Review: The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose

I received an advanced review copy of this book for free from the publisher via NetGalley. This did not affect my opinion of the book in any way.

Series: Molly the Maid #2
Publisher: Harper Collins
Published: January 2024
Pages: 416

Synopsis

A new mess.
A new mystery.
Molly the maid returns . . .

Molly Gray wears her Head Maid badge proudly for every shift at the Regency Grand Hotel, plumping pillows, sweeping up the guests’ secrets, silently restoring rooms to a state of perfection.

But when a renowned guest – a famous mystery writer – drops very dead in the grand tea room, Molly has an unusual clean-up on her hands.

As rumours and suspicion swirl in the hotel corridors, it’s clear there’s grime lurking beneath the gilt. And Molly knows that she alone holds the key to the mystery. But unlocking it means thinking about the past, about Gran, and everything else she’s kept tidied away in her memory for so long.

Because Molly knew the dead guest once upon a time – and he knew her…

My Thoughts…

Returning to the Regency Grand and meeting Molly the Maid again was such a treat! This series is such a cosy comfort read, and Molly is a fascinating character that I would love to hug (though she would probably not want that at all!).

I really enjoyed how this second book alternated between the present-day mystery and the past, shining a light on Molly’s relationship with the murder victim and allowing us to properly meet Gran after her brief appearance in the first book. I had similar issues with this book as I did with the previous one, in that some of Molly’s quirks seem to be almost painfully exaggerated, almost cartoonish at times, which frustrated me a little. However, I did enjoy seeing her grow in self-esteem and deepen her relationships with Mr Preston and Lilly, the new maid-in-training who is the primary suspect in the murder, as well as with some of the other secondary characters. Gran’s addition to the cast was also a great one, and any scene with her was sure to bring up some emotion in me.

Somewhat surprisingly, I found the mystery itself to be almost of limited interest to me, as other aspects of the novel drew my attention more and – much like I’d found for the first one – the resolution came a tad too abruptly. Still, this was an extremely pleasant read and I will certainly pick up the next book in the series!