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Ellie Rush #1
Murder on Bamboo Lane
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 twenty-something set. Her multi-ethnic cast promises a fascinating future for a cozy series tangling with serious topics.
304 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 1, 2014
92 people are currently reading
963 people want to read
About the author
Naomi Hirahara
58 books757 followersNaomi Hirahara is the USA Today-bestselling and award-winning author of multiple mystery series, noir short stories, nonfiction history books and one middle-grade novel. Her Edgar Award-winning Mas Arai series features a Los Angeles gardener and Hiroshima survivor. Her first historical mystery, CLARK AND DIVISION, which follows a Japanese American family from Manzanar to Chicago in 1944, won a Mary Higgins Clark Award in 2022. Her two other series star a young mixed race female LAPD bicycle cop, Ellie Rush, and a Filipina-Japanese American woman in Kaua'i, Lellani Santiago. She also has written a middle-grade book, 1001 CRANES. In 2025, the history book she co-wrote with Geraldine Knatz, TERMINAL ISLAND: LOST COMMUNITIES ON AMERICA'S EDGE, won a California Book Award gold medal. She, her husband and their rat terrier live happily in her birthplace of Pasadena, California.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 136 reviews
January 8, 2020
Maybe it's the 20/20 hindsight talking, or else perhaps I'm too aware of the author's budding career, but this book felt like a first draft. Sometimes the author seems naive, other times she's too laid back, confident, and easily pleased with what she's written. The book feels like a rough copy.
Like many other authors before her Naomi Hirahara is eager to include many characters in the book so that it becomes impossible to guess the murderer's identity. I'm always humbled when I can't remember what's going on. This may mean, with most people, that the fault is mine. I disagree. The fault of obscure and convoluted writing always lies with the writer. I believe that.
I've realized that most people who rate this type of book do so for very precise and superfluous reasons...such as the constant harping to the attractiveness of non white characters, or the age, job, or dilemmas of the heroine, or simply the recognition of the setting of the location (this time it's Los Angeles). It's always something unfair that tips the balance for a few readers. The mystery here was quite ho hum and wouldn't hook armchair sleuths in. The only reason I've not given this book 1 star is that it was fairly good in the beginning and I didn't find a single unlikable person.
Like many other authors before her Naomi Hirahara is eager to include many characters in the book so that it becomes impossible to guess the murderer's identity. I'm always humbled when I can't remember what's going on. This may mean, with most people, that the fault is mine. I disagree. The fault of obscure and convoluted writing always lies with the writer. I believe that.
I've realized that most people who rate this type of book do so for very precise and superfluous reasons...such as the constant harping to the attractiveness of non white characters, or the age, job, or dilemmas of the heroine, or simply the recognition of the setting of the location (this time it's Los Angeles). It's always something unfair that tips the balance for a few readers. The mystery here was quite ho hum and wouldn't hook armchair sleuths in. The only reason I've not given this book 1 star is that it was fairly good in the beginning and I didn't find a single unlikable person.
January 3, 2023
Imagine you have two friends. One is in trouble a lot. Let's call her "Angelina." She rebels against virtually every rule her affluent parents--both attorneys with little inclination toward parenting--could set for her, has been ejected from every private school she's been enrolled in and fired from every job she's ever held. Unsolved crimes such as destruction of property seem to follow Angelina around. Jail doesn't seem to intimidate her. She is a subject matter expert on death metal, dye-making processes and locks.
Then there's "Anne." She is very well-behaved and always has been. Her parents are corporate middle managers who were very attentive to her growing up. Anne was a pretty good student who graduated from a fine public college and has opportunities to work in a legal or accounting firm, where by virtue of hard work and diligence she can earn a nice living, perhaps one day own property in California. Anne has a nice boyfriend she met at a trade convention, drives a Prius and treats others very nicely.
Which of the following statements is more true for you? "I'd like to hear more about Angelina." Or, "I'd like to hear more about Anne."
Unfortunately, the first novel I've read by Naomi Hirahara is all about Anne. Published in 2014, Murder on Bamboo Lane is about an LAPD bicycle cop in her early twenties who gets drawn into the homicide investigation of a former classmate. The bicycle cop's name is Ellie Rush, but she is "Anne" by any other name. Ellie doesn't drink, smoke, gamble, use profanity, sleep around or abuse her authority, what little of it she has holding the rank of "Police Officer II." This is very proper behavior for a rookie cop, particularly one who's aunt is Assistant Police Chief of Los Angeles. Good for Ellie. I did not want to hear any more about her.
