Reviews

CWs: domestic abuse, substance abuse

"Everything will be okay in the end. If it's not okay, it's not the end."

The Maid is a truly enjoyable read. It's not your typical mystery--heavy on character building, less heavy on plot--but is a mystery nonetheless. The hotel whodunnit, oddly enough, sorta sat sideline for me as I read. I was much more invested in the quirky, adorable narrator and her tedious yet captivating relationships. You'll likely root for Molly harder than most heroines, and her dynamic growth as a person will bring the warm fuzzies as you watch her conquer and/or embrace what those around her consider to be her "flaws."

Although I was so pleased to read it, I couldn't bring myself give The Maid a 5 star rating. It jumped between 5, 3, 4, back to 5, then down to 4 stars as I read. I would attribute that mostly to some editing flaws. The pace ebbed and flowed uncomfortably--boringly--at times, but never enough for me to lose interest. The ending itself was oddly organized. It took a while to tie everything up, and not always in a sensible order.

That being said, this was an easy-to-follow mystery with a truly lovable narrator and some excellent characters. I highly recommend it to folks wanting a quirky, contemporary whodunnit minus the hoops one typically has to jump through when reading the subgenre.

nataleemarilyn's review against another edition

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mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

lizzkitch's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

mkoshy's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

loiseigenraam's review against another edition

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2.0

I have conflicted feelings about this book. I read the first half of the book and then put it down at some point and picked it up again after about 6 months (and only because I can't dnf books, 'cause it makes me physically uncomfortable... vry annoying). I will say that I liked the second half of the book better though. The story finally kind of upped the pace and revelations happened etc. And I did like the story overall. I thought it was interesting and different and the mystery was well thought out.

Something that really bothers me and is also the reason I struggled with getting through the book in one go, is the way Molly 'is' and consequently is treated by others. Starting the book I thought it was quite obvious that Molly was neurodivergent. I thought this was intentional and Molly would discover there was a 'name' for the way she viewed the world and it would be talked about and explored and I mostly hoped it would create more understanding from people in her life. Which was not the case.

I don't have a problem with Molly herself per se, but I am a very character driven reader. So when I can't connect with the main character I struggle to get into the story. I do however think it is important to have representation of every kind of person in the media we consume, so I would've liked if there would've been some reference to neurodiversity. Even if it was just in like an authors note or something, where Prose could've given a little more information and direct people on where to go if they maybe struggled with the same things Molly did.

If this book was written earlier in time, maybe I would’ve had less trouble with the way everybody acted around Molly since there was less information and more stigmatisation around neurodiversity. But as the book was published in 2022, you’d think there would be more knowledge and understanding, especially from institutions like the police.

I also read somewhere that, when asked if Molly was neurodivergent, Prose herself kind of laughed it off and portrayed Molly as quirky and different. I haven’t really done any research into her reactions, so can’t really form a wellbased opinion on it. But I do feel, that if the above is true, it can be somewhat harmful towards people that are in fact neurodivergent…

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