Author: Nita Prose

NITA PROSE is a longtime editor, serving many bestselling authors and their books. She lives in Toronto, Canada, in a house that is only moderately clean.…

Photo by Dahlia Katz Photography.

#BookReview The Mistletoe Mystery by Nita Prose @NitaProse @PenguinCanada #TheMistletoeMystery #MollytheMaidSeries #NitaProse #PenguinReads #PenguinCanada

#BookReview The Mistletoe Mystery by Nita Prose @NitaProse @PenguinCanada #TheMistletoeMystery #MollytheMaidSeries #NitaProse #PenguinReads #PenguinCanada Title: The Mistletoe Mystery

Author: Nita Prose

Series: Molly the Maid #2.5

Published by: Viking on Oct. 1, 2024

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 128

Format: Hardcover

Source: Penguin Random House Canada

Book Rating: 8/10

Molly the Maid has a whole new mystery to solve in this heartwarming novella from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Maid and The Mystery Guest.

Molly Gray has always loved the holidays. When Molly was a child, her gran went to great lengths to make the season merry and bright, full of cherished traditions. The first few Christmases without Gran were hard on Molly, but this year, her beloved boyfriend and fellow festive spirit, Juan Manuel, is intent on making the season Molly’s mofinst joyful yet.

But when a Secret Santa gift exchange at the Regency Grand Hotel raises questions about who Molly can and cannot trust, she dives headfirst into solving her most consequential—and personal—mystery yet. Molly has a bad feeling about things, and she starts to wonder: has she yet again mistaken a frog for a prince?

A heartwarming, magical story about the true spirit of the season, The Mistletoe Mystery reminds us that love is the greatest mystery of all.


Review:

Sweet, cosy, and romantic!

The Mistletoe Mystery is a delightfully charming, uplifting novella that takes us back into the life of Molly Gray as she juggles the highs and lows of another Christmas season without her beloved grandmother, a hotel filled to the brim with guests and holiday cheer, an employee Secret Santa gift exchange that always fills her with trepidation, and an attentive boyfriend who spoils her daily with lots of little things but is increasingly acting extremely suspicious.

The writing is sincere and smooth. The characters are engaging, supportive, and genuine. And the plot is a touching, nostalgic tale about life, love, family, friendship, surprises, misconceptions, festive cheer, and holiday magic.

Overall, The Mistletoe Mystery is a heartwarming, engaging, festive addition to one of my favourite series, Molly the Maid, by Prose that reminds us to always surround ourselves with those we love, stay open-minded, and always be excited for whatever comes next.

 

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

        

 

 

 

Thank you to Penguin Canada for providing me with a copy of this story in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Nita Prose

NITA PROSE is a longtime editor, serving many bestselling authors and their books. She lives in Toronto, Canada, in a house that is only moderately clean.…

Photo by Dahlia Katz Photography.

#BookReview The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose @NitaProse @PenguinCanada #TheMysteryGuest #NitaProse #PenguinReads #PenguinCanada

#BookReview The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose @NitaProse @PenguinCanada #TheMysteryGuest #NitaProse #PenguinReads #PenguinCanada Title: The Mystery Guest

Author: Nita Prose

Series: Molly the Maid #2

Published by: Viking on Nov. 28, 2023

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 304

Format: Paperback

Source: Penguin Random House Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

When an acclaimed author dies at the Regency Grand Hotel, it’s up to a fastidious maid to uncover the truth, no matter how dirty—in a standalone novel featuring Molly Gray, from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Maid, a Good Morning America Book Club Pick.

Molly Gray is not like anyone else. With her flair for cleaning and proper etiquette, she has risen through the ranks of the glorious five-star Regency Grand Hotel to become the esteemed Head Maid. But just as her life reaches a pinnacle state of perfection, her world is turned upside down when J.D. Grimthorpe, the world-renowned mystery author, drops dead—very dead—on the hotel’s tea room floor.

