This is the second book by Michelle Dunne that I have read and it is another cracker!

Told from the two different perspectives of June, a hotel maid who is invisible to everyone as she goes about her daily work and Mia, a 10 year old adopted child living in appalling circumstances. As the story progresses we learn more about the sad but totally different home life of each of these characters, convincingly described, making the reader shudder.

Life in the hotel has many characters, realistically portrayed, with most being quite unlikable, drawing no empathy from the reader, except for June, working thoroughly and reliably. So many layers here that I will not reveal more about, to avoid any plot spoilers.

The descriptions of the hotel itself and the grounds form clear pictures of a beautiful site, making the comparison to June’s home all the more stark.

Contrasting this to the rather stately home of Mia, a young child lacking understanding of her situation and terrified of her adoptive parents, makes for quite uncomfortable reading and yet I was compelled to read on.

The skillfully developed plot had me puzzling away for hours, trying, and failing, to make connections or predict where the story was going. Then pieces began to fall into place revealing brilliantly satisfying but dark completeness. I had to stop at one point and try to visualise who, how and why, the sign of a great story!

The language used and the vivid settings, bring Ireland alive for the reader. Another author for my ‘must read’ list! I would highly recommend this thrilling read!

I love the premise of a hard-working hotel maid who sees a lot on her job, but keeps everyone's secrets (and who has secrets of her own!) I enjoyed getting to know June Calloway, a young woman who keeps to herself and has a small flat she shares with an elderly woman. The book is compelling, and nothing is as it appears.

However, as the story progresses, it gets darker and darker. There are detailed scenes of self-harm, suicide attempts, and child abuse so large parts of the story are hard to read. There are a few different timelines and points-of-view so I was confused how everything was related. It is clever how everything comes together at the end and I was interested to see what would happen next, so I have given the book 3.5 stars. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the advance copy of this ebook. Although I received the book at no cost, my review is voluntary and unbiased.

Michelle Dunne’s The Hotel Maid is a thrilling, edge-of-your-seat mystery that keeps you guessing until the very last page. The story centers on a seemingly ordinary hotel maid who becomes embroiled in a dark and dangerous web of secrets after discovering a dead woman in one of the rooms she cleans. The narrative is tense and immersive, drawing readers into the maid’s world where she moves unnoticed through the luxury Cedarwood Manor hotel, her own secrets carefully guarded. However, when a cryptic note suggests someone knows more about her than they should, the suspense ratchets up, leading to a series of shocking twists.

Dunne masterfully weaves a tale of psychological intrigue, where every character could be hiding something sinister. The missing ten-year-old girl adds another layer of urgency and emotion, making this more than just a simple whodunit. While the plot occasionally leans on familiar tropes of the genre, the author’s ability to create a palpable sense of tension and her skillful pacing make The Hotel Maid a compelling read. Fans of psychological thrillers like The Woman in the Window and Gone Girl will find themselves thoroughly absorbed in this dark and twisty tale.

The story unfolds at Cedarwood Manor, where a woman is found dead and a ten-year-old child goes missing from the hotel. Initially, I found the first half of the book to be somewhat confusing and challenging to engage with. However, once I reached the midpoint, the narrative seemed to flow more smoothly, leading me through various twists and turns and eventually tying together different story arcs in a satisfying manner.

Overall, despite a rocky start, I ended up really enjoying "The Hotel Maid" and am eager to explore more of Dunne's work in the future.

This was such a tense read all the way through. It had me gripped and not wanting to finish until I knew the truth.

I enjoyed this story. It started great. It is a slow-burn but I didn't mind. When I got to the ending I was definitely surprised. Overall, entertaining and engaging.

Page-turning thriller with an unforgettable twist

Without giving the game away, this is an unforgettable thriller with a remarkable protagonist and a twist that you will not see coming. Backgrounded by the lamentable history of the Magdalen Laundries, this is a clever mix of history, mental health and murder, and sure to hit home for a dark summer read.

It reminded me of Roald Dahl in its darkness and the innocence of the central character, until you get to the heart of the story, where Dahl's darkness truly comes back to bite. Not really my kind of book, but worth reading for fans of thrillers and women's fiction.

