Did an Accident Lead to a Shocking Murder?
Since I’ve fallen woefully behind on Vivien Chien’s Noddle Shop Mysteries, I decided to focus a bit more on them this year, so I’m reading my second on for 2025. (Two instead of one in a year. I did say focus a bit more.) That’s what lead me to pick up Killer Kung Pao, the sixth in the series. I’m glad I did because I really enjoyed it.
The series focuses on Lana Lee, who is running her family’s Chinese restaurant in an Asia focused shopping center in Cleveland, Ohio. It’s been a few books since we had a story that focuses on Asia Village, but that’s what we get here.
All Lana wanted on that particular Friday night was to leave work to go hang out with her boyfriend, Detective Adam Trudeau. Instead, she witnesses an auto accident in the parking lot of Asia Village. When the participants, June Yi and Millie Mao, start threatening each other, Lana wonders what is behind their animosity.
But the next morning, Lana’s hair appointment gives her a ringside seat as the two start to go at it again in the shopping center’s salon. Then Millie is electrocuted. The whispers that June is guilty begin almost immediately, but Lana thinks that’s too easy. She may not personally like June, but she doesn’t want to see the woman sent to prison for a crime she didn’t commit. Can Lana find the truth?
When I started this book, it was an incredibly busy weekend, and I didn’t get as much reading time as normal. When something like that happens, it always makes me wonder when I feel the beginning of a book is a little slow. Is it just me? Or did the book take a little longer than it needed to before it fully picked up? My guess is I was being a bit picky.
Either way, once Lana begins to fully investigate, I was hooked. Millie wasn’t well liked, but Lana still needs to find some concrete motives and suspects. Once she did, I was kept guessing until we reached the logical solution. All my questions were answered at that point.
Since we spent so much time around Asia Village again, we saw lots of the regulars, which was fun. A couple of subplots provided some good growth for a couple of them, and one scene left me laughing. One subplot was left purposefully dangling, and I’m very curious where it is going to go in future books.
While there are no recipes at the end of this book, there is plenty of discussion of food that will leave you placing an order from your local Chinese restaurant.
It’s easy to see why this fun series has so many fans. Killer Kung Pao will leave you craving the next in this delicious series.
Order the rest of the Noodle Shop Mysteries.
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