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gondorgirl's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Death, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Stalking, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail
montana_cole's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Drug abuse
beeper's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Stalking, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Addiction, Physical abuse, Violence, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Alcohol
lbg352's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Abandonment
kbweis's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
additionally, too many men period, but also too many men who were considered suspect. even with so many people in the equation, the culprit didn't wind up being a total plot twist for me (definitely
final thought: how come all dark academia books are focused on classics?? where is the math dark academia book i'm craving??
Graphic: Violence and Murder
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship
threadsof_kate's review against another edition
4.5
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
ashleyvaleria's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Drug use, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Violence, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment
alba_marie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Not as good as the Secret History, but as dark academia and thrillers go, this one was very addictive and juicy. The Maidens follows Mariana, a recently widowed group therapist from Greece who receives a desperate call from her niece Zoe, a student at Cambridge. There's been a terrible murder, and Zoe is terrified that the victim is her friend Tara, who's been "missing" since the day before.
Upon arrival, Mariana gets swept up into the lives of the charismatic Greek professor, Edward Fosca, and his weird group of favourite female students known only as "The Maidens." As the days go on, Fosca gets weirder, Mariana gets obsessed, and the murders pile up.
I'm going to go against the grain here and say that I HATED The Silent Patient . I mean, HATED. I think it might have been my worst book read of the year. I thought it was so poorly written, so amateur, so ugh. But I decided to try this one because the premise intrigued me and ever since The Secret History , I've been intrigued by dark academia. And I'm glad I did! I thought this one was SO much better than The Silent Patient. Better written, better characterised, better plotted, better setting. He actually described stuff this time! And made 3-D characters! Imagine that.
I also LOVED the Greek tragedy and literary elements. Michaelides included the just right mix of Greek tragedy, literary references and academia mixed with real world challenges and psychological drama to make the unbelievable somewhat believable. As thrillers go, this one felt like a step up from your usual cheap thrills and often, the academia side overtook the thriller side of the book, leaving the reader with the impression of reading something a bit more high brow than your usual thriller. This worked well for me!
If you like dark academia, thrillers and psychology, this book is perfect for you.
Graphic: Violence and Murder
Moderate: Incest and Sexual harassment
Minor: Sexual assault
lifeofchrstnlvly's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
It’s important to keep looking ahead. You mustn’t forever look back, over your shoulder. Think about the future.
Well, I didn’t see that one coming. It caught me a bit off-guard (only a bit because I suspected all of them ha ha ha).
I enjoy reading Michaelides’ books because 1) I love mystery, and 2) I like that psychology is always incorporated. However, I have yet to read a work from him that will satisfy me. He does his descriptions well (he's a good writer, no doubt about that), but the “reveal” is always unsatisfying. The ending felt rushed. I read The Silent Patient and I had the same problems.
Side note: what was the point of Henry's character? Personally, I think there will be no difference even if his character didn't exist.
I’ll still read his future books, though... because I have a lot of fun reading about crazy people.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Mental illness, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Infidelity, and Suicide attempt
joensign's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Death, Gore, Mental illness, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Child abuse, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, and Abandonment
Minor: Infidelity, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts