"The Mystery Guest" by Nita Prose marks the return to the illustrious Regency Grand Hotel in the second installment of the Molly the Maid series. As Molly Gray assumes her role as Head Maid amidst the aftermath of a scandalous murder, the hotel endeavors to restore its tarnished reputation by unveiling a new venture—the tearoom. The grand opening takes a sinister turn when esteemed mystery author J.D. Grimthorpe is about to make his congratulatory speech and falls dead, leaving Detective Stark to once again cast suspicion upon the hotel staff, especially Molly and the maids.

The narrative unfolds at a delightful pace with clever unexpected turns, and a plethora of plausible suspects. Yet, beyond the intricacies of the mystery, it's Molly's everyday struggles and the bonds she forms with her hotel family that truly captivate. As glimpses of her past surface and her familial ties deepen, alongside the timeless wisdom inherited from her grandmother, Molly's character becomes more charming.

In "The Mystery Guest," readers are treated not only to a masterfully crafted mystery, but the author also delights us with the rich tapestry of Molly's world—a world where camaraderie, resilience, and the pursuit of truth intersect in a most captivating manner.

While I would recommend reading “The Maid” which is the first installment of the series to gain a deeper understanding, the present book stands independently as a source of enjoyment, offering a complete narrative experience even to those who approach it without prior acquaintance with the series.

Heartfelt appreciation to NetGalley, Ballantine Books, and Nita Prose for the Advanced Reader Copy!

I loved the Maid so I was very enthusiastic to read the sequel, the Mystery Guest. I bought a paper copy after reading a few chapters of this ARC e book.

Absolutely loved it. Molly is a quirky, clever lovable character who is very misunderstood. This whodunnit will keep you guessing until the end A crime only Molly can solve

Loved this follow up to The Maid. What could be better than spending more time with loveable, quirky Molly? I so enjoyed reading this book.

Molly finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation of a famous author who has come to the Regency Grand Hotel to make an announcement. The tearoom crowd is shocked when the author falls dead during his speech! We then follow Molly as she tries to unravel what happened to the author.

In this story we find out more backstory about Molly's childhood and growing up with her Gran. There are some great surprises!

I devoured this story in a weekend.

Book 2 of the series. I didn't enjoy it as much as the first one. It was ok - but I felt it dragged a bit and there was too much of the main character's quirks. Though some was funny.

4.5 Stars: The Mystery Guest is the second book in the Molly the Maid series and I really enjoyed this story. It can be read as a standalone, but I think you should read the first one as the case in it is referred to in this one. Molly is now head maid at the Regency Grand Hotel, and in her glory. She is training the new hire, and helping to get ready for an event featuring famous author J.D. Grimthorpe. When he drops dead at the tea being given in his honor, it is determined to be murder and Lily, the new Maid-in-Training, is the main suspect. Once again, Detective Stark, Molly's old foe, investigates the author’s death, and is bewildered by Molly's involvement as well as how she sees all that she sees. Will Molly save the day and keep the hotel running smoothly and save it's reputation?

Molly Gray is on the autism spectrum, but is a wonderful maid and employee. She has been fastidious since she was a young girl raised by her grandmother. In this book we learn a lot about Molly's past through her remembrances and we really get to know her, as well as see some of the reasons she says and does certain things, as well as some of her actions. Molly's love and live-in boyfriend, Juan Manuel is visiting family in Mexico, so was not in this story and I missed him, but there were other familiar characters from the first story. There are actually two mysteries in this one and with the help of her friends, Molly is able to figure it out. Detective Stark is much nicer to Molly in this one and I liked her more. This is more of a cozy mystery than the last one, and I think I enjoyed it more. I recommend this one to cozy mystery lovers, and those who like to read stories about neuro-divergent MCs.

It was so fun to be back in Molly the Maids world! I absolutely love her as a character. The story picks up four years after the first book and Molly is the head maid.

She is training a new maid, Lily, when a tragic death happens at the hotel.

I honestly loved this book, it was a fun “cozy” mystery and I just enjoyed listening to it! I said this about the first book, but Lauren Ambrose narrates the book and she just adds so much to the characters it really made me love listening any spare second that I had!

It wrapped up Mollys story nicely and I wouldn’t hate a third book in the series!

my rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I enjoyed this cozy mystery but not as much as the first book, The Maid. I found this one to be a little slow and not very surprising. There was a lot of repetition throughout. Also thought it was odd that Molly' boyfriend Juan Manuel was only mentioned a couple of times and not really a featured as a main character in the book, I did enjoy the dual time points from when Molly was a child and seeing how Molly has grown over the years. 3/5 stars!

While I was initially excited to delve into this second novel featuring Molly, I found it to be filled with repetitive passages, and somewhat simplistic, as if aimed at young children (?). The mystery aspect was passable. It possessed a charming and lighthearted quality, but personally, it didn't resonate with me although I am quite the enthusiast of this sort of cozy-mystery genre - this was lacking and not quite up to the mark of a cozy for me.

I didn’t love the first one but I decided to give it another chance by requesting the ARC of the second. I’m a little late getting to it as this was published a few months ago but I didn’t have any particular interest in reading it right away. The story moved pretty quickly and I felt more interested than I was for the first book but there still wasn’t a lot happening. I enjoyed the additions of flashbacks to Molly’s childhood. Overall I felt like this was pretty average and pretty on par with the first one (maybe a little better in my opinion) but I thought this one felt a little more like a cozy mystery which I liked. I think your opinion of the first book will indicate your enjoyment of this sequel.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Random House Canada and Nita Prose. The Mystery Guest was published November 2023.

