As the third installment in a series that already had me hooked, this one brings a daring art heist, a secret diary, and just the right amount of twists.
A Rollercoaster at the Regency Grand
Molly Gray, our ever-relatable head maid (and now Special Events Manager), is about to tie the knot with Juan Manuel—just two months away! But, of course, life has other plans. When a film crew shows up for the hit reality TV show Hidden Treasures, Molly tosses in a shoebox of her gran’s old keepsakes. Who knew that one of those items would be a rare, priceless treasure? Suddenly, she’s the world’s newest multi-millionaire and media darling—until the treasure vanishes.
Family Secrets Unearthed
What really pulled me in was how the story digs into Molly’s past through her gran’s long-forgotten diary. It turns out that behind her gran’s quiet life lies a fairy tale of love, loss, and a scandalous romance. Reading the diary explained so much about Molly’s own journey and holds holds the key to the heist involving a stolen Fabergé egg. I loved how the past and present blended together, even if the ending left me with a few head-scratches.
A Cast That Feels Like Family
One of the standout aspects of the book is its quirky, lovable characters, from Angela’s unwavering loyalty to Cheryl’s surprising transformation. Detective Stark is back, brining in her mix of skepticism with support of balance Molly that has evolved through the series.
Final Thoughts
For those of you new to the series, the book kicks off with enough of a recap to get you up to speed. However, I would highly highly recommend starting from the first book instead of hopping in here. This was a cozy mystery that oscillated between the past (through gran’s diary) and the present in nice blend to keep you engaged.
Molly’s prized egg is stolen during a live TV auction, and soon after, she discovers a chilling note reading, “find the egg and you die.” For a while, she tries to put the threat behind her and carries on with life. But then, in a twist of fate, the egg mysteriously appears in her trolley cart—this time accompanied by another ominous note: “sell the egg or you die.”
Desperate for answers, Molly finally dives into her grandma’s diary and uncovers a tangled family secret. It turns out that Baxley Brown is a descendant of the family Flora Gray was once meant to marry into—his father, Algernon, was originally set to wed Flora. Baxley’s family had a dark past as art thieves, a legacy that brought them their wealth. Meanwhile, Beagle is revealed to be a descendant of the Barron family—the original owners from whom the egg was stolen. In a twist, Beagle was the mastermind behind the theft, only to return the egg for sale later on. His plan? To wait until he could come forward with a bill of sale proving the egg belonged to his family, and then claim a hefty profit.
Determined to expose the truth, Molly and the hotel staff orchestrate a fake sale at a second auction after the egg is returned. Their trap works perfectly, capturing Beagle on tape as he confesses. It turns out that Beagle had hired accomplices to steal the egg, ensuring Baxley’s family reputation remained untarnished by their own past misdeeds. When he found evidence that the egg was indeed his family’s, he planned to wait before coming forward to cash in on the deal.
Baxley convinces Beagle to sign the egg over to him. He then sells the priceless artifact to a museum so that everyone can appreciate its history—and, as a wedding gift, he generously hands Molly and her fiancé Juan $500,000.
Oh, and there’s that moment when Molly’s mom makes a brief appearance. She warns Molly to watch out for someone in a coat—looking a bit drugged and desperate for cash. It’s a peculiar subplot but maybe it’s that she had ties to the gang Beagle hired? Didn’t seem completely necessary but maybe I’m missing something
Can you explain to me how the egg came to be Molly ‘s? I understand the staff gave it to her but How is it that they she worked specifically with the egg owner? I missed this part and couldn’t find where this is mentioned
Can you explain to me how the egg came to be Molly ‘s? I understand the staff gave it to her but How is it that they she worked specifically with the egg owner? I missed this part and couldn’t find where this is mentioned