There is one element of writing, when done well, that will pull me in immediately, and that is setting. If an author can create a vivid sensory experience for me, then I am fully invested. And bonus points for intensely compelling characters. The Maidens delivered on both.
I felt as if I were at St. Christopher's at Cambridge University viewing and appreciating the history that revealed itself in the architecture and grounds. Marble columns cracked by time, lush courtyard gardens with climbing trellises, marble floors, stained-glass windows, decorative ceilings painted in gold, Latin inscriptions, historical shields. These descriptions so perfectly helped me to imagine myself walking the university grounds, creating a wonderful atmospheric experience.
And the perfect character pairing to this immersive setting was the mysterious Edward Fosca - The University's Greek tragedy professor. Handsome, scholarly, mysterious and relentlessly in the purview of the somewhat fragile and unbalanced group therapist, Mariana Andros, a former university student, who is determined to uncover secrets (and murder) she believes exist within Fosca's all-female "fan group" called The Maidens. I felt both characters were so well-drawn, and the Greek Mythology woven throughout made this story exceptionally interesting and intriguing. And no, you do not have to be well versed in Greek Mythology to be able to enjoy this novel!
After having read and loved The Silent Patient, and now The Maidens, Alex Michaelides has officially become an auto-buy author for me.
I felt as if I were at St. Christopher's at Cambridge University viewing and appreciating the history that revealed itself in the architecture and grounds. Marble columns cracked by time, lush courtyard gardens with climbing trellises, marble floors, stained-glass windows, decorative ceilings painted in gold, Latin inscriptions, historical shields. These descriptions so perfectly helped me to imagine myself walking the university grounds, creating a wonderful atmospheric experience.
And the perfect character pairing to this immersive setting was the mysterious Edward Fosca - The University's Greek tragedy professor. Handsome, scholarly, mysterious and relentlessly in the purview of the somewhat fragile and unbalanced group therapist, Mariana Andros, a former university student, who is determined to uncover secrets (and murder) she believes exist within Fosca's all-female "fan group" called The Maidens. I felt both characters were so well-drawn, and the Greek Mythology woven throughout made this story exceptionally interesting and intriguing. And no, you do not have to be well versed in Greek Mythology to be able to enjoy this novel!
After having read and loved The Silent Patient, and now The Maidens, Alex Michaelides has officially become an auto-buy author for me.