Book Review of The Maid by Nita Prose – A Gripping Whodunit
Table of Contents
My Rating – 4 out of 5
Plot Summary (Storyline) – The Maid
From an Editor to Author, Nita Prose has traveled from the background to the foreground, quite surprisingly! From a chance encounter with a Housekeeping lady in a hotel came the idea of this novel – a cleanliness-obsessed hotel maid whose awkward demeanors and oddball social skills land her in trouble rather dramatically. Molly Gray is a 25-year-old young girl who works as a maid in the storied Regency Grand Hotel. She has few social skills and fewer friends, her only constant companion being her maternal grandmother Gran. Her colleagues even call her ‘Weirdo’ but she doesn’t mind the slur. Her first and foremost responsibility is to return a used room to its original glory.
Molly is fastidious, sincere, and totally in love with her job, and in the circle of her life, she goes from home to Hotel and hotel to home in an unending loop! Molly gets immense pleasure in returning a soiled room to its pristine glory. Everything shining like new and in its rightful place. But the same Molly is in for a rude shock one day! A long-standing regular guest of the hotel Mr. Black and his 20 something trophy wife Giselle are in for a stay at the Regency, and one morning when Molly is in the suite to do her cleaning chores, she discovers Mr. Black dead of no apparent reason. Giselle is nowhere to be seen.
A distraught Molly calls for help and then she faints! The Police arrive and they start their own investigation into the suspicious death of Mr. Black. There seems to be no external injury to the dead, but something does feel wrong!! The hotel safe lies ajar and there are some pills lying around. Detective Stark, who is in charge of the investigation, interrogates Molly quite in detail but after a few days, they arrest Molly on the charges of murdering Mr.Black and even tacks on a drug-peddling charge to go with it. Molly vehemently proclaims his innocence but is now pushed into a corner. The only way Molly can be set free is if the real killer is nabbed!
The whole world seems to be arrayed against her and her only friend at this time – since her Gran passed away – hotel doorman Mr. Preston stands by her side. Her perceived boyfriend, Rodney – the barman at the hotel turns out to be a devious little punk and Molly is heartbroken but also determined to tell her version of the truth. The daughter of Mr. Preston, Charlotte, is now a hot-shot lawyer who agrees to fight Molly’s case pro-bono. But will this rag-tag team be able to unearth enough proof to exonerate Molly? Answers lie in this delightful book.
Conclusion – Book Review of The Maid
Fluidly written, the maid’s story is a joy to read. The details are fascinating and the characters are well fleshed out. There are certain passages of dry, witty humour which keeps the attention engaged. An interesting end to the story is like icing on the cake. Overall, an assured debut from a newly-minted author, and the hotel is an interesting choice of setting! For all fans of an old-fashioned whodunit, The Maid is a must-read in those cozy, near-the-fireplace kind of lazy winter settings. So go for it people!!
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