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maddietavares's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
hannah0913's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
letshaveakiki's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
geeky_andproudofit's review
5.0
GODDAMN.
Okay so here's the thing... this book has massive shoes to fill and when you start it, for the first few pages, you cannot help but compare it with The Silent Patient and think that huh this one doesn't seem to have the same potential of an equally explosive climax... and it doesn't. Because this isn't The Silent Patient. They are entities so SO different that by the time you finish the book you realise that comparing the two will only do you and your reading experience a disservice... That book is a domestic tragedy... this one is a dark-academia thriller that is made for nerds like me who love literature, greek mythology, and creepy cult stories way too much... it's awesome and brilliant and shocking and honestly now I just want to cry because I can't be at Cambridge myself...
I did actually have suspicions about the murderer but I couldn't have been more off about the motive... and I always love it when authors give you a story where if you pay close enough attention you can tell things about what could happen but also shock you in a way you never expected....
The Silent Patient was almost an albatross hanging from Michaelidas' neck - that level of genius is hard to recreate... but the man did not disappoint with this book...
PS: Having said that, I'll still admit that if I were to pick my favourite from these two books, The Silent Patient would win hands down. No doubt about that. The Maidens is a 4.75-stars-out-of-5 read but The Silent Patient was 10-stars-out-of-5
Okay so here's the thing... this book has massive shoes to fill and when you start it, for the first few pages, you cannot help but compare it with The Silent Patient and think that huh this one doesn't seem to have the same potential of an equally explosive climax... and it doesn't. Because this isn't The Silent Patient. They are entities so SO different that by the time you finish the book you realise that comparing the two will only do you and your reading experience a disservice... That book is a domestic tragedy... this one is a dark-academia thriller that is made for nerds like me who love literature, greek mythology, and creepy cult stories way too much... it's awesome and brilliant and shocking and honestly now I just want to cry because I can't be at Cambridge myself...
I did actually have suspicions about the murderer but I couldn't have been more off about the motive... and I always love it when authors give you a story where if you pay close enough attention you can tell things about what could happen but also shock you in a way you never expected....
The Silent Patient was almost an albatross hanging from Michaelidas' neck - that level of genius is hard to recreate... but the man did not disappoint with this book...
PS: Having said that, I'll still admit that if I were to pick my favourite from these two books, The Silent Patient would win hands down. No doubt about that. The Maidens is a 4.75-stars-out-of-5 read but The Silent Patient was 10-stars-out-of-5
julie7's review against another edition
3.0
3⭐️ = Average.
Audio.
I thought this had a really strong start and an excellent finish with a great twist.
Unfortunately, the middle was quite flat ,with deep psychology rather than a huge progression in the storyline.
I much preferred The Silent Patient.
Audio.
I thought this had a really strong start and an excellent finish with a great twist.
Unfortunately, the middle was quite flat ,with deep psychology rather than a huge progression in the storyline.
I much preferred The Silent Patient.
kadm130's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
theclanguyen's review
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Originally 3.75 stars, bumped up to 4 - the reason being that while I felt The Silent Patient (this book’s predecessor) was resolved very well, I don’t feel the need to read it again. In comparison this book has me compelled to read it another one or two times. In that sense, it’s a job well done. Here were my initial thoughts:
I devoured this book in a single evening. As you would expect from a psychological thriller by Michaelides, every moment was gripping. As a Greek mythology nerd, I loved the bit of mythology that was built into the story. Its role in building suspense and exploring the villain’s psyche made this book all the more exciting to me.
That said, I couldn’t give this book a complete 4 stars (initially) because I’m left with so many unanswered questions. I’m not necessarily dissatisfied by the ending; I just wished we got more info once the mystery solved. We didn’t get much more background on the villain once they were revealed, at least, any background info provided some more depth about the villain’s intentions. And while I appreciated the Greek mythology aspect, I’m ultimately unsure of its relevance at the end.
To be fair, I think these questions probably WERE answered in other parts of the story. There were A LOT of components to this story, which successfully volleyed my mind back and forth between plausible conclusions. However, now that I’ve finished the book, it all feels a bit disjointed.
Regardless, this was an incredibly entertaining read! This is a book I’ll definitely need to read again, both for the thrilling story and to hopefully discover nuances that might answer my questions.