Fatal Fried Rice (A Noodle Shop Mystery #7) by Vivien Chien

 

Fatal Fried Rice

(A Noodle Shop Mystery #7)

by Vivien Chien 

Mass Market Paperback, 320 pages

Published March 9th 2021 by St. Martin's Press

Goodreads synopsis: 

Lana Lee returns for another delectable cozy set in a Chinese restaurant in Cleveland, Ohio in Vivien Chien's Fatal Fried Rice...

Lana Lee runs her family's Chinese restaurant in Cleveland's Asia Village like nobody's business. When it comes to actual cooking, however, she's known to be about a step up from boiling rice. So Lana decides to go to culinary school on the sly--and prove that she has what it takes in the kitchen after all. But when course instructor Margo Chan turns up dead after class, Lana suddenly finds herself on the case, frying pan in hand.

Since she was the one who discovered the body, Lana must do double duty in finding the killer and clearing her name. Now, with or without the help of her boyfriend Detective Adam Trudeau, Lana launches her own investigation into Margo's life and mysterious death. Doing so leads her on a wild goose chase to and from the culinary school--and all the way back to the Ho-Lee noodle shop, where the guilty party may be closer than Lana thinks.

***

4.75 stars

This is the seventh book in the Noodle Shop mystery series (I kinda think Asia Village mystery series has a good ring to it.) by Vivien Chien.

This book really grabs you. I think this series is just growing on me. I am truly digging Lana Lee and her exploits now that I have a few of her books under my belt. This one features Lana wanting to learn how to cook Chinese food now that she is in charge of the Noodle Shop. She could ask her head chef to help her but she doesn’t want her family to know she is trying to up her cooking game.

Of course, right after Lana asked the cooking instructor to give her private lessons, the lady ends up dead. What a bummer on so many levels.

This mystery was fun to follow and I just get a kick out of Lana and her friends. Too bad the mahjong ladies weren’t more involved in this. They are quite a hoot. I think her best friend, Kimmie who is her sidekick in this book kinda took the comic relief spot this time. This community is so inviting that you just want to squeeze in and find your seat.

Loved it a lot.

I highly recommend this series.

If you like cozy mysteries, definitely check this one out. You won’t be disappointed.

I received this as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in return for an honest review. I thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this title.