Jennifer J. Chow’s new cozy mystery focuses on family. Death by Bubble Tea is the first book in the LA Night Market series and features Yale Yee and her cousin Celine. Yale has just been laid off from her job at a bookstore when Celine arrives from Hong Kong. Not only is she expected to play tour guide to someone she hasn’t seen since she was ten, but her father wants the two of them to run a food stall at the Eastwood Village Night Market. Their bubble tea turns out to be a hit with customers, but later than night Yale finds one of their customers dead. Suddenly she and Celine are the top suspects, so they decide to play sleuth.

Yale and Celine have very different personalities. Yale loves to read, avoids driving by walking or using public transportation, doesn’t have a cell phone, and would have preferred living in the past. She categorizes personalities of the people she meets by using food characteristics. Celine’s parents are wealthy, and she is used to an extravagant lifestyle. She’s a social media influencer and used to things going her way. Readers get their backstories gradually. Despite their differences, it was fascinating to see how each of them grew and developed over the course of the novel. The secondary characters are culturally diverse and provide either support or conflict. However, who is the killer?

Despite a large number of characters, the characterization is done well and I had no trouble remembering who was who. The food descriptions and setting were well done. The dialogue flowed well and felt natural except in a couple of places. The story gradually builds momentum and there are numerous suspects. However, the pacing seemed too slow at times. I enjoyed the humor that was interspersed within the novel and thought the author’s take on the manner of death was original. However, the ending was a little abrupt. Themes included family relationships, community, grief, friendship, food, loyalty, and murder. At the end of the book are two recipes.

Overall, this was an engaging novel with humor, suspense, a lot of sleuthing, and a little action. If you enjoy sleuth mysteries, then I recommend that you check out this one. I am looking forward to finding out what happens in the next book in the series. Will Yale still be the lead character, or will it switch to another member of the Night Market?

Berkley Publishing Group and Jennifer J. Chow provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. This is my honest review. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way. Publication date is currently set for July 5, 2022. This review was originally posted at Mystery and Suspense Magazine.

Death by Bubble Tea by Jennifer J. Chow is the debut of LA Night Market series. We meet Yale Yee who lives in Los Angeles, and her cousin, Celine who is visiting from Hong Kong. Yale’s father asks the pair to run his stall at the Eastwood Village Night Market which will feature some items that Yale has wanted her father to add to the menu of the family restaurant. Yale will do the food and beverages while Celine will be in charge of marketing and decorations. After a bumpy start, the evening turns out to be a hit. As Yale is walking home, her cart hits an obstacle near the fountain. It turns out to be a dead woman. Yale later learns that the victim has visited their stall at the market and purchased a drink. Yale and Celine find themselves at the top of the suspect list because Celine added gold flakes to the drink (without letting Yale know). The two cousins must work together if they are going to clear their names and restore the reputation of the Yee family restaurant. I like the concept for Death by Bubble Tea. There are few cozy mysteries that feature people of Asian descent. There are mouthwatering food descriptions (I really need to find a good Chinese restaurant in my area). I was not a fan of either main character. Yale and Celine are opposites. Yale avoids technology while Celine posts pictures of food and drinks on Instagram. Celine likes fashionable clothes and high-end everything. Yale is happy to wear comfortable clothing and work in the local bookstore. Yale loves books which I can relate to, but she is also a bit of Debbie downer. She is still mourning the loss of her mother and feels that her mother’s death was her fault. The reason why Celine had to depart Hong Kong was silly in my opinion. I did not feel it warranted banishment. The mystery had several suspects along with misdirection. The clues are subtle. You never know what detail might be important. The mystery can be solved before the reveal for those who are avid armchair sleuths. I liked that there was a complete wrap up. I did feel that the medical examiner should have been more on the ball. I know it is fiction, but there does need to be realism. Certain details did not track with the supposition. I was not a fan of Yale’s old high school rival. He is an obnoxious jerk (Yale should have told his mother what he was doing). I found the pacing of Death by Bubble Tea to be slow courtesy of the overly detailed descriptions. I liked Yale’s sweet father. He is a good man with a big heart. It was interesting learning about the night market. It sounds like quite a festival with the food, costumes, games, and socializing. Death by Bubble Tea was a mixed bag for me. Death by Bubble Tea is a culinary cozy with a brilliant beverage, night market magic, a poisoned ninja, a nasty nemesis, a determined detective, enticing nibbles, and a cold killer.

Two cousins, Yale Lee and Celine, who is visiting from Hong Kong, become amateur sleuths when a young woman is found murdered at the Eastwood Village Night Market, where they were manning a food stall. Celine becomes a suspect because the bubble tea she served the victim may have led to the death. The two cousins are determined to find the real killer to clear their name and the reputation of Yale's father's restaurant.

