the maidens: death & love in the time of cambridge
- paigenherbooks
- Jun 13, 2022
- 8 min read
5/5
The Maidens written by Alex Michaelides was a whirlwind of a book, color me impressed. I read this book I think within a few days, it was honestly so hard to put down! The engaging writing, the characters, the murder, the greek mythology overtones, and our main character playing detective, this book had everything I wanted and more.
Synopsis: Grieving widow Mariana Andros’ life is turned upside-down one evening when she receives a fateful call from her niece, Zoe, a student at Cambridge University. Zoe is calling with unthinkable news: one of her classmates has just been found dead, the apparent victim of a brutal attack on campus. Mariana rushes to Cambridge to be by Zoe’s side, and Zoe soon confides something shocking to Mariana: Zoe believes that one of her professors, a charismatic Greek tragedy professor, is the culprit behind her friend’s death. The victim of this brutal attack was a member of a secret society known as “The Maidens,” a group of highly intelligent and mysterious young women who all study under that very same professor, the enigmatic Edward Fosca. Police are quick to dismiss Zoe’s claims; after all, what motivation could the revered Fosca have for the murder? But Mariana isn’t so convinced. Approaching The Maidens and Fosca first with the eye of a professional (Mariana is a group therapist by trade), and slowly but surely spiraling into obsession, Mariana delves into the mysterious and sinister world of The Maidens, determined to prove Fosca’s guilt and stop a killer before he can strike again
Where to even start with this masterpiece!
(Also, fair warning this will have spoilers--theres' a lot I want to talk about.)
Let's talk characters first.
Mariana
Our main character who is a group therapist. You can tell early on that Mariana is kind to her core and wants nothing but to love and be loved, which ultimately can be considered her fatal flaw. I enjoyed Mariana. She stuck up for herself, reflected deeply about things, and was just spritely enough to be enjoyable to see the world from. I liked that she was a highly intelligent main character, it made room to see things with a very informed eye, which helped me try and piece together what was going on.
Zoe
Zoe was fine until Zoe wasn't.
At first I figured she was hiding things from Mariana because she was indeed scared of Edward Fosca. That she was in shock and didn't want to talk about things with her aunt...which makes sense. But then what the hell happens. Girl takes a full 180 that I was not expecting like at all...I will elaborate more on this soon but just know Zoe is not what you think she is.
Edward Fosca
Dammit I was dazzled.
I could see through what he was trying to do with Mariana but to be totally honest, I would have felt the same way. A young professor with loads of intelligence and charisma? Consider me dead. I enjoyed his character, mostly because you hated him from the start. His name was the villain that we were all expecting. It almost makes me wonder what exactly he is hiding... because he is SO hiding something.
He is so odd in a way that draws you in aka dangerous as hell.
Fred
I owe an apology to Fred because for a hot minute there I thought he was the murderer...so Fred I sincerely apologize.
Now, Fred was interesting. At first I was worried he was just a random side character but then he kept popping up. I enjoyed his light-heartedness and his quirkiness. But when Mariana goes to his house he doesn't take her rejection too well...nor does he ever give her the note detailing his feelings. I'm not sure if I am totally on board with their "romance" either. Mariana at one point thinks if she perhaps has feelings for him, but quickly dismisses it (obvi). So to be quite honest...I'm not sure about Fred yet.
Sebastian
So, we don't see Sebastian alive currently within the story.
But we do see him through Mariana's flashbacks and then eventually at Zoe's confession (gag me) but at first, Sebastian seemed dreamy, like the perfect husband for Mariana, it's clear that she loved him. and I was saddened to hear how he died so suddenly and tragically. But then he turns into a freak that I actually have lots of disgust for.
Henry
Henry was another seemingly oddball in the story.
I wasn't and still am not sure 100% what his purpose was? At first, I wondered if it was he who was doing the killing, because of his and Mariana's confrontation where he says "sacrifice". But he was an intriguing character I just felt that he was put on the back burner too much to make much of a difference or to even be included.
The story
The author can write, that is stunningly obvious.
I was swept into this murder story fastly and enjoyed every second of it. The pace was perfect for me, it was little slow burn in the beginning but then things get rolling and your heart just doesn't stop pounding the entirety of the book. The twist at the end really floored me, I genuinely thought I had it figured out, that I was going to outsmart the author and man was I wrong, so let's dive in with what I absolutely loved and then some things that I was questioning.
The Greek tragedy overtones.
