Every single book by Vivien Chien is a delight. Noodle Shop mysteries is quickly becoming my all-time favorite cozy series. Between such quirky and easy to love characters and genuinely compelling mysteries, it has so much to love.

In another of the Noodle Shop series, set in a Chinese restaurant in Cleveland, Lana Lee, who runs the family restaurant, decides to go to culinary school. Although she works the front of the restaurant, Lana can’t cook, not even fried rice.
She doesn’t want her family to know, so she is attending a night class — and wouldn’t you know it — the first night Margo Chan, the instructor, turns up dead after class. And naturally Lana is the one who finds her, so she becomes the number one suspect.
Lana knows she can’t count on the help of her boyfriend, Adam, since the crime didn’t occur in his jurisdiction, but she’s not going to rest until she clears her name.
The characters in this series are what makes it work.

I absolutely adore this series, and this book was no exception! I love Lana and the characters. The mystery was well written and well paced. This book made me crave fried rice, and Vivien Chien does a great job of describing things in a way that makes it easy to visualize. Highly recommend!

Fatal Fried Rice by Vivien Chen

I enjoy all of the author’s books that take place in the Asia Village. I like meeting these characters again. I couldn’t put this book down. I recommend this book.

Thank you Net Galley for sending me an advanced reader’s copy for my reviewe.

My favorite part of this novel is the characters! They were so humorous and quirky, they made me laugh out loud. Lana Lee manages her parents' Asian restaurant, but lacks cooking skills. She signs up for a cooking class at a local college, but her plan is thwarted when she discovers the instructor's dead body in the classroom. Lana begins her own investigation to help clear her own name. She involves her friends and her roommate to help out, becoming embroiled in one after another dangerous situation. I enjoyed the descriptions of the different shops in the Asia Village. They were detailed enough for me to visualize, but not to the point of boredom.

Readers who like quirky characters and families with a fun and easy to read plot will enjoy this novel. It contains no swear words, adult intimacy situations, or gory details. This is the first novel by this author that I have read, but I will seek out others as well.

Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for providing me this advance copy of the novel. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Fatal Fried Rice: A Noodle Shop Mystery by Vivien Chien
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Genre: Mystery & Thrillers
Publication Date: March 9 2021

Fatal Fried Rice is seventh book A Noodle Shop Mystery series by Vivien Chien. I had not read the previous books, so I was pleased when I was able to jump right in and read this as a standalone cozy mystery!

This was such a fun book! It was a quick read, mostly because I couldn't put it down! There characters were great, the storyline was awesome and I loved the mystery! I'm definitely a fan!

I can't wait to read the other books in the series, including "Hot and Sour Suspects", which is scheduled to release in January 2022.

I'm so grateful to Vivien Chien, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this ARC ebook in exchange for my honest review.

Fatal Fried Rice is a fun romp in a murder mystery, as set in the Chinese American world of Lana Lee. Lee is now the manager of her parents’ noodle shop. But she is also the butt of many family jokes for Lana doesn’t know how to cook. To surprise them, she decides to attend an adult education Chinese cooking class. When Lana finds her instructor dead, she becomes a person of interest in the murder investigation. Lana’s only way out requires her to solve the mystery herself (with a little help from her friends). It’s a quick read that keeps you engaged and hungry for more. Part of the Vivien Chien’s “Noodle Shop Mystery” series (#7), this book can be read independently from all the rest. Order some take-out noodles, pour some hot tea, and enjoy!

I have read all of the books from this series and it was nice to meet up the characters again. There was a lot of back story in it, that if you had previously read the series you already knew it. However, if someone was just trying the series it would have been helpful.

Another solid offering from Vivan Chien! This is a very charming series featuring a chinese restaurant and a plucky heroine. As always I enjoy these stories. Solid 3 stars!

Vivien Chien's Noodle Shop Mystery series is hands down one of my very faves! And this installment, book seven, more than delivers! This one was super cute because Lana has decided she wants to learn how to cook Chinese food--yes that's right, despite her family owning Ho-Lee Noodle House, and Lana herself managing it, she can't cook more than a bowl of rice! But she's too embarrassed to ask for help from her family or the restaurant's chef (and her friend) Peter, so she signs up for a cooking course. But naturally, because she's Lana, she gets caught up in another murder mystery when she finds the instructor dead after the first class. When she becomes a suspect, she launches her own investigation to clear her name and find the culprit.

