Lana Lee is the manager of her family’s Chinese restaurant, Ho-Lee Noodle Shop. But she has a secret—she can’t cook. When she was growing up, she just wasn’t interested. And then she had to take over the restaurant, and she didn’t want to admit that she couldn’t cook. But now she’s ready to learn, so she signed up for a Chinese cooking class at a local community college, not too far from where she lives in Cleveland. She doesn’t tell her family because she wants it to be a surprise.
It turns out, Lana is the one who is surprised by what happens.
On the first night of class, Lana shows up, ready to learn. Her instructor, Margo Han, is kind, nonjudgmental, and an excellent teacher. She shows the class how to make Fried Rice, telling them to pay close attention to what she’s doing, as they will be making the same dish next week. All the students try the dish, and it’s delicious.
Lana is excited to finally learn how to cook, so excited she stays behind after class and asks Margo if maybe she’d be willing to give Lana some extra instruction. Margo says that she would, if her schedule lets her, and they agree to talk about it after the run of the cooking class. Then, after Lana leaves, she realizes that she forgot to grab one of the shopping lists for next week’s class and heads back to the classroom.
And that’s when Lana sees Margo, with a chef’s knife sticking out of her back.
Lana’s screams attract the attention of a maintenance man, who calls 911. The officer who responds gets Lana’s statement, but she has a bad feeling talking to the investigator. She feels like he is convinced she had something to do with it and will do anything to put her behind bars.
Lana has no choice but to start investigating the murder herself, both to find justice for Margo and her family and to clear her name. With the help of her friends and boyfriend, who is also a police officer but in a different city, Lana tries to find out what she can about Margo and who might have held a grudge against her. But as she asks questions around the school, she finds a couple of different women who seem a little too interested in her investigation. Could one of them be the killer? Or could it be someone else at the school, like the maintenance man or the other teacher she saw leaving just as she was heading back to the classroom? And will Lana be able to figure it out before she puts herself in danger of becoming the next victim?
Fatal Fried Rice is the seventh book in Vivien Chien’s Noodle Shop Mystery Series, and each of these books have been absolutely charming. Lana is an engaging character, and her family’s restaurant makes a great home base for her investigations. These cozies are smart, inviting, and well plotted, and they’re just plain fun to read.
Like the other books in this series, I really enjoyed Fatal Fried Rice. Lana and her friends and family never fail to entertain or to figure out who is behind the crime. I love having a mystery series that I can always count on when I need something that will hold my interest without getting too dark or gory, and the Noodle Shop Mysteries always fit that bill. Thanks to Vivien Chien for being consistently smart and witty in these books!
Egalleys for Fatal Fried Rice were provided by St. Martin’s Press (St. Martin’s Paperbacks) through NetGalley, with many thanks.
