I love checking in with Molly the Maid. After two novels and one novella, I’m quite willing to see where Nita Prose takes the character. So I dug into this one without having read a thing about it. I just wanted to see how Molly, Juan, Mr. Preston, Mr. Snow, Stark, and Angela were doing.

This time out we’re invited to join Molly in a different kind of story and mystery. The wedding between she and Juan is not far off, and the hardworking pair, still both at their Regency Grand Hotel jobs, are living a happy if meager life.

When the hotel hosts a taping of a reality show called Hidden Treasures, the staff are invited to bring things in to be evaluated. Juan insists Molly take the egg that has sat in her Gran’s curio cabinet alongside spoons and tea cups. Molly wants to know about an antique key.

Well, the key unlocks Gran’s diary, and reveals a sweeping love story that lets Molly see everything in a new light. And the egg, which Prose has mentioned in previous stories ends up being revealed as a Faberge prototype worth millions!

A live auction promises to deliver a tidy sum into the young lovers coffers. They can have a big wedding, maybe afford to buy their apartment and more. But when the egg goes missing (STOLEN!), the group has a whole new mystery to figure out.

The chapters slide between Molly and Gran’s stories, and Prose tells them both wonderfully.

If this had been the first book in the series it may not have been for me. I liked the murder investigation aspect of the first two books. But now, Prose has me on the hook. I care for these characters. I want to make sure things go well for them.

I need them to be ok.

Prose ties together a lot of narrative points she’s planted in other books, nothing comes out of left field here. It’s all been there from the get-go. And consequently, it works very well.

Molly still has problems reading social cues, and taking things literally, but she’s comfortable with who she is now, and can voice her confusion. Juan is a wonderful addition to her life, and Mr. Preston, well, he’s Mr. Preston.

These stories have become a way to check in on friends and Prose makes sure to mention all the regulars and favourites. They are a delight to read, and despite the crime taking place in them, are wonderfully comforting.

These are the books to curl up with on a rainy day with a cup of tea. I’m hoping for more Molly stories, and can’t wait to see what Prose delivers our way next.