At the Night Market by Jennifer Chow

Jenn McKinlay: One of my very favorite reads last year was an advance copy of DEATH BY BUBBLE TEA. A glorious new mystery series set in Los Angeles. Before I slip with a spoiler, here's Jennifer J. Chow to tell us more about her latest fabulous mystery!

Order Today!

Jennifer J. Chow: The inspiration for my new series, L.A. Night Market Mysteries, is clearly night markets. These fun nighttime festivals happen around the world—I’ve been to several, located in Asia, Canada, and the U.S. I’m going to focus on three factors that help create their festive atmosphere. Some night markets will lean into one aspect more than another, but I find that the events typically have three common elements. 

Food Number one on my list is food. There are all sorts of treats to be had at a night market. Whether you’re a fan of savory pork chops…

or sweet bubble waffles...

there's something for everyone. 

 Of course, don’t forget the bubble tea! (Book One in my upcoming series is called Death By Bubble Tea and comes out on July 5.) The classic boba drink is milk bubble tea, which features creamy black tea combined with chewy al dente tapioca balls. At my local 626 Night Market, I once saw a competition for the largest bubble tea drink (oh my!):

Fun An electric atmosphere is key to a night market. To create an exciting feel, there are sometimes entertainers on stage. These performers are amazing and can sing, dance, and more!

Fun can also be found in the form of games. Some night markets will have actual arcades, complete with claw machines and pachinko pinball. Others have a section with carnival-like games. Imagine trying your hand at Whack A Water Balloon:

Other intriguing activities involve arts and crafts, particularly culturally relevant ones. Honestly, I’ve only seen these offered in the States, maybe as a way to pass on heritage and history.

Finds Who doesn’t love shopping? Night market attendees can find all sorts of trinkets for sale. In Asia, you can even bargain down the prices. (I wouldn’t recommend doing this in other places.) I’ve gone to night markets where there are actual store buildings (usually selling souvenirs and clothing). Sometimes, though, the booths of merchandise are nestled next to the food stalls. I particularly like sellers who customize their wares, like this artist offering hand-painted shoes:

Hope you enjoyed my quick tour of a night market! What festive activity do you enjoy? 

Bio Jennifer J. Chow writes cozies with heart, humor, and heritage. She is the twice-nominated Lefty Award author of the Sassy Cat Mysteries. The first in the Sassy Cat series, Mimi Lee Gets A Clue, was selected as an OverDrive Recommended Read, a PopSugar Best Summer Beach Read, and one of BuzzFeed’s Top 5 Books by AAPI authors. Her upcoming series is the L.A. Night Market Mysteries, and the first book, Death by Bubble Tea, comes out on July 5. She currently serves as Vice President on the national board of Sisters in Crime and is an active member of Crime Writers of Color and Mystery Writers of America. Connect with her online at JenniferJChow.com.

About the Book 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. 

 Giveaway One lucky reader (U.S. only) who leaves a comment will get a signed copy of Mimi Lee Cracks the Code (Book 3 in the Sassy Cat Mystery series)!

Sweepstakes: Why I love them! by Jenn McKinlay

 Jenn McKinlay: My publisher is BIG on doing sweepstakes. They put together a smattering of authors they are about to unleash upon the world and offer up a collection of their titles for a prize. My books have been included with everyone from Charlaine Harris to Kristan Higgins. Pretty great, right?

But what I love most about it is that in this new world order, where there are no conferences, it's one of my few opportunities to meet other authors as we join forces to promote our work through the sweepstakes. And this Detective Starter Pack crew is exceptional so now I get to share them with you!

Detective Starter Pack sweepstakes! The sweepstakes is running September 15—September 25 and one entrant will be selected to win the featured books, as well as a murder mystery game! 

Enter here: https://bit.ly/3yxG247

Today just happens to kick off this sweepstakes, so I thought I'd introduce my fellow sweepstakes authors by asking them to tell us what they find most difficult about writing mysteries, so here they are to tell you.

 

What's the hardest part when writing a mystery?

Jennifer Hawkins: For me, it’s making sure the motivations on the part of the murderer are believably intense, and also something the reader can, maybe not sympathize with, but will have some emotional resonance with.

