The Mystery Guest is the delightful, cozy, unputdownable sequel to The Maid by Nita Prose.

I had already been a fan of the endearing protagonist Molly Gray in The Maid and couldn’t wait to read the sequel. Nita Prose didn’t disappoint! To the contrary, she delivered a great, easy-to-consume mystery novel.

The story revolves around JD Grimthorpe, a celebrated author and his sudden decease when he on stage of Regency Grand Hotel to deliver a speech and unearth a secret.

Molly’s eye and ear for detail will help Detective Stark to think ‘around the corner’ to identify the ‘rat in its nest’.

I also loved getting to know Molly better. Her memories of her gran and mother helped me understand how her personality was shaped.

By the end of the novel, I was positively overwhelmed by a wonderful secret Mr. Preston shared with Molly.

Nita Prose you had rocked your debut novel and had sparked my interest in further cozy mystery novels! So, I am very glad that you and NetGalley granted me this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Wonderful story, great character development, great writing! Highly recommend this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it

Molly the Maid is as intrepid as ever, and while I enjoyed the character development, I didn't enjoy this one nearly as much as the first. I do hope it becomes a series, because I will keep reading to see where Molly goes next!

after reading the first book i couldn’t wait to read the sequel. the characters are always fun and likable. the plot is always interesting and compelling to read. i can’t wait to read more from the author.

I was very happy to have another book in this series! Molly’s character is a favorite for sure. This book felt a little more rushed than the first book, though.

Thank you Net Galley & to the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a decent sequel to The Maid, but ultimately, did not live quite up to my expectations. I think that representation is very important in literature, and I wish that Prose had decided to formally mention in The Mystery Guest that Molly is either autistic or lands somewhere on the spectrum, instead of dancing around her diagnosis by giving vague references to Molly being "special". The disability representation by a neurotypical author did not work well, in my opinion. The mystery was alright, but I ultimately wasn't super invested in it.

Dare I say I enjoyed this more than The Maid!? This book was the perfect, cozy, Clue kind of mystery read! Molly is Molly-ing more than ever and now she has a side kick! We got a bit more of Molly and Gran’s past and how it tied into the current mystery of “the author, dead in the tearoom, murder weapon honey and tea!”

I enjoyed this book just as much as the first! Molly the Maid is such a well thought out character. Her quirkiness and bluntness makes this book!

If you enjoyed the first book in this series I definitely recommend The Mystery Guest! There were a few plot twists that I wasn’t expecting! This was a quick read for me mainly because I couldn’t put it down!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced digital copy of this book.

This was a fun, quick whodunit and the second book in Prose’s Maid series. This time our titular character must solve a murder that has occurred in her beloved hotel in order to protect a fledgling trainee. I definitely enjoyed this installment more than the first one and thought certain subjects were handled better this time around including the portrayal of an autistic character.

Molly the maid is a cozy mystery series and Molly is truly a sweetheart who keeps getting caught during the worst times being a maid. It’s a quick read and I love the narrator for the audiobooks. It’s definitely not a fast paced or super intriguing storyline (for my liking anyway). I think if there’s a 3rd in this series I probably wouldn’t be picking it up right away.

THE MYSTERY GUEST by Nita Prose ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5)

Okay so THE MAID was the perfect quirky book for me (as seen in my favorite quirky books series below) so when I saw a sequel was coming out, I was so excited! And it delivered! Read this one for a lighthearted quirky uplifting mystery with heartwarming undertones - what more could you ask for in a feel good book.

I still probably liked THE MAID a little more, as there was something uniquely uplifting about getting to know this unique cast of characters for the first time and it maybe felt more novel? But still enjoyed this one!

Thanks @netgalley for the ARC!

I loved the first one and the second is even better. The head maid is a great character and the mystery of trying to figure out who did it was engaging.

LOVE Molly the Maid!! She is back and better than ever. When an acclaimed author dies at the hotel, Molly knows her skills will help find the killer! But will what she finds destroy her faith in humanity?

The Mystery Guest
by Nita Prose
Reviewed by Valerie Palmer

I was thrilled to receive this book as an ARC from Netgalley as I read the first book, The Maid, and fully enjoyed it. The second book, The Mystery Guest, did not disappoint either. I will definitely be reading more books by Nita Prose.

Summary
Molly Gray is not like anyone else. With her flair for cleaning and proper etiquette, she has risen through the ranks of the glorious five-star Regency Grand Hotel to become the esteemed Head Maid. But just as her life reaches a pinnacle state of perfection, her world is turned upside down when J. D. Grimthorpe, the world-renowned mystery author, drops dead—very dead—on the hotel’s tearoom floor.