Hirahara is the author of two wickedly good short stories--The Chirashi Covenant and Number 19--which were among the very best of two different collections of Los Angeles noir I've read. Her novel isn’t a bad witch, it’s a good witch (yawn). Ellie is surrounded by family, a BFF, college friends, her supervisor and a dog who are all very good. There's a corpse, but no one Ellie or the reader will miss (thank goodness!). Other than chasing a sixty-year-old anticommunist down the Bunker Hill Steps (Ellie takes the escalator, thank goodness!) doesn't encounter physical or existential danger.
I skimmed this novel from middle to end. Hirahara, who grew up in Pasadena, incorporates astute descriptions of Los Angeles, as well as introduces a multiethnic female protagonist (white father, Japanese American mother). History doesn't play the role it does in a lot of L.A. based mysteries, though Hirahara has written novels that take place in the past. I'd be willing to give one of those a shot. Murder on Bamboo Lane is so cozy, so glib (Ellie narrates the story in first person in a very casual manner) and so ho-hum I couldn't possibly recommend it.
"Angelina" sounds vaguely like Cameron Howe (Mackenzie Davis) from the AMC series Halt and Catch Fire. Cameron was a gifted computer programmer who helped clone an IBM computer, slept with her boss, designed games, launched one of the first online chat startups and departed her own company under dramatic circumstances. She was a Viking funeral who always perked me up when she came around.
Then there's "Anne." She is very well-behaved and always has been. Her parents are corporate middle managers who were very attentive to her growing up. Anne was a pretty good student who graduated from a fine public college and has opportunities to work in a legal or accounting firm, where by virtue of hard work and diligence she can earn a nice living, perhaps one day own property in California. Anne has a nice boyfriend she met at a trade convention, drives a Prius and treats others very nicely.
Which of the following statements is more true for you? "I'd like to hear more about Angelina." Or, "I'd like to hear more about Anne."
Unfortunately, the first novel I've read by Naomi Hirahara is all about Anne. Published in 2014, Murder on Bamboo Lane is about an LAPD bicycle cop in her early twenties who gets drawn into the homicide investigation of a former classmate. The bicycle cop's name is Ellie Rush, but she is "Anne" by any other name. Ellie doesn't drink, smoke, gamble, use profanity, sleep around or abuse her authority, what little of it she has holding the rank of "Police Officer II." This is very proper behavior for a rookie cop, particularly one who's aunt is Assistant Police Chief of Los Angeles. Good for Ellie. I did not want to hear any more about her.
Hirahara is the author of two wickedly good short stories--The Chirashi Covenant and Number 19--which were among the very best of two different collections of Los Angeles noir I've read. Her novel isn’t a bad witch, it’s a good witch (yawn). Ellie is surrounded by family, a BFF, college friends, her supervisor and a dog who are all very good. There's a corpse, but no one Ellie or the reader will miss (thank goodness!). Other than chasing a sixty-year-old anticommunist down the Bunker Hill Steps (Ellie takes the escalator, thank goodness!) doesn't encounter physical or existential danger.
I skimmed this novel from middle to end. Hirahara, who grew up in Pasadena, incorporates astute descriptions of Los Angeles, as well as introduces a multiethnic female protagonist (white father, Japanese American mother). History doesn't play the role it does in a lot of L.A. based mysteries, though Hirahara has written novels that take place in the past. I'd be willing to give one of those a shot. Murder on Bamboo Lane is so cozy, so glib (Ellie narrates the story in first person in a very casual manner) and so ho-hum I couldn't possibly recommend it.
"Angelina" sounds vaguely like Cameron Howe (Mackenzie Davis) from the AMC series Halt and Catch Fire. Cameron was a gifted computer programmer who helped clone an IBM computer, slept with her boss, designed games, launched one of the first online chat startups and departed her own company under dramatic circumstances. She was a Viking funeral who always perked me up when she came around.
