St. Martin's Publishing Group | 25 February 2020 | 320 pgs
Source: Library
In this 5th installment of Vivien Chien's Noodle Shop Mystery series, Lana Lee's first-ever catering event becomes a nightmare after a domestic worker is found dead at the party hostess's apartment. Before this tragedy happened, someone witnessed Donna Feng, the hostess, yelled at the domestic worker for failing to supervise her children so naturally she becomes a prime suspect. But Lana Lee is sceptical especially after Donna entrusted something to her before the police arrives - a thumb drive shaped like a terra-cotta soldier. Is Donna keeping some deadly secrets? Surely there's something more than meets the eye and Lana is keen to find out the truth.
It's always a pleasure to read the developments of the characters as the series go and I'm glad to see Lana's sleuthing skills is getting better although she tends to be impulsive at times. While her detective boyfriend, Adam Trudeau, is not mainly in-charge of this case this time around, it is good to see Adam is still supportive of Lana's little investigations every time when there's a case. It is also always interesting to read about Lana's interactions and the dynamic with her mother and elder sister. One might think that they aren't really going along well but I think it's their own way of expressing themselves or in other words, firm in speech but soft in heart.
I rarely read cozy mysteries but this is one which I follow as I enjoyed the characterisations and of course the food related elements is another draw to me. I'd recommend this series if you're looking for a fun and light read.
Book Series In Order:
© 2020 Melody's Reading Corner (https://mel-reading-corner.blogspot.sg/), All Rights Reserved. If you are reading this post from other site(s), please take note that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.
St. Martin's Press | March 2019 | 304 pgs
Source: Library
This is the third installment of A Noodle Shop Mystery series and this time around our protagonist, Lana Lee, finds herself in another mystery with a noodle contest as its core of the premise.
Now that Lana's been made manager of her family's Chinese restaurant, she devotes all the time and attention in the business so when Asia Village organises a Best Noodle Contest, she decides that she'll win it at all costs. But of course there are others who are eyeing for the first place too, and competition is stiff considering there is a newcomer who decides she wants to join, despite she is running a lounge (although to be fair, she does serve noodle as a side). And then, there's a participant who felt he was unfairly judged by the past contest. There are three judges and one of them is a food critic.
However, before the contest come to a close, one of the judges was found dead, face-down in a bowl of lo mein. Lana, as always, decides to take matters into her own hands and begin to take a closer look at everyone who's involved in the contest. Detective Adam Trudeau, who's officially her boyfriend in this installment, doesn't want her to get involved in the case for her own safety but of course Lana wouldn't listen. As Lana digs further, she soon learned that some people are trying to keep their past a secret and Lana intends to find out why.
Once again, Vivien Chien has "cooked up a storm" in this latest installment (can be read as a stand-alone but I'd suggest to start from the first book for the character developments). I find myself enjoying this series the more I read them and am glad to note the relationship between Lana and Adam has finally come to light in this book. Lana is easy to like and then there's her black pug which is named Kikko (short for Kikkoman, a soy sauce brand). The reader will also get to know a bit more of Adam in this story, since there's not much mention of his history in the previous books. And of course, it was fun reading Lana going about and digging for the case, even if her stubbornness can get to you at times but that's one of her traits. Overall this is an enjoyable cozy mystery series; most of all I couldn't resist the cute book covers.
Books in order:
1) Death by Dumpling
2) Dim Sum of All Fears
© 2019 Melody's Reading Corner (https://mel-reading-corner.blogspot.sg/), All Rights Reserved. If you are reading this post from other site(s), please take note that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.
St. Martin's Press | August 2018 | 320 pgs
Source: Library
In her first installment of the Noodle Shop Mystery series (Death by Dumpling), Vivien Chien introduces us Lana Lee; an Eurasian woman who helps her family run the Ho-Lee noodle restaurant at an Asian Village in Cleveland, Ohio. When a man was found dead after consuming their noodle house's shrimp dumplings, Lana knew it was no accident considering almost everyone knew of his allergy to seafood. Worst of all, Lana was the one who delivered the food to him so she had to find out the truth surrounding his death. During the investigative course, she met detective Adam Trudeau and although they didn't admit it, they've some feelings for each other.
