The Tainted Cup

This is my first read by Mr. Bennett, and while it stands well on its own, I'm delighted to find that it's a first in a series. 

Get plunged into a world of secrets, lies, and murder all while the sky is about to fall in the form of a leviathan. 

Meet the perfectly captivating versions of Sherlock Holmes and Watson in the form of Dolabra and Kol. The cast is replete with eccentrics and distinctive people. Good luck keeping up with each twist and turn and Dolabra's shocking conclusions. If you can see them coming, send a note to the author about your brilliance. 

High praise to the audiobook narrator for a superb job bringing the book to life, which made the story experience delightful. 

AMAZON

In Daretana’s greatest mansion, a high imperial officer lies dead—killed, to all appearances, when a tree erupted from his body. Even here at the Empire’s borders, where contagions abound and the blood of the leviathans works strange magical changes, it’s a death both terrifying and impossible.

Assigned to investigate is Ana Dolabra, a detective whose reputation for brilliance is matched only by her eccentricities. Rumor has it that she wears a blindfold at all times, and that she can solve impossible cases without even stepping outside the walls of her home.

At her side is her new assistant, Dinios Kol, magically altered in ways that make him the perfect aide to Ana’s brilliance. Din is at turns scandalized, perplexed, and utterly infuriated by his new superior—but as the case unfolds and he watches Ana’s mind leap from one startling deduction to the next, he must admit that she is, indeed, the Empire’s greatest detective.

As the two close in on a mastermind and uncover a scheme that threatens the Empire itself, Din realizes he’s barely begun to assemble the puzzle that is Ana Dolabra—and wonders how long he’ll be able to keep his own secrets safe from her piercing intellect.

The Man Who Died Twice

Another round of fun for the murder club. 

This time one of their own is attacked and down for the count, and Elizabeth is calling in favors like she's won the lottery. 

We gain more insight to the characters' past, and we should all get to vote on whether Joyce should adopt Allen. 

Lots of charm, humor, and dead bodies to satisfy lovers of the first book. 

What mystery books do you like that feature seniors as the main characters?

AMAZON

Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim—the Thursday Murder Club—are still riding high off their recent real-life murder case and are looking forward to a bit of peace and quiet at Cooper’s Chase, their posh retirement village.

But they are out of luck.

An unexpected visitor—an old pal of Elizabeth’s (or perhaps more than just a pal?)—arrives, desperate for her help. He has been accused of stealing diamonds worth millions from the wrong men and he’s seriously on the lam.

Then, as night follows day, the first body is found. But not the last. Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim are up against a ruthless murderer who wouldn’t bat an eyelid at knocking off four septuagenarians. Can our four friends catch the killer before the killer catches them? And if they find the diamonds, too? Well, wouldn’t that be a bonus? You should never put anything beyond the Thursday Murder Club.

Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers

Everyone needs a Chinese grandma in their life, they just don't know it yet. 

A cozy mystery of the best kind. Ms. Sutanto does an extraordinary job of bringing together a collection of people who shouldn't fit together but do in the end. 

Call it fate, but really, call it Vera who during her investigation helps strangers form bonds that will last long after she solves the murder. 

This book was laugh out loud funny, with never a dull moment. 

Gold stars to the audiobook narrator for doing such a masterful job bringing Vera and the cast to life. I'll be hearing Vera in my head for months now. I only wish there recipes for the tea and dishes Vera makes. 

What recent book has made you laugh out loud? 

AMAZON

A lonely shopkeeper takes it upon herself to solve a murder in the most peculiar way in this captivating mystery by Jesse Q. Sutanto, bestselling author of Dial A for Aunties.

Vera Wong is a lonely little old lady—ah, lady of a certain age—who lives above her forgotten tea shop in the middle of San Francisco’s Chinatown. Despite living alone, Vera is not needy, oh no. She likes nothing more than sipping on a good cup of Wulong and doing some healthy detective work on the Internet about what her Gen-Z son is up to.

Then one morning, Vera trudges downstairs to find a curious thing—a dead man in the middle of her tea shop. In his outstretched hand, a flash drive. Vera doesn’t know what comes over her, but after calling the cops like any good citizen would, she sort of . . . swipes the flash drive from the body and tucks it safely into the pocket of her apron. Why? Because Vera is sure she would do a better job than the police possibly could, because nobody sniffs out a wrongdoing quite like a suspicious Chinese mother with time on her hands. Vera knows the killer will be back for the flash drive; all she has to do is watch the increasing number of customers at her shop and figure out which one among them is the killer.

What Vera does not expect is to form friendships with her customers and start to care for each and every one of them. As a protective mother hen, will she end up having to give one of her newfound chicks to the police?