Vera Wong’s Guide to Snooping (On a Dead Man)

Many readers will be delighted at the return of Vera Wong, a great cozy hero if there ever was one. In Vera’s first book, we saw her discovering the body of a dead man in her San Francisco tea house. A tragedy, yes, but one that led to quite a transformation for Vera, who discovered a whole new world thanks to that one death. She has a growing social life, her tea shop is burgeoning, and there are plenty of friends to enjoy her cooking. Except that life is growing a tad dull, compared to a murder investigation. But lucky for her, Vera comes across a young woman outside the police station who appears quite upset. It turns out that the woman’s boyfriend has recently died, possibly by suicide, and she fears that she may have had a role in his death. Well, did this young woman come across the right person. Through her own research, Vera discovers that Xander, the young man who died, was a well-known influencer, with an extravagant lifestyle. So how did he end up in Mission Bay? That question pushes Vera into a story that’s quite a bit darker than the first book. Vera is still a fun and lovable character, but here she takes on some challenging social issues. In other words, Vera grows. And readers will be happy to follow her.