This is a great sequel - continuing the story of Molly the Maid. Molly came into this one with more confidence as she helps to solve a murder in the Regency Grand Hotel. I look forward to the next installment in the Molly the Maid series. I am recommending this to the readers who enjoy a cozy mystery with likeable characters.

Jumping in at the second book in this series, The Mystery Guest follows Molly as she works to solve the murder of a famous author who dropped dead in her hotel.

I’m not sure about the writing style of the first book but this felt like a very in-your-face mystery. There was hardly any nuance for the reader to infer and the plot point jumped from one to another without any subtlety.

The mystery was complex enough to be entertaining.

The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose
Release Date: 11/28/2023
Format: audio/ebook hybrid (thank you @prhaudio and @netgalley) for the free copies!
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

I had no idea there was going to be a second book in this universe and absolutely squealed when I saw this book pop up in NetGalley! I loved The Maid so much and I was so excited to get more cozy mystery action with Molly the Maid.

I found this book just as endearing and engaging as The Maid! It’s a very fun whodunnit with themes of how complicated family and love can be!

Lots of quirky and cute moments from Molly as well as her new employee Lily. We get lots of flashbacks into Molly’s past so plenty of Gran content too!

If you enjoyed Prose’ first installment in this series, you definitely need to scoop book two when it comes out! I highly recommend the audio for this book as well - the narration is incredibly well done and really adds to the cozy mystery vibe!

The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose is a compelling read and a worthy sequel. Well written with fully defined characters. Well worth the time!

This is the second book in the series and I was so excited to see what trouble Molly got herself into next! The book is told in a then and now timeline and I enjoyed learning more about Molly’s time with her Grandmother. There were some twists along the way and I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough to see what happened next. The storyline is entertaining, and the writing is witty and sharp. This was such a fun, cozy mystery and I’m so glad I had the opportunity to read it!

Thank You so much to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group Ballantine for my copy of The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose in exchange for an honest review. It publishes November 28, 2023.
Wow! I really loved this book! I may have liked it even more than the first one. I just love Molly the Maid. I really loved the back and forth timelines in this story. I loved getting to know more about Gran and Mr. Preston.
I found this book to be really smart and overall a fun read!

Molly is back! I loved The Maid, so I was stoked to get an advanced copy of The Mystery Guest to review. Many thanks to NetGalley.

In the sophomore book in the series we start right off the bat with another murder at the hotel, and we’re reminded that they always blame the maid!

At this point Molly is the head maid and has recently hired a new maid protege named Nina, who becomes an immediate suspect.

Given what Molly went through in the first book, she steps up to defend her co-worker and gets caught up in the detective work as the mystery of the killer unravels.

The book includes flash back scenes of Molly as a child, so we learn more about the relationship Molly had with her Gran and her experiences working alongside her as she cleaned the mansion of a successful author.

Molly learns some hard truths about life early on and who the real monsters and hero’s are.

I enjoyed this one and recommend if you loved the first one as much as I did 💛

The Mystery Guest drops 11/28/23.

Molly the maid is back! Four years have passed, and Molly is now head maid. The murder of a famous writer right as he was about to make a big announcement means everyone is a suspect. The alternating timeline to when Molly was a child and her time with Gran was woven into the current mystery quite well. These flashbacks really brought Molly to life and were both sad and happy.

Detective Stark returns and, at first, she's just as hard headed as before. But over time she learns to respect Molly and listen to her. We are also treated to some new characters who have joined the crew at the hotel, and together they work to solve the mystery, the unravelling of which was done quite well. Looking forward to the next book.

Molly Grey, now head maid, returns to solve another murder when a local mystery writer collapses and dies during an appearance at the hotel. As in the earlier title (The Maid) Molly’s photographic memory and attention to detail help her to ferret out the identity of the murderer—and this time out Detective Stark comes to appreciate Molly’s abilities. With generous backstory detailing Molly’s childhood and plenty of story reveals, this is a series that just keeps getting better!

Great fallow up to The Maid. I enjoyed getting back into the mind of Molly. In this novel a senator dies while staying at the hotel that Molly works for. Overall I liked Ms Prose first book better but I still enjoyed reading her latest one. Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy for a honest review.

