The Maid
Author: Nita Prose
Reviewer: Jen
Rating: B/B-
August’s optional theme: Do the Hustle
What I’m Talking About:
Molly loves to clean and keep the rooms at the Regency Grand Hotel in tiptop shape. She sees the world through a different lens, and she tends to misread social cues and norms. This is how Molly ends up being a person of interest in the death of a very influential guest of the hotel.
The Maid is a cozy(ish) murder mystery featuring a main character who is most likely on the spectrum (she’s never identified as such). The story is shared via Molly’s first person POV, so readers get great insight into her thought process and emotional reactions to her environment and those people around her. It’s clear that most people understand she’s different and either choose to bully/tease her or misuse her trust.
Molly is very matter of fact and she has a high moral code, expecting others to live by that code. Because she’s odd and struggles with emotions, both reading and expressing them, she’s viewed as flippant, especially over the death of Mr. Black, the hotel’s VIP guest. She misreads kind gestures and trusts those who don’t deserve it. She’s also very naive and doesn’t recognize things like drugs and physical abuse. Molly’s personality and thought process made the story difficult for me to read at times. Knowing Molly doesn’t understand what people say about her, how they take advantage of her, how she misreads cues and think people are her friend all gave me a lot of anxiety about poor Molly.
Once Molly figures out who she can trust and are genuine friends, the story got better for me, and I was unable to put it down. I loved watching Molly and friends put the puzzle pieces together in order to figure out the truth. Then we also see a different side of Molly, one that is a little bit devious. I don’t know how I feel about the surprise twist at the end; it definitely changed my opinion of Molly.
One thing that was a bit problematic for me is the flow of the story. Molly’s memories sometimes cause confusion over the timeline. She’ll be in the present, then have a flashback and while in the flashback, something will reminder her of another time, and then eventually we get back to the present.
In the end, The Maid is an interesting story primarily because of the main character Molly and her unique perspectives. There are more books in the series, and I’m curious to know how she may change as time moves forward.
My Rating: B/B-
Jen
About the Book:
Molly Gray is not like everyone else. She struggles with social skills and misreads the intentions of others. Her gran used to interpret the world for her, codifying it into simple rules that Molly could live by.
Since Gran died a few months ago, twenty-five-year-old Molly has been navigating life’s complexities all by herself. No matter—she throws herself with gusto into her work as a hotel maid. Her unique character, along with her obsessive love of cleaning and proper etiquette, make her an ideal fit for the job. She delights in donning her crisp uniform each morning, stocking her cart with miniature soaps and bottles, and returning guest rooms at the Regency Grand Hotel to a state of perfection.
But Molly’s orderly life is upended the day she enters the suite of the infamous and wealthy Charles Black, only to find it in a state of disarray and Mr. Black himself dead in his bed. Before she knows what’s happening, Molly’s unusual demeanor has the police targeting her as their lead suspect. She quickly finds herself caught in a web of deception, one she has no idea how to untangle. Fortunately for Molly, friends she never knew she had unite with her in a search for clues to what really happened to Mr. Black—but will they be able to find the real killer before it’s too late?
Release Date: January 4, 2022
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Series: Molly the Maid #1
Genre: Mystery, whodunit
Format(s): hardcover (304 pages), paperback (336 pages), e-book, audiobook
Book Source: Purchased with my own funds