I enjoyed the developing friendship between the two formerly long-distance cousins who together feature in this new amateur sleuth series. We eagerly follow Yale and Celine as they debate and investigate the crime at the same time as the police do. The culprit in the mystery is unexpected and so puts a twist at the end.

Although it is sometimes hard to follow Yale's convoluted thinking about possible suspects and their guilt or innocence, the cozy was a satisfying read, and I look forward to reading more about the two in their next mystery.

Ever since I found out that one of my favorite cozy authors, Jennifer J. Chow, had a new series set in a L.A. Night Market, I've been excited about DEATH BY BUBBLE TEA --- it was everything I'd hoped for and more!

Cousins Yale Yee and Celine are serving up delicious Bubble Tea and cold plates from the family dim sum restaurant to Foodstagrammers and other foodies when a murder at the brand new night market puts the wrong kind of spotlight on local restaurateurs. 30-something Yale is a technophobe and her Hong Kong cousin is a food blogger. Together they form a great crime-solving team as they dodge dangers while circling in on the suspect.

It’s been a minute since I last picked up a cozy mystery, but I was instantly intrigued by Jennifer J. Chow’s Death by Bubble Tea. Set in LA and featuring two cousins (Yale and Celine), the book had the look of a promising beginning to a new series. It met all my expectations.

Death by Bubble Tea was the perfect weekend read to get lost in. There was plenty of talk about food (which made me hungry while reading), and I liked the setting and the overall way the plot unfolded.

The characters, particularly Yale and her family, were developed well from basically page one, and I liked the sense of community that was established early on. The characters weren’t without their troubles, and that was explored alongside the other aspects of the story.

The mystery had a great introduction, and the portion of the story dedicated to sleuthing was relatively fun to follow along to. It was trial and error for Yale and Celine—something that was complicated by the fact that they were considered suspects where, theoretically, there should have been an ample amount of witnesses who had to have seen something. Untangling what happened that night was an interesting journey.

Death by Bubble Tea was a lot of fun. I will definitely check out the sequel.

Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Berkley Books) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you!

Chow is an American author whose previous books include the 'Sassy Cat Mystery series'. This new release is the start of another cozy mystery series featuring Yale Yee. Her dad owns a Dim Sum restaurant and he persuades her to run a stand at a new night market. She gets help from her cousin who is visiting from Hong Kong. When wrapping up for the night, Yale finds the body of a young woman who was murdered. After she and her cousin become suspects they decide to find the real killer. This is a light, mystery and a good recommendation for fans of the genre who are looking for some diversity in characters.

Death by Bubble Tea by Jennifer J. Chow is the cozy mystery I didn't know I needed until now. The first book in The LA Night Market series follows Yale Yee and her cousin, Celine, as they run a food stall at the Eastwood Village Night Market. One of their customers turns up dead and Celine is the prime suspect when gold flakes she added as a garnish to the victim's bubble tea is thought to be the cause of death.

There was so much I loved about this book:
-Likeable MCs. Yale is a book lover and lives the simple life. She doesn't own a cell phone or computer and takes the bus everywhere. Celine is her polar opposite - rich, fashionable and a foodstagrammer.
-the emphasis on the importance of family. Yale and Celine butt heads at first, but they come to realize that even though they're not alike, they're still family. Also, Yale is super close to her dad.
-All the food! Yale's dad owns a dim sum restaurant and she and Celine use food from there to help get information for their investigation. Lots of delicious dim sum descriptions, as well as Taiwanese breakfast, pupusas, and liquid nitrogen ice cream. Yale also uses different dim sum to characterize people and their personalities.
-Asian (Chinese) representation and other diverse representation. As a Chinese American, I loved being able to see myself represented in my favorite genre.
-And of course, the mystery itself. It was definitely an intriguing storyline with lots of red herrings. I didn't know where the investigation would lead and who the murderer was going to be. I was totally stumped.

This was a great start to a new series and I cannot wait to read the next book.

Death by Bubble Tea was wild ride from start to finish! I loved the dynamic between Celine and Yale, and how the two cousins went from estranged to being really close. As a Hong Konger, I loved every food reference & every cultural reference! Overall, this was a fun, easy read and I'd highly recommend it.

* Will be posted on July 1st*

I really enjoyed this book. I knew I was going to since cozy mysteries are one of my favorites genres, but I was surprised at how much. In the beginning, I wasn't sure about Yale. She's a booklover but doesn't like technology, doesn't have a computer or a phone. I thought she would be obnoxious about it, but she isn't. Yale really did grow on me, her quick thinking combined with her tenacity to solve this case really makes you like her.

