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Lydia Chin & Bill Smith #3
Mandarin Plaid
It's a long way from the cramped, dreary sweatshops where Lydia Chin's mother once sewed for the heady world of fashion. But in New York City, worlds collide. And a petite, Chinese-American P.I. can still rub shoulders with the rich, the poor, the beautiful, and the depraved.
Elegant, porcelain-skinned Genna Jing is sure her latest designs are worth a fortune. That's why she is willing to pay the fifty grand being demanded by the person who stole her design book. But when Lydia--backed by her partner Bill Smith--makes the drop, everything goes wrong. Soon a simple case of high-fashion extortion leads Lydia and Bill from Chinatown to Park Avenue, and from murder to more money: a million dollars in exchange for a missing man's life...
Elegant, porcelain-skinned Genna Jing is sure her latest designs are worth a fortune. That's why she is willing to pay the fifty grand being demanded by the person who stole her design book. But when Lydia--backed by her partner Bill Smith--makes the drop, everything goes wrong. Soon a simple case of high-fashion extortion leads Lydia and Bill from Chinatown to Park Avenue, and from murder to more money: a million dollars in exchange for a missing man's life...
275 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
43 people are currently reading
360 people want to read
About the author
S.J. Rozan
127 books384 followersSJ Rozan, a native New Yorker, is the author of the Bill Smith and Lydia Chin detective series as well as several stand-alone novels. She has won the the Edgar, Nero, Macavity, Shamus and Anthony awards for Best Novel and the Edgar award for Best Short Story. She is a former Mystery Writers of America National Board member, a current Sisters in Crime National Board member, and President of the Private Eye Writers of America. In January 2003 she was an invited speaker at the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. In February 2005 she will be Guest of Honor at the Left Coast Crime convention in El Paso, Texas. A former architect in a practice that focussed on police stations, firehouses, and zoos, SJ Rozan was born and raised in the Bronx. She currently lives in Greenwich Village, New York. (from the author's website)"
S.J. Rozan has a B.A. from Oberlin College and M.Arch from SUNY/Buffalo
S.J. Rozan has a B.A. from Oberlin College and M.Arch from SUNY/Buffalo
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 94 reviews
November 30, 2018
In this third book in the series, a ransom drop for fashion designs soon enough turns into something more deadly.
A fairly typical mystery of this kind. Just didn't hit me for some reason.
A fairly typical mystery of this kind. Just didn't hit me for some reason.
March 25, 2021
It’s just another money drop. That’s what Private Investigator Lydia Chin thinks as she nonchalantly takes the 50 thousand dollars to a specific garbage can in a park. Granted, money drops aren’t Lydia’s usual bill of fare, but every private investigator gets tasked with a few of these during a career.
The money belongs to Genna Jing, a young woman breaking into the fashion design business. Lydia agrees to the job against the objections of her photographer brother, Andrew. Lydia’s partner, Bill Smith, a guy much older than her but very much in love with her, sits on a park bench near the drop point. It’s his job to watch the pickup happen and follow the person who retrieves the money. But the best-laid plans go awry all too often, and so it is.
As Lydia is about to make the drop, shots ring out, someone nearly kills her, and somebody steals the money from her.
Genna checks in with her later, and Lydia assumes Genna will fire her. Instead, Genna confesses that there is bad blood between her and a guy she almost hired to produce her fashion show during Fashion Week. Wayne Lewis may have stolen Genna’s money, and Lydia gets an appointment with him. Sadly, by the time Lydia arrives at his office for their meeting, Lewis is already dead. Someone murdered him.
Chin and Smith eventually solve this, but not before other murders occur. This is highly readable and worth your time.
The money belongs to Genna Jing, a young woman breaking into the fashion design business. Lydia agrees to the job against the objections of her photographer brother, Andrew. Lydia’s partner, Bill Smith, a guy much older than her but very much in love with her, sits on a park bench near the drop point. It’s his job to watch the pickup happen and follow the person who retrieves the money. But the best-laid plans go awry all too often, and so it is.
As Lydia is about to make the drop, shots ring out, someone nearly kills her, and somebody steals the money from her.
Genna checks in with her later, and Lydia assumes Genna will fire her. Instead, Genna confesses that there is bad blood between her and a guy she almost hired to produce her fashion show during Fashion Week. Wayne Lewis may have stolen Genna’s money, and Lydia gets an appointment with him. Sadly, by the time Lydia arrives at his office for their meeting, Lewis is already dead. Someone murdered him.
