Molly Gray likes things "simple and neat." She sees "dirt where others don't." This unusual 25-year-old, perfection-seeking hotel maid stumbles upon a murder in The Maid, an inventive and uplifting first mystery by Nita Prose.
Molly, who lives "largely invisible," is socially inept and limited in her fundamental understanding of people. This doesn't hinder the great pride and satisfaction she derives in working as a maid at the Regency Grand, an elegant five-star boutique hotel in an unnamed city. Molly's life and her meticulous, dedicated work ethic were shaped by her grandmother, who raised Molly under a strict moral code. Now that "Gran," her wise touchstone, has died, single Molly struggles to navigate life alone and pay the bills and rent without Gran's help and support.
Molly's tidy world is thrown topsy-turvy when she cleans the room of the Blacks, a rich and famous power couple, good tippers who frequent the hotel. When Molly finds Mr. Black dead, she becomes entangled in a murder investigation where those in her orbit at the hotel suddenly reveal secret, disingenuous motives. Will Molly root out the killer?
The story, set over five days in Molly's life, delivers a delightfully crafted, suspenseful plot and a colorful supporting cast comprised of both the caring and nefarious. However, it's the pure, learning-as-she-goes charm and naiveté of Molly and her inimitable narrative voice--the truth of her lovably eccentric old soul--that readers will not soon forget. --Kathleen Gerard, blogger at Reading Between the Lines