I was also really surprised that I liked Celine as much as I did. You think she would be this self-centered, airheaded influencer, but she's the opposite. Celine was my favorite characters and I really wished that we got a couple of chapters from her POV. The only person I really despised (besides the killer) was Nik and his whole side story. I felt it was unnecessary and really didn't add anything. This kinda sucks because I have a feeling he's going to get a bigger role with the next book and could become a potential love interest .

The story was good, and kept he entertained but I did end up guessing who the killer was although not how thy committed the murder. This doesn't take away from the story at all though and how much I thoroughly enjoyed it. I will be looking into Chow's other books because I really like Chow's writing. I will also definitely be picking up the next book in this series.

Overall, a very good start to which I am hoping is a solid mystery series.

This was such a cute cozy mystery!, Yale and Celine were such an entertaining mismatched crime duo, and the night market itself was very much a character. The food descriptions and the setting were an excellent accompaniment for the story.
The dialogue was occasionally clunky (especially at the end) and there were maybe 1-2 too many characters, but I’m looking forward to the sequel. Jennifer Chow delivered a great crime novel.

This book had so many things going for it. Family loyalty, the FOOD (holy moly, the food), and MURDER. This was a fun, relaxing mystery which was just what I needed during a stressful week. While cozy mysteries are on the lighter side of a murder mystery, they often provide the comfort and, well, cozy relaxing read we sometimes need.

Yale just got laid off at her beloved bookstore job. Her Instagram-worthy cousin, Celine, is visiting from Hong Kong. Yale is tasked with teaming up with Celine to have a food cart at a night event in their town. Someone dies after drinking Yale's tea. All clues point to Yale and Celine and - there's your mystery.

I loved Yale. She reminded me so much of myself in my twenties. She was a shy introvert who turned to books for companionship. Celine started off snobby, but grew into someone who valued things other than money by the end of the story.

I thought the pace of solving the mystery was a tad slow. DEATH BY BUBBLE TEA needed more conflict and perhaps red herrings.

I can't wait for Jennifer's next book. I've got my fingers crossed that Yale finds a love interest. That gal desperately needs one. For the next book I'm going to start reading it with a hot bowl of noodles and bubble tea.

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for an e-copy of DEATH BY BUBBLE TEA, by Jennifer J. Chow, to review.

I rate DEATH BY BUBBLE TEA four out of five stars.

"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."

I'm obsessed with anything bubble tea related. So THIS is in my wheelhouse. Though I am pretty sure most gold flakes aren't edible.... And that knowledge is thanks to Dynasty.

This was an enjoyable tale of murder, friendship, and delectable dishes. The author knows how to tell a story that embraces the readers because there are scenes not to be missed as they guide you in who is doing what to whom. I like that the writing is crisp with a comfortable tone making it easy to follow along with what the author has intended. The mystery was nicely done, and I enjoyed how it played out as each clue led to another until the only person left standing was the killer. This was a fun cozy mystery and I look forward to more escapades with Yale and Celine.

Yale Yee has just lost her job at a local book store. She is happy to learn that her cousin Celine will be visiting from Hong Kong, and that Yale's dad, who owns a local restaurant, would like the two women to be in charge of a stall at the new local night market. Celine, an Instagram food blogger, seems at first like just a high maintenance woman, but the cousins decide to work together when there's a death at the night market, and they are suspects. I liked that most of the characters were Asian (though I wished the police detective was, too), the descriptions of food (with recipes), and the southern California setting. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Death By Bubble Tea leans into family relationships, but is only a decent cozy mystery. The main characters are great, but the story progresses rather slowly with a lot of details that can confuse the reader. I do not plan to continue on reading this series.

Yale Yee was just let go from her job at the local bookstore when her father offers her the opportunity to represent her family's Dim Sum restaurant at a local late night market. Yale is excited about the opportunity to pad her bank account what she is not so excited about is working with her real life "Crazy Rich Asian" cousin Celine from Hong Kong. Still, Yale can admit that Celine definitely jazzed up their products presentation. But things go awry when one of their customers is found dead and police link the cause of death to the decoration Celine used on Bubble Tea drink. Can these two polar opposite cousins put their differences aside and solve this case before Celine has trade in her panache fashion for prison dudes?