April 11, 2015
Calling this one 5.5 in my own grading system. It was an okay read, no more, no less. This author writes the Mas Arai series, which is very good. Ellie Rush is no Mas Arai. There were some good things in this book, but too many things just seemed to drag the whole thing down to the so-so level. There is a new one just out I believe, but don't think I'll bother with it.
September 6, 2023
Frankly disappointing, considering Hirahara's other work. If this was the only mystery I'd read by her, I wouldn't try anything else. Clark & Division was one of my favorite reads in 2021 - maybe she just improved with time?
I had 3 problems with this book:
1) style - way too much info-dumping about LA neighborhood and culture. I agree that it's necessary context but it felt unnatural and tedious, would have preferred less tell and more show.
2) protagonist - Ellie Rush isn't a charismatic or confident detective, so her wishy-washiness and personal problems are tedious as they distract from the mystery. What are her detective skills besides persistence? All of Ellie's leads come from working her Asian college network, which is circumstantial and not something she earned through ingenuity or anything. Will she only solve crimes against Asians in the future? Feels very limiting for her career, but we have no evidence she's capable of solving crimes where her friends didn't know the murder victim.
3) plausibility - look there is a scene where Ellie chases a suspected murderer driving away and catches him on her BIKE and is able to hold this grownass tough guy against a fence until backup comes. She is a tiny Asian woman. Don't even.
Sorry, Naomi. Not continuing this series, but still looking forward to the Clark & Division sequel.
I had 3 problems with this book:
1) style - way too much info-dumping about LA neighborhood and culture. I agree that it's necessary context but it felt unnatural and tedious, would have preferred less tell and more show.
2) protagonist - Ellie Rush isn't a charismatic or confident detective, so her wishy-washiness and personal problems are tedious as they distract from the mystery. What are her detective skills besides persistence? All of Ellie's leads come from working her Asian college network, which is circumstantial and not something she earned through ingenuity or anything. Will she only solve crimes against Asians in the future? Feels very limiting for her career, but we have no evidence she's capable of solving crimes where her friends didn't know the murder victim.
3) plausibility - look there is a scene where Ellie chases a suspected murderer driving away and catches him on her BIKE and is able to hold this grownass tough guy against a fence until backup comes. She is a tiny Asian woman. Don't even.
Sorry, Naomi. Not continuing this series, but still looking forward to the Clark & Division sequel.
February 14, 2020
Ellie is a LAPD bicycle cop with dreams of becoming a detective. Her aunt happens to be high up on the hierarchy at the LAPD. Her dad is quietly supportive, her mother didn't support her becoming a cop (like her aunt). She has a close group of friends (of which her newly ex-boyfriend is also a part). When a former classmate is murdered, Ellie is drawn into the investigation.
I really enjoyed this one and I liked Ellie's growth and her ability to note her mistakes (and learn from them). I also thought it was realistic to admire a relative, but then to see them in action up close they weren't as perfect as thought to be (and acknowledge that). I wish this was a longer series (only 2 books).
I read this for Romance-opoly Killer Crescent sun track square
I really enjoyed this one and I liked Ellie's growth and her ability to note her mistakes (and learn from them). I also thought it was realistic to admire a relative, but then to see them in action up close they weren't as perfect as thought to be (and acknowledge that). I wish this was a longer series (only 2 books).
I read this for Romance-opoly Killer Crescent sun track square
March 17, 2019
+ Well developed characters. Everyone in this book acted like a real person would.
+ Interesting family dynamic.
+ Smart complex but easy to follow mystery. And it written in such a realistic way that it felt like author wrote her story based on real life.
+ Attention to details.
+ First book I ever read with biracial white/asian protagonist.
+ Nice romance as a side dish to the main plot line.
+ Interesting family dynamic.
+ Smart complex but easy to follow mystery. And it written in such a realistic way that it felt like author wrote her story based on real life.
+ Attention to details.
+ First book I ever read with biracial white/asian protagonist.
+ Nice romance as a side dish to the main plot line.