Chin and Smith eventually solve this, but not before other murders occur. This is highly readable and worth your time.
May 26, 2017
"[...] I am not usually strolling through here with fifty thousand dollars, looking for the right trash can to drop it in."
Now a disappointment from S.J. Rozan: I could not get into Mandarin Plaid (1996) and had to work hard to finish reading. Neither is the story particularly interesting nor are the protagonists - who were so refreshingly different than the usual crime drama clichés in my first contact with Ms. Rozan’s work in Winter and Night - fascinating any more. I have not even been able to find a single sentence that could serve as a fitting epigraph so I use a random one from the first paragraph of the book.
This is a Lydia Chin (Ling Wan-ju) story but obviously Bill Smith is a very close second as to the frequency of appearance. Lydia's client is Genna, a fashion designer and the owner of the Mandarin Plaid fashion line. Spring line sketches have been stolen from her office and she hires Lydia to deliver the ransom to the thieves so that they do not make sketches public thus destroying Genna's promising fashion career.
Three interesting things about the novel save it from the bottom one-star rating: the frequent mentions of "factories" - New York sweatshops where Asian women who have recently arrived in the country and do not have legal immigration status work sewing garments in demeaning conditions. This helps the reader maintain the right perspective on the glamour of the world of fashion. The compelling portrait of the New York Chinatown is well rendered. And the passages on differences between Mandarin, Cantonese, and Fujianese made me really wish to have more time to delve into the topic.
The rest of the novel is a cliché structure built of cliché components. The characters are one-dimensional: several are cartoon-level caricatures. For instance, there is no way that detective Krch or Mrs. Eleanor Talmadge Ryan could be real people. The "chemistry" between Lydia and Bill begins getting on my nerves and much of their inane banter is as bad as in TV sitcoms - customized for maximum sell and ignoring psychology and plausibility. The silly climactic scene with the presence of obligatory guns is worthy of a bad movie. Why would a writer who is able to create a well-developed female detective character stoop to ending the plot with gun play is beyond me, but let's stop beating that horse.
I wonder how much of my dislike of this novel is due to its actual weaknesses: maybe it's just my personal aversion to series of novels with recurring characters. I will definitely read more installments of the series, but am not planning to give the author too many chances.
Two stars.
Now a disappointment from S.J. Rozan: I could not get into Mandarin Plaid (1996) and had to work hard to finish reading. Neither is the story particularly interesting nor are the protagonists - who were so refreshingly different than the usual crime drama clichés in my first contact with Ms. Rozan’s work in Winter and Night - fascinating any more. I have not even been able to find a single sentence that could serve as a fitting epigraph so I use a random one from the first paragraph of the book.
This is a Lydia Chin (Ling Wan-ju) story but obviously Bill Smith is a very close second as to the frequency of appearance. Lydia's client is Genna, a fashion designer and the owner of the Mandarin Plaid fashion line. Spring line sketches have been stolen from her office and she hires Lydia to deliver the ransom to the thieves so that they do not make sketches public thus destroying Genna's promising fashion career.
Three interesting things about the novel save it from the bottom one-star rating: the frequent mentions of "factories" - New York sweatshops where Asian women who have recently arrived in the country and do not have legal immigration status work sewing garments in demeaning conditions. This helps the reader maintain the right perspective on the glamour of the world of fashion. The compelling portrait of the New York Chinatown is well rendered. And the passages on differences between Mandarin, Cantonese, and Fujianese made me really wish to have more time to delve into the topic.
The rest of the novel is a cliché structure built of cliché components. The characters are one-dimensional: several are cartoon-level caricatures. For instance, there is no way that detective Krch or Mrs. Eleanor Talmadge Ryan could be real people. The "chemistry" between Lydia and Bill begins getting on my nerves and much of their inane banter is as bad as in TV sitcoms - customized for maximum sell and ignoring psychology and plausibility. The silly climactic scene with the presence of obligatory guns is worthy of a bad movie. Why would a writer who is able to create a well-developed female detective character stoop to ending the plot with gun play is beyond me, but let's stop beating that horse.
