Catering to a Killer
It’s always interesting when an author returns to characters and information from a previous book in the series and builds on it. I don’t see it too often in the cozy mysteries I read, but that’s exactly what Vivien Chien did in Egg Drop Dead, the fifth in her Noodle Shop Mysteries.
In an effort to help expand her family’s restaurant, especially in the slow summer months, Lana Lee has branched out the business to include catering. Their first gig is providing food for Donna Feng’s birthday party. Donna owners the Asia Village where the Lee family has the restaurant, and she and Lana have become friends.
Of course, this being a cozy mystery, the night ends in tragedy, when Donna’s nanny is found floating in the pool as the party is winding down. The police zero in on Donna because she had a very public fight with the victim during the party. Even her friends think that Donna has been building to something like this for a few months and finally snapped. But Lana finds some evidence that this might tie in to Donna’s past. If so, how could it have led to this murder?
Donna and her mysterious past were first introduced in the first book in the series, which I read seven years ago. If, like me, you are fuzzy on those details, don’t worry, this book does a good job of reminding us. Along the way, that first book is spoiled, so keep that in mind if you care about such things.
That aspect of the story added an extra layer to the puzzle. And I loved that. It really complicates the investigation in many ways. We get some good clues along the way to the logical solution. As I’ve thought about the ending, I’m not sure the villain’s actions at the end made perfect sense, but I was so caught up in the suspense that I didn’t even notice at the time.
One issue I’ve had in the series is Lana’s relationship with her family. They were more in the background, which I appreciated. Actually, many of the supporting players were given little page time, but we did still get plenty of Lana’s roommate and boyfriend. We also met some fun new characters here. I wouldn’t mind if one of them popped up again.
As with other books in the series, there aren’t recipes at the end. So if the book makes you crave Chinese food, you’ll have to order some from your favorite restaurant.
This series seems to be getting stronger as it goes along. Fans who are behind will enjoy catching up with Lana in Egg Drop Dead.
Order up with the rest of the Noodle Shop Mysteries.
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