Adorable story. I love stories where different ethnicities are represented, and this was great. I loved the storyline and all the characters. This was a fun read. I hope more stories are on the horizon.

I really enjoyed this engaging cozy mystery! Vivien Chien has made me an instant fan and I am now anxiously awaiting the next installment!!! In addition to this, Death by Dumpling stands apart from other cozy mysteries I have read in the past as it features unique characters and my favorite type of food- Chinese!!! I highly recommend this one to all fans of the cozy mystery genre.

Not only was this an engaging mystery but also look at that cover! I've been craving noodles ever since I saw it.

Lana Lee is 27 years-old and works at her parents' Chinese restaurant. Recently, she went through a tough breakup with her boyfriend and has been having a difficult time. Things get tougher for her when the business' landlord is found dead and the cause of the crime is a dumpling from her parents' noodle house.

Mr. Feng, the dead man, is allergic to shellfish and it appears that somebody purposely placed a seafood dumpling in his meal. Now Lana is considered a suspect and she must find out who actually committed the crime.

This was an engaging and light-hearted story and it captivated me from the beginning. The novel is set in Cleveland and has a set of charming characters. It has humor, mystery, and a little bit of romance.

Overall, I enjoyed it and recommend it to readers of mysteries and contemporary fiction.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this publication in exchange for an honest review.

I have a serious soft spot for kooky mystery thrillers. It's nice not to have the entire mystery bogged down by the author's attempt to make the character's pain "deep" and "real" and just read a light hearted murder mystery with a great cast. Death by Dumpling is very much that, a fun romp with a great backdrop, memorable characters, and a fun mystery. However, the writing style didn't work for me and it's because of the main character Lana Lee.

I suppose it's not all on Lana, because she was a good character. Making the best of a bad situation, Lana did what she had to do and I can respect that, but there was something...off about her and it's because of the writing. Chien tried to replicate that snarky protagonist that a lot of cozy mysteries have and it didn't work out. All of Lana's snark felt tacked on to the end of whatever she was saying at the moment. There's nothing natural about her humor, because it feels more like something the author wrote in to make the audience laugh then it was to showcase Lana's character.

Humor is very difficult, because it's easy for it to come off as stilted or unfunny if it doesn't appear to happen naturally. And that's what happened her, Chien tried so hard to create a funny and lighthearted tone she overcompensated to the point where Lana's humor hindered the story rather then added to it.

That being said, Chien did a really good job at both the mystery aspect of the novel and the examination of Asian culture with a larger, dominate American one, but the writing and Lana's humor just dragged the book into "just okay" territory. But I'd defiantly keep my eyes open for anything Chien might have in the future, because she has real potential. This one, however, just didn't do it for me.

This is a charming new cozy mystery with a great sense of humor, memorable characters and just a hint of future romance. Lana Lee is working at her parents Chinese restaurant and delivers a take out lunch to Thomas Feng, the owner of the Asian themed mall where the restaurant is located. when Mr. Feng, who has a shellfish allergy, dies after eating what was supposed to be a pork roll but instead was filled with shrimp, accusations fall upon their chef Peter as well as Lana. When Lana realizes that people think them guilty, including hunky police officer Adam Trudeau, she and her roommate Megan begin their own investigation of the many potential suspects working in the mall. With tons of suspects and plenty of family drama as well, I thoroughly enjoyed meeting Lana and hope to share more of her adventures in the future.

Sometimes you can go home again, even if you don’t really want to. Sometimes you don’t have a choice. Lana didn’t think she had anyplace else to go after her love life and her career went up in flames, that’s the only reason she’s back waiting tables at her family’s restaurant, the Ho-Lee Noodle House. She’s annoyed at her mother’s attempt to find her a husband, but it’s not long before everyone’s attention is focused on Mr. Feng, dead after a delivery of shrimp dumplings from the restaurant. Everyone at the Noodle House knew about Feng’s shellfish allergy, so a mistake seems unlikely. Is it possible that Feng was murdered? The police certainly seem to think so, and everyone at the Noodle House is under suspicion. It’s up to Lana to find the real culprit and save her family and their business. The first in a new series, this is a delightfully quirky read with an eccentric but lovable cast of characters