Death by Bubble Tea

By: Jennifer J. Chow

Narrated by: Stephanie Sheh

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, bestselling 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.

Great fun in Chinatown!

Great emphasis on Chinese culture. Good sleuthing, story and characters—plus food. Asian culture really cool to learn more about.

Night market? Bubble tea?

I really enjoyed Death by Bubble Tea. Jennifer Chow was able to capture a growing trend in the food world and turn it into a quick fun mystery. Throw in a splash of restaurant rivalry involving the Yeh and Ho families, a dash of roommate rivalry and you have a quick page turner.

A Taste of LA and Chinese American Culture with a Dash of Murder

This was an enjoyable read. I honestly wasn't sure who the murderer was until the big reveal towards the end. the author did an amazing job with this, not revealing anything too big. I also thought the inclusion of family paited well with the main storyline, as it showed how families and small businesses can be effected by murder as well as social media. there were times I found the narrator's voice to be a bit nasally, but she managed to give each character a different voice.