July 15, 2014
I read this book after reading a review and really enjoyed it. This is the first in a series about Ellie Rush, a bicycle cop for the LAPD. She's young - just out of college - and eager to move up. She's also half Asian as a result of her American-born mother. Having an aunt who is in the hierarchy is both a blessing and a curse. Ellie isn't enjoying her bicycle cop status. For one thing people don't take her seriously. Most of her work involves keeping order at parades, patrolling farmers markets as well as doing community outreach. We also learn about her friends and a former boyfriend who broke her heart. A lot of her friends didn't understand why she wanted to become a cop. When one of her former college classmates is murdered, Ellie is drawn into it. Soon her high powered aunt asks her to assist with the investigation. This draws the ire of some of her fellow police officer who see her being treated differently because of her family connections. This is obviously the first in the series, and it's not as smooth as it could be. I really enjoyed the writer's description of different neighborhoods in LA including Little Tokyo. The reader also learns a lot about her family in the book as well. This is very different from what I've read which is why I really liked it. I look forward to the next book in the series. (The author also has another series involving a Japanese gardener names Mas Harai who came to California in the 1940's from Hiroshima.)
September 28, 2019
Ho avuto difficoltà a dare un voto a questo libro... La storia mi è piaciuta, non avevo proprio capito la soluzione del mistero, ma il modo in cui è scritto il libro non mi ha preso, in alcuni punti ho avuto difficoltà a seguire quanto c'era scritto. E poi, non è possibile che la protagonista, che è nippo-americana, non sappia nulla della guerra in Vietnam: quello che viene detto nel libro è proprio l'abc e lo sapevo pure io, che sono italiana e non ho studiato storia dell'Asia!
August 29, 2022
Contemporary Los Angeles might seem to be an overworked setting for a police procedural, given the city's role in establishing the detective and noir genres, but Hirahara offers a welcome spin on what could have been hackneyed. Her protagonist Ellie Rush is a multi-racial young woman fresh from the police academy who was paying her dues with an assignment as a bicycle cop, a thankless routine of driving around and giving tickets. Until a young Asian woman is found murdered near her beat. The woman is slightly known to Rush, because they both attended the same university, a thinly veiled version of USC to my reading. (The only fictionalized place name in a story saturated in local geography). Fighting the age and race discrimination of the LAPD, Rush uncovers clue after clue, in part because of her network of young, mixed-race friends who help her out, despite a distaste for authority and specifically the racist LAPD. Complicating matters are her ex-boyfriend, her borderline dysfunctional suburban family, a powerful aunt who has fought her way into the upper reaches of the department. The detective fiction fan will find plenty of satisfying plot twists and surprise reveals, and those of us devoted to LA will find a more inclusive and modern version of our culture than the typical entry into this genre dominated by straight white males.
April 12, 2015
Murder on Bamboo Lane was an interesting and entertaining read and I enjoyed it. I won't lie, a friend of mine recommended this on the the fact that a) it has a part-asian lead and a more multiracial cast and b) she thought it had a good realistic mystery, - but mostly a. I mean lets face it you simply don't see many Asian (or part-Asian) heroines (or heroes). The full cast is also multiracial/cultural which I think reflects LA very well. The mystery was also multilayered and well done which I enjoyed (even though it wasn't fully wrapped up - though I suppose this makes it more realistic).
Ellie is a 23 year old half-White, half-Japanese woman who is a bike cop (just off probation, with ambitions of making detective). She has a somewhat convoluted love and family life but is very normal and relatable (at least in some ways). I enjoyed getting to know her, and watch as she transitions from her one stage in her life (as a student/probationary officer) into a full police officer and "adult", as her relationships and life changes. She makes mistakes (we all do), and some questionable decisions (personally and work-wise) but I also think she does some growing in this book - you could say those shiny rose-colored glasses she saw with have been well and truly removed (in regards to her work, her Aunt and even her ex-boyfriend). Unlike some stories we also got to see some of the consequences of Ellie's questionable decisions, while not as bad as it could've been I did like that she realized some of what she did was wrong and had consequences. She still has growing to do and I look forward to seeing where she goes.
My favorite side character had to have been Nay, Ellie's best friend. We all need a Nay in our life, one of those friends who are nonjudgmental and know just what to do or say (whether we need a hug or a friendly word or a verbal/physical kick in the butt). Nay was such a fun character, I almost wished the book focused on her, but I also liked getting to know Ellie, her life and struggles (personal and professional).