I wonder how much of my dislike of this novel is due to its actual weaknesses: maybe it's just my personal aversion to series of novels with recurring characters. I will definitely read more installments of the series, but am not planning to give the author too many chances.
Two stars.
August 29, 2017
Can a cozy mystery take place in current metropolitan New York? I think so, and would say this series by Rozan fits the category. These mysteries certainly deal with death/murder and mayhem, but they are not gory. I love the way Lydia Chin and Bill Smith work together in solving cases. Bill is low-key and in love with Lydia. Lydia is impulsive and I think is attracted to Bill, but doesn't want to admit it. Since this book was written before people have cell phones, it is evident what a difference they have made in how our society works. The interaction between Lydia and her family gives a view of how Chinese interact. I also like the humor and light-hearted tone of the book. So I look forward to more New York cozy mysteries.
September 7, 2019
Lydia Chin books are my go-tos at airports when I have interminably long waits on a hard pleather bench ahead of me. Although they were written in the 90s (the main characters never severed the umbilical cords connecting them to their answering machines), these books represent everything that is good about the gumshoe detective genre. And Lydia herself? She’s spunky. She’s Scrappy Doo. She’s an Energiser Bunny made of grit, attitude, an ability to laugh at herself, and the capacity to fail. She’s the epitome of “spunky” before the word got misapplied to so many uber-special heroines who are as charming as nails on chalkboard.
It’s a straightforward plot about an up-and-coming female designer whose designs are stolen and ransomed. The drop-off gets botched and a suspect shows up murdered, and Bill and Lydia have to reach around their head to touch their nose to solve the case.
This book follows the standard Lydia formula: she finds a new Chinese-American client through her family, early onset mysterious murder, meaningful and irreconcilable conflict between ethics and cops, Mexican standoff climax, Lydia’s mum is insufferable and her brothers yell at her. Except this book made an honest to god effort to subvert some of these tropes, and I’m pretty happy with the results. We get insight into Mrs. Chin and the brother is just confused, hapless and ADORKABLE, and the cop they come up against maaay just be a competent one that they’ve done dirty by.
Also Lydia affects two bad accents—a Chinese one, and the most hilarious French one—and comes up against a tough but honest female cop, so I feel like I could forgive this book anything.
Because there’s a lot in this book to forgive. Such as all the villains being cartoonish levels of evil. The racist grande dame who uses bribes and threats to control the world around her rang distressingly true to life, and the red-faced maniacal expletive-shouting bad cop had a lot of legitimate grievances against the main characters, even though he was motivated purely by spite. But cartoon is as cartoon does, so do not pass go. Do not collect five hundred dollars. And what even was the brilliantly ambitious but hamfisted subplot about exploitative “modelling” agencies, how Mandarin Plaid really gets its funding, and drugs. PSA to the genre: you don’t need drugs just to prove the stakes are high! Just say no!
And of course the climax was a mess of unexpected villains, wholly unnecessary villains, guns, and deus ex machina.
Read this book anyway. The inchward progression of Bill and Lydia’s relationship made my toes curl from how heartfelt and bantery it was. Mrs. Chin’s ability to send her daughter to college and yet make everything Lydia’s fault is fascinating. Her logic train is possibly the best ride of my life. 10/10 would rack up loyalty points on tickets for those. And most of all, even though it’s a lighthearted potboiler, it doesn’t at all flinch from talking about the immigrant family experience. Better yet, it seamlessly weaves Lydia Chinese-American identity into the narrative and makes it an essential part of the characters’ shared history and also the plot. That’s how you write diversity, folks. And Mandarin Plaid was doing it in 1996.
It’s a straightforward plot about an up-and-coming female designer whose designs are stolen and ransomed. The drop-off gets botched and a suspect shows up murdered, and Bill and Lydia have to reach around their head to touch their nose to solve the case.
This book follows the standard Lydia formula: she finds a new Chinese-American client through her family, early onset mysterious murder, meaningful and irreconcilable conflict between ethics and cops, Mexican standoff climax, Lydia’s mum is insufferable and her brothers yell at her. Except this book made an honest to god effort to subvert some of these tropes, and I’m pretty happy with the results. We get insight into Mrs. Chin and the brother is just confused, hapless and ADORKABLE, and the cop they come up against maaay just be a competent one that they’ve done dirty by.
