Death by Dumpling

by Vivien Chien | Mystery & Thrillers |
ISBN: 125012915X Global Overview for this book
Registered by k00kaburra of San Jose, California USA on 2/6/2022
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1 journaler for this copy...
Journal Entry 1 by k00kaburra from San Jose, California USA on Sunday, February 6, 2022
Rec'd via Paperbackswap.com.

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Welcome to the Ho-Lee Noodle House, where the Chinese food is to die for. . .

The last place Lana Lee thought she would ever end up is back at her family’s restaurant. But after a brutal break-up and a dramatic workplace walk-out, she figures that a return to the Cleveland area to help wait tables is her best option for putting her life back together. Even if that means having to put up with her mother, who is dead-set on finding her a husband.

Lana’s love life soon becomes yesterday’s news once the restaurant’s property manager, Mr. Feng, turns up dead―after a delivery of shrimp dumplings from Ho-Lee. But how could this have happened when everyone on staff knew about Mr. Feng’s severe, life-threatening shellfish allergy? Now, with the whole restaurant under suspicion for murder and the local media in a feeding frenzy―to say nothing of the gorgeous police detective who keeps turning up for take-out―it’s up to Lana to find out who is behind Feng’s killer order. . . before her own number is up.

Journal Entry 2 by k00kaburra at San Jose, California USA on Sunday, February 6, 2022
Started reading a couple of days ago.
Finished last night.

It's so nice to see Asian-American authors making inroads in every genre, even lighter fare like cozy mysteries. Vivien Chien's first novel - in this series; I don't know if she's written other books before this one - is entertaining and familiar, with quirky characters crammed together in a little shopping center in the Midwest.

Lana Lee is of mixed race, like me; her mother is Chinese and her father is white. I wondered if this would lead to her being "othered" by the other shopkeepers in Asia Village, but I didn't see evidence of this in the book and if it happened in her past, Lana wasn't dwelling on it. (I am just projecting my own issues on a character from a similar ethnic background, clearly.) The Ho-Lee Noodle House is a thriving restaurant that draws everyone in the shopping center together, a perfect location for an amateur detective to launch an investigation.

The novel's strongest moments come from the powerful community bonds. Even though it's a quick read, the reader learns a lot about the characters and their relationships with each other. There's a strong sense of place and it's very easy to picture the shopping center, bustling with people and secrets.

The mystery itself is a little weak and predictable; the murderer's creepiness is telegraphed throughout the book so loudly that other attempts at red herrings are drowned out. The dialogue is a bit clunky at times, too. It was not enough that I couldn't enjoy the story - not at all! - and I hope that as Chien continues the series her writing will grow and mature.

Bonus point: #1 I love that the older sister is named Anna May. Good on her parents, naming their firstborn daughter after one of the most iconic actresses of the 20th century!

Bonus point #2: Love the cover. I've got three or four of the books in this series and I have to say, the artist makes me smile every time with her deadly food illustrations.

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