The love interests in this book were a little Meh. We are introduced to Ellie's ex, Benjamin Choi, who she's not quite over yet, and new potential love interest Detective Cortez Williams. Benjamin I didn't particularly like (at the same time I didn't particularly hate him either) by the end of the book I just couldn't get what drew such opposite people together. And Detective Cortez Williams well I didn't get that either - sure he is physically attractive, and a "good" detective but I guess I didn't see enough chemistry - and the way he treated her went back and forth, interested, not interested, only interested in work. I got his behavior after Ellie's choices and lack of communication (can I call it deception if I don't think it's what she intended?) came out but even before I just didn't get strong chemistry from the two of them (there was a hint of it on their first "date" but it was squashed once work came up) - maybe this will change in the future (or maybe it's just on my part).
Ellie's Aunt Cheryl also gave me mixed feelings, I can respect her getting to where she is, but I'm not too sure about some of the cutthroat things she does (and did), we'll see. There were a lot of side characters and it could be a bit overwhelming at times but a lot of these types of books do have a large cast, so it wasn't a huge issue. The mystery was also interesting, I had pretty much no theories going into the book, and only had an idea towards the end of the book as little clues were revealed, though there are still some questions regarding a secondary murder and wonder if there will be any eventual closure/wrap up to that one.
Overall, I enjoyed Murder on Bamboo Lane and look forward to seeing Ellie and the others in the next book.
Ellie is a 23 year old half-White, half-Japanese woman who is a bike cop (just off probation, with ambitions of making detective). She has a somewhat convoluted love and family life but is very normal and relatable (at least in some ways). I enjoyed getting to know her, and watch as she transitions from her one stage in her life (as a student/probationary officer) into a full police officer and "adult", as her relationships and life changes. She makes mistakes (we all do), and some questionable decisions (personally and work-wise) but I also think she does some growing in this book - you could say those shiny rose-colored glasses she saw with have been well and truly removed (in regards to her work, her Aunt and even her ex-boyfriend). Unlike some stories we also got to see some of the consequences of Ellie's questionable decisions, while not as bad as it could've been I did like that she realized some of what she did was wrong and had consequences. She still has growing to do and I look forward to seeing where she goes.
My favorite side character had to have been Nay, Ellie's best friend. We all need a Nay in our life, one of those friends who are nonjudgmental and know just what to do or say (whether we need a hug or a friendly word or a verbal/physical kick in the butt). Nay was such a fun character, I almost wished the book focused on her, but I also liked getting to know Ellie, her life and struggles (personal and professional).
The love interests in this book were a little Meh. We are introduced to Ellie's ex, Benjamin Choi, who she's not quite over yet, and new potential love interest Detective Cortez Williams. Benjamin I didn't particularly like (at the same time I didn't particularly hate him either) by the end of the book I just couldn't get what drew such opposite people together. And Detective Cortez Williams well I didn't get that either - sure he is physically attractive, and a "good" detective but I guess I didn't see enough chemistry - and the way he treated her went back and forth, interested, not interested, only interested in work. I got his behavior after Ellie's choices and lack of communication (can I call it deception if I don't think it's what she intended?) came out but even before I just didn't get strong chemistry from the two of them (there was a hint of it on their first "date" but it was squashed once work came up) - maybe this will change in the future (or maybe it's just on my part).
Ellie's Aunt Cheryl also gave me mixed feelings, I can respect her getting to where she is, but I'm not too sure about some of the cutthroat things she does (and did), we'll see. There were a lot of side characters and it could be a bit overwhelming at times but a lot of these types of books do have a large cast, so it wasn't a huge issue. The mystery was also interesting, I had pretty much no theories going into the book, and only had an idea towards the end of the book as little clues were revealed, though there are still some questions regarding a secondary murder and wonder if there will be any eventual closure/wrap up to that one.
Overall, I enjoyed Murder on Bamboo Lane and look forward to seeing Ellie and the others in the next book.
June 18, 2014
Review from Backchatting Books
Ellie Rush knows that her family and friends think that being a bicycle cop is a bit of a joke but she's determined to make a difference in between policing port-a-potties and citing truants. She gets rather a nasty shock when the first dead body she stumbles upon turns out to be that of a girl she knew. Ellie gets caught up in the investigation at the behest of her aunt, a high ranked LAPD officer.