Everyone knows by now that I am obsessed with all things ancient Greece. The literature, the mythology, the history.
I was about a few credits short of getting a Greek History minor in college...I would have had to take Greek and honestly Spanish was enough for me at the time lol. BUT that being said the author does a fantastic job of including these Greek overtones into the story flawlessly. I really admire how he took the tragedy and used them. I often feel like the tragedy writers don't get enough love in the sense of retellings or modern day mentions-and I love the tragedies so everyone should go read them. I also really enjoyed the real personification of Persephone and Demeter. Often in books talking about the Greek gods or mentioning them, they are either stagnant and aren't "real" or it's like a Percy Jackson or Song of Achilles mention where they are real people, but those are labeled "fantasy". The author includes Demeter and Persephone, the ultimate tragic queens in a way that makes them real. I loved that Mariana prays to them as a Greek, I think that characteristic is so cool. I also loved how the mother daughter duo kept coming up-as if it was some kind of coincidence that. Looking back on the story I wonder if Demeter and Persephone didn't "take" Sebastian away for Mariana, that they know tragedy and death and that by causing her pain now, she could be free and painless eventually. Maybe it was done out of love instead of spite. Demeter protecting for a daughter since she couldn't protect her own.
This leads into the feminist twist that the author almost sprinkles throughout the story.
History time!!!
In Greek mythology, it is often depicted that females are subjugated to males. In specific in the tragedies, it is most often the daughter worshipping her father. The daughter is normally trying for perfection, doing everything right, while the father is absent, dismissive, and doesn't view his daughter as much. A sad reality. We see this motif within The Maidens as well. As Mariana struggles with her father and her's relationship, as well as her relationship with Sebastian at the end. Mariana avidly tries to show other characters that love comes from within, even if we don't garnish any externally. The relationship of a parent and child is so important and can have lasting effects, whether that be positive or negative. I like how the author showcased this, how Mariana was able to semi overcome this but showcase today how it is still relevant. Instead of staying quiet, she took action, she didn't just accept what everyone was telling her. She went with what SHE thought. Truly profound.
I also thought it was so clever that the author had chapters devoted to the murderer. That we could see a glimpse of his life and pick out details that could help us define who the modern-day killer was. It was amazing and very chaotic at the same time. It was disgusting at points, to see and hear what this child was going through and how it honestly turned him into a monster.
The twist...holy hell I was shocked.
So at first I thought maybe Edward Fosca DID do it, that Mariana and Zoe were 100% correct. The murderer lived on a farm in the middle of nowhere...and so did Edward Fosca. He also had the same lines underlined as the post cards basically signaling the girls future death. But then I thought it was Fred, because come on the author wouldn't honestly put Edward as the villain easy. I thought Fred because he was sudden and showed up around the same time the first murder did. He also had a dog...and the murderer did too. A dog that he loved very much, and he was writing a story about his mother. The murderer was ALSO writing a story about his mother. Then the whole scene after was just a little tense, so I honestly thought I had cracked it. That Fred was our guy. I wish it was...at this point I really wish it was.
When Zoe confesses at the river, that it was her and Sebastian that had been planning these murders so they could be together and steal Mariana's money.
I lost it. I felt so defeated for her.
To see this little child grow up and know that your husband, the person you thought was your one, was with her in intimate ways...it's disgusting. It's absolutely revolting. I would have never expected it honestly. That it was all a ploy to kill Mariana. I was just shocked. Honestly still thinking about it, just in stunned silence. It's heartbreaking on multiple fronts.
That being said, there were a few things that made me sit back in think.
First, the death of Serena.
The last girl to be killed was a part of the maidens and was hooking up with this motel owner. Mariana witnesses this and then see's him black mailing Fosca...but after Serena's death, it's never really touched on again. It's like she dies and then the story ends shortly after. We never know why the black mailing was taking place or really any details about it.
Then the overall ending...I want more haha I have so many questions. Like was Fosca charged since Zoe put incriminating evidence in his room ? or did they figure out that it actually was Zoe? Was Zoe actually charged or just thrown in the loony bin? Mostly I want to know what happened when Mariana went to see Zoe for the first time.
I would pay a good amount of money to know that!!
To conclude, I adored this book. It worked and earned every five star that I gave it and I am so glad that I read it! I am also glad my good friend Allison (Hiiiiii Allison) also read it so we can pick each others brains apart on this madness haha.
This story is beautiful, encapsulating, and just done so so very well.
Here's to a love of Greek mythology, happy reading :)
xoxo
paige :)
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