Michaelides’ second novel has been topping the charts, no doubt to the recent popularity of other Greek mythological books like Adriane and A Thousand Ships.

When Andros finds Fosca is particularly fixated on the Rites of Persephone and the goddess’s journey to the underworld, the therapist decides to take things into her own hands and investigate the university and avenge the dead maidens. The classics professor in question, Edward Fosca, is followed around by a group of young women called “The Maidens” who are rumored to be a secret society within the college. It centers on Mariana Andros, a therapist in Cambridge, England who becomes obsessed with convicting a Cambridge University Professor for murdering one of his female students. The Maidens is a mix of psychological thriller and a gothic horror story with a healthy dose of greek mythology.

Michaelides’ new novel, The Maidens, seems to be headed in the same direction of both being acclaimed and under scrutiny. The book gained popularity for its daring and intriguing plot about mental health and women’s issues, but also fell under controversy because readers felt that Michaelides misrepresented the suffering of women.

Michaelides previously wrote The Silent Patient in 2019, a bestselling psychological thriller in which a woman kills her husband and then remains silent in a mental institution. Lovers of Greek Mythology and mystery beware: Alex Michaelides is back with his sophomore book, The Maidens.

The maidens and the silent patient