Olivia Blacke: Writing a mystery is like trying to solve a crossword puzzle without any prompts. Once you’re able to fill in all the blanks, you have to make sure that the puzzle you’ve created is challenging enough that people who can solve it feel like they’ve had to work for it, but with enough clues that it’s fair. My goal is that at least some people think they know whodunit early in the book, then make them keep second-guessing themselves until the big reveal, but I want the majority of readers to get to the end and realize that the answer was obvious all along, but they missed it.

Jennifer J. Chow: I think it's finding the balance between giving too much info while also making the mystery puzzling for the reader.

Jenn McKinlay: The middle, always the middle, no matter the genre. I hate middles. But, also, with mysteries, I struggle with trotting enough suspects across the page. I have discovered for a mystery, it really is a case of the more the merrier.

So, how about it Reds and Readers, what do you think the hardest part of writing a mystery is?

ORDER NOW

 One of BookRiot's Best Upcoming Cozy Mysteries for the Second Half  of 2021!
When murder follows Mimi Lee to her romantic island getaway, she     puts on her best sleuthing hat with her sassy cat in tow in this  adventurous cozy mystery by Jennifer J. Chow.
 Mimi Lee just found an extra perk to being a pet groomer at Hollywoof  (other than cuddling animals all day long, that is). Pixie St. James, one of Mimi’s clients and the investor behind Hollywoof, has offered her and her boyfriend, Josh, a getaway at her vacation home, nestled on beautiful Catalina Island. With the island just outside of Los Angeles but still far enough from the hustle and bustle, Mimi, Josh, and their cat Marshmallow (who, of course, wouldn’t be caught dead in a dingy pet hotel) are excited for their relaxing stay.
 
That is, until Pixie’s last renter, Davis D. Argo, turns up dead. Mimi and Josh’s romantic getaway immediately turns into an enormous buzzkill, especially when Pixie asks Mimi for help. The police suspect Pixie, and Mimi knows a thing or two about wrongful allegations. Mimi figures it couldn’t hurt to snoop a little since she’s already there, and soon discovers that a valuable item is missing. Except Pixie isn’t the only one in the neighborhood who has been robbed. There is something strange happening on the island, and Mimi won’t stop until she finds out what it is.

ORDER NOW

A charming tea room owner and her excitable talking corgi will need to work together to bring a killer to heel in this delightful cozy mystery. 

For ex-accountant Emma Reed and her beloved corgi, Oliver, opening Reed’s Classic Tea & Cakes in the idyllic village of Trevena in Cornwall has been the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.  Her cakes are popular, she has a host of wonderful new friends, and even a potential new romance.  There’s even time left over for plenty of long country walks with Oliver, who is not only the cutest corgi on record (at least to Emma), he happens to talk (at least to Emma).  What could be better?   

How about being asked to help cater the local Daphne DuMaurier literary festival?   

But when the festival organizer is found dead and foul play is suspected, Emma, Oliver and their friends are plunged deep into a poisonous mix of village jealousy, family tension, money troubles, and secret love affairs.  Emma quickly realizes it’s up to her and her intrepid corgi to discover a canny killer whose bite is worse than their bark.

ORDER NOW

Amateur sleuth Odessa Dean is about to discover the only thing harder than finding her way out of an escape room is finding an affordable apartment in Brooklyn in this sequel to Killer Content.

Odessa Dean has made a home of Brooklyn. She has a fun job waiting tables at Untapped Books & Café and a new friend, Izzy, to explore the city with. When she's invited on a girls' day out escape room adventure, she jumps at the chance. It's all fun and games until the lights come on and they discover one of the girls bludgeoned to death...

The only possible suspects are Odessa and the four other players that were locked in the escape room with the victim. She refuses to believe that one of them is responsible for the murder, despite what the clues indicate. In between shifts at the café, Odessa splits her time interviewing the murder suspects, updating the bookstore's social media accounts, and searching for the impossible--an affordable apartment in Brooklyn.

But crime--and criminally high rent--waits for no woman. Can Odessa clear her and Izzy’s names before the police decide they're guilty?

