The beginning was slow however, the pace and my interest soon picked up as the narrative settles into a steady rhythm. Thanks to the short chapters it's easy to digest the clues; mostly red herrings as they crop up. Intertwined are references to Greek Tragedies and Alfred Tennyson to add weight to the exposed evidence. The author's writing is clear and succinct, again making it easy for the reader to keep abreast of the proceedings. Therefore, I did manage to pick up on a clue, silently patting myself on the back before getting blind-sided with the reveal of the killer's identity. Was this good? Yes. Was this great? No. Therein lies the problem with writing a fantastic debut novel, The Silent Patient, and being expected to reproduce its brilliance in subsequent novels. Ultimately "The Maidens" is a run of the mill mystery hiding behind an intellectual façade.