I first heard of The Maid from the Harper Collins Reader’s Room as I filled out a survey on its tagline and blurb. I thought it sounded like a brilliant read and when it came up on my Netgalley feed I had no hesitation in hitting ‘request’. I’ve been really lucky so far that my January 2022 reads have all been 4 or 5 stars and The Maid is no exception – a 5 star read through and through and another Kindig GEM!

Molly the Maid is a well-written and deep main character; she has trouble reading social situations and understanding turns of phrase, and her behaviour is a patchwork of teachings from her grandmother and the motivational sayings she has been taught at her cleaning job at the Regency hotel. She feels so real and so heart-felt, it’s impossible not to feel empathy with her and you are fully on her side from the start. Her character also allows for some clever narrative devices such as leading the reader to believe something before revealing that Molly may have interpreted the situation differently to the truth. It also allows exposition and reveals to go straight to the reader bypassing the main character as some conversations go completely over Molly’s head.

The plot is also well-layered and interesting - on the surface it seems like a typical murder mystery but there is a lot more at play here. There are also quite a few twists later in the story which I did not see coming. The pace is kept high throughout and the writing is so engaging I found it very hard to put the book down to go to work! The ending also made me tear up a little bit – the heart-warming aspect really caught me off-guard.

Overall, The Maid is a must-read for 2022 and I’m sure you will fall in love with Molly as much as I did! Thank you to HarperCollins UK – Harper Fiction for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Wow!! What a read! This book screamed at on its virtual shelf with such an amazing cover! I am glad to say, it did NOT disappoint. I was absolutely hooked & would most definitely recommend!

Loved this. I understand this is a debut novel - brilliant. All through the story I was rooting for Molly as she navigates life virtually on her own. I understand this is already going to made into a film - can't imagine it will be as good as the book. Thanks to Netgalley.

‘The Maid’ is an easy, enjoyable read and most likely sits within the ‘cosy crime’ genre but actually has a lot to say about kindness, acceptance and friendship, too.

Molly is a maid working in an upmarket hotel – the Regency Grand – and takes pride in her attention to detail, whether cleaning rooms to a state of perfection or greeting guests by name as if they were family. However, her daily routine is upended when she discovers a well-known entrepreneur dead in his hotel room bed and finds herself dragged into a murder investigation...

I initially couldn’t quite work out where the novel was set, thinking for some time that it was in the UK, but later realising it was in the US. This didn’t affect the plot in any particular way; it just threw me at the beginning whenever an ‘Americanism’ was used, such as ‘trash’ to mean ‘rubbish’ when I thought the novel was set in London!

Although I don’t believe it is ever specifically mentioned, it’s wonderful to have a story told from the perspective of someone who is neurodiverse and Molly’s view of her job and the people she works with is at times both funny and heartbreaking because of this. Molly is treated appallingly by some of her colleagues because of her mannerisms whilst others, such as her boss, are flustered by them. However, despite the novel centring around a murder, it is the development of Molly’s friendships with colleagues Mr. Preston, his daughter Charlotte, and Juan Manuel, plus her belief in herself and her skills that shines through in this novel. That said, there are some excellent twists throughout the novel, across the different plot strands, that I didn’t see coming, with one actually making me gasp out loud.

The novel isn’t quite what I expected (I was expecting a more hard-nosed, blackmailing kind of maid!) but I really enjoyed reading it and it is great to have a neurodiverse lead character / narrator.

I am grateful to the publishers, HarperCollins, and to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read an advance copy, on which this review is based.

LOVE this book! An addictive read, I literally couldn't put it down! Great characters, great plot, great resolve! Loved every single thing about it and would definitely recommend!!

I wasn't too sure about this to start with but then I got really into it. It was interesting to have a main character who struggled to understand other people and their social interactions. The story was good and kept me interested throughout

There has been a real buzz about this one and I was very curious!

This is the story of Molly, Molly the Maid. She is different, literal, socially awkward and on the edge of everything that happens; a figure of ridicule to her colleagues who work alongside her at the hotel. Molly was brought up by her Grandmother who recently died. The two were very close and Molly still lives her daily life by her Grandmother’s maxims. One day Molly arrives at work to find a dead body in an apartment. It is murder and the vulnerable Molly unwittingly becomes the chief suspect. But it gradually becomes clear that other things were going on at the hotel…
Molly is one of those characters - a bit like Eleanor Oliphant - whose skin is hard to inhabit, uncomfortable. This can make the reading experience uncomfortable too and I did feel uncomfortable as I watched Molly unwittingly embroiling herself further and further whilst she was easy prey to the nasty folk around her. It’s hard to watch someone be taken advantage of so frequently and so badly and I think that this was a big factor in my enjoyment of the first half. I was just desperate for things to turn around for her. However, I found the hotel setting absolutely fascinating which kept me going and then suddenly I found I was gripped and really invested in the outcome.

Rather original and very enjoyable. Thank you very much to Harper Collins UK and Netgalley for a digital copy of this book.

