Have you ever read a book in a series that made you question your memory of the original? That’s what The Mystery Guest did for me. I actually had to look up my ratings of The Maid to verify that I did, indeed, rate it 4 stars and have a fond recollection of reading it.

In this sequel, we return to the same hotel where Molly has been promoted to head maid. When a famous author holding an event at the hotel dies suddenly right before making a big announcement, everyone becomes a suspect and Molly must help the police solve the crime.

Unfortunately, The Mystery Guest fell flat for me, and I didn’t care who the killer would be. The novel lacked the whimsy and humor of the first. The ending also felt rushed and unbelievable.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Ballantine Books for an advanced copy to review.

Molly is the Head Maid at the Regency Grand Hotel. She's definitely quirky (think Amelia Bedelia) but she takes her job very seriously. When a famous author dies at the hotel while making a huge announcement, Molly is once again in the position of defending herself and her staff while trying to solve the mystery of who actually did it.

This is such a fun, funny book. I really love Molly's quirkiness and her backstory with her Gran in this book provided so much depth. The characters in this series are just so delightful and funny, while also always a little suspicious.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the ARC of The Mystery Guest.

Molly, as ever, is a loveable character and the hotel she works at seems to get itself into many shenanigans. This was a fast paced read and is a fitting sequel to The Maid.

Thank you to Random House Publishing and Ballentine Books.

In The Mystery Guest we once again follow Molly Gray as she works to solve a murder at the Regency Grand Hotel. Molly is now Head Maid and living with her boyfriend Juan. She has a new found confidence and awareness. She feels that her life is perfect when a guest drops dead in the newly refinished tea room. Molly knew the guest as a child and must revisit her past to find clues to help her solve the present mystery.

I found Molly's perspective on the world refreshing. She enjoys simple things like honesty and the sounds of a silver teaspoon mixing sugar into a fine china teacup. It was nice to see Molly and her relationships with others grow. I am glad that Detective Stark has come to realize what a treasure Molly is.

Well, that was wildly underwhelming. I think I really wanted to like this more than I did but I'm not sure what I expected when I wasn't fully blown away by the first book. I will say that I did end up liking The Maid, but it wasn't anything special. This book felt like a carbon copy almost, with a few different little twists but the same 'quirks'. I did binge this book in one afternoon while listening to it at 2.5 speed, otherwise I definitely would have abandoned it. Wasn't the worst, but it won't be memorable or topping any favourites lists.

Recently promoted to Head Maid at the Regency Hotel, Molly knows her way around cleaning and etiquette. which she learned at her grandmother's knee when she lived on a estate. Molly always strives for perfection in her cleaning and her new maid-in-training is eager to learn. The hotel is planning a book signing for reclusive author J.D. Grimthorpe when he suddenly keels over dead. Pitted against her nemesis Detective Stark, Molly searches for cues and discovers her past might be connected to the author. But who murdered Grimthorpe. Was it Lily, the maid-in-training, the secretary, Serena or someone else. With her usual fastidious approach to life, Molly delves into the mystery and brings the criminal to justice. Another sparkling mystery in this series. Hope for more.

i received a copy of this book from netGalley in exchange for my honest review.

WOW. this book was so, so lovely! 5 stars
i loved every part of this story + the epilogue was so perfect!

Although I really loved The Maid and gave it 5 stars, The Mystery Guest was only a 3 star read for me. I was not aware this would become a series untilThe Mystery Guest was announced, and I honestly wish it wasn’t being made into a series. I was a little bored because of how repetitive it felt. That being said, Nita Prose’s writing is amazing, so although I did not enjoy the plot as much, I think I will always enjoy her writing!

Like many readers, I was enchanted by Molly Gray in Nita Prose's The Maid. She's a different type of narrator and heroine. She's no nonsense, she says it like it is, and it's refreshing. So of course, I was excited to dive into The Mystery Guest.

A lot has changed since The Maid. Molly is now a woman in charge of her own destiny. She's head maid, she has strong relationships and friendships, and sadly, her grandmother has passed away. But she's been doing great on her own - that is, until another guest of the hotel drops dead.

The Mystery Guest isn't just a sequel, it has its own personality and keeping intriguing tale. What I enjoyed most is that the book also functions as a bit of prequel, sharing details into Molly's life as a child with her grandmother. Stories that relate directly to the newest murder that needs to be solved.

The Mystery Guest is a fantastic book that I highly recommend to anyone who loved The Maid. Special thanks to Netgalley and Ballantine Books for an advanced e-galley in exchange for my honest review. This one is out now!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this Advanced Reader Copy, in exchange for my honest review.

I was excited to see that a sequel to The Maid was coming out. And this does not disappoint. This is a charming mystery that lets us revisit Molly the Maid.

Time has passed since we last saw Molly, who is no longer a Maid-in-Training but now the Head Maid at The Regency Grand Hotel. And she still takes her job very seriously. But once again foul play has happened in the hotel, and once again, Molly has a connection to the deceased.

I loved that there was a lot of back story, to help understand Molly even more. I find Molly's innocence to be refreshing, whether it be that she is neurodivergent or not, she is a very proper wholesome character.