I don't read a lot of murder mystery, I'm not sure why because the twists and turns are always so fun, and trying to figure out the whodunit of it all before it's revealed it's like an added challenge.

Molly is a character that I love. She is quirky and confident, quick and smart. I enjoyed getting to know more about her and Gran's past in this book with the dual time line that took place.
I will say that I enjoyed The Maid much more than this book, I think the introduction of the characters and getting to know them for the first time was a lot of the appeal. None the less, I did enjoy this from start to finish, it kept me interested, and the pace was perfect.

The Mystery Guest does not stray far from the formula created in The Maid. The character hasn't grown or changed much and it is yet again a mystery set in the hotel she works in. If you loved the first, I can't see any reason to not love this one as well.

Molly Gray is now the Head Maid at the Regency Grand Hotel. At an event at the hotel, the famous author J.D. Grimthorpe drops dead, leaving the hotel staff as the prime suspects. However, Molly keeps it a secret that she knew Grimthorpe as a child. To figure out who the killer is, Molly revisits memories of visiting the Grimthorpe mansion with her Gran as a child.

I was so glad to revisit Molly in this story. She’s a unique character who doesn’t understand many social cues, so she’s viewed as “different” by many people she encounters. Despite this, she perseveres and works to solve the murders that occur at the hotel. It was nice to see some of Molly’s memories with Gran, but I would have liked to see the story stay more in the present mystery. The murder mystery was suspenseful, with an ending I didn’t expect.

I hope we get to revisit Molly Gray in the future.

Thank you Penguin Random House Canada for sending me a copy of this book!

Content warnings: addiction, alcoholism, poisoning, death, theft

Molly the Maid is back again!!

Molly is still working at the five star Regency Grand Hotel. She still has her love of cleaning and has really made a name for herself. She is so proud of her new title Head Maid and takes her role very seriously. She loves her boyfriend Juan, and she is still best friends with Mr. Preston and meets with him weekly for lunch. She is missing her Gran but still hears Grans voice in her head which gives her comfort.

Everything changes when a famous mystery author J.D. Grimthorpe holds a conference in the hotel tea room to make a secret announcement. Molly wants this to go perfectly and has the room sparkling and everything just so. That's her job, after all! J.D. Grimthorpe is making his speech when he suddenly drops dead.

Detective Stark who we met in book once is back on the scene. It doesn't take long for Detective Stark to decide that foul play was involved. The problem is, the hotel was full of fans, as well as all their staff including a new Maid In Training who doesn't really speak. Could she be the culprit? Or is it a fan? Or maybe another employee of the hotel?

Molly has a secret. She knew the author when she was a child. Her grandmother was his maid and Molly used to clean at his house as well. She wonders if she can go back in her memory will she have any answers to who may want him dead?? Molly knows she can solve this mystery and begins looking for clues. Can she solve the case??

I adored this book. I love Molly the Maid. I usually read very dark thrillers and mysteries so it's nice to read something that is still a mystery full of twists and turns but a little on the lighter side. I loved the first book "The Maid" in this series and I am hopeful for another one! Molly is such a great character and an easy one to root for. Her grandmother is so wonderful and wholesome. I love their relationship, which we get to explore more in this book. Also, there is great twist at the very end of this book which made me smile!!

4.5 star read for me!

This book failed to keep my interest it started off ok but I felt like it was predictable and so therefore I am only going o rate it 1 star. Thank you netgalley for a chance to read this book and review for my own thoughts and opinions

Molly is in the thick of it again! Another murder at her hotel and Molly gets stuck right in the middle again. Problem solving like Sherlock, Molly starts to investigate the situation since the Detective on the case seems to be on the wrong track again.

With flashbacks to her childhood, the story becomes even more complicated. I did enjoy the parallel story line from past and present.

Molly's confidence is much improved and has taken on the responsibilities of Head Maid. I loved seeing her growth and stepping into positions that challenged her. And absolutely loved the ending! I hope to see so much more of Molly!

Although this story can be read as a standalone, you may better understand the character by reading her background.

An amazingly playful look into following Maid Molly at not just her hotel, but at her past when her grandmother worked as a maid in a fancy mysterious mansion. An optimistic fun read.

Molly the Maid fans will be excited to know that The Mystery Guest is a sequel to the first book in the series that does not disappoint. Molly is now a supervisor at the Regency Grand Hotel, but she is just as sweet and quirky as ever. There is a new mystery for her to solve and the story gives more background to Molly's childhood. If you enjoyed the first book in the series, this is definitely one to add to your TBR. I hope the author continues with this series, as it is one of my favourites.

I loved the Maid and was excited to read the Mystery Guest and learn more about the characters. Hearing more of Molly and her gran’s backstory was great, as I enjoy their relationship and I thought this was an interesting way to build upon what we know about them and provide insight into Molly. I thought the first half to three quarters was great, and I enjoyed the mystery and development. It just felt a little flat to me at the end, the reveal felt anticlimactic and some do the dialogue between Molly and the other characters felt strange to me. Overall, a great cozy mystery with likeable characters. Hoping for more Molly books!
Thank you Penguin Random House Canada for the copy through NetGalley in exchange for a review!

Such a delightful, absorbing and easy-to-read cozy mystery that totally warmed my heart. Molly is such an endearing, capable and wonderful character that I thoroughly enjoy spending time with. I thought the mystery was entertaining and loved that we got some of Molly’s backstory.

Would definitely recommend!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the digital review copy.

P.S. That new book smell of the physical copy was absolutely amazing! I literally couldn’t get my nose out of this book.