In this second installment, Lana is left in charge of the restaurant while her parents left for Taiwan for an emergency family matter. She has had plans to look for a job and even landed herself an interview, and it seems she has no choice but to remain where she is. Meanwhile, she has gone on a few dates with Adam and wonder if they're officially a couple. These are what has been occupying her mind until her friend and her new husband are found dead in their souvenir shop, which is just next door to their noodle restaurant. Once again, Lana finds herself in the midst of the mystery.
Lana knew she shouldn't meddle into the case; after all Adam did mention about his concern especially if it involves her safety but Lana knew there is more than meets the eye. She knew the couple wasn't the suicidal type and on top of it they were newlyweds so there is no reason for them doing so despite the speculations. So to find out the truth surrounding her friend’s death, Lana decides she should look around for more information. It is also at this time that two women began to show up respectively; each claiming to be the ex-wife of the dead man and they're here to settle the shop property. While Lana is skeptical about their statements, she soon finds something more about her friend’s husband which makes this case more mysterious and complicated.
I was pleased to say that I was captivated by this series so far and Lana continues to intrigue me with her wits and her straightforward demeanour. I'm also interested to find out more about her relationship with Adam as the series go and hopefully the third installment will see both of them has moved on to the next level.
As for the mystery plot, it wasn't fast paced as compared with thrillers as it focused more on the characters (developments) but the mystery still keep you guessing till the end. Overall it was a satisfying read and I wonder what's in store for her next installment, Murder Lo Mein.
© 2019 Melody's Reading Corner (https://mel-reading-corner.blogspot.sg/), All Rights Reserved. If you are reading this post from other site(s), please take note that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.
St. Martin's Press | March 2018 | 352 pgs
Source: Library
This is the first book of A Noodle Shop Mystery series featuring our 27-year-old protagonist, Lana Lee, and her family-owned restaurant, Ho-Lee Noodle House set in an Asian community in Cleveland, Ohio.
To begin with, Lana hasn't wanted to work at her family restaurant but after a brutal break-up and a dramatic workplace walk-out, she has decided that working as a server at the restaurant would help pay the bills and for putting her life back together. The restaurant business is going on well until Thomas Feng, the restaurant's property manager, was found dead after eating their shrimp dumplings. Thomas has shellfish allergy and everyone on staff knew about it; after all he was their regular customer. Now the head chef, Peter, and Lana are under suspect since she is the one who delivered the order to Thomas. To clear their name and to find out the killer, Lana decides to do some little investigation together with her roommate, Megan Riley.
Police detective Adam Trudeau is meticulous and never leave any stone unturned. When he knew that Lana is investigating the case, he is annoyed yet he couldn't deny his attraction towards her despite they got on the wrong foot the first time they met and that she is on his suspect list. Lana, on the other hand, has her ways of digging information since she knew almost everyone in the community and she would not let Trudeau get in her way even if it means putting herself in danger.
I've to admit I rarely read cozy mysteries but this was quite a fun read. I enjoyed reading about the cast of characters, including Lana's black pug, Kikkoman, who is named after a soy sauce's brand. The setting was interesting as it surrounds the restaurant and the Asian community, thus allowing the reader to get a feel of the Chinese culture and how their daily livelihood is like. Lana was an interesting character; she is an Eurasian with an English father and a Chinese mother and what makes her stand out is her lively personality. Plot-wise, it was mostly focused on Lana's investigations but of course the intensity wasn't as much as compared to a suspense thriller considering this is a cozy mystery but it still kept me engaged and like Lana, I wanted to find out the identity of the killer. All in all this was a good start of a new series, and I'm definitely looking forward to reading more of Lana and Trudeau in the next book, Dim Sum of All Fears.
© 2018 Melody's Reading Corner (https://mel-reading-corner.blogspot.sg/), All Rights Reserved. If you are reading this post from other site(s), please take note that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.
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