Ellie is a half Japanese American with a fairly unusual family that keep interfering in her life. Hirahana probably needs to watch how much she allows Ellie to go off and do her own thing while still maintaining the verisimilitude of her role as a police officer. Ellie often withheld information from her superiors including the detective in charge of the case and her aunt but had no qualms about sharing everything with her friends and ex-boyfriend. This action seemed even more bizarre as Ellie sensed her ex was withholding information about the dead girl.
It's a sad indictment of the justice system that most people trusted Ellie in spite of the fact she was a cop rather than because of her profession. Her friends were often on hand to give her nudges in the right direction and smooth the way when it came to a wary informant. This juxtaposed nicely with her treatment at the hands of Detective Cortez who treated her like the newbie cop she was.
There is a lot to like about this novel but there were too many sub-plots going on. Some revealed quite a bit about Ellie's personality but others were completely superfluous like the awkward fledgling romance which didn't really value add. I found the use of present tense throughout a little jarring as it made Ellie's motions more mechanical and her reflection a little harder to absorb. This is a personal preference though and may not bother you at all.
The strongest aspect of this novel would have to be the richness of the setting. I felt like I wasn't just reading about Los Angeles but was actually riding alongside Ellie and dodging the piles of refuse in the bike lanes. I also really enjoyed the murky politics aspect as Ellie began to realise just how many people were willing to sacrifice her career for their own benefit.
There were some aspects that didn't quite gel for me but overall this was a really solid read. I enjoyed my time investigating with Ellie and will happily read the next in the series.
Ellie Rush knows that her family and friends think that being a bicycle cop is a bit of a joke but she's determined to make a difference in between policing port-a-potties and citing truants. She gets rather a nasty shock when the first dead body she stumbles upon turns out to be that of a girl she knew. Ellie gets caught up in the investigation at the behest of her aunt, a high ranked LAPD officer.
Ellie is a half Japanese American with a fairly unusual family that keep interfering in her life. Hirahana probably needs to watch how much she allows Ellie to go off and do her own thing while still maintaining the verisimilitude of her role as a police officer. Ellie often withheld information from her superiors including the detective in charge of the case and her aunt but had no qualms about sharing everything with her friends and ex-boyfriend. This action seemed even more bizarre as Ellie sensed her ex was withholding information about the dead girl.
It's a sad indictment of the justice system that most people trusted Ellie in spite of the fact she was a cop rather than because of her profession. Her friends were often on hand to give her nudges in the right direction and smooth the way when it came to a wary informant. This juxtaposed nicely with her treatment at the hands of Detective Cortez who treated her like the newbie cop she was.
There is a lot to like about this novel but there were too many sub-plots going on. Some revealed quite a bit about Ellie's personality but others were completely superfluous like the awkward fledgling romance which didn't really value add. I found the use of present tense throughout a little jarring as it made Ellie's motions more mechanical and her reflection a little harder to absorb. This is a personal preference though and may not bother you at all.
The strongest aspect of this novel would have to be the richness of the setting. I felt like I wasn't just reading about Los Angeles but was actually riding alongside Ellie and dodging the piles of refuse in the bike lanes. I also really enjoyed the murky politics aspect as Ellie began to realise just how many people were willing to sacrifice her career for their own benefit.
There were some aspects that didn't quite gel for me but overall this was a really solid read. I enjoyed my time investigating with Ellie and will happily read the next in the series.
May 26, 2014
New first-in-series book by an author whose other work I absolutely love! I have to admit that I had a hard time getting into this book, though, and I was somewhat less than enamored of Ellie Rush. I'm not even sure why I couldn't get into her story or behind her.
I understand the dilemma of authors trying to make a series and a protagonist that will stand out from the sea of cookie-cutter sleuths out there, but in an attempt to make Ellie memorable, the author has instead made her so complicated, her life infused with so many odd quirks, that it's difficult for the reader to identify with her in any meaningful way. At least it was for me. There are also too many secondary characters (those likely to recur in later books) introduced for a first-in-series book. Without detracting from the story or the main character's development, it's hard to build any sort of flesh on that many additional people and some of them end up being just names you're trying to keep straight as you read along.
