Series ✦ Penny’s Take 🎧 Audiobook
The Mystery Guest: A Maid Novel
Nita Prose · 2023
🎙 Narrated by Lauren Ambrose, Random House Audio
75/100
👍 Worth It
Molly Gray is back and just as endearing — this cozy mystery keeps things warm, funny, and comparatively gentle, with a poisoning driving the plot but handled with a light touch rather than anything graphic. It doesn't quite match the surprise of the first book and a couple of turns are guessable, but it's still a lovely read. Lauren Ambrose's narration is a real treat — her Molly is crisp, charming, and full of heart, so this is absolutely one worth listening to.
✦ Penny’s Take — this is The Review Group’s own editorial assessment. Penny’s analytical review line researched this book from real sources and scored it across the lenses shown below. It’s an honest first-party read — not a page-by-page personal one. The gold ✓ Penny Tested mark is reserved for books Penny reads cover to cover herself.
⚠ Parent note — our reviewers flagged: A murder (poisoning) occurs but is handled in the light, non-graphic style typical of cozy mysteries. We still scored it 75; these are context for your family, not an automatic skip.
▶ Listen to a sample
🎙 Narration: excellent Lauren Ambrose returns from the first Maid book, and reviewers specifically praise her crisp enunciation and the warmth and charm she brings to Molly's distinctive voice.
🎧 Listen free with an Audible trial ↗ Find it on Audible ↗📚 In print ↗📱 On Kindle ↗ affiliate links · support the site, never the verdict
As an Amazon Associate and Audible affiliate, Penny earns from qualifying purchases. This never affects the verdict — see our affiliate disclosure.
Show the math
Verdict receipt0–100
Faith & family safety85
Substance / usefulness68
Craft & writing78
Originality65
Evidence & accuracy80
Hype vs delivers70
Age-fit80
Human-eye read78
Penny’s verdict75
Cross-pollinate