Which was the last book you picked based on the cover? Death by Bubble Tea by Jennifer J. Chow is my latest read! I got lost in the cover the moment I saw it! The night market atmosphere depicted in it, the name alluding to a mystery and the synopsis talking about two cousins found me ready to settle into this cozy book. Read on for the synopsis and my thoughts!
Two cousins who start a food stall at their local night market get a serving of murder in this first novel of a delicious new cozy mystery series by Jennifer J. Chow, author of Mimi Lee Gets a Clue.
When Yale Yee discovers her cousin Celine is visiting from Hong Kong, she is obliged to play tour guide to a relative she hasn’t seen in twenty years. Not only that, but her father thinks it’s a wonderful idea for them to bond by running a food stall together at the Eastwood Village Night Market. Yale hasn’t cooked in years, and she hardly considers Celine’s career as a social media influencer as adequate experience, but because she’s just lost her job at her local bookstore, she feels she has no choice.
Yale and Celine serve small dishes and refreshing drinks, and while business is slow, it eventually picks up thanks to Celine’s surprisingly useful marketing ideas. They’re quite shocked that their bubble tea, in particular, is a hit–literally–when one of their customers turns up dead. Yale and Celine are prime suspects due to the gold flakes that Celine added to the sweet drink as a garnish. Though the two cousins are polar opposites in every way, they must work together to find out what really happened to the victim or the only thing they’ll be serving is time.
Thoughts on Death by Bubble Tea
If you grew up reading Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, Famous Five and other young sleuth novels, then this one is going to be a treat for you! Death by Bubble Tea is a cozy mystery about two cousins. While the main plotline is about a murder that happens on the openning night of the night market that the cousins had a drinks stall at, the book offers a lot more than that. I got a glimpse of living as a first generation American, having parents who run a family business together, being bound by the deep roots in family from around the world, and most importantly, living in a community where everyone knows everyone.
Yale is in her early thirties and has a love for books. She works at a bookstore and periodically helps out her dad (Ba) at his restaurant. She lives by herself and isn’t quite sure about where she wants life to go. Her cousin, Celine, arrives from Hong Kong and now Yale has a chance to build a relationship she wished she had had as a child. Yale and Celine end up helping Ba at the night market, selling tea. Yale and Celine are opposites – while Yale refuses to buy a cell phone or a car and the library is her go-to place to do any Internet searches, Celine is a confident woman: a foodstagramer, fashion fiesta, she gives her all to everything she does. She is not perfect but she makes the book vibrant and helps Yale come out of her shell. I didn’t feel like making them both in their thirties added anything extra to the novel – early twenties would have worked equally well with the plot and situations.
Death by Bubble Tea starts off with solid character and world building. The atmosphere of the night market and the food community is set up perfectly. Portraying Celine as a social media influencer is an added bonus and helps emphasizes both the positives and negatives of social media and how it can be used to influence people. The girls are creative. Yale is quirky in her unique way and I loved how she would assign a dim sum to each person she meets. The descriptions were mouth-watering. When books entice me to go eat certain foods, I know it’s a good book! 🙂
As the book progressed, the cousins’ investigation of the muder continued, not just to clear their own names, but also to solve the mystery. The plot was fast-moving and though some characters could have been fleshed out more, I was right back in my teenage days where I was sucked into the story and really didn’t care much about the side characters. 😀
I would read Jennifer Chow again and the best part is that she has a cozy mystery series about cats. So, cat people – here is an author to check out!
Death by Bubble Tea is now available in stores. It is the first book in the LA Night Market series. I look forward to chatting with the author about her and the book.
Find the book on Goodreads and Storygraph.
Many thanks to the publisher for providing me a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Photo by Karan Nagpal on Unsplash
This looks like the perfect read for my Miss 16, Kriti. Thank you for the review.