I’m an absolute sucker for books where the narrator addresses the reader directly. I loved Molly the Maid from the first page and the book was an absolute delight from start to finish. Molly works as a maid at the Regency Grand Hotel and she is very proud of hmher skills as a cleaner, skills she learned from her grandmother who died a few months ago. Many of her colleagues find Molly a little bit odd - in fact she knows they call her Roomba after a robot hoover, but she thinks they call her Rumba after the dance on Strictly although she doesn’t know why. Molly likes things to follow a routine, things must be in their place and there are ways to clean everything. In fact her Gran said that cleanliness was next to Godliness. Even at home they had a cleaning schedule, something different each night before dinner, and Molly has carried that into her work. She does have some friends, Mr Preston who works on the door, Juan who washes dishes in the kitchens and Rodney who works behind the bar. Her friends are very important to her and if it does good, it’s occasionally okay to bend the rules. So, when Rodney takes her out for a meal and asks for a favour she’s only too happy to help.

Juan has lost his work visa and needs a place to stay, so could she slip him a key each day to an unoccupied room? Rodney gives her a bag, she doesn’t check, but assumes they are Juan’s things and deposits them in the chosen room on her rounds. Her last friend is Giselle, the glamorous second wife of Mr Black, who stays in a suite at the hotel so regularly that Giselle and Molly have interacted a lot. She has all those qualities that Molly values in a person - she acknowledges the little people, she’s polite and treats Molly like a real human being, rather than looking past her. The story begins as one day Molly doubles back on her normal route to clean the Black’s bathroom. She’s done the rest of the suite, but Giselle was in the shower. Molly makes her way through the suite, noticing that cushions are disturbed, the safe is open and Mr Black is taking a nap on the bed. Yet when she looks closer, perhaps he isn’t sleeping? Maybe he’s dead?

I thought the author had a very difficult line to tread with the tone of the novel. We know that Molly thinks in an individual way and there are times when we do understand more than she does about what’s going on at the hotel. Molly refers to this with a jigsaw analogy - she knows she has all the pieces, but hasn’t put them in the right order yet. This could have been disastrous if the reader was superior to Molly, but we never are. The author keeps us firmly with our heroine, even while other characters treat her badly and underestimate her intelligence. The story was gripping and I wanted to know what was really going on at the hotel, and which of Molly’s friends were truly fighting her corner. Molly is a heroine who will stay with me a long time. Her story is touching, charming and ultimately joyful.

“It’s easier than you’d ever think—existing in plain sight while remaining largely invisible. That’s what I’ve learned from being a maid.”

This book!!…. I consumed it within two days and didn’t want to put it down! The Maid is one of the best books I have read this year and I know that when it’s released in January 2022, it’s going to be an instant best-seller. When you read that Universal have bought the rights to make a film of this book starring the rising young star Florence Pugh before it’s even been published, there’s guaranteed magic on its pages!

Molly is a young woman who struggles with social situations and reading people. She is naïve and innocent, her focus on being the best maid possible in the Regency Grand Hotel. She has always had her grandmother to help her to navigate the world and steer her. When her grandmother passes, Molly is left entirely alone in a world that sees her as a weirdo due to her obsession with perfection and cleanliness. When a rich hotel guest is found in one of the rooms she is assigned to clean, Molly finds herself at the centre of criminal investigation and all eyes are on her. Maid or murderer? Will the truth be uncovered?

The Maid is the perfect mix of thriller, suspense, mystery and intrigue. It’s compelling and quirky with some powerful moments held within its pages. Molly’s character is so endearing, I would have gladly read just about her life (but the discovery of the dead body was a nice bonus as a thriller fan!). Her relationship with her grandmother is adorable and I love how the author portrays Molly’s differences positively rather than making her out to be an oddity or freak. With references to Columbo and hints towards other murder mysteries such as Murder She Wrote, The Maid brings back fond memories for me sitting with my Nana watching TV and trying to solve the murder mysteries on screen. The supporting cast of characters are also interesting and diverse and I found that the story moves along perfectly. The style and language used by Prose was a perfect match for Molly’s character and how she seems a little bit disjointed from the world around her. It is a real page-turner and Prose throws in plenty of twists to ensure the reader doesn’t put the book down! The Maid truly explores what it means to be different in a world that wants conformity and sameness and be prepared for the heart strings to be pulled on occasion too. A great story about uniqueness, friendship and loyalty.

Always remember Gran’s advice: ‘Everything will be ok in the end. If it’s not ok, it’s not the end.’

The Maid will be released on January 22nd 2022. Thank you to NetGalley and to the publishers for the eARC in exchange for my honest review. 5 stars all the way!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book by Nita Prose. Her writing is absolutely delightful with an almost old fashioned slant. Her protagonist Molly works as a maid in an upmarket hotel which she loves and all goes well until she discovers the dead body of regular guest Mr Black in room 401..He was an irascible and difficult man. Molly's life is thrown into complete disarray by this event and this book follows how the mystery of his sudden death unravels. Molly is special, not worldly wise like her peers, but with an innocence that is honourable and sometimes beguiling and as she searches for the truth she learns who she can trust in her world.
This is a gripping and heartwarming tale that reminds us that everyone deserves to be seen, heard and respected.