Also Lydia affects two bad accents—a Chinese one, and the most hilarious French one—and comes up against a tough but honest female cop, so I feel like I could forgive this book anything.
Because there’s a lot in this book to forgive. Such as all the villains being cartoonish levels of evil. The racist grande dame who uses bribes and threats to control the world around her rang distressingly true to life, and the red-faced maniacal expletive-shouting bad cop had a lot of legitimate grievances against the main characters, even though he was motivated purely by spite. But cartoon is as cartoon does, so do not pass go. Do not collect five hundred dollars. And what even was the brilliantly ambitious but hamfisted subplot about exploitative “modelling” agencies, how Mandarin Plaid really gets its funding, and drugs. PSA to the genre: you don’t need drugs just to prove the stakes are high! Just say no!
And of course the climax was a mess of unexpected villains, wholly unnecessary villains, guns, and deus ex machina.
Read this book anyway. The inchward progression of Bill and Lydia’s relationship made my toes curl from how heartfelt and bantery it was. Mrs. Chin’s ability to send her daughter to college and yet make everything Lydia’s fault is fascinating. Her logic train is possibly the best ride of my life. 10/10 would rack up loyalty points on tickets for those. And most of all, even though it’s a lighthearted potboiler, it doesn’t at all flinch from talking about the immigrant family experience. Better yet, it seamlessly weaves Lydia Chinese-American identity into the narrative and makes it an essential part of the characters’ shared history and also the plot. That’s how you write diversity, folks. And Mandarin Plaid was doing it in 1996.
February 13, 2014
As much as I enjoyed
Concourse
, Mandarin Plaid reminded me of the problems I had with it -- namely, it didn't have enough Lydia Chin. We're back to Lydia as narrator, and her carrying a lot more of the investigative and sleuthing burden. Which leads to a more interesting and satisfying read.
Once again, it's one of Lydia's brothers that brings her the client -- and then tries to get her off the case -- which starts off pretty simply, Lydia making a money drop to retrieve some stolen property. Lydia's Chinatown connections prove invaluable to her sussing things out when the ransom drop doesn't go according to plan.
Not that her partner, Bill Smith doesn't bring connections to the table -- he has a long history with the NYPD in general, and the NYPD detective they cross paths with. Whereas Lydia's connections provide assistance and (mostly) useful information; Smith's bring them grief and harassment from the NYPD.
Things move along at a good clip, Lydia's voice is just as strong and self-assured. The case itself was pretty interesting and tricky enough to satisfy the whodunit reader. Rozan faked me out a couple of times, and in the end, when I was wrong, I could take it, because she laid the groundwork for what was really going on.
I think I'm in this series for the long-haul.
Once again, it's one of Lydia's brothers that brings her the client -- and then tries to get her off the case -- which starts off pretty simply, Lydia making a money drop to retrieve some stolen property. Lydia's Chinatown connections prove invaluable to her sussing things out when the ransom drop doesn't go according to plan.
Not that her partner, Bill Smith doesn't bring connections to the table -- he has a long history with the NYPD in general, and the NYPD detective they cross paths with. Whereas Lydia's connections provide assistance and (mostly) useful information; Smith's bring them grief and harassment from the NYPD.
Things move along at a good clip, Lydia's voice is just as strong and self-assured. The case itself was pretty interesting and tricky enough to satisfy the whodunit reader. Rozan faked me out a couple of times, and in the end, when I was wrong, I could take it, because she laid the groundwork for what was really going on.
I think I'm in this series for the long-haul.
October 23, 2008
MANDARIN PLAID - VG
Rozan, S.J. - 3rd in Smith/Chin series
Lydia Chin, a Chinese-American P.I. who lives in New York City's Chinatown, is hired for a simple job. She's to deliver the ransom for a set of stolen sketches that comprise the inaugural collection of fashion designer Genna Jing and her new label, Mandarin Plaid. But everything on this simple job goes terribly wrong. The ransom is stolen out from under Lydia, her sometimes partner, Bill Smith, is arrested, and just as she is trying to sort out exactly what is really going on, the client fires her. Lydia, however, isn't about to just let it go. Determined to find answers, and preserve her pride,
Lydia and Bill follow a confusing trail that leads from the sweatshops of Chinatown to the drawing rooms of Manhattan's wealthy Upper East Side and into a dark underworld of prostitution, drugs, and murder. All they need to uncover is: who stole the sketches, who hijacked the ransom payment, and, most important, who would kill to keep them from the truth.
