The Maid

by Nita Prose

Harper Collins

Molly is a chamber maid at the posh Regency Grand Hotel.  She absolutely loves her job.  She loves the sweeping entrance and the red carpets, she loves her trolley laden with all the cleaning products and fresh towels and she takes great pleasure restoring rooms “to a state of perfection”.   Molly is not particularly comfortable socially.  She struggles with social skills and misinterprets the intentions of others. She has very bad taste in men.  She has lived with her Gran her whole life and her Gran has recently died so her world is already on shaky ground but when she finds a dead body in one of the rooms, her life is thrown into complete turmoil.   Worst of all, she is now a suspect in the murder investigation.   On her own, Molly needs to learn a whole new set of skills to navigate this challenge, starting with learning who to trust and how to trust herself.

This is such a heart-warming read, about supposedly invisible people taking on the system plus it’s got a real Agatha Christie whodunnit/locked room mystery feel about it.  I loved it as did publishers all over the world –  the book has been translated into over 30 languages and Universal Pictures has already cast Florence Pugh to play Molly!

“An endearing debut…. Prose threads a steady needle with the intricate plotting, the locked-room elements of the mystery and especially Molly’s character. The reader comes to understand Molly’s worldview, and to sympathize with her longing to be accepted—a quest that gives The Maid real emotional heft.” – The New York Times

“The most interesting (and endearing) main character in a long time.” – Stephen King

“Devotees of cozy mysteries, rejoice: Nita Prose’s debut, The Maid, satisfies on every level—from place to plot to protagonist. What begins as a sprightly murder mystery turns into a meaningful, and at times even delicate, portrait of growth.” – NPR

“A delightful cosy mystery…. [Molly’s] bravery, kindness and lack of artifice are engaging enough to have you rooting for her all the way.” – The Guardian