How Vivien Chien’s Noodle Shop Mysteries Made Me Love Cozy Mysteries Again

Ever since I chanced upon the works of Joan Lowry Nixon as a child, I have loved murder mysteries. I loved the high drama and high stakes, the puzzles and clues that have to be put together. And that love has continued to this day where murder mysteries probably constitute the majority of my reading. But my love for cozies has not been as consistent. I stopped reading them for the most part for about a decade. Instead, I gravitated towards detective fiction by authors like Rex Stout, Arthur Conan Doyle, and Raymond Chandler.

But then I came across Vivien Chien’s Death by Dumpling one day at the bookstore. It was my way back into the genre. Now I love cozies once again, thanks to the Noodle Shop Mysteries.

I was also bothered by the avoidance of substantive issues in the series I read. One of the hallmarks of cozies is there in the name. It’s meant to be comfortable. No graphic violence, no sex, no swearing. Generally, these books are meant to be upbeat and happy, and not dwell too much on the darker sides of life (aside from murder, of course). 

But with some series from a few decades ago, it feels that they were taking that too far. It seems like those authors erased some intrinsic facts in their works. To use an example that I made up, it would be like talking about 1950s Germany without any mention of the Nazis and the violence they wrought upon the country and the rest of the world. Or like setting a series in Ancient Rome without any mention that there were enslaved people. As a historian, it got really annoying. And given the battles today over books, it seemed quite problematic.

But part of it came from my own prejudices about genre fiction. I felt that I shouldn’t read “these” types of books, instead I should be spending my time reading “substantive” literature. So eventually cozies were out and literary mysteries were in. (Also, I could have taken a class on murder mysteries in college but didn’t for the same reason. It’s one of many regrets from my college years.)

Thank goodness I made that leap of faith. Inside, I met Lana Lee, the amatuer detective at the heart of the novel, who was so funny and relatable. She was a little lost in life, having quit her job and broken up with her boyfriend and returning to the family restaurant, but she wasn’t down and out. She was feisty and caring for her family and friends, even when they drove her nuts. Plus, she had a dog named Kikkoman, after the soy sauce brand, and a giant love for donuts.

The Love That Keeps On Growing

Hot and Sour Suspects by Vivien Chien And Vivien Chien keeps it going with each delightful addition to the series. But something struck me very personally. In her most recent book, Hot and Sour Suspects, she writes in her foreword about her diagnosis and treatment for cancer. It was moving that she felt she needed to share this with her readers. But the timing of it was uncanny. I had saved the book for my first infusion of new medication for my Crohn’s. I remember reading that foreword while waiting to be called into the treatment room for an hour and feeling extremely touched. While I go to cozies when I need some pure joy, this was another level of the right book at the right moment. So thank you to Vivien Chien for bringing me back to cozies and for sharing challenges with us. The next title in the series, Misfortune Cookie, is supposed to come out next year. Now back enjoying all the Agatha Christie mysteries, and am finally rectifying my regret and planning on taking a class on Native American crime fiction through the Newberry Library this fall. Want more discussion of cozies? Here’s a thoughtful essay on new cozies. Here’s another essay on the increasing diversity in cozy mysteries.