Rozan has created a wonderful series alternating the primary protagonist between Lydia Chin and Bill Smith with each book. Add in Lydia's mother and it makes their relationship tantalizing. Mix in an incredibly strong sense of place and excellent plotting and you have a book and a series on which I'm hooked.
Rozan, S.J. - 3rd in Smith/Chin series
Lydia Chin, a Chinese-American P.I. who lives in New York City's Chinatown, is hired for a simple job. She's to deliver the ransom for a set of stolen sketches that comprise the inaugural collection of fashion designer Genna Jing and her new label, Mandarin Plaid. But everything on this simple job goes terribly wrong. The ransom is stolen out from under Lydia, her sometimes partner, Bill Smith, is arrested, and just as she is trying to sort out exactly what is really going on, the client fires her. Lydia, however, isn't about to just let it go. Determined to find answers, and preserve her pride,
Lydia and Bill follow a confusing trail that leads from the sweatshops of Chinatown to the drawing rooms of Manhattan's wealthy Upper East Side and into a dark underworld of prostitution, drugs, and murder. All they need to uncover is: who stole the sketches, who hijacked the ransom payment, and, most important, who would kill to keep them from the truth.
Rozan has created a wonderful series alternating the primary protagonist between Lydia Chin and Bill Smith with each book. Add in Lydia's mother and it makes their relationship tantalizing. Mix in an incredibly strong sense of place and excellent plotting and you have a book and a series on which I'm hooked.
February 12, 2016
This is the third book in the series. This was told from Lydia's POV. I really like Lydia. I dint like this novel as much as I've liked previous ones, and that is OK. The plot got overly complicated and a subplot with a police officer who hated Bill that was never quite fully explained kind of took some energy away. I did like the discussions of class, and some good feminist messaging. I still have a funny feeling about the relationship between Billy and Lydia; funny feeling is a bad term for it, but it bugs me a bit. But of course, I am going to keep reading these books. They are fun, and I love the private eye subgenre.
April 28, 2017
What I like about S. J. Rozan’s writing is she knows how to spin a story while tugging at your emotions while teaching us Chinese’s customs.
Lydia Chin, along with her partner and want to be lover, Bill Smith are searching for the culprits who are trying to keep a young rising designer from having her show. It appeared to be a shut and close case until someone is killed.
Lydia Chin, along with her partner and want to be lover, Bill Smith are searching for the culprits who are trying to keep a young rising designer from having her show. It appeared to be a shut and close case until someone is killed.
March 5, 2024
Not as good as the first Lydia Chin but still very enjoyable and worth reading.
July 20, 2020
3.5
This novel saved this series (at least temporarily) for me. I started with book #2, "Concourse". I enjoyed that offering very much and figured that I'd found another series to devour. So I thought I'll go back and read the initial book, "China Trade," which was mainly a disappointment.
Mandarin Plaid is a fairly unusual PI novel with some interesting twists. Lydia Chin is center stage, but Bill Smith is in this one much more than "China Trade". In some ways I like that Lydia is a bit of a amateur and plods through the maze of a mystery. This makes her and the story seem more real. It also gives the us some idea of her thought process, with which most readers can identify.
Lydia Chin and Bill Smith are not Sherlock Holmes and Watson or even Nick and Nora Charles. They solve this one through shoe leather, and determination. It was fun going through the ups and downs with them. Add a high class hooker, a protective Chinese Mother and little bit of romance and voila an amusing detective novel.
This novel saved this series (at least temporarily) for me. I started with book #2, "Concourse". I enjoyed that offering very much and figured that I'd found another series to devour. So I thought I'll go back and read the initial book, "China Trade," which was mainly a disappointment.
Mandarin Plaid is a fairly unusual PI novel with some interesting twists. Lydia Chin is center stage, but Bill Smith is in this one much more than "China Trade". In some ways I like that Lydia is a bit of a amateur and plods through the maze of a mystery. This makes her and the story seem more real. It also gives the us some idea of her thought process, with which most readers can identify.
Lydia Chin and Bill Smith are not Sherlock Holmes and Watson or even Nick and Nora Charles. They solve this one through shoe leather, and determination. It was fun going through the ups and downs with them. Add a high class hooker, a protective Chinese Mother and little bit of romance and voila an amusing detective novel.