This was a quick, cozy read. I hesitate to say it is a Cozy Mystery, because I am not a fan.
And I certainly hope that we will be seeing more of Molly the Maid in the future.

I definitely recommend this delightful novel. Rated 4 stars but rounded up to 4.5 stars.

I loved this book so much, I rated it 5 stars! I went into this book blindly. I had heard so many great things about the first book, The Maid, although I never read it, The Mystery Guest was so lovely. This was giving Nancy Drew vibes, which I grew up reading. The Mystery Guest was a very quick, page turner, cozy mystery.
Molly the main character is a maid at a hotel, she is training a new maid and they’re supposed to get a guest at the hotel who is a best selling author. She knows him from her past and something happens to him and Mollie uses her skills and the help of a detective to solve the crime.
I really enjoyed the before and after scenarios. The way she talks about her late grandmother and their relationship was beautiful, reminded me of my own grandmother.
There’s a twist at the end that makes the story even more enjoyable. You definitely want to read the epilogue!

4 stars
I enjoyed this book as much as I enjoyed The Maid! It reads easily while still not feeling like a young adult book. I lovedd Gran & Molly's backstory in this one that gave both this story & The Maid more depth. A mystery with a lot of heartfelt & real life content. Another great one by Nita Prose!
*Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for allowing me to give this a read!*

I absolutely loved The Maid so this sequel was highly anticipated. I found some of the magic of the first book to be absent here, but that isn’t to say it still wasn’t enjoyable. The differences were the setting felt a bit tired this time around and the plot of the murder mystery did not have the same oomph as it did in the first. It’s hard to follow up such a well-loved debut, and I think there was a lot of elements for success here that just fell short for me personally. While I did enjoy, it wasn’t a memorable read for me.

molly the maid is back!! and she’s just as quirky, fun, and wholesome as ever! while I still prefer the original story, this was a fun and easy read!

yet another series of unfortunate events has befallen the regency grand hotel where molly works, and it’s up to her to solve the case properly!! I loved seeing how she opened up to her coworkers and friends a bit more, and even to detective stark (believing molly? what a concept!)

while I didn’t feel the mystery was as strong this time around, it was an easy and enjoyable ride! I loved how this story delved a lot into molly’s past and how her grandmother introduced her to the world of housekeeping!

nita prose writes molly’s POV so perfectly, and I’m looking forward to more adventures with molly! thank you to netgalley and ballantine books for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

rating: 3.5 stars
wine pairing: willamette pinot noir

After recovering from being wrongfully accused of murder, Molly the maid is back at the Regency Hotel where they have a big event planned to get the negativity away from there name due to a guest being murdered. An the world-renowned mystery author ,J.D. Grimthorpe has decided to hold his event at this hotel where he plans to make a big announcement. However he suddenly drops dead on the hotel’s tea room floor before that announcement can be made. Molly is determined to not have another mess up with wrong accusations like last time and will do all she can to prove her and her staffs innocence, even if it means digging into a past that she would rather forget.

Thank you Netgalley, the author and publisher for my ARC!

What joy I felt when realizing I’d meet Molly again. One of the most adorable characters in literature, Molly is at her cleaning prowess and unexpected detective work again.

The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose. Molly, the maid is back and she did not disappoint. I really loved The Maid but I loved this book even more! There were several surprises throughout and I never guessed the ending. Thanks NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Ballantine Books for the ARC!

More fun and much better than THE MAID. THE MYSTERY GUEST is a great ready for any mystery reader. I liked the foray into the past to weave this hotel mystery. Prose is an author to keep reading.

I loved this book ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Molly captured my heart in the first book and I was overjoyed to not only be introduced to young Molly, but also my personal heroine, her witty Gran.

What I love most is that you fall into the story. The details bring the characters and their surroundings to life. Every now and then you remember you are reading a mystery novel and wonder what is going to happen. But unlike other mysteries, I don’t find myself rushing through the chapter to find the next hint, but instead wrap myself in the story, savoring the world it brings to life.

Molly is such a delightfully quirky character and you can’t help but to enjoy her way of looking at and interacting with the world around her.

When the story is told from the point of view of young Molly, it is delightfully realistic. Many of the feelings and actions that Molly has remind me vividly of my own girlhood and rings true to what I would have done in a similar situation.

About halfway through, I thought I had figured out the mystery, but everything I knew was revealed two short chapters later. And the story continued on with more twists and turns.

As the story closed, my excitement grew. Thrilled to approach the final reveal, but even better: I can see the potential for another novel and Molly is fast becoming a favorite of mine.

I enjoyed this book from start to finish. Thanks to Ballantine Books & #NetGalley for my ARC of #TheMysteryGuest

Molly is at it again in this next cozy-ish mystery. We get to see some insight into Molly’s childhood and some of her Grans past as well. This book briefly touches the unfairness of schools towards special needs children, drug abuse and sexual assault. We didn’t get too much of Juan Manuel in this but it was nice to read that Molly still stood her ground and was able to solve the crime!