The Eighth Girl: A Novel

By Maxine Mei-Fung Chung

Optioned by Netflix and a most anticipated book from Bustle, The Rumpus, Electric Literature, and LitHub!

An unsettling, seductive psychological thriller about a young woman with multiple personalities, perfect for fans of Caroline Kepnes and Clare Mackintosh

"An electrifying, thought-provoking, and unflinching novel." —Jean Kwok, New York Times bestselling author of Searching for Sylvie Lee

“An exceptional debut from a talented author.” —Clare Mackintosh, New York Times bestselling author of I Let You Go

Beautiful. Damaged. Destructive. Meet Alexa Wú, a brilliant yet darkly self-aware young woman whose chaotic life is controlled by a series of alternate personalities.

When Alexa’s friend Ella gets a job at a high-end gentlemen’s club, she catches the attention of its shark-like owner and is gradually drawn into his inner circle. As Alexa’s world becomes intimately entangled with Ella’s, she soon finds herself the unwitting keeper of a nightmarish secret as she follows Ella into London’s cruel underbelly. Threatened and vulnerable, Alexa will discover whether her multiple personalities are her greatest asset, or her most dangerous obstacle.

Electrifying and breathlessly compulsive, The Eighth Girl is an omnivorous examination of life with mental illness and the acute trauma of living in a misogynist world. With bingeable prose and a clinician’s expertise, Chung’s psychological debut deftly explores identity, innocence, and the fracturing weight that young women are forced to carry, causing us to ask: Does the truth lead to self-discovery, or to self-destruction?

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Mar 17, 2020
• ISBN: 9780062931146

Maxine Mei-Fung Chung

Maxine Mei-Fung Chun > is a psychoanalytic psychotherapist and clinical supervisor. Trained in the arts, she worked as a Creative Director for ten years at Condé Nast, The Sunday Times and The Times. She lives in London with her son. The Eighth Girl is her first novel.

Reviews for The Eighth Girl

[Samantha · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This story held my heart in its fist as I read on.
I will absolutely be reading this book again in the future.

This is a great, eye-opening book for those who loved YA genre but are no longer 16. For those who -even if it’s not what you’re seeking- need a dose of healing themselves and could use a new way to see the process, disguised in the shoes of another girl.

[hes7 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Maxine Mei-Fung Chung’s The Eighth Girl features Alexa Wú, a woman struggling with multiple personalities (stemming from years of childhood abuse). As the drama and stress in her life heighten, she begins losing control over herself—which, of course, makes her life all the more complicated.This book had so much potential to be great, yet it failed to be the psychological thriller I expected. The plot holds little thrill or surprise, unfortunately. The focus, instead, proves to be simply the psychology of Alexa’s character, which while quite interesting, did not give enough to the story for me to be intrigued. The Eighth Girl just was not a book for me.I received a complimentary copy of this book and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.

[lea.pearl · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The Eighth Girl is a story of a girl named Alexa Wu who has DID, Dissociative Identity Disorder. This book is a harsh look at the reality of mental illness, it's blunt and straightforward. Maxine doesn't skirt around details. I feel, as someone who battles mental illness herself, this novel is a welcome addition to the book world.The story is told from two points of view, Alexa's and her psychiatrist, Daniel's. It's confusing. Getting into the characters and learning each of Alexa's personas, "the flock", is a challenge. To be completely honest, I have no idea why Daniel's view is necessary, but seeing Alexa's therapy sessions through his eyes is... different and semi-intriguing.Unfortunately, I couldn't completely grasp the novel. I'm saddened by this fact, and had to give up on it at page 100. Where's the thrill? I got no suspense or thrill from any of those pages, just a lot of dragging, confusing story. This novel had so much potential that it just didn't quite live up to for me.

[A Garcia · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wonderful yet enlightening to be the characters and experience their hurtful challenges