ORDER NOW

Spring has sprung in Briar Creek, but it is not all sunshine and roses, in the newest Library Lover's Mystery from the New York Times bestselling author of One for the Books.

Spring is livening up Briar Creek after a long, cold winter, and newlyweds Lindsey and Sully could not be happier. Even though the upcoming mayoral election is getting heated, everything else in town is coming up daffodils...until a body is found.

Ms. Cole, a librarian and current candidate for town mayor, is shocked when she opens her trunk to discover a murder victim who just so happens to be a guy she dated forty years ago and the founder of the baking empire Nana's Cookies. As the town gossip mill turns, a batch of rumors begins to circulate about Ms. Cole's rebellious youth, which--along with being a murder suspect--threatens to ruin her life and her budding political career. But Ms. Cole is one tough cookie who will not go down without a fight.

Has the campaign for mayor turned deadly? It is up to Lindsey, Sully, and the rest of the crafternoon pals to see how the cookie crumbles and figure out who is trying to frame Ms. Cole for murder and why.

Now go enter the sweepstakes! GOOD LUCK!!!

Confessions of a Foodie @JenJChow

LUCY BURDETTE: Today's guest is a woman after my own heart. I can totally get choosing a home according to the restaurants nearby! And she has a very fun new release out called Mimi Lee Reads Between the Lines. Welcome Jennifer!

JENNIFER CHOW: Confession: I’m a foodie at heart. When we moved to our current home, I told friends that one of the deciding factors was its proximity to an amazing Malaysian restaurant. (I was only half-joking.)

Food has always been a big part of my life. By custom, Chinese people serve meals on all major occasions, particularly at the saddest and happiest of times. My own wedding reception featured a ten-course banquet. A funeral will certainly involve a wake meal. Even post-death, when we honor the deceased, relatives will traditionally bring food offerings. (These culinary treats often reflect the favorite dishes of the dearly departed.) 

Tradition alone didn’t bind me to food, though. Growing up, my family owned a Chinese restaurant. A buffet, it served an interesting fusion of food: cold pickled vegetables, fried chicken, and Chinese barbecue spareribs. One appetizer/dessert we offered were honey twists: fried wonton wrappers drizzled in a syrupy glaze. (I once brought a tray of these sweets to school to celebrate my birthday.)

Food also connects me to my specific ethnicity. My dad was born and raised in Malaysia, though he has Chinese roots (just like the mom of my main character). As a kid, I loved it when he made his special curry chicken; even today, I still can’t replicate that delicious savory and spicy sauce. A lot of Malaysian dishes actually ratchet up the spice level. To his chagrin, my dad’s heat tolerance didn’t pass on to me. I’ve never, though, turned down an offering of yummy roti canai flatbread or steaming teh tarik, hand-pulled milk tea. 

 

Dim sum, when translated, literally means to “touch the heart.” In the same way, food and culture are emotionally interwoven for me. I feel very lucky to have such a scrumptious way to enjoy my heritage. 

How does food play a role in your life or in your identity?

Bio:

Jennifer J. Chow writes A Sassy Cat Mystery series (Berkley/Penguin Random House) and the Winston Wong Cozy Mysteries under J.J. Chow. She’s active in Sisters in Crime and Crime Writers of Color.

 

Connect with her online at www.jenniferjchow.com and on social media @jenjchow.

About MIMI LEE READS BETWEEN THE LINES: 

When a local teacher is found dead, LA’s newest pet groomer Mimi Lee finds herself in a pawful predicament—with her younger sister’s livelihood on the line.

Mimi Lee is on top of the world. She has a thriving pet grooming business, the sweetest boyfriend, and a talking cat to boot. When she arrives at the elementary school where her sister Alice works, she's expecting a fun girls' night out—but instead finds a teacher slumped over in her car, dead.

Alice was the last one to see Helen Reed, which instantly marks her as the prime suspect. Unable to sit quietly and let the authorities walk all over her sister, Mimi starts snooping and talks to Helen’s closest contacts, including one jumpy principal, a two-faced fiancé, and three sketchy teachers. With the help of her sassy but savvy cat, Marshmallow, and a cute kitten named Nimbus, the clock’s ticking for Mimi to get to the bottom of yet another case before her sister gets schooled.