November 20, 2023
Third book in the series and a bit better than the first two. With this one, the focus is back to Lydia Chin. That's good, because I like her better than Bill Smith. Nothing wrong with Bill, but he strikes me as a Spenser clone.
Here, Lydia and Bill are hired to pass along a payment to the person who stole their client's fashion sketches. Sounds easy right? It was until someone took a shot at Lydia. From there, the author winds us through Chinatown sweatshops, luxury apartments of the filthy rich (emphasis on filthy) and a whole lot more. At the heart of it all are family and other, personal relationships.
The mystery is solid and the pacing to the resolution is steady from beginning to end. A really enjoyable read.
Very recommended for fans of this series and detective fiction in general.
Find it! Buy it! READ IT!
Here, Lydia and Bill are hired to pass along a payment to the person who stole their client's fashion sketches. Sounds easy right? It was until someone took a shot at Lydia. From there, the author winds us through Chinatown sweatshops, luxury apartments of the filthy rich (emphasis on filthy) and a whole lot more. At the heart of it all are family and other, personal relationships.
The mystery is solid and the pacing to the resolution is steady from beginning to end. A really enjoyable read.
Very recommended for fans of this series and detective fiction in general.
Find it! Buy it! READ IT!
July 31, 2019
Mandarin Plaid by S. J. Rozan
Excellent read. has a lot of want to read about, mystery romance locations, travel, more mysteries and the arts.
Lydia and her side kick are to just deliver a large amount of money so their new client can retain all the rights to her new line: Mandarin Plaid.
Love the design fashion world. There's a lot to this and many do not want to see some together and there are some that get hurt, killed even.
Like martial arts involved here, I can just picture the action scenes. Can't wait to find more from this author!
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).
Excellent read. has a lot of want to read about, mystery romance locations, travel, more mysteries and the arts.
Lydia and her side kick are to just deliver a large amount of money so their new client can retain all the rights to her new line: Mandarin Plaid.
Love the design fashion world. There's a lot to this and many do not want to see some together and there are some that get hurt, killed even.
Like martial arts involved here, I can just picture the action scenes. Can't wait to find more from this author!
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).
September 26, 2022
This is the third book in the series but the first I've read - I've already ordered the next book, which is, I understand, written from the perspective of a different main character. The story was well crafted, with twists and turns making it very hard to guess who was really carrying out the threats and what else was feeding into the overall scenario. The characters are quirky but very engaging and I'm really enjoying the perspective of a Chinese American woman who is juggling her culture and traditional expectations from her family with her determination to live her own life on her own terms.
November 15, 2023
Lydia is asked to make a drop of kidnapping money in a garbage can in the park. She asks Bill to watch for the kidnapper as she starts to walk away after the drop. What neither of them anticipated was two shots at Lydia and the chaos that ensued.
Even after she is fired by her client, she pursues the investigation and gets involved in the model and drug scene in NY.
I was distracted by the constant 25 cent payphone calls she made. So glad we are beyond that these days.
I am not a big New York New York fan, but I did enjoy getting to see some of the nightclubs and other haunts of models and designer clothiers.
I own a copy of this number three in the series.
Even after she is fired by her client, she pursues the investigation and gets involved in the model and drug scene in NY.
I was distracted by the constant 25 cent payphone calls she made. So glad we are beyond that these days.
I am not a big New York New York fan, but I did enjoy getting to see some of the nightclubs and other haunts of models and designer clothiers.
I own a copy of this number three in the series.
May 1, 2017
I haven't sought out each new volume in this series, but I find myself enjoying each one. This is the third of Rozan's mysteries featuring Lydia Chin and Bill Smith, and the second narrated by Lydia. Once I started this book, I found it tough to put down and very easy to pick back up. The setting is well drawn, the characters are nicely depicted, and Lydia's juggling of various aspects of her life make her a very appealing character. The plot has enough twists to keep me guessing, while giving me just enough information that I can "work on" the case along with Lydia.
August 12, 2020
The third book of the series.
The incidents themselves are nothing new, but the surrounding settings—Chinese culture, fashion industry, and racism—make the story so interesting. This time, some topics are really familiar to me, even in year 2020, that I wasn’t sure whether I should laugh or upset. I sometimes forget the author isn’t an Asian. It’s not too heavy and entertaining. I am usually not a fan of cozy mystery, but I’ll read some more from this series.
