Last Updated on August 19, 2026
For those of you unfamiliar with Nita Prose of her mega-hit first book, The Maid, I’ll give you a very quick summary, becuase this book, The Mystery Guest, is the second in the series.
I find it useful to know what’s gone on before, though in fairness, this is pretty much a stand alone book and can be read with absolutely no prior knowledge about the lives of those who work in the Regency Grand Hotel.
The story goes like this…
The Maid follows the life of Molly Gray, a hotel maid who struggles with social interactions and the complexities of human emotions.
While working in the luxurious Regency Grand Hotel, Molly’s orderly life is turned upside down when she discovers a dead body in one of the hotel suites.
She then becomes the prime suspect but in the midst of all the turmoil, forms some unexpected friendships as she attempts to clear her name and uncover the truth behind the murder.
Spoiler alert – she did’t do it. Her name is cleared and all is right with the world again!
Moving On To The Next Book
It is now four years later and Molly is the ‘Head Maid’, a title and job that she reveres, not least because it means that she’s following in the footsteps of her now deceased beloved grand mother.
She takes immense pride in her role as head maid at the Regency Grand Hotel, where she is known for her meticulous attention to detail and dedication to maintaining the hotel’s high standards.
Order has been restored to the hotel and she now has her own maid-in-training, Lily, who is a very quiet but diligent young girl that Molly has taken under her wing.
Everybody is preparing for the big debut of the newly restored tearoom with a special event featuring J.D. Grimthorpe, a renowned mystery author who has chosen the Regency for a rare public appearance.
He has an announcement to make and just as he is about to tell the world what it is, he keels over and dies.
Turns out he was poisoned, most likely by the honey in his tea, served to him by Lily.
Once again, Molly finds herself embroiled in a murder investigation. As the case unfolds, suspicion falls on various individuals within the hotel, but what most of them don’t know is that Molly actually knew J.D. Grimthorpe from her days helping her grandmother.
Her keen observational skills and unique perspective become invaluable as she navigates why somebody would want to kill the famous author, and what exactly he was about to reveal to the world.
The Secrets of Grimthorpe
The Mystery Guest is for all intents and purposes a pretty easy going cozy crime read that doesn’t tax the brain too much.
There isn’t a lot by way of clues to follow along and the story moves back and forth between the present and the past when Molly worked at Grimthorpe’s mansion.
That doesn’t detract from the story but with only a few characters outside of the hotel it is a relatively easy one to figure out – even if the reason isn’t immediately clear.
I like Molly Gray as a character. Her perspective of the outside world is interesting and for the most part, unique in terms of a narrators voice.
What I wasn’t thrilled about was the overwhelming number of references of quotes and words of wisdom from her grandmother.
It felt like they took up half the book but I can also understand how somebody in Molly’s position would need to constantly refer to them in order to steady herself through difficult times.
Overall though I felt that this was a book that was more about Molly navigating her way though an investigation than it was about a cozy crime mystery.
The who and the why of the death of Grimthorpe was secondary to telling us about about Molly’s life growing up with her grandmother and how that shaped who she now is as an adult.
So if you’re looking for an out and out mystery that really draws you in, The Mystery Guest is probably not that book.
However, if you want to read a lovely story about overcoming adversity with solving a crime as a back drop then you could do a lot worse.
Next Up Is…
Next up in the series is The Mistletoe Mystery which is a novella rather than a full length book.
That has a publishing date of October 10th 2024, just in time for the holidays and given the title, you won’t be surprised to find out that it is set around Christmas time.
It’s a short story at just 125 pages (most books are around the 375 mark) so you’ll have it done and dusted in an afternoon.
Following that is The Maid’s Secret which is due out in April 2025.
It looks like it will follow on from the second book insofar as the revelations about her grandfather is leads her to discover more secrets in her grandmothers past.
Molly discovers a diary and learns about why her Gran cut ties with her family and that plays out alongside a major a theft at The Regency Grand Hotel.
Nita Prose has created an easy breezy series of books with The Mystery Guest currently available on Kindle Unlimited so if you subscribe you can download it and won’t cost you anything.
