The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose *****

 In The Mystery Guest (Molly the Maid#2) by Nita Prose, Molly Gray is Head Maid at Regency Grand, where “author J. D. Grimthorpe … was set to make a big important announcement in our recently restored Grand Tearoom.” Unfortunately, he is murdered before he makes the announcement. Since, “The maid is always to blame,” Molly and her Maid-in-training Lily are the first suspects. Sweet, naïve Molly solves the murder in this mystery of innocence over evil.

Molly reminds me of Matilda (by Roald Dahl, a personal favorite). They both enjoy reading and libraries. Also, they both have a positive attitude despite living in an unfair world. With that attitude, they both overcome their circumstances in the end.

People underestimate Molly, but in the end, they realize their folly. The officers turn my way as though seeing me for the first time. “Who the hell is she?” the taller one asks. “Molly. She’s just a maid,” Detective Stark replies.

Molly’s Gran is dead, but she lives on when Molly remembers her sayings:

Treat others the way you wish to be treated.

We’re all the same in different ways.

Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, it’s not the end. (My favorite)

Deep cleaning gives life meaning. Just grab a duster, Buster.

One step at a time. It’s the only way to get anywhere in this life.

Some quotes:

It’s true, I had learned one thing from my classmates, which is that the saying about sticks and stones was all wrong. They had given me ample practice at dodging both projectiles, and even when their missiles met their mark, the bruises faded over time. But words—the sting of them, the stigma—endured forever. Their words sting to this very day.

A thought occurs to me. “Gran, if the Grimthorpes are Old Money, does that make us New Money?” I ask. She laughs out loud, but I know she’s laughing with me, not at me. “My dear, we are No Money.”

What do you call it when there’s truth in a story but it’s not a fact?” I ask. His face morphs. All the hard lines soften. All the pain dissolves. For the first time ever, he looks giddy and happy and light. “A novel,” he replies. “You call it a novel.”

 A joke with a long setup: On page 8 we are introduced to “LAMBS—Ladies Auxiliary Mystery Book Society.” Then on page 117, we get “The silence,” she says. “The Silence of the LAMBS.”

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