I can't get enough of Lana, Megan, Adam, Peter, Kimmy, and the whole Lee clan (I always get a good chuckle at the bickering and rivalry between Lana and her sister!). Such a strong cast of characters and a wonderful sense of place. I can totally picture the Mahjong Mavens having their morning tea and breakfast, and the delicious dishes Peter whips up. Lana is a great main character - young but smart and with a huge heart, despite her grumbles about her family. And her relationship with her grandmother is so sweet! I also love the annoying but entertaining Kimmy and her antics! Highly recommend this series and this latest installment!

My favorite book in the series so far. Lana decides to take cooking classes, despite managing her family’s Chinese restaurant, and someone winds up dead by the end of class. I enjoyed seeing more of Kimmy in this story and hope she becomes a more prominent character going forward.

I really enjoyed this book. However, I felt that I would have understood the back stories if I had read at least some of the previous books. It took me awhile to get into it. That is no reflection on the author or the writing.

The story and characters were fun -- Lana was interesting and I loved following her quest to find the killer. The story whet my appetite (literally and figuratively) for more! Now that I've found this author, I'm planning to read more from her!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and provide an honest review of this book.

Lana is one of those characters that you either love or hate; there is no in-between. In the newest installment, Fatal Fried Rice, fans will love Lana and hate her at the same time. Managing a Chinese restaurant isn’t precisely non-stop action, and Lana can’t cook, so she is determined to learn and put a bit more life into her day-to-day work. Once again, she finds a body, and once again, she sticks her nose in a murder investigation even though she shouldn’t. Yes, she found the body, but there is no evidence suggesting that she even knew the victim previously, so why would anyone think she killed her cooking teacher? There are plenty of suspects for readers to question, and the evidence is easy to follow. Even without, or despite Lana’s interference, the killer will be caught.

Unfortunately, this addition to the series isn’t a strong entry. The characters are okay, but none are very likable. The restaurant and the plaza, which have been the main focus in previous books, play a minimal role in this one; this actually hurts the story rather than helps it. Having Lana not be able to make something as simple as fried rice is not believable. Her family’s Chinese restaurant has been around a long time; wouldn’t someone have taught her how to make this staple dish by now?

The killer is not hidden, I knew who it was the moment the character was introduced. The resolution of the case is brought about almost by accident and happenstance and isn’t very satisfying. Some subplots were interesting and could have been explored at greater length to give the story more substance. Some of the supporting characters are becoming tiresome and detract from the main story. Overall, I have enjoyed other books in this series far more than this one. Fatal Fried Rice has some interesting scenes but isn’t anything to get overly excited about. I love Chinese food, and the setting of this series has always been intriguing and mouth-watering, but this book misses the mark. I recommend that readers who are new to this series start with the first book and not delve into this latest one until they know a bit of the character’s background and the main premise.

Ok! I am so hooked on this series and I am coming to the party late! First, big thanks for allowing me the opportunity to read this one! LOVED it! Vivian did such a fantastic job keeping me hooked, interested and I can’t wait to run to the store and pick up the entire series, those that I’ve missed. AND, I can’t wait for the next chapter in this amazing series! OMG! Loved it! Cozy, well written, fast paced, great characters and a believable mystery.

LOVED IT!!!!!

I’m fairly certain I could have a mukbang channel when it comes to consuming Chinese food. I am also a lover of the cozy mystery. Fatal Fried Rice features the murder of a community school teacher who is instructing an intro to Chinese food cooking class that our leading lady Lana (who just so happens to run the family restaurant with absolutely zero culinary skills) has signed up for in order to at least be capable of doing more than just making rice.

This is a series that I have zero complaints about. I love the MC Lana, I love her gambling/buffet addict mom and grandma, I love that her boyfriend is just a bit player (despite him being an actual detective while Lana is the one doing all the sleuthing), I really love over-the-top Kimmy. Most of all I love that they only take a couple of hours to read and you can easily skip books 2-6 and pick up feeling like you didn’t miss a beat since they work so well as standalones. I am 99.9999% sure I have #5 on the Kindle as well, but fried rice was calling my name and I must appease the gods . . . .

ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, NetGalley!

