I utterly enjoyed this book! Great pace, compelling writing and cool plot twists. I'd happily recommend this to friends and I look forward to reading future books by the same author.

A really witty fast paced psychological thriller. Florence is over the moon to work as anonymous authors Maud Dixon’s assistant, but a car crash and Mauds disappearance lead Florence to assume her identity. Plenty of twists and turns, this was a brilliant read.

This is a great debut novel! It’s one of those thrillers that starts off at a pretty steady pace and then about half way through it really went up a notch and there was quite a few twists and turns that took me by surprise. I really liked the theme of publishing/pseudonyms in this book, I’m not sure it’s something I’ve read about before but was definitely something I enjoyed and the mystery surrounding the true identity of the author.

I’ve been in a bit of a thriller slump recently and this one has definitely turned the tide!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ecopy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.5

Who indeed? She’s the latest bestselling literary sensation, Maud Dixon is a pseudonym which provokes lively discussions on the authors identity - does the book have a female or male ‘voice’? Florence Darrow loses her job as an editorial assistant at Forrester Books and out of the blue gets a call from Mauds agent offering work as Mauds assistant. The anonymous author proves to be Helen Wilcox. The storyline takes us from New York City to Cairo, NY and finally to Morocco.

Well folks, we have a new exciting and talented author whose books I suspect we’ll be clamouring for in the future! This is a clever plot that features two VERY intriguing central characters. Helen is , er, interesting? She’s extremely impatient, tolerates no fools, calls a spade a shovel, is down to earth and with absolutely no flimflam (maybe) and I’ll say no more!!! Florence seems naive, has obsessive and jealousy traits and an overwhelming desire to escape her Port Orange roots and to become a successful writer. Initially you think she’s a push over but oh boy does she find her inner steel and resolve. Some of the events in Morocco are a bit like the clash of the titans with Moroccan officials looking on in utter confusion. The novel is well written with the storyline flowing smoothly, the plot is very twisty and convoluted in some great settings. I did figure some of it out but not all, as just as you settle in to watch what you expect to unfold the author fools you - again!! The events in Morocco are fast paced and you have to keep up with the speed. There are times when it’s quite humorous and at others it’s shocking.

Overall, a terrific book and I’m so pleased to have read it. I suggest you don’t read the blurb for this, just dive in blind (hopefully not into an algae ridden pool as in Morocco!), settle back, no interruptions, shut the world out and enjoy!! I can’t wait to read what the fertile imagination of Alexandra Andrews comes up with next!

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Headline, Tinder Press for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

Alexandra Andrews has written a stunning novel and no matter how tightly you fastened your seatbelt you will probably end up upside down.
Florence Darrow is a young woman who works as an assistant editor for a successful publishing house in lower Manhattan.
Hailing originally from Gainesville, Fl, Florence is also hoping to become (of course) one day, an established novelist.
After losing her job early in the story, Florence becomes the personal assistant of a writer who became successful after one bestseller, a woman who also wishes to remain anonymous. Very soon our two protagonists are travelling to Morocco in order to do some research for a potential second novel but unfortunately a terrible car crash leaves Florence badly bruised and her travelling companion missing and presumed dead....
So far so good. But just when I was starting to smugly assume that Ms. Andrews was about to give me a "Talented Ms. Darrow" and go Pat Highsmith on me, she yanked my chain, turned the tables on me and left me completely nonplussed!
"Who is Maud Dixon " is a novel blessed with a fiendishly good plot, tartishly written and wickedly funny. It will definitely end up on the big screen!! To be enjoyed without any moderation!!!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Headline Publishing/Tinder Press for giving me the opportunity to read this wonderful novel prior to its release date

That was such a fast and compelling read! The two main characters are Florence, who is desperate to be a writer and is a bit awkward and struggles to fit in. Then Helen who is an author. She is very confident and comes across as being someone most people would be nervous around!

I don’t want to give anything away so will only say that Florence starts working for Helen thinking this is a great opportunity for her. They go on a research trip to Morocco and then it all goes a bit crazy!

If you enjoy fast paced mysteries then you will love this.

Thank you to #NetGalley for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. #WhoIsMaudDixon

This is a dark, stylish tale about a wannabe writer, Florence Darrow, who becomes an assistant to an author whose pseudonym Maud Dixon is world famous because of the only book she has written. The pair go on a research trip to Morocco but Florence ends up in hospital following a car accident where the police presume she is the author, Helen, because she was found with all her belongings and there is no trace of Helen herself. Florence then wonders whether she can assume the identity of Helen/Maud Dixon herself. Florence is a very flawed, frustrating character and the section of the story where she is trying to assume the identity of Helen is excruciatingly uncomfortable to read. Helen and Florence are both largely unlikeable characters but completely compelling and I couldn’t put down the final quarter of the book as I raced to find out the outcome of the deceptions which take place in the story.

