Review by Booklist Review
Rookie LAPD bicycle cop Ellie Rush is patrolling porta-potties at the Chinese New Year's festival when a young woman's body is found in a nearby alley, and Ellie identifies her as Jenny Nguyen, a former Pan Pacific West College classmate. Ellie's identification gets the investigation rolling, but it abruptly slows when Jenny's inner circle stonewalls detectives. Ellie, a Japanese American, uses personal time to follow leads mined from her student and Asian community connections while managing her mother's unyielding expectations, her brother's teenage rebellions, and her powerful aunt's ambiguous loyalties. Unexpectedly, Ellie is assigned to assist the official investigation, but celebration of the plum assignment is quashed when she links her own loved ones to the murder and knows she can't let that stop her from nailing Jenny's killer. Like Hirahara's Edgar Award-winning Mas Arai series, this novel features insightful exploration of Los Angeles' Japanese American community and stars a perpetually underestimated protagonist, but Ellie's youthful perspective and two-wheeled perch are delightfully unique, sure to draw a wide range of readers, from young adults to seasoned police-procedural fans.--Tran, Christine Copyright 2014 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Edgar-winner Hirahara, author of Summer of the Big Bachi and four other Mas Arai mysteries, introduces Ellie Rush, a Japanese-American rookie LAPD bicycle cop, in this highly entertaining series debut. When Jenny Nguyen, a former classmate of Ellie's at Pan Pacific West College, goes missing and later turns up dead in a Chinatown alley, Ellie's ties to PPW and Jenny's friends, including Ellie's ex-boyfriend, Benjamin Choi, prove useful. Jenny's boyfriend, controversial artist Tuan Le, is a prime suspect, and he asks Ellie for help. Her aunt, Cheryl Toma, the highest-ranking Asian in the LAPD, also wants Ellie on the case, but has a hidden agenda. Ellie finds herself navigating a personal and professional minefield when she's assigned to work on the case with handsome Det. Cortez Williams. Readers will want to see more of Ellie, who provides a fresh perspective on L.A.'s rich ethnic mix. Agent: Allison Cohen, Gersh Agency. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
Young LAPD bicycle cop Ellie Rush (who is half-white, half-Japanese American) aspires to be a detective; her aunt Cheryl, who is assistant police chief, is her professional idol. When a former college acquaintance, Jenny Nguyen, is murdered-and Ellie is one of the officers who find her in an alley-she is assigned to help investigate. While blame initially falls on Tuan Le, Jenny's former boyfriend, other aspects of Jenny's life come to the fore. Jenny was devastated by her mother's untimely death back in Vietnam, plus she was angry about something related to her work for the U.S. Census Bureau. (Apparently, she had dug up suspicious facts about local councilmen.) Ellie makes mistakes that almost let a killer get away, but the key word here is "almost." VERDICT Scoop this one up! Known for her "Mas Arai" series (Summer of the Big Bachi), Hirahara's new series debut strikes just the right tone, neatly tuned into the twentysomething set. Her multiethnic cast promises a fascinating future for a cozy series tangling with serious topics. (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
