Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping [On a Dead Man] - Jesse Q. Sutanto - ★★★.¼

AUTHOR: Jesse Q. Sutanto

NARRATOR: Eunice Wong

SERIES: Vera Wong, #2

GENRE: Cosy Mystery

PUBLICATION DATE: April 1, 2025

RATING: 3.25 stars.

In a Nutshell: Officially a mystery, but practically, more of a comic drama with some dark content. Interesting but also infuriating geriatric lead. Relatively thin plot. Influencer trope, which is never my favourite. Recommended as long as you are looking for a mindless entertainer and not a mystery. The second novel of the Vera Wong series. Can work as a standalone, but better read in series order. This was decent enough, but I liked the first book more. Go in blind.

Plot Preview:

A year after the events of Book One. Vera is still running her tea shop and still competing with Winifred and her bakery. But with no dead bodies around, Vera is bored. So when she bumps into a girl looking for her missing friend, Vera is delighted to have a new mystery to poke her nose into. Even better when she discovers, thanks to snooping where she shouldn’t, that this missing young man was a famous influencer and is now dead. Yay for more murder investigation work!

The story comes to us in the third-person perspective of various characters, including Vera.

Note: I’m glad I didn’t read any reviews before picking this up because many of them mention a key spoiler connected to the themes. I don’t get why reviewers reveal the *mystery* of a mystery novel in their review! 🙄 If you want to read the book, avoid the reviews and go in blind. My review is spoiler-free.

This book is set a year after the events of the first novel, and there are many references to them in this plot, including some spoilers about the mystery. Technically, this sequel can also work as a standalone as the plot is independent, but the characters’ foundation is laid out in the earlier novel. As such, begin here only if you have absolutely no interest in learning how Vera became so fascinated by murders and mysteries.

The first book was fairly entertaining, albeit not a mystery as promoted. This sequel is also similar in approach; it is promoted as a mystery, but the mystery itself is highly guessable after a point. Hence, better if you read this as a contemporary drama with a small suspenseful angle than as a mystery. Luckily, my experience of the first novel prepared me to go in with the right expectations.

Many of the features of this book are the same as that of Book One, even though the storylines are quite different. So if you have read the first book, you already know what to anticipate. This is both good and bad. The book creates a strong sense of déjà vu, especially in the way Vera attacks the ‘mystery’. The recycled found-family trope doesn’t create the same impact this time around.

I had listened to the first book of this series, Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers in April 2023 and found it good enough, though I couldn’t gush over it the way many readers did. I found Vera’s behaviour a bit problematic even though she was likeable as well. In this sequel though, I was far more annoyed by Vera. And further aggravated by the fact that she gets away with all kinds of red-flag behaviour. Only one character (Selena, reprising her role from the earlier novel and now dating Vera’s son) has the guts to call her out. (Two, if you count Winifred, but that‘s more because of her intense rivalry with Vera.) So one key reason for the dip in my rating is the same reason why many other readers adore this book: Vera Wong. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Vera is still a fascinating character, but much more interfering and bossy than before. It feels like her successful first-time sleuthing experience has made her (more) obnoxious. Of course, it is funny to see her attribute her detective abilities to her “Chinese mother skills”. I also enjoyed how she constantly swerved between being “an old lady” and “not so old”, depending on what she wanted. 😅 I still think that this character walks a fine line between comedy and cliché, but the story seems to handle this complex portrayal well and doesn’t sound openly stereotypical at any point.

Vera isn't the kind of woman I'd want in my life at all, except for one condition: I’d love to eat the food she makes. 😋 The dishes are just as scrumptious-sounding as in the first book! I love how the author retains the sanctity of Chinese cuisine. Winifred is just as experimental as before in her bakery, but let’s just say… her food isn’t suited to my taste buds!

Several characters return from the first book, but there are many new characters as well. Some of these are good, some drab. But all seem to succumb to Vera only for her food, which gets boring after a while. The rep is still diverse, but not as varied or well-carved as in the first book.

The plot is also where the book fell flat for me. I would have tolerated all of Vera’s interference had the story itself been powerful. While the themes were outstanding, the execution was lacklustre and the basic storyline stretches too thin. It is silly to have a mystery with only one potential suspect. We don’t read mysteries only to make guesses about the ‘how’ and the ‘why’; the ‘who’ is also equally important. Moreover, there is an extended infodump towards the finale: a feature I always hate in cosy mysteries.

A part of my disconnect is also because the mystery focusses on influencers, so there is a lot of content about social media and influencing as a career. Even Vera attempts to become an influencer, and unsurprisingly, goes viral right on her first try. None of this is interesting to me; it might work better for those who like this increasingly-popular influencer trope.

The ending and the reveal is a bit too dark for a cosy mystery. I still appreciate the theme, and the author’s note clarifies the true-life basis of this issue.

🎧 The Audiobook Experience:

The audiobook, clocking at 10 hrs 35 min, is once again narrated by Eunice Wong, and she is just as outstanding as she was in the first book. Her voice of Vera is so authentic, and her “Aiyya!” is especially hilarious. If you can handle listening to multi-character perspectives without confusion, then you should definitely go for the audio version.

Overall, while there are many funny and heartwarming scenes in the book, Vera’s bulldozing attitude and the unsatisfactory mystery didn’t help my reading experience. I would have let go of the first issue if Vera received at least some comeuppance, but the plot seems to condone her behaviour. It might seem cute to outsiders, but I have had my fill of obnoxious Asian aunties in real life and don’t want more of them in fiction. 🥴

The epilogue seems to hint at the setting of the next book, so the series might continue. I might read it if I get access to the audio version and if it is again narrated by Eunice Wong. She saved my ratings for both these books.

Recommended to fans of Vera Wong. Better if not read as a mystery. Be prepared to suspend disbelief and go with the flow.