Nita always writes in an obscure way compared to others but it can be loved once you get the hang of it. I have both of the books in this series 4 stars but the second book was way better than the first. I was excited to get this ARC and I loved reading it. The flow of this story was more seamless and had a nice ending.

I enjoyed this light mystery about a maid who helps solve the murder of a guest speaker at a hotel by applying logic. This book also provides the background of this maid and her relationship with her grandmother.

Another cozy mystery to solve with Molly the maid! This time, Molly is back with all of her quirks and is head maid training a new maid at the hotel. Then a guest speaker at an event dies suddenly and everyone is left to wonder if there is foul play afoot. All the best characters are back- including Molly's grandmother (in flashbacks). Overall, another enjoyable read with this group of characters.

I needed another dose of Molly the Maid! Molly is back again, now head maid at the Regency Grand Hotel. And she’s diligently training Lily. When acclaimed author J. D. Grimthorpe picks the Regency for a big announcement, everyone is thrilled. But then he drops dead just as he begins his talk. And the investigation will prove it wasn’t just a health issue. There are plenty of suspects, including some of Molly’s friends. Prose throws in enough red herrings to keep the plot moving at a steady pace.
While Gran is no longer alive, Molly evokes her wisdom on a regular basis. “To err once is human, to err twice is idiotic.” Molly and witticisms like these kept a smile on my face throughout the book.
The book goes back and forth in time between now and Molly’s childhood when her Gran worked for Grimthorpe. The dual storylines work very well together. It gives additional insights into Molly’s youth and her Gran’s personality.
This should definitely not be read out of order. Make sure to read The Maid first so you can appreciate Molly’s growing confidence.
And my favorite quote in the book:

“What do you call it when there’s truth in a story but it’s not a fact?”, I ask.
His face morphs. All the hard lines soften. All the pain dissolves. For the first time ever, he looks giddy and happy and light.
“A novel,” he replies. “You call it a novel.”

There’s plenty of truth in this story. And the ending was perfect. I can only hope there’s a third book to the series.
My thanks to Netgalley and Ballantine Books for an advance copy of this book.

In Molly the Maid's second installment, a famous author she has personal ties to is murdered at the hotel. The book focuses a lot on Molly's backstory and didn't feel like much of a mystery.

It was nice to revisit Molly (from The Maid), but this was not my favorite. Her beloved grandmother was very much a part of the book, but I believe it was a little too much. I know it was needed for the back story, but enough with her helpful phrases. And I am also not sure the point of her boyfriend being out of town and, thus, even mentioned. All of that said, I think if you liked The Maid, you should read this one. Goes quickly and is feeling more like a cozy series.

It was great to be able to see Molly's story and backstory more! I love the writing and the cozy mystery atmosphere of the book. I did enjoy the first book more but was glad that there was a follow-up to one of my favorite books. This book shows Molly's relationship to Gran more in the past which I found the dual timelines to be interesting.

I recently read the first book in this series, so I had to read the sequel. I think this one is better than the first. I enjoyed the back and forth between chapters, from “Before” to present day, so we still get more from Gran. There were a number of small twists, nothing super shocking, but a couple more major twists that I hadn’t seen coming. If you’re a Molly the Maid fan, you should pick this up! I did lose count on how many times the author mentions “chaise lounge,” “Fabrege,” and “in perpetuum”—it was a lot! But overall, a fun read. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reading copy.

I was absolutely obsessed with The Maid so I was so excited to be approved to read this sequel. I loved getting to spend more time with Molly and the adventures she embarked on. I can’t wait for others to experience the joy of this book.

3/5

This book was pretty slow for me but I enjoyed the light-hearted murder mystery. The story had a smooth flow and was an easy read. It goes back and forth between the past and present with only one POV.

I really really struggle with this main character. Personally I do not relate to her and find her just rude to people. So to me it's pretty painful to read. It followed a very similar flow to the first book so there was nothing really earth-shattering for me.

Thank you Random House, Ballantine Books and Netgalley for the review copy in exchange for an honest review!