I love these characters so much! So glad to have them back in my life! Molly and her grandmother are two of my favorite characters and their love is so sweet. This adventure was even better than the first, don’t skip this one!

I absolutely loved The Maid so when I got the ARC for The Mystery Guest I was elated! This book starts out a few years after The Maid ended and Molly runs the maids at the hotel. When a mystery writer guest dies during a conference st the hotel, she is sucked right in and imagine our surprise that she met him years earlier but it was a bad meeting so now Molly has motivation and is once again a suspect in his murder.

Molly the Maid returns in this sequel to 2022’s THE MAID. When a famous mystery author falls dead seconds before making an important announcement at the Regency Grand, Molly again takes on the role of sleuth—this time diving deep into her childhood to uncover secrets that may just help her crack the case.

I both liked and disliked this one. Molly has grown significantly, taking on a more active and intentional role in the mystery solving. She has more agency here, and really works to solve the crime. This sequel has a significantly lighter tone and mood than the first book, and felt much more like a traditional cozy mystery.

Yet the mystery itself was very basic, and the writing just isn’t that special. It feels like this was only written because of the success of the first book, which IMO didn’t feel at all like it had series potential. All the same, Molly’s success in this book makes me think she will actually work nicely as a series sleuth.

Overall, I did enjoy this and would recommend it if you enjoyed The Maid. (It works as a standalone, too.)

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

What an excellent follow up to The Maid! Happy to report I enjoyed it just as much as the first book. Molly is such a delight. The audio version of this one is fantastic as well--I flew through this one in less than a day. Thank you to LibroFM and NetGalley for my copy of this book in exchange for my review.

This book was so fun! I didn't know when I requested it that it was actually the second book in the series. I had heard of The Maid, but I thought both books were standalones. It didn't seem to matter much. I didn't feel lost at any point and got a good feeling for the characters without knowing any previous backstory. I loved Molly and enjoyed watching her win people over, in spite of her sometimes blunt and quirky personality. Interesting characters and backstory made this a very unique and entertaining read. I'm looking forward to going back and reading book one and then impatiently waiting for (hopefully) a third installment.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing/Ballantine Books for the advanced review copy.

After the death of Mr. Black, Molly went from an accused-but-innocent maid (who solved the case) to her dream, head maid of the Regency Grand Hotel. Now, as head maid, Molly is training the new staff and preparing for a grand announcement from the acclaimed mystery author, J.D. Grimthorpe. When Mr. Grimthorpe falls down dead prior to his announcement, Molly and her maid-in-training Lily are immediately questioned by Detective Stark. Molly knows both she and Molly are innocent, but she also is not completely forthcoming with Detective Stark about her past with the deceased. It is only through Molly's memories and quirks that she is able to solve the mystery and, once again, clear her name.

I greatly enjoyed The Mystery Guest and would have given it five stars except for the ending. I still can't figure out why Prose chose the murderer. It felt too fast at the end and didn't fit properly for me. I still highly recommend this title and character; Molly is fantastic, and I love how Prose has created her and her world. I hope more Molly is on the way.

After reading the Maid when I saw these was another book featuring Molly the Maid I had to read it. The characters in this book are so different and fun (at times) to read about. I enjoyed another mystery at the boutique hotel that Molly is now the head maid. I really liked reading about her back story with her Gran and her younger years. Another great cozy mystery that keeps you guessing and moves at a quick pace. I think I enjoyed this one more than the first!

This second book by Nita Prose did not have the same impact of her first novel, The Maid. The Mystery Guest,
relied a little too heavily on cliche' characters who could be spotted a mile away. The wealthy, but evil and
souless author, who neither writes his own books nor behaves with any decency, gets murdered. Although the story is a who dunnit, the possible suspects are limited to other cliche'd characters, such as his fan base and hotel personnel. It feels like a pre-programmed and well-worn plot. Aside from wanting this book to be as good as her first book, there was not much else to keep me reading. Unforunately, it did not hold up to its predecessor.

A famous mystery writer, J.D. Grimthorpe, is holding a press conference in the hotel where Molly works as head maid. Unfortunately J.D. drops dead before he can reveal his big secret. Molly met him as a child and now helps Detective Stark making sense of all the clues to find the murderer.

While Molly is still a delightful character she doesn't seem to be as quirky and awkward as she did in The Maid. AS the investigation continues it is revealed that Molly knew the victim as a child and because of her ability to observe she was able to connect all the clues and come up with a killer.

It's not a nail biter kind of mystery but has a good plot, a good mystery and some really interesting characters.