When I finished the book, I literally did the ‘let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding’ thing.

I’m definitely in the minority regarding this book and I’m genuinely glad people are enjoying it, but man when I say it gave me a tension headache…

I admit I almost DNFed this book three times – at 25%, 50% and then 70%. In the earlier stages, something would happen and I’d say to myself come on, another few pages and on and on. When I hit the 70% mark I told myself it was too late, I’d invested too much time in this book and I wanted to know what happened. And that’s when I started to skim read, something I never do.

What frustrated me was that it was almost there. Florence was almost interesting. Helen was almost magnetic. I almost cared. Who is Maud Dixon? is playing with themes that have been done before – in my opinion, not a problem. But you gotta bring something more to the table.

You can tell Andrews is trying to make the characters feel three dimensional and layered, but for me, the result was something more like a picture of depth. The ending was good and in it, I got a taste for the book that could’ve been if the pacing had been tighter. Maybe I would’ve liked reading Mississippi Foxtrot more.

This isn’t a bad book at all no matter how much I may complain. The writing is incredibly self-assured and strong, really impressive considering this is a debut. And of course, it kept me reading which says a lot by itself. I am definitely interested in reading whatever else Alexandra Andrews comes out with.

4,5 ⭐️

Who is Maud Dixon? That's the question everyone wants an answer for. After her debut novel becomes a huge success everyone wants to know who hides behind the pen name so when the chance to be her assistant comes up, aspiring writer Florence Darrow jumps at it. During a research trip to Morocco everything seems to be going fine until Florences wakes up in a hospital after surviving a car crash but, where is Maud Dixon, who was in the car with her?

I love books about the publishing industry (shocking!) so "Who is Maud Dixon?" looked liked the perfect fit for me. I WAS RIGHT! I seem to be on a roll of fantastic debut novels (yay, me!).

The story immediately pulls the reader into Florence's life and for the first half we get to know her and how she comes to work for Helen (aka Maud Dixon). While this first half is pretty straightforward I found myself glued to my Kindle, due in part to my love for the story's setting.

Once they arrive in Morocco is when things really got interesting and twists and turns kept coming every other direction, so when I thought I had it all figured out my theory was turned upside down. Although there were some twists I saw coming I certainly did no predict how crazy things turned out in the end. I loved it!

The writing style was really engaging. Both main characters, Florence and Helen, were well developed. None of them were really likeable, but both of them were intriguing in their own way.

Fantastic debut by Alexandra Andrews that places her as one of the names to watch out for in the thriller/suspense genre.

Thanks to NetGalley and Headline, Tinder Press for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

4,5 Stars

When I picked up this book I was not sure what I should expect. But I definitely did not expect that I enjoyed it so much.

Florence has the desire to be a writer. But she lacks the ideas and maybe even the talent. Her mother always told her that she has to expect more from life. That she even deserves better because she was designed to be great. So Florence is still waiting for those great things to happen when she works as an assistant in a publishing house. But soon we learn that Florence is a bit weird and definitely not an appealing person. After stalking the family of a colleague after a one night stand she gets fired. But her dreams finally seem to come true when she receives a phone call for a new job. The mysterious and very reclusive bestselling author Maud Dixon is looking for an assistant. The offer would raise suspicions in every sane person but not in Florence, who sees finally all the things happening that the universe owes her. When she accompanies Maud to a research trip to Morocco she ends up in a hospital and Maud is missing.

Florence is quite a strange girl. It is clear that the author created her not as a person the reader can connect with. She feels hardly any empathy and her moral compass is out of tune. But that made her for me very entertaining. I read thrillers for decades now and I could easily see were the story was heading. But the fun factor outweighed everything.

I can totally understand when readers find this book too predictable or too slow. The book takes its time to build up Florence’s and Maud’s characters and their relationship. After the accident in Morocco things speed up a bit but it gets also quite unrealistic. I loved the long build-up. I did see the twists coming and I was not very surprised by the ending. It is a bit over the top but it suited Florence. I was totally engrossed and enjoyed this crazy and twisted and highly unlikely story. Sometimes a book works for you and sometimes it doesn’t. “Who is Maud Dixon” worked very well for me.

3.5 stars

From fairly early on I was sure I knew where this book was heading.
Got to the end to be proved right.
However it took some twists and turns along the way that not only surprised me,but also amused me.
It's definitely a fun read.

It's a great debut,and itsgoing to do well. Sure of that.