A harmless little novel that was originally published in serialized form. This works for its advantage and is its downfall, since there is a good chance some readers will get addicted to the story in their desire to know what happens next after the cliffhanger endings to the chapters, but nothing really pays off until the end and the series of events just seems disjointed.

Undoubtedly charming, maybe a good companion for tea and biscuits if one is so inclined, but not very memorable. Bennett probably had fun slapping this together, but all of it is mostly just silly in a disposable way. Maybe my reaction reflects more of the fact that I was expecting a slow cozy-ish mystery set in a hotel, not international intrigue nor a busy plot crammed with everything one can find in a mystery novel. In that sense, The Grand Babylon Hotel works as a satire of the genre, but did I have fun reading it or did it engage my attention at all times? Not particularly.

I don't know if it was the spirit that was missing or what, but something was definitely lacking and prevented me from liking this as much as I had hoped or as much as I usually enjoy these types of novels. Easy to put down, which is evident from the time I spent on finishing this slim poor thing.