Book Review: The Maidens

For Day 2 of my 13 Days of Spooky Books Countdown for October 2025, I recommend The Maidens by Alex Michaelides, author of bestselling The Silent Patient.

In this atmospheric, dark academia psychological thriller, therapist Mariana becomes obsessed with solving a mystery set in the obsessive, secretive world of Greek mythology studies at Cambridge University.

Edward Fosca is the charismatic professor leading the cult-like secret society, The Maidens, who Mariana suspects of murder. She is determined to find out what happened to her niece Zoe’s friend, and member of the Maidens, before Zoe is endangered too.

If you like spooky dark academia vibes and a classical-infused mystery, check out this novel.

While this book has a hint of unreliable narrator, like The Silent Patient, don’t go in expecting the same book. I enjoyed The Maidens, but this book has a slower pace, yet I think the setting and Greek mythology references keep it intriguing.

I also enjoyed reading The Silent Patient and The Furies.