are, of course suspects and unfortunately most of them were very predictable. The characters are flawed and lacked personality. It felt at more than one instance that Alex was trying desperately hard to stop the readers from guessing the murderer. This lead to addition of several unnecessary characters.

When the story reached its end, it all went up in chaos. The motive lacked any essence making the entire plot fall away too easily. There are always advantages of being an ardent thriller reader. While we appreciate the ones that take us by surprise, we are also very critical about the ones that fail. This one, unfortunately fell into the latter category. Having dived into The Maidens with high expectations made it impossible for me to enjoy this one.

But do give it a read if you find yourself liking mythology references irrespective of the thriller aspect of the novel.