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Wednesday, March 13, 2024

The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose

 
The plot:  Molly Gray is now the Head Maid at the Regency Grand Hotel. Her private life is going well, and she's taken the new maid, Lily under her wing. But then there's another murder at the hotel. The famous and reclusive mystery author J.D. Grimthorpe is about to make an important announcement when he drops dead on the hotel's tearoom floor. Poisoned. And of course, Lily, the maid who served him his tea quickly becomes a suspect. Molly herself is keeping a secret--she knew J.D. Grimthorpe from when she was a child and her grandmother worked as his maid. Many more secrets are going to come out before the investigation into Grimthorpe's death is through.

My thoughts:  I loved The Maid, Nita Prose's first mystery, and this sequel is almost as good. Molly is neurodivergent; she's organized and has a true eye for detail, but she often misses social cues and struggles with normal interactions with other people. I loved how we get to see moments from her childhood in this one, especially all her interactions with her grandmother. She is truly a unique character. The mystery involving Grimthorpe had some nice twists. I enjoyed following Detective Stark's and Molly's investigation, especially how at odds they are in the beginning, but how well they work together at the end. This is another well-plotted, character-driven, page-turning mystery. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!


45 comments:

  1. Good news for me, since I have this waiting for me on my Kindle!

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    1. :D Can't wait to hear your thoughts on this one when you get a chance to read it.

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  2. This one is on my "to be read" list.

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  3. I've been wanting to read The Maid, so it was great seeing what you thought of the sequel. It's good to hear it's almost as good!

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    1. It's a good read. And Molly is such a fun character!

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  4. I am glad you liked this one, Lark, even if it didn't quite live up to the first book. I really enjoyed the first one and look forward to giving this one a try.

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    1. The first one was SO good. This one is a fun sequel, just not quite as tightly plotted. I still really enjoyed it.

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  5. Very good. I've also got this one waiting on my Kindle and really liked the first book. Molly is a great character.

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    1. She is! It was fun to see her navigate her job and this new murder investigation in this book.

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  6. I haven't read this author but I'm glad you enjoyed this.

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  7. Another winner! I've heard s omany good things about the first one. I really need t omake time for these.

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  8. I loved the first one too! Molly is such a fun character, and I'm rooting for her as she tries to decode social interactions and get by! I have this audio, I just need to make time to listen to it! Thanks for the reminder. I'm so happy to see you enjoyed it! :)

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    1. It was so fun to read this next chapter in Molly's life! :D

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  9. I still need to read The Maid! This sounds like a great read. :)

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    1. The Maid is so good. The struggles Molly has socially really captured my heart.

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  10. Molly sounds like a great character! I need to read this series. :)

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    1. She is a very unique and memorable character. I hope you get a chance to give this series a try. :D

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  11. I look forward to reading this one. I always worry that a second book will not live up to the first in a series. I don't have a copy yet and it will be a while before I get one.

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    1. I always worry that about a second book, too. Especially when the first one felt so unique. And this one isn't quite as good as The Maid, but it's still very enjoyable.

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  12. I really enjoyed both of these books. Molly is such an endearing character.

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  13. Hi Lark, I read the first 80 pages of The Maid about a year ago and didn't finish it. Molly is a very sweet young woman who has been through alot in life but I didn't bond with her like I thought I was going to. But reading only 80 pages I should give The Maid another try.

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    1. I don't know...I only give a book between 25-50 pages these days and if I'm not loving it by then I quit. Time's too precious to waste it on a book you're not enjoying. Molly isn't an easily likable character at first...but she definitely did grow on me. :D

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    2. Good advise. I am going back to my 50 page rule and if by 50 pages it's not for me it's a DNR. To stick too long with a book we don't care for is dangerous because we can end up looking at the new books just a click away on Amazon.

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  14. This does sound fun. I haven't read the first either--I'll have to hunt up them both.

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    1. I think The Maid is definitely worth reading!

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  15. I've got The Maid on my TBR, since it really blew up on TT! I'm happy to hear this one lives up to it.

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    1. It does. It was fun to watch Molly navigate another murder investigation.

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  16. I haven't read these books yet. I have them on my TBR list and I'm hoping to get to them later this year. I loved your post - definitely made me excited to read these :) Hope you have a great weekend!

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    1. Thanks, Nadia! I hope you have a relaxing weekend, too. :D

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  17. I am looking forward to reading this. I really enjoyed The Maid, and I'm excited to hear that this doesn't disappoint.

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    1. I enjoyed this one...it's not quite as good as The Maid, but it was fun to see Molly and I loved getting glimpses of her childhood!

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  18. I'm glad you reviewed this one. I liked The Maid but I haven't gotten to this one yet. I liked the character of Molly -- she seems genuine if a bit innocent.

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    1. She is a bit innocent. And in this one you get to see her when she was a child, which was fun.

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  19. So glad you enjoyed this one! I need to try The Maid again. I got an audio of it and was just not in the mood for it but I haven't picked it back up yet.

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    1. I think it is one you have to be in the mood for because the pacing is a bit slower at times and it took me awhile to connect with Molly.

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  20. Replies
    1. It's a good one. Her first, The Maid, is even better.

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