Book Review: Grave on Grand Avenue by Naomi Hirahara

The Friday 56: *Grab a book, any book. *Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader  *Find any sentence, (or few, just don't spoil it) that grabs you. *Post it. *Add your (url) post in Linky at Freda's Voice. Also visit Book Beginnings at Rose City Reader.

Grave on Grand Avenue: An Officer Ellie Rush Mystery by Naomi Hirahara
Published April 7, 2015; Berkley

Book beginning: 

The Green Mile is gone. Not everyone will be bummed about it. After all, it's a green boat-sized 1960 Buick Skylark, no air bags and only twelve miles to a gallon. My best friend, Nay Pram, call it sick, but not the good kind of sick. She means puke, or at least its color. But I'm devastated. There is something about that car I love. The Green Mile makes a statement. A statement that I'm not your average LA girl. Or your average cop. 

 page 56:

Cece is speaking loudly in what sounds like Chinese to someone obscured by a parking column. I must have been spotted, because she immediately lowers her voice.

Ellie Rush, an LAPD bicycle cop, has a lot to handle all at once. She discovers a friendly gardener has been pushed down stairs to his death near the Walt Disney Concert Hall. She tries to discover what the father of a famous Chinese cellist has to do, if anything, with this death. At the same time, she is regretting the theft of her favorite though old green car, the Green Mile, and the appearance of a Portuguese man who looks like a derelict but claims to be her long lost grandfather.

On both the professional and family fronts, we follow Ellie trying to piece and hold things together at the same time. I enjoyed learning about the various ethnic peoples and neighborhoods in Los Angeles and their interactions with each other. This series does a good job of putting you right into the center of things.

There are two story lines at the same time but this only helps to add interest to the book as a whole. An enjoyable read for those who know and those who are curious about the inner city of LA! Ellis Rush, the main character, is a bit of a hothead and reacts strongly to situations at times, but that makes her even more of a realistic and likable character.

Objective rating: 4/5

Thanks to the publisher for a review copy of this book.

Murder on Bamboo Lane by Naomi Hirahara

Teaser Tuesday is hosted by Miz B; choose two teaser sentences from a random page of your current read. Give the title and author for readers.

Murder on Bamboo Lane

Title: Murder on Bamboo Lane: An Office Ellie Rush Mystery by Naomi Hirahara

Published April 1, 2013 Berkley

Genre: mystery

Most locals consider Olvera Street just a tourist trap where you can be swallowed up in a pit of tchotchkes that look Mexican but are probably made in China. Dig a little deeper, I tell my friends. It's more than taquitos. There's an adobe house there that may not look like much, but it's the oldest standing house in Los Angeles. And then there is the Siqueiros mural, painted in the 1930s and restored recently for ten million dollars. (ch. 7)

My comments: This new mystery series by Hirahara may sound as if it's about the Mexican population in Los Angeles, but in reality it has a new bike cop, Ellie Rush, ranging around in areas populated by Asian groups - Korean, Japanese, Chinese, and Vietnamese. Apart from the mystery plot, the novel takes you through Los Angeles ethnic neighborhoods and enclaves. I liked that about the book, in addition to the unique murder story.

Publisher description:
Trouble awaits rookie LAPD Officer Ellie Rush as she patrols the mean streets of Los Angeles on her bicycle… Bike cop Ellie Rush dreams of becoming a homicide detective, but it’s still a shock when the first dead body she encounters on the job is that of a former college classmate.

At the behest of her Aunt Cheryl, the highest-ranking Asian-American officer in the LAPD (a source of pride for Ellie’s grandmother, but annoyance to her mom), Ellie becomes tangled in the investigation of the coed’s murder—with equal parts help and hindrance from her nosy best friend, her over-involved ex-boyfriend, a smoldering detective, and seemingly everyone else in her extended family…only to uncover secrets that a killer may go to any lengths to ensure stay hidden.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for review/feature.. 

Book Review: Blood Hina by Naomi Hirahara

Blood Hina: A Mas Arai Mystery by Naomi Hirahara
Product Description:
In this fourth installment of Naomi Hirahara's highly acclaimed "Mas Arai" mystery series, Mas' best friend Haruo is getting married and Mas has grudgingly agreed to serve as best man. But then an ancient Japanese doll display of Haruo's fiancee goes missing, and the wedding is called off with fingers pointed at Haruo. To clear his friend's name, Mas must first uncover a world of heartbreaking memories, deception, and murder.

My comments: Getting new information from books, whatever the genre, is part of the enjoyment of reading.  I learned about Japanese Hina dolls, which were originally made out of paper to be cast out to sea in a boat, a ritual meant to have the dolls take all the bad luck and bad actions of a person with them, making them the equivalent of a scapegoat. The dolls later became a symbol of good luck for children, the family, and the emperor. They are made of more costly material and brought out on March 3 every year on Hina Matsuri, the Girls' Day Festival.

In Blood Hina, the disappearance of two of the valuable dolls is linked to the absence of Mas Arai's friend, Haruo. Then there are murders that deepen the mystery. The use of many unusual Japanese words and expressions in Blood Hina made me stop to concentrate on the translation and meaning, and Mas Ari's own strong accent transferred into English distracted from the flow of the plot and action. I enjoyed the first half of the book but got bogged down in the second half with the introduction of  many different characters. The information about Hina dolls made the book worthwhile, but I would have liked a smoother reading experience.

I liked Hirahara's Snakeskin Shamisen, an earlier book in the series that also features the Southern California Japanese gardener and sleuth, Mas Arai.

Title: Blood Hina: A Mas Arai Mystery
Author: Naomi Hirahara
Publisher: Minotaur Books (March 2, 2010)
Genre: Mystery Series
Source: Library
Challenges: 100+ Reading Challenge, , Support your Local Library Challenge