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A review by kbranfield
The Eighth Girl by Maxine Mei-Fung Chung
3.0
3.5 stars.
The Eighth Girl by Maxine Mei-Fung Chung is an intriguing mystery featuring a lead protagonist with multiple personalities.
Alexa Wú is an aspiring photographer who has grappled with dissociative identity disorder for much of her life. She manages her "flock" of personalities successfully to a degree but she is still losing time. After awakening and regaining control, Alexa has no idea which of her personalities did what during the missing time.
Alexa's new psychotherapist, Dr. Daniel Rosenstein suspects she is not being completely honest during their sessions. He is quite concerned for her and he is soon a little more personally invested in his patient than he should be. Daniel confides in his friend, Dr. Mohsin Patel, but will he act on the advice he is being given?
Although not overly close, Alexa lives with her stepmother Anna. Anna is supportive of her stepdaughter but she is dealing with her own issues. Alexa is grateful her stepmother stuck by her when her father walked out on both of them years earlier. But Anna tends to maintain an emotional distance from Alexa and they mostly lead separate lives.
Alexa is best friends with Ella who cares for her younger sister. Just as Alexa is trying to jumpstart her career as a photojournalist, Ella begins working at a gentlemen's club. Alexa is well aware that Ella is quickly seduced by the money she is earning and the owner of the club, Navid. After stumbling onto Navid's other activities, the pair attempt to find enough information to take to authorities. Alexa is the voice of reason in trying extricate themselves from an increasingly dangerous situation. But will she convince Ella it is time to report what they know to the police before Navid figures out what they are doing?
As Alexa becomes more and more stressed, her other personalities are emerging with alarming frequency. Her mental and physical health are rapidly deteriorating and she is making risky choices. Daniel is well aware of her downward spiral, but is he doing enough to help his patient?
Alternating between Daniel's and Alexa's points of view, The Eighth Girl is an interesting novel. Although the pacing is rather slow, Alexa's sessions with Daniel are quite fascinating and informative. The majority of the novel takes place in either Daniel's or Alexa's heads, so there is little action to propel the sluggish storyline. The pacing finally picks up towards the end of the novel as the suspense surrounding Alexa and Ella's covert investigation becomes increasingly perilous. With some very astonishing plot twists, Maxine Mei-Fung Chung brings this somewhat dark debut to a jaw-dropping conclusion.
The Eighth Girl by Maxine Mei-Fung Chung is an intriguing mystery featuring a lead protagonist with multiple personalities.
Alexa Wú is an aspiring photographer who has grappled with dissociative identity disorder for much of her life. She manages her "flock" of personalities successfully to a degree but she is still losing time. After awakening and regaining control, Alexa has no idea which of her personalities did what during the missing time.
Alexa's new psychotherapist, Dr. Daniel Rosenstein suspects she is not being completely honest during their sessions. He is quite concerned for her and he is soon a little more personally invested in his patient than he should be. Daniel confides in his friend, Dr. Mohsin Patel, but will he act on the advice he is being given?
Although not overly close, Alexa lives with her stepmother Anna. Anna is supportive of her stepdaughter but she is dealing with her own issues. Alexa is grateful her stepmother stuck by her when her father walked out on both of them years earlier. But Anna tends to maintain an emotional distance from Alexa and they mostly lead separate lives.
Alexa is best friends with Ella who cares for her younger sister. Just as Alexa is trying to jumpstart her career as a photojournalist, Ella begins working at a gentlemen's club. Alexa is well aware that Ella is quickly seduced by the money she is earning and the owner of the club, Navid. After stumbling onto Navid's other activities, the pair attempt to find enough information to take to authorities. Alexa is the voice of reason in trying extricate themselves from an increasingly dangerous situation. But will she convince Ella it is time to report what they know to the police before Navid figures out what they are doing?
As Alexa becomes more and more stressed, her other personalities are emerging with alarming frequency. Her mental and physical health are rapidly deteriorating and she is making risky choices. Daniel is well aware of her downward spiral, but is he doing enough to help his patient?
Alternating between Daniel's and Alexa's points of view, The Eighth Girl is an interesting novel. Although the pacing is rather slow, Alexa's sessions with Daniel are quite fascinating and informative. The majority of the novel takes place in either Daniel's or Alexa's heads, so there is little action to propel the sluggish storyline. The pacing finally picks up towards the end of the novel as the suspense surrounding Alexa and Ella's covert investigation becomes increasingly perilous. With some very astonishing plot twists, Maxine Mei-Fung Chung brings this somewhat dark debut to a jaw-dropping conclusion.