The Maid

A Novel

By: Nita Prose

Narrated by: Lauren Ambrose

2023 Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Novel, Short-listed
2024 Kobo Emerging Writer Prize, Short-listed
2022 Ned Kelly Award - Best International Crime Fiction, Winner

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK • “A heartwarming mystery with a lovable oddball at its center” (Real Simple), this cozy whodunit introduces a one-of-a-kind heroine who will steal your heart.

FINALIST FOR THE EDGAR® AWARD • “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 Book Review (Editors’ Choice)

“Think Clue. Think page-turner.”—Glamour

ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: Reader’s Digest
WINNER: The Anthony Award, The Fingerprint Award, The Barry Award

In development as a major motion picture

Molly Gray is not like everyone else. She struggles with social skills and misreads the intentions of others. Her gran used to interpret the world for her, codifying it into simple rules that Molly could live by.

Since Gran died a few months ago, twenty-five-year-old Molly has been navigating life’s complexities all by herself. No matter—she throws herself with gusto into her work as a hotel maid. Her unique character, along with her obsessive love of cleaning and proper etiquette, make her an ideal fit for the job. She delights in donning her crisp uniform each morning, stocking her cart with miniature soaps and bottles, and returning guest rooms at the Regency Grand Hotel to a state of perfection.

But Molly’s orderly life is upended the day she enters the suite of the infamous and wealthy Charles Black, only to find it in a state of disarray and Mr. Black himself dead in his bed. Before she knows what’s happening, Molly’s unusual demeanor has the police targeting her as their lead suspect. She quickly finds herself caught in a web of deception, one she has no idea how to untangle. Fortunately for Molly, friends she never knew she had unite with her in a search for clues to what really happened to Mr. Black—but will they be able to find the real killer before it’s too late?

A Clue-like, locked-room mystery and a heartwarming journey of the spirit, The Maid explores what it means to be the same as everyone else and yet entirely different—and reveals that all mysteries can be solved through connection to the human heart.

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The Washington Post, The Guardian, Glamour, Elle, PopSugar, Newsweek, Mental Floss, She Reads, Kirkus Reviews

©2022 Nita Prose (P)2022 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

OVER 1 MILLION COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE

*WINNER OF THE NED KELLY AWARD FOR BEST INTERNATIONAL CRIME FICTION*
SHORTLISTED FOR THE EDGAR ALLAN POE BEST NOVEL AWARD
SHORTLISTED FOR THE KOBO EMERGING WRITER PRIZE

INSTANT #1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER • #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK • CITYLINE BOOK CLUB PICK • “A twist-and-turn whodunit, set in a five-star hotel, from the perspective of the maid who finds the body. Think Clue. Think page-turner.”—Glamour

NEW YORK TIMES EDITORS’ CHOICE • ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF 2022—Glamour, W magazine, PopSugar, The Rumpus, Book Riot, CrimeReads, She Reads, Daily Hive, The Globe and Mail, Chatelaine, Stylist, Canadian Living

One of:
Glamour’s “40 Best Books of 2022”
Amazon’s “Best mysteries and thrillers of 2022”
Book Riot’s “Most Giftable Books of 2022”
The List’s “Best Mystery Books of 2022”
Daily Hive’s “22 Best Books of 2022”
Washington Post’s “12 best thriller and mystery novels of 2022”
Business Insider’s “Top 20 mystery and thriller books of 2022”
Authorlink’s “Best Books of 2022”
Goodreads’s "Best Mystery and Thriller of 2022"
Loanstars’s “Best of the brightest – 2022 top pick”
Yahoo!’s “Mysteries, thrillers perfect for the spooky season”
Glam’s “15 Spooky Reads To Get Into The Halloween Spirit”
The List’s “Best Thrillers To Read On Your Weekend Getaway”
NPR’s “13 books full of thrills and chills for Halloween”
The Everygirl’s “18 Cozy Mystery Books to Curl Up with this Weekend”
Elle’s “Favorite Books of 2022”
CBC’s “Top 10 Canadian Books of 2022”

“Excellent and totally entertaining . . . the most interesting (and endearing) main character in a long time.”
—Stephen King