June Calloway has been cleaning rooms at the Cedarwood Manor for 6 years. As a maid, she’s practically invisible to the guests and other staff there. A bit of an odd duck, she says little but notices everything. She’s good at her job and enjoys it well enough, but her life outside of the luxurious hotel is quiet and lonely. Although she has a roommmate, she has little money and few possessions. She also has a tendency to self-harm. But June has big plans and even bigger secrets.

A bit of a slow burn, nothing really started happening until after the half-way mark and I was getting bored. The story’s main character, June, seemed a bit too much like another in a series I’ve also read. Also, the narrative flips back and forth in point of view and time jumps that made the flow uneven. I didn’t really enjoy the parts that featured Mia. The lies of Tess and the convoluted identity and names got muddled as well. From then, it became entirely forseeable . I didn’t care for June and how she handled her issues and past. Although I might initially have felt for her in the situations she found herself in, I soon believed that she was wrong in how things were handled. It was way too complicated for a plot that was so predictable in the end. Enough said.

I listened to the audiobook while following along in the e-book as both were provided as ARCs by the publisher. I enjoyed the narrator of the audiobook who did an excellent job of voicing the characters and I loved her accent. That definitely enhanced my enjoyment of the book.

Thank you, Storm Publishing, for the advance reader copy.

Trigger warnings for Ped, child abuse, SA, infidelity.

I struggled to read because of these TW.

The writing is gripping and the main lead is quite interesting.

This thriller will not be for everyone.

June is a hotel maid at cedarwood manor who tries to remain as invisible as possible to guests and staff. She lives a sheltered life with only one friend, old lady Tess who she shares a home with. Being this way June learns secrets about those around her, secrets she keeps to herself.

Mia is a 10 year old being treated as a house slave for her adopted family, desperate to find out her biological roots and escape her current life.

So what do Mia and June have in common?

The plot requires you to keep an open mind as it relies mainly on coincidences for the story to work, I did however enjoy the read and felt the little reveals throughout made it come together.

Many thanks to NetGalley, publisher and author for my eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Does a hotel maid keep our secrets or is she busy hiding her own?
June takes pride in her job, maintaining the luxurious feel guests of Cedarwood Manor have come to expect. She keeps herself to herself preferring to be invisible to others and guests barely know her name.
The book opens with June discovering a body in room 208 and Mia a ten year old girl is missing. It then goes back in time following June and Mia’s story leading up to this discovery. I won’t give any spoilers but I did not guess the ending.
This thriller was fast paced and I felt the author really covered some sensitive topics well. Please be aware of triggers - child neglect & abuse, self harm and suicide.
Thank you NetGalley, Michelle Dunne and Storm Publishing for this ARC, all opinions expressed are my own.

Hmmmm. Not so sure what to think of this one. It was a bit confusing. I didn’t like most of the characters. The plot twists were pretty crazy though. The ending was definitely a surprise. It was hard to kind of put it all together as to who kind of went with who. A few too many different characters for me. The book was rather complicated.

The Hotel Maid by Michelle Dunne is a dark and compelling psychological thriller that pulls readers into the hidden lives of its characters. The story follows June, a maid at the Cedarwood Hotel, who prides herself on being invisible. However, her carefully maintained anonymity is shattered when she finds a note in her locker that reads, "I know what you did."

The novel's structure, shifting between past and present, allows readers to piece together the events leading up to the ominous note, providing a deep dive into the characters' troubled psyches. Dunne tackles heavy themes such as self-harm, child neglect, and abuse, exploring the lingering effects of trauma with sensitivity. While the characters are not particularly likeable, they are complex and damaged, making it easy to understand their actions and motivations.

The pacing is deliberate, building tension as the narrative unfolds. The backward glance at events leading up to the present creates a sense of inevitability and deepens the reader's understanding of the story's dark undercurrents. The ending, while satisfying, leaves some questions unanswered, adding to the novel's haunting atmosphere.