I absolutely adored Death by Bubble Tea. The writing was excellent and the execution of the mystery was stellar. Still I was not expecting to get so caught up in the relationships formed in this book whether it was Yale and Celine or Yale and her father or the wonderful sense of the community Ms. Chow conveyed set in a city as large as Los Angeles. So much of Yale's community reminded me of my time of living in Flushing, Queens and my Chinese friends used to bring me yummy Chinese treats from their family restaurants when we studied together. We definitely need more diverse cozies, particularly highlighting hardworking immigrant communities like this one. I highly recommend picking up Death by Bubble Tea, just make sure you are not too hungry while reading it. Well done, looking forward to the next installment.

Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Death by Bubble Tea by Jennifer J. Chow is a fun, #ownvoices cozy mystery that will have you laughing and drooling. The story revolves around two cousins, Yale and Celina, who start a bubble tea stall at a local night market. But what happens when Yale discovers a dead body? And the body belongs to their first customer? Can they find the real murderer while avoiding suspicion from the police?

Here is a delectable excerpt from Chapter 1:

"Kelly looked beyond my left shoulder. “How’s your father doing nowadays? Still busy running Wing Fat in Westwood?” She’d pronounced the name of it correctly, making the “fat” sound more like “fought.” The phrase meant “Always Prosperous” in Cantonese, but none of my schoolmates in sixth grade had known or wanted to know the significance when my dad had started running the restaurant. This was after he’d poured in years of savings from waiting on tables and being a line cook until he achieved his dream of owning his own business.
“Ba’s doing great,” I said. “The wait is out the door during dim sum hours, and people love his other dishes. He’s even testing out a few new snack foods I recommended, but he’s not sure his clientele will want to try them, so he’s going to introduce them at the local night market happening this weekend.”"

Overall, Death by Bubble Tea is a lovely cozy mystery that would make the perfect read for a night in. It reminded me of reading Laurence Yep's Chinatown mysteries when I was younger. One highlight of this book is how it is an #ownvoices book by an author of Chinese descent. I absolutely loved the parts in Cantonese. I could tell the author was an "insider" by how she described "doll noodles." For the first time in a long time, I felt like my culture was represented. Another highlight of this book was the descriptions of food, including dimsum, was sounded delicious. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of cozy mysteries in general, I highly recommend that you check out this book when it comes out in July!

‘Death By Bubble Tea’ is an enjoyable murder mystery with a focus on family relationships. At times it felt like a bit of a slog, there was a lot of detail when maybe there didn’t need to be. But I enjoyed our main characters Yale and Celine and their relationship—despite how different they are, it worked. Ultimately, I liked it and I’ll read the next one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkeley Publishing Group for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was an absolutely fantastic read, cover to cover.
Yale Yee is what you might call a quiet, "quirky" girl, living a luddite life in West L.A. not far from her father and the Dim Sum restaurant he runs, Wing Fat.
Her quiet life is upended when her glamorous cousin Celine drops in from Hong Kong for the first time in twenty years and helps her run a food stand for her father at the local Eastwood Night Market.

Los Angeles isn't the typical quaint, small town setting you tend to find in a cozy.
However, with the closeness of the community Yale lives in, that doesn't make too much of a difference.
It also opens up more possibilities for future books since you don't have to deal with killing off a fifth of your town's population over time...
I really enjoyed the writing style in this book. I thought the characters had depth and felt like real people; I could hear the conversations flow very naturally in my head. I 2 or 3-star a lot of cozies for falling short there.
While I thought some of the proposed motives in the case were implausible, it wasn't anything notably outlandish for the genre.
Readers who love reading vivid descriptions of foods they might be unfamiliar with are in for a treat. I think I need to find a Cantonese restaurant ASAP, though that might be out of reach from where I live for a while.
Also, I was so excited to see that the author did include recipes!

Readers who like a family-focused cozy will love this one. I'd say it's sort of in the same vein as Abby Collette's ice cream shop series, though the MC doesn't have a host of siblings like Bronwyn does.

I have one very strong opinion about what should happen in the second installment of the series...
Yale Yee needs a cat!!
Can't wait to read Hot Pot Murder!!

******** very vague spoilers **********

The book wasn't entirely without flaw.
The culprit did the "Let's stall by me explaining how I'm going to harm you" thing, and I thought their intent was confusing. So it was an accident? ....An accident you're happy about? What?
I thought Nick Ho was a little over the top aggressive for no real reason.
The roommates are also a little to quick to fall for a lot of the MC's tricks at times.

Death by Bubble Tea is a wonderful, pleasant read. I really enjoyed reading this book and found this new series unique and something different to read. The story and characters was great. It was also nice to see how the protagonist and her cousin's relationship progresses within the story as well.

The cover art is fantastic, and gives the feeling of a nighttime mystery. It adds the story's theme and overall feel to the series. If you enjoyed Jennifer J Chow's other works, you will enjoy this one!