Ellie is half Caucasian, half Japanese-American, fluent in Spanish, a twenty-something fledgling bicycle cop in LA, who is just working through getting over her first major long-term relationship. She has a dog named Shippo, a pot-smoking teenage brother named Noah, and a small group of equally quirky friends that until recently included her ex, Benjamin. And unbeknown to most of her co-workers, her aunt is the Assistant Chief of Police, the highest-ranking Asian-American woman on the force. There's also a hunky homicide detective thrown in for good measure. And a co-worker who really dislikes her for some unknown reason.
There is promise here. I will read the next one. But I am not going to be nearly as excited as I will be when a new Mas Arai comes out.
I understand the dilemma of authors trying to make a series and a protagonist that will stand out from the sea of cookie-cutter sleuths out there, but in an attempt to make Ellie memorable, the author has instead made her so complicated, her life infused with so many odd quirks, that it's difficult for the reader to identify with her in any meaningful way. At least it was for me. There are also too many secondary characters (those likely to recur in later books) introduced for a first-in-series book. Without detracting from the story or the main character's development, it's hard to build any sort of flesh on that many additional people and some of them end up being just names you're trying to keep straight as you read along.
Ellie is half Caucasian, half Japanese-American, fluent in Spanish, a twenty-something fledgling bicycle cop in LA, who is just working through getting over her first major long-term relationship. She has a dog named Shippo, a pot-smoking teenage brother named Noah, and a small group of equally quirky friends that until recently included her ex, Benjamin. And unbeknown to most of her co-workers, her aunt is the Assistant Chief of Police, the highest-ranking Asian-American woman on the force. There's also a hunky homicide detective thrown in for good measure. And a co-worker who really dislikes her for some unknown reason.
There is promise here. I will read the next one. But I am not going to be nearly as excited as I will be when a new Mas Arai comes out.
March 16, 2015
Murder on Bamboo on Bamboo Lane by Naomi Hirahara is my most favorite cozy murder mystery of all time. Why? I used to live in an area north of LA and have been downtown often for jury duty and dining and enjoying the ethnic diversity. I want to say “Thank you” to the author, I am so grateful for a few days of reading that took me back to some places that I loved. The author’s description of those places were correct, sometimes delightful, and sometimes just truthful but it was as if I took a flight back to LA.
The lead character is Ellie Rush who is a bicycle cop whose ambition is to be a homicide detective. Her father is white and her mother is Japanese American. She had finished the standard probation term for the job and now relegated to watching over porta potties because of a bad incident last year, farmers markets and parades. She has just broken off with her boyfriend. She is still learning and has looked up her Aunt Cheryl who is the Assistant of Police. Ellie accidently gets pulled into a murder of a former classmate.
I thought that murder victim was intriguing and the mystery was easy for me to follow. I really enjoyed learning so much about Ellie and her friends and their problems. The mentions of foods that I cannot get where I now live made long for them. I loved her dog, Shippo and all the quirky characters. It was grittier than the usual cozy but at top of the meter for interesting for me. The pacing was just right for me, I never had a time that I wanted to push the story forward. I so glad that I read this book.
I highly recommend Murder on Bamboo Lane by Naomi Hirahara.
The lead character is Ellie Rush who is a bicycle cop whose ambition is to be a homicide detective. Her father is white and her mother is Japanese American. She had finished the standard probation term for the job and now relegated to watching over porta potties because of a bad incident last year, farmers markets and parades. She has just broken off with her boyfriend. She is still learning and has looked up her Aunt Cheryl who is the Assistant of Police. Ellie accidently gets pulled into a murder of a former classmate.
I thought that murder victim was intriguing and the mystery was easy for me to follow. I really enjoyed learning so much about Ellie and her friends and their problems. The mentions of foods that I cannot get where I now live made long for them. I loved her dog, Shippo and all the quirky characters. It was grittier than the usual cozy but at top of the meter for interesting for me. The pacing was just right for me, I never had a time that I wanted to push the story forward. I so glad that I read this book.
I highly recommend Murder on Bamboo Lane by Naomi Hirahara.
April 22, 2017
I've had this book for almost a year now, and I'm so glad I finally read it. Once I started it, I finished it in just a few hours, even though I only meant to read a few chapters before going to sleep.
I wrote a paper on a book by Naomi Hirahara in college, and I emailed her to ask her some questions about her book, and to my great surprise and delight, she wrote me back!