I would recommend this to anyone who has read book 1 and I think you could still enjoy this without having read the first.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Ballantine for providing me with a digital copy.

I really enjoyed this book! I think I liked it even better than the first one! It has everything from your quirky character that is unapologetically herself to murder.
Molly the Maid is now head maid. Her dream come true. Four years ago she found Mr, Black dead in his bed. Today she is serving tea for a famous author when he suddenly drops dead. When her maid in training gets the blame she has to start asking questions. The problem is the author is a blast from her past. How is she connected to the author? Will Molly figure out the mystery?

This is the sequel to The Maid. We follow Molly, the maid, at Regency Grand Hotel. When JD Grimthorpe, a mystery author, dies in the hotel’s tearoom right before an important announcement, Molly joins Detective Spark to help investigate the crime.

I had so much fun being back at the RGH with Molly, Mr. Snow, and Mr. Preston. This story is told in dual timelines and we learn more about Molly’s childhood. If you enjoyed The Maid, I highly recommend checking out the sequel!

Thank you to Netgalley and Publishers for giving me a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Molly is at it again, bringing readers the perfect combination of suspense and humor through a cozy mystery.
This adventure brings all the characters we grew to love in the first novel, and allows Molly's growth to shine. I enjoyed the alternating timelines of this story, as it provided more insight into Molly's upbringing, which made her even more loveable. Another fantastic story, with a satisfying end!

I am not the biggest cozy mystery fan, so The Maid wasn't at the top of my "best of" list. But I was curious as to where this story would go, as I didn't see it as having much series potential.

Surprise! I liked this book more than the first. I thought getting Molly out of the hotel and introducing some new characters was a great choice. I thought The Mystery Guest was more comic than The Maid and that Molly showed new depth.

I can see that opinion is divided on this, with some readers NOT enjoying the change of venue. But I had a lot of fun reading this!

The Mystery Guest is the follow up book to The Maid. Molly’s adventures as a maid continues. She is an endearing character that finds herself in the midst of trying to solve a mystery. The Mystery Guest is a very enjoyable book.

This was such a good read I loved it and was completely hooked from the first page. Definitely recommend

4.5 stars

This was a cozy mystery that made me realize how much I've missed Molly!

Molly is such a lovely character and I'm so happy that we got to read another lovely mystery starring her! I actually enjoyed this book more than the first one. I love that we got to know more about Molly's childhood and a little bit about what made her who she is today.

The mystery itself was fun and even though I didn't guess who the culprit is, I loved the way Molly helped to solve the case! I can't wait for read more of her adventures in the future!

Pub date: OUT NOW!

This eARC was provided by the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed The Maid enough to pick up this sequel. Do I think this book needed to exist or for this to be a series? No. And I will likely not be continuing on with this series as more books come out. But it was a light, cozy mystery with some quirky characters.

Yes yes yes! I loved The Maid and I’m going to be real when I say that sometimes I’m a little worried for the next book in a series when I absolutely LOVE the first one, but I will say that I was completely happy with this book! I absolutely loved it and can’t wait for more! Molly is an absolutely gem of a character and I love the sort of “cozy mystery” vibe that the series is seeming to lean towards! With Molly as head maid now and new mysteries, I know this is a series I am going to love and cherish and I’m so excited for more!

I thoroughly enjoyed diving into Molly’s childhood at the Grimthorpe mansion. She's a sleuth even then, full of curiosity. I adore the relationship between the Gran and Molly. And the past timeline really highlights their relationship: Gran’s full of love and wisdom for Molly and Molly’s pure adoration for Gran. Book 2 provides a good character arc for both. This book contains two mysteries; both feel a little predictable. But Prose’s seamless writing style, weaving between timelines and multiple characters, creates easy reading or listening, in case.

The audiobook is as delightful as Molly herself. Lauren Ambrose brings Molly and her world to life! She narrates Book 1, and I hope she continues to narrate the series if there's a Book 3. The audiobook is pretty short, too, offering a perfect listen while commuting, walking the dog, cleaning your house (if you don't have a Maid 😉), or decorating/shopping for the holidays.

Overall this book was a great, quick little mystery novel. I feel like I struggled with Molly as a character more than I did in the first novel. I liked the idea of giving Gran more of a back story and showing how Molly ended up where she is now by helping Gran. I loved the ending with just another layer of backstory. I felt like the book was a little slow in the beginning but I appreciated the twists and turns throughout the novel. Definitely worth the read, especially if you liked the first book!