When Detective Stark, Molly’s old foe, investigates the author’s unexpected demise, it becomes clear that this death was murder most foul. Suspects abound, and everyone wants to know: Who killed J. D. Grimthorpe? Was it Lily, the new Maid-in-Training? Or was it Serena, the author’s secretary? Could Mr. Preston, the hotel’s beloved doorman, be hiding something? And is Molly really as innocent as she seems?

As the high-profile death threatens the hotel’s pristine reputation, Molly knows she alone holds the key to unlocking the killer’s identity. But that key is buried deep in her past, as long ago, she knew J. D. Grimthorpe. Molly begins to comb her memory for clues, revisiting her childhood and the mysterious Grimthorpe mansion where she and her dearly departed Gran once worked side by side. With the entire hotel under investigation, Molly must solve the mystery posthaste. Because if there’s one thing she knows for sure, it’s that secrets don’t stay buried forever.

What I Liked
I liked Molly’s character development between the two books. She became a much stronger and more confident woman by the end of the second book. In the end, Detective Sparks had a lot more respect for Molly.
I was not sure who was to blame for the murder of Grimthrope and was suspicious of multiple characters for a while. I enjoy a good mystery that keeps me engaged and want to continue reading to see what is going to happen next.

I liked the writing style and how every other chapter was present versus past time. It gave a glimpse of who Gran was and how she did her best to protect Molly as a child.

What I Didn't Like
One of the main things I did not like was that the book seemed a bit unrealistic. I also did not like that it took Mr. Preston so long to tell Molly that he was related to her.

Rating⭐⭐⭐⭐
I gave this book four stars on Goodreads. I enjoyed the book, but it seemed rather impossible. Would I recommend this book? Absolutely.

I was skeptical when I started The Maid, but I ended up loving Molly and the rest of the cast of characters from The Grand (Cheryl excluded). So I was excited to see another installment was coming out.

I enjoyed this one as well and learning a little bit more about Molly, Gran and the rest. Hoping to see more from the author soon.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

Our favorite maid Molly is back with an all new murder mystery to solve!

I loved the first book and was SO happy to get another book of Molly! This book was clever, and a fun cozy mystery to read. I could go into a more detailed synopsis but I think it is more fun to go in blindly.

What I loved:
- Molly, of course! She just makes me smile and I adore her. I am happy to see her doing so well after the first book! She deserves it all.
- Her little quotes and nuggets from her grandma! I always love how her love for her grandma is still so strong even after her grandma has passed
- The mystery and murder! Okay, I actually couldn’t figure this one out. For a cozy mystery, I was actually shocked with what went down
- I love the whole world of Molly’s. The hotel is such a fun setting. I also love her friendships with everyone and her relationship with her boyfriend is adorable . Although, I do wish we got more of him in this book!

Overall, this was a fun and quick read! I love a good cozy mystery and this one did not disappoint. 4 stars out of 5! Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

There's been a murder in the Regency Grand and Molly the Maid is once more on the case. At least she's not a suspect this time.
Molly dives into the mystery with her signature style that we all fell in love with from book 1, and its just as on point the second time around. I love getting to walk in Molly's shoes and see the way she views the world. Molly is no longer reeling from the emotional trauma of losing her grandmother, but she does have to dive into her past with this case, plumbing a different sort of emotional trauma.
This book was everything I wanted it to be and more. Molly is a delightful heroine, the mystery of excellently done, and the ending completely satisfying.

The Mystery Guest (The Maid Book 2) by Nita Prose

304 Pages
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Ballantine Books
Release Date: November 29, 2023

Fiction (Adult), General Fiction (Adult), Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, British

Molly Gray is now the Head Maid at the Regency Grand Hotel. The author, J. D, Grimthorpe, will be making an important announcement at the hotel. After making a few remarks and sips of tea with honey, he collapses on the floor. He lands on Lily, the new maid in training.

This book is as good as the first in the series. Molly is quirky and different than society’s idea of normal. There are a lot of backstories. We learn more about Molly’s Gran and Mr. Prescott, the doorman at the hotel. It is fast paced, the characters are well developed, and it is written in the third person point of view. If you like a good mystery with memorable characters, you will like this book.

I did not enjoy this title as much as I did Prose's first one, The Maid. I think part of it was I had recently read another newly published title with a very similar plot (Death Writes, by Andrea Carter) that was much better written with more realistic and nuanced character development, so it made this one look very poor in comparison. Unfortunately what seemed so charming in The Maid felt stilted and simplistic in this one, and I'm not sure if the reason is my own - since I had just read a better book with the same plot - or Prose's.

I was nervous for this follow up. I don't know why. I was like the first one was good and let's leave well enough alone. I would like to go on the record and say I was wrong. This was a super entertaining and enjoyable read. I hope there's so many more to continue to prove me wrong