When Detective Stark, Molly’s old foe, investigates the author’s unexpected demise, it becomes clear that this death was murder most foul. Suspects abound, and everyone wants to who killed J.D. Grimthorpe? Was it Lily, the new Maid-in-Training? Or was it Serena, the author’s secretary? Could Mr. Preston, the hotel’s beloved doorman, be hiding something? And is Molly really as innocent as she seems?

As the case threatens the hotel’s pristine reputation, Molly knows she alone holds the key to unlocking the killer’s identity. But that key is buried deep in her past—because long ago, she knew J.D. Grimthorpe. Molly begins to comb her memory for clues, revisiting her childhood and the mysterious Grimthorpe mansion where she and her dearly departed Gran once worked side by side. With the entire hotel under investigation, Molly must solve the mystery post-haste. If there’s one thing Molly knows for sure, it’s that dirty secrets don’t stay buried forever…


Review:

Lighthearted, quirky, and mysterious!

In this latest novel in the Molly the Maid series, The Mystery Guest, we head back to the prestigious Regency Hotel and into the life of maid extraordinaire Molly Gray as she once again finds herself unexpectedly tied up in a murder investigation when the famed author J.D. Granthorpe collapses dead in the Grand Tearoom while making a surprising announcement, and it quickly comes to light he had ties to her past.

The writing is smooth and fluid. The characters are playful, unique, and clever. And the plot is a well-paced, suspenseful tale full of misdirection, deduction, clues, secrets, mishaps, friendship, nostalgia, neurodivergence, amateur sleuthing, and red herrings.

Overall, The Mystery Guest is another captivating, amusing, enjoyable treat by Prose that had just the right amount of suspicious personalities, appealing characters, and abundance of drama to not only keep me engaged and entertained from start to finish but excited to read whatever escapades Molly manages to get mixed up in next.

 

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

             

 

 

 

Thank you to Penguin Canada for providing me with a copy of this story in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Nita Prose

NITA PROSE is a longtime editor, serving many bestselling authors and their books. She lives in Toronto, Canada, in a house that is only moderately clean.…

Photo by Dahlia Katz Photography.

#BookReview The Maid by Nita Prose @NitaProse @PenguinCanada #TheMaid #NitaProse #PenguinCanada

#BookReview The Maid by Nita Prose @NitaProse @PenguinCanada #TheMaid #NitaProse #PenguinCanada Title: The Maid

Author: Nita Prose

Published by: Viking on Jan. 4, 2022

Genres: Mystery/Thriller

Pages: 304

Format: Paperback

Source: Penguin Random House Canada

Book Rating: 9/10

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?

A Clue-like, locked-room mystery and a heartwarming journey of the spirit, The Maid explores what it means to be the same as everyone else and yet entirely different—and reveals that all mysteries can be solved through connection to the human heart.


Review:

Atmospheric, suspenseful, and delightfully entertaining!

The Maid is a clue-like murder mystery that takes you into the life of Molly Gray, a socially awkward, dedicated maid extraordinaire who, after stumbling upon the body of a loyal guest in one of her rooms, gets embroiled in a murder investigation that’s a little more complex than it originally appears, and for which she may need a little help from some of her friends on staff to help her solve the case and clear her name.

The writing style is witty and light. The characters are quirky, endearing, and well-developed. And the plot is a compelling, pacey whodunit full of amateur sleuthing, red herrings, suspects, deduction, attraction, new beginnings, and tender moments.

The Maid is a debut novel for Prose, and if you enjoy a charming mystery with unique characters you can’t get enough of and a touch of romance, then this is the perfect novel for you. It’s a fun, quick, enjoyable tale by Prose, and you can be sure I will be first in line to read whatever she manages to come up with next.

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

                 

 

 

 

Thank you to Penguin Canada for providing me with a copy of this story in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Nita Prose

NITA PROSE is a longtime editor, serving many bestselling authors and their books. She lives in Toronto, Canada, in a house that is only moderately clean.…

Photo by Dahlia Katz Photography.