Lana Lee has a talent for running her family’s restaurant, the Ho-Lee Noodle House. She’s a great manager, but knows nothing about preparing the Chinese dishes they serve to their customers. To escape her family’s teasing, Lana enrolls in a cooking class in a nearby town to learn to cook Chinese food. The first class gets off to a good start, but Lana forgets the materials she will need for the next class and returns to the classroom after it has ended. She is shocked to discover the body of Margo Han, the instructor, who has been fatally stabbed. The detective assigned to the case declares Lana to be his prime suspect in the murder so it’s up to Lana and her friends to find out who really killed Margo.

Fatal Fried Rice is the seventh book in this series, but new readers can enjoy it as much as those who have read the prior books. There is a detailed description of all the shops in Asia Village where the Lee family’s restaurant is located that really helped me picture the area and provides a nice tutorial for new readers. Lana’s boyfriend is a police detective and warns her to let the police and her lawyer handle things. However, Lana feels her best chance of keeping her freedom and getting justice for Margo is to investigate things herself. When her roommate Megan is working and can’t assist, Lana enlists her friend Kimmy Tran to help gather clues. In the past, Kimmy has been a hard character to take to, but in this outing her outspoken ways of handling things are refreshing and humorous. Their scenes in a different cooking class they take together are hilarious, while also moving the investigation forward.

The case takes several turns with more than a few believable suspects before a dramatic conclusion involving both Lana and Kimmy uncovers the killer. I wish Lana wouldn’t take so many risks during her sleuthing, but she is an appealing main character. She doesn’t always make the best decisions, but always has the best interest of her friends and family in all she does. This is a fun, quick cozy read that fans of the series and new readers will enjoy.

~ Christine

Watch out Cleveland, Ohio Lana Lee has decided to learn how to cook! Rather than ask those close to her she has decided to attend a cooking class at a local community college. What Lana didn't expect was to find the chef/teacher dead. Can Lana solve the murder before becoming fried herself?

Lana is still a joy to read. She can find herself in trouble no matter what she is doing. One would think learning how to cook Chinese would be safe but oh no it is not. This time Lana finds herself as a top suspect and Detective Hottie aka boyfriend Adam is not able to help her.

I did figure out the murderer pretty quick but that did not dampen my appetite for the book. It was an enjoyable read and I loved seeing if my suspicions were correct.

I believe book 8 is already in the works. YAY!

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher, St. Martin's Press, through NetGalley. All opinions expressed in the above review are entirely my own.

Fatal Fried Rice is another winner in the series and I honestly cannot get enough of them! Vivien Chien is one of my favorite cozy authors and reading her books is like reconnecting with a best friend! If you enjoy diverse reads in the cozy genre then this is a series you need to have!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Lana Lee manages her family restaurant, but she's never been much of a chef, so signing up for an Asian cooking class at a local college seems the way to go. When the instructor turns up dead after the first class, Lana begins to investigate the murder, while trying to keep from her family both her role in the discovery of the body and that she was taking the class in the first place. There's also a one-note lousy detective at the head of the police investigation, who sees Lana as one of his prime suspects as she keeps appearing at all the wrong places for someone uninvolved in the murder...he definitely kills the "cozy" of this particular cozy mystery. Her cop boyfriend doesn't play a big role, neither does her roommate/bartender/best friend Megan, and her friend Kimmy comes across as more pushy and annoying than helpful. I must admit this wasn't my favorite entry in the series. I'm not sure if it's because most of Lana's investigative choices were more frustrating than clever (perhaps a sign of a weaker plot?), or maybe I just prefer the books to take place in Asia Village. I do enjoy the books in this series, so I'll keep reading.

4.75 stars

This is the seventh book in the Noodle Shop mystery series (I kinda think Asia Village mystery series has a good ring to it.) by Vivien Chien.

This book really grabs you. I think this series is just growing on me. I am truly digging Lana Lee and her exploits now that I have a few of her books under my belt. This one features Lana wanting to learn how to cook Chinese food now that she is in charge of the Noodle Shop. She could ask her head chef to help her but she doesn’t want her family to know she is trying to up her cooking game.

Of course, right after Lana asked the cooking instructor to give her private lessons, the lady ends up dead. What a bummer on so many levels.

This mystery was fun to follow and I just get a kick out of Lana and her friends. Too bad the mahjong ladies weren’t more involved in this. They are quite a hoot. I think her best friend, Kimmie who is her sidekick in this book kinda took the comic relief spot this time. This community is so inviting that you just want to squeeze in and find your seat.

Loved it a lot.

I highly recommend this series.

If you like cozy mysteries, definitely check this one out. You won’t be disappointed.

I received this as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in return for an honest review. I thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this title.