Twenty-five-year-old Molly Gray works as a maid, returning the rooms to 'a state of perfection', in the Regency Grand Hotel. With her love of cleaning, polite etiquette and a smart uniform, it's a job that suits her perfectly. Also, as maids are seen as invisible, it limits her social interaction- a skill she struggles with, leading her to often misread others. Her grandmother used to help her understand the world, but she recently died, leaving Molly to follow the simple rules Gran taught her.

Until the day Molly finds the deceased Mr Black in his hotel room. It isn't until the police start pinning the crime on her that she realises just how entwined she is in the hotel's secrets.

This book hurts. It's told entirely in first person and, as the reader, you know Molly has seen everything that she'd need to in order to know the secret goings on at the hotel. However, Molly's atypical brain can't piece it all together. Viewing her interactions through her eyes makes her responses seem logical and you feel for her every time someone is rude or dismissive of her because you can see it, but she can't.

The mystery element of this story is nice but what keeps you reading is Molly. As Juan Manuel (a pot washer in the kitchens) says, she's nice. But that just makes the horrible events happening around her even worse. This is a pacey read, especially as this all happens over five days, making the odd event feel convenient, but fine within the context of the story.

Just remember Gran's advice: 'Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, it’s not the end.'

Oh a cracking story, simple and complex at the same time and completely engrossing from the start! If you enjoyed Eleanor Oliphant and Freckles, with a good splash of Columbo and Murder She Wrote, I don’t think you can go wrong with this touching, humorous and sometimes heart-breaking book.

I love Molly the Maid. If you loved Eleanor Oliphant then you will love Molly. Her character is wonderful and so endearing.

Molly works as a maid in the regency grand hotel and takes pride in her work. She is very trusting of others and just wants to be accepted.

Molly soon finds herself embroiled in a murder investigation. During this investigation Molly comes to learn who her real friends are and the true extent of what has been happening within her beloved hotel.

A great story of friendship, love, trust, loyalty and human kindness.

Really enjoyed this story of the quiet, unassuming and gullible Molly the Maid…who is actually more clever than anyone gives her credit for. This story had me gripped from the very beginning as the mystery unfolded, and I became more interested in Molly and her story. It was beautifully written and I found myself just hoping and praying for a happy ending for Molly. I can’t wait to see the movie but I’m so glad I read the book first.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to enjoy this fabulous book.

I have to say that it took me quite some time to get into this book - I found Molly difficult and a bit unbelievable - but suddenly, half way through it took me by the shoulders and I loved it. Once Charlotte the lawyer appears the story really picks up and I couldn't put it down - a good plot, strong characters and some lessons to learn in life. Don't judge a book by its cover and whatever you do, don't assume. An entertaining read

This is a different crime story, the main character sees things from a different viewpoint to most people. She takes pride in doing things right and doing things well but is easily taken advantage of. Ultimately a tale of friendship and self belief this story has many issues that would make it ideal for a book group.

4,5⭐️

Before reading The Maid I had seen several glowing reviews about it, so I was anxious to find out myself what it was all about. Now that I've read it I can say all those reviews were absolutely right. In a year of great debuts, Nita Prose joins that list of fantastic first novels. 

The Maid is truly delightful. Molly the Maid is one of the most charming and unique characters I've read lately and one you can't help falling in love with.

Molly has always been different. Her inability to read social cues, facial expressions or understand words in a non literal sense made her the focus of ridicule and cruelty when she was a child, but she always had her grandma to help her navigate life and explain those things to her. But now her grandma is gone and she must face all alone a world that is not always grateful with those who are different. When a guest is found dead at her workplace, her quirkiness will put her front and center of a murder investigation in which she soon will be chief suspect.

Although The Maid reads like a cozy mystery it has much more depth than your usual cozies. Molly is such a memorable character (think Eleanor Oliphant with murders). As you turn pages you just want to protect her, especially when people prey on her because of her differences and she's not able to perceive it (I wanted to punch some people!). It was a pleasure following her journey and seeing how she found some unexpected allies along the way.

The murder mystery itself was fun to try to solve. It built slowly and had certain locked room mystery vibes (my favorite!).

The Maid is the perfect blend of mystery, humor and heartwarming characters (honestly, I would read a book just about Molly's day to day, no murders involved) and it gives a great message at the same time it delivers a really entertaining story.

I predict it will be a huge success once it comes out next month. It hasn't been published yet and  already can't wait to see what Nita Prose comes out with next.

Molly, you're definitely SEEN now!

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins UK for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

A socially awkward unreliable female narrator along with a bit of a cozy crime caper…. It has all the hallmarks of success!
The perfect 2022 combination.

Yes I found it a little predictable, but it was a good quick easy read.

I think the film adaptation will be a riot!

I found this book quite difficult to get into. For me, it didn't flow that easily, but once I settled into the writing style I found the subject and characters intriguing. The premise of the maid being invisible but seeing everything was brilliant but so true and the reality of a person's difference being preyed upon so sad. I loved the way the story evolved.

A quirky, unusual story, the main protagonist is a very interesting character with an unusual view on life. The story is part who dun it but also a reflection on people and their attitudes to each other. An enjoyable read