Kerry Hammond is here to tell us about the latest book in
the Aunty Lee Mystery Series by Ovidia Yu.
Aunty Lee’s Chilled Revenge was published on April 5, 2016, by William Morrow in Trade Paperback. It is
the 3rd book in the Singaporean mystery series by author Ovidia Yu.
I love to read to escape to foreign locales, the more exotic the better. I
chose to read this book because I wanted to be transported to Singapore, and
the author did just that. She also threw in a murder, just to entertain me.
Aunty Lee is a widowed Singaporean
lady with a successful restaurant and a curious mind. She is close friends with
the local police Commissioner Raja (he is also widowed and you can insert
raised eyebrows here, because they might end up more than friends as the series
progresses). She is surrounded by friends and family, including her step-son Mark
and his semi-irritating wife Selena, whom Aunty Lee refers to as Silly-Nah.
In Aunty Lee’s Chilled Revenge, Aunty Lee is recovering from
a fall that twisted her ankle. She has to rely on others to help her run her
business, but her mind is still as sharp as a tack. Unable to help her business
partner Cherril much with the day to day running
of the restaurant, she is, even more,
looking for a distraction. A group of local young people are in the café to meet a woman named Allison,
a British expat who wishes to confront them, and sue them, for ruining her life
and her marriage. It all stemmed from an incident where Allison adopted a dog
from the shelter and then, when there
were issues with her keeping it, chose to euthanize the puppy rather than
return it to the shelter. The shelter workers and all of Singapore attacked her online and she feels
that it is their fault that her marriage broke up and wants them to pay.
Allison doesn’t show for the meeting, and her sister Vallerie, who is visiting with her for moral
support, finds her dead body in the hotel room. Aunty Lee offers Valerie a
place to stay as the police investigate, and starts her own version of an
investigation as the case progresses. The police realize that Aunty Lee has
access to information that would be extremely hard for them to get, and therefore
put up with her involvement in the case. Her help proves to be invaluable as
the culprit is brought to justice.
Yu has created a genuine and adorable character in Aunty
Lee. She’s just the right amount of nosy, bossy, caring, and generous. I
enjoyed watching Aunty Lee solve her problems over food, always making sure
everyone is well fed before they tackle anything that might upset them. The
characters really stand out, and Yu inserts just enough of the local dialect to
make it interesting and authentic. There are several twists to the plot that
lead the reader to the satisfying conclusion.
The book is complete with recipes in the back, and a list of
local spots in Singapore that Aunty Lee recommends. It is part mystery and part
travel guidebook. What a great combination.
This book was provided to Mystery Playground by the
publisher. The review is fair and independent.
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Thanks for the great review, I'll have to move this up in my pile of 'to be read' books.
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