“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

cheap twists, unbelievable ND protagonist

I wanted to like this story because of the premise: detective story with a neurodivergent protagonist (guessing autistic, but not specified) who loves her job as a maid. But the 1st person narration felt like a bad choice to me. Having the ND protagonist constantly rattle off elaborate descriptions of her environment and what she's doing felt much too chatty and out of character. Separately, it takes place in a city in the modern day (she's 25 and has a smart phone), but we're supposed to believe she's never come across another ND person and suspected she, too, might be on the spectrum? After a lifetime of bullying and being called robotic?
But what really dropped this to low-3 stars for me was that the supposedly honest-to-a-fault narrator kept some bombshells hidden until the very end. Without going into spoilers, the big reveals show us she has been operating in seriously gray ethical space the *whole time*, but we don't get to see that character growth - it just gets tacked on as a cheap gotcha after the narrator spends the whole novel telling us she sees things in black and white. I get that she's a Colombo fan, and maybe the narrator is supposed to be trying to tell her own detective story (omitting key facts)? If so, that doesn't come across; she tells us she's telling "her truth."
The book wasn't a total loss, though. It has secret allies and varied, unique characters (I liked the wife of the murder victim). It was an interesting attempt at having an ND character share her perspective, not through a neurotypical lens.
The audiobook narrator did a good job switching back and forth between the other characters and the formal speech of the protagonist.

Magnifico

Just listened to this second time. In part because I’ve run out of credits!The narrator is perfect for the main character. The story is fast paced and engaging. If you listen while you drive you will be prompted to take the long route home to listen longer. The main character has something to teach us all.

So good!

Great main character which makes this book really stand out compared to others. A lighter read from some of the other books in the mystery genre that can be pretty heavy. I highly recommend!

Clever but improbable plot

Too repetitive. Could be shortened by 1/3. An abridged version would be better. Started out well but then dragged.

The Maid

5⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐!
Great story, great narrator, great mystery, very impressed 👏! It is about a maid that works in a very upscale hotel who lived with her grandmother who recently died. The maid, whose name is Molly, is on the spectrum. She is very literally and needs some everyday things explained to her. She finds a dead body in one of her rooms and that's when the action starts. Elements include drugs, trophy wives, illegal immigrants, money grabbing maids, nasty boyfriends, doormen, lawyers, cops and best of all, the unlikeliest of friends. I highly recommend this audio recording. 👌

Dead In A Bed

This was the story of a sweet, unassuming character moving invisibly throughout her simple life and world. The Maid gets caught up in a murder & the mystery it becomes thereafter.
Honestly, it was difficult for me to get into the book & narration at first but it slowly came around for me. It did feel as though a few chapters were missing but again, was ended in a tidy manner. I'd recommend as a quick read to others.

Enjoyable Listen!

The narrator did an outstanding job with the unique tone and formality of the main character, then switching to the other characters and making them identifiable. I think the reviewers who complain the protagonist isn’t believable because she swings from profoundly naive to quite shrewd are missing the point. This character was not only sheltered but ND. Her neurodiversity certainly led her to significantly misinterpret situations and intentions, but that doesn’t mean she’s not intelligent, have her own moral code or can’t make complex decisions. The rules she lives by don’t usually take her down the easy road, and assuming she’s on the autism spectrum and has a penchant for cleaning and organization, she seems pretty strong. The first person story telling was interesting and left the reader to imagine what was really going on from a NT perspective. It wasn’t an edge of your seat thriller but more like something that could actually happen in that kind of environment with all kinds of people. And at the end a little Colombo type wrap-up without the rumpled trench coat. It’s an entertaining listen, just don’t go in expecting a police procedural or a courtroom drama.

great story

I loved this story. I wanted to keep reading to the end. the story makes me think of how innocent people get thrown into bad situations only because of limited life experiences. I know you will enjoy to the very end.

Tender Insight

This narrative rewards the reader with hope and understanding for the plight of being human. It opens slowly, but gains momentum as the story moves forward. Looking through the eyes of a young, developmentally challenged hotel maid gives the reader a chance to to feel invisibility and the derision suffered by many workers of “menial” jobs. Truth, however, triumphs, turning The Maid”. Into a must listen.

Loved, absolutely loved.

I loved getting to experience the world through Molly’s eyes. Such a wonderful character, and a beautiful story.