Last year I got to see her on a panel at a book festival, and afterwards I bought this book and had it signed by Ms. Hirahara. It was so special to meet her. She mentioned this book during the panel and it stood out to me because the main character was the same age as me at the time.
I enjoyed the book a lot. It was a quick read and I didn't find it predictable, which is something I appreciate in a novel and particularly in a mystery. The characters felt real and relatable. I loved how diverse the cast was (in reality just a true representation of a diverse city, but it's so good to see that reflected in books.) I also enjoyed the parts where Ellie is thinking about the tension between justice/power, being a cop while knowing that cops are not trusted (and often for good reason) by many of the people in her social circle, wanting to change things for the better, but discovering how broken a system can be. Looking forward to reading more about Ellie!
I wrote a paper on a book by Naomi Hirahara in college, and I emailed her to ask her some questions about her book, and to my great surprise and delight, she wrote me back!
Last year I got to see her on a panel at a book festival, and afterwards I bought this book and had it signed by Ms. Hirahara. It was so special to meet her. She mentioned this book during the panel and it stood out to me because the main character was the same age as me at the time.
I enjoyed the book a lot. It was a quick read and I didn't find it predictable, which is something I appreciate in a novel and particularly in a mystery. The characters felt real and relatable. I loved how diverse the cast was (in reality just a true representation of a diverse city, but it's so good to see that reflected in books.) I also enjoyed the parts where Ellie is thinking about the tension between justice/power, being a cop while knowing that cops are not trusted (and often for good reason) by many of the people in her social circle, wanting to change things for the better, but discovering how broken a system can be. Looking forward to reading more about Ellie!
May 19, 2014
Ellie Rush, a hapa LAPD rookie officer, is the center of Naomi Hirahara's latest mystery series. I won't discuss the plot as you can get that so many other places. The story is engaging and wasn't predictable - a very important feature in a good mystery. Read the book late into the night over three sittings as I couldn't stop wanting to know more about Officer Rush, what she'd find, where her investigation would take her, how the characters were or weren't connected.
And, being an LA native reading an LA story, the locales, where Ellie went with her friends, what happened to them is very believable. I could see where they were in my mind's eye as there really are places in LA just like those described in the book. It has a real contemporary LA feel to it. Not just in the communities through which the story wound but the people. Ellie, her friends, ex-boyfriend, the murder victim all reflect today's SoCal Asian American community.
Can't wait until the next Ellie Rush mystery is out and I can enjoy a few more nights with much reading & little sleep.
And, being an LA native reading an LA story, the locales, where Ellie went with her friends, what happened to them is very believable. I could see where they were in my mind's eye as there really are places in LA just like those described in the book. It has a real contemporary LA feel to it. Not just in the communities through which the story wound but the people. Ellie, her friends, ex-boyfriend, the murder victim all reflect today's SoCal Asian American community.
Can't wait until the next Ellie Rush mystery is out and I can enjoy a few more nights with much reading & little sleep.
June 7, 2014
Naomi Hirahara’s new Officer Ellie Rush series is a gem. Murder on Bamboo Lane (love the title!) introduces us to Ellie Rush, a rookie LAPD bicycle cop. Ellie is half Japanese and half American and has a touch of melancholy. She’s not a detective, but when her former college classmate is murdered, she becomes involved in the investigation. It’s a unique blend of the police procedure and amateur detective sub-genres.
Ellie cares deeply about her borderline dysfunctional family and friends and her interactions with them are woven throughout the story. She has conflicts with her fellow officers and superiors in the LAPD as well as with her ex-boyfriend. Her dog Shippo is a great supporting character.
I’ve enjoyed Ms. Hirahara’s Mas Arai series, featuring a gruff but good-hearted septuagenarian Japanese gardener who reluctantly gets drawn into murder investigations.
Here’s to a long life for both series.
Ellie cares deeply about her borderline dysfunctional family and friends and her interactions with them are woven throughout the story. She has conflicts with her fellow officers and superiors in the LAPD as well as with her ex-boyfriend. Her dog Shippo is a great supporting character.
I’ve enjoyed Ms. Hirahara’s Mas Arai series, featuring a gruff but good-hearted septuagenarian Japanese gardener who reluctantly gets drawn into murder investigations.
Here’s to a long