Overall, The Hotel Maid is a gripping read that will resonate with fans of psychological thrillers. Michelle Dunne has crafted a story that lingers, with its complex characters and unsettling themes making a lasting impression.

Michelle’s new psychological thriller is a fast-paced, multiple POV story set across a number of timelines. There are some big subjects included and I want to give a trigger warning for some of these because they feature quite a bit – child abuse, suicide and self-harm. Set in Cork in an exclusive five-star hotel, I couldn’t help but draw comparisons to Nita Prose’s The Maid and I know that recently there’s been a number of mystery/thrillers that focus on the hotel maid as the main character.

This is a dark read; far darker than some of the other books featuring the maid character. Parts of the story are hard to stomach and it will leave the reader feeling unsettled throughout. The inclusion of the chapters from Mia’s perspective are the most unnerving, especially her grooming by her father and the abusive relationship with her brother. Michelle isn’t afraid to delve into these aspects and as you move through the story, be prepared to feel more and more uncomfortable and disturbed by the revelations uncovered by June.

With a plethora of unlikeable characters, Michelle has put together a solid thriller that readers will not want to put down. At 266 pages, Michelle has managed to pack a lot into this story. I figured out the major plot twist quite early on but it didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the story and some of the smaller twists that popped up.

Thanks to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the arc. The Hotel Maid is out on August 23rd. 3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book could definitely be triggering to some people. I thought the whole book was pretty bananas. It started out a lot like The Maid (which I loved) but then took a very weird and sinister turn. I felt like I couldn't look away and kept reading, although honestly I wasn't sure I wanted to know what happened next. It left me feeling odd and uncomfortable when I finished it. Excellent suspense but a bit too much for me.

Thank you to Storm Publishing and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are my own.

I really liked the concept of this book however I found the writing style to be a bit chopping and it didn't flow as well as I would have expected it to. It felt like I was throw right into things from the get go and expected to know what was happening. This book is all about our main character June who is the newest maid at the hotel. June tries her best but struggles a lot which is why it is a surprise to everyone when an elite guest, actress Ms Kelly and her daughter Mia specifically asked for June to be their personal maid for their stay at the hotel. June tries her best but she is still dealing with a lot of issues such as self half low self worth and being used by people she should be able to trust. The story then switchs to Mia point of view. While Mia should have the perfect life hers is anything but as you really see the sadness and struggles that she is facing. She is consistently abused both physically and verbally by her family even though she tries her best to please them. The book intertwines both girls experiences into one story as you get to watch them play out parallel to each other. I did find it hard to sympathise with our main character but I really felt for Mia. Overall I likes most of this book however the slow start really had me struggling to continue this one. Once the plot is all set up however I really started to get into this book. I couldn't get enough of Mia's character and I felt so bad for her every time she started to get happy something crushed it. While some parts were a little confusing I couldn't get enough and the ending left me completely shell shocked. really good read and I'm very glad I got the chance to check it out.

Slow burn thriller. An under-the-radar maid who knows a lot...a dead body...a missing girl. Lots of twists in this quick mystery/thriller.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for access to this eARC.

“The hotel maid” starts off very much giving “The Maid” vibes - a seasoned hotel maid who flies under the radar and leans towards being on the spectrum, rude and quirky guests and a suspicious dead body.

After the opening chapters the book diverts into much darker territories. We have different timelines and POV and a lot of trigger worthy material (child neglect, child abuse, child bullying, self harm, SA, peadophilia etc).

Because of the subject matter i struggled to connect with the characters and found myself just feeling bad for the FMC. I was hoping for a fun murder mystery and found myself just feeling uncomfortable.

Unfortunately this one just didn’t vibe for me. I will say that the audiobook narrator did a great job on her part, everything was clear and concise and it was easy to differentiate between characters.

Thank you to Michelle Dunne, Dreamscape select and storm publishing for the ALC.

Publish date: August 23rd

This book had a great plot with intriguing characters. I’ll definitely be looking out for more from this author.

This was a dark, quick read, the writing style was good and there were many plot twists that I didn’t saw coming.

Thank you Netgalley and Storm Publishing for this arc