The incidents themselves are nothing new, but the surrounding settings—Chinese culture, fashion industry, and racism—make the story so interesting. This time, some topics are really familiar to me, even in year 2020, that I wasn’t sure whether I should laugh or upset. I sometimes forget the author isn’t an Asian. It’s not too heavy and entertaining. I am usually not a fan of cozy mystery, but I’ll read some more from this series.
October 14, 2022
fast paced, thoughtful tale of a self effacing kick ass detective
I really enjoyed being Lydia Chin’s confidant as she detected in NY’s Chinese community and not so Chinese community. Having lived and worked all over Manhattan Lydia’s case took me to familiar places in the city but into unfamiliar worlds within. Bills adoration of Lydia reminds me of mine for my bride. All and all a an interesting tale well told!
I really enjoyed being Lydia Chin’s confidant as she detected in NY’s Chinese community and not so Chinese community. Having lived and worked all over Manhattan Lydia’s case took me to familiar places in the city but into unfamiliar worlds within. Bills adoration of Lydia reminds me of mine for my bride. All and all a an interesting tale well told!
January 6, 2026
I gave this a 4 star as I liked it better than the other Lydia Chin/Bill Smith book I read. This is written from Lydia's perspective and her angst is based on her Oriental upbringing. I found it and the plot more interesting than book 6. Stolen dress designs, a money drop gone wrong, then murder lead to Chin and Smith investigating the world of hookers and drugs. I might read more from the series.
January 18, 2018
Lydia Chin and Bill Smith working together to help a fashion designer in NYC. A fast read with numerous cups of tea,I didn't guess who was behind all the crimes but then Lydia wasn't sure either until near the very end. I can't help rooting for these two very interesting characters. #3 in the series.
January 17, 2020
Lydia and Bill continue to dance around their relationship. In this book, Lydia is hired to find out who stole a womans patterns for a clothing line she is trying g to establish. The person that steal them demands a ransom. We meet Lydia's brother, Andrew, who is gay, but not out to their mother.
December 2, 2023
SJ Rozan continues to improve with each book in this series. This one has layers and moves well to its conclusion. I’m not gonna be totally sold on a white person writing from the perspective of an AAPI one but I think Rozan does a better job with it than she did in the first one. May have to go long with this series.
May 1, 2024
I read this book when it first came out and really liked it. Then, many years later, I had the good fortune to discover a copy at my local library. Having remembered the lead characters but completely forgotten the plot, I had the good fortune to enjoy "Mandarin Plaid" again. It's a terrific book -- sympathetic characters, twisty plot, lots of action. Who could ask for more?
December 8, 2019
Another solid mystery, this one in the fashion industry, from sweatshops to the runway. The title comes from the fact that over thousands of years of textile creation, the Chinese never came up with a design in plaid.
July 28, 2021
#3 in Lydia Chin series of mysteries set in NYC Chinatown. Favorite author. Investigation of theft of designs from a clothing designer business called Mandarin Plaid. Involves murder, ransom, bribery.
Easy intrigue - Good characters - Great Plot - Well-written and very enjoyable.
Easy intrigue - Good characters - Great Plot - Well-written and very enjoyable.
October 19, 2021
Very good story about the Chinese involvement in NY's fashion industry in the 1990's. Intrigue, misinformation, murders, blackmail, extortion, love -- it's got a bit of everything. Bill and Lydia continue their back and forth non-romantic "partnership."
December 21, 2022
Always fun to follow Lydia Chin as she solves a case. In this story, there is a matriarch who is unhappy that her son is involved with an Asian and the prospect of mixed race children. I enjoyed vicariously watching Lydia's reaction to the racist affront. Looking forward to #4.
August 9, 2023
A much more enjoyable read than #2, I found the action tight and the mystery winding. A few details I had to go back to because there were moments that mixed brain fog with “is this important?”, but overall I severely enjoyed myself and this entry into the Chin/Smith mysteries!
October 11, 2025
Maybe it was what I brought to this reading but I got lost a few times, confusing some of the characters. I continue to enjoy the love relationship between Bill and Chin and the NY setting and will continue reading the series.
September 10, 2017
Another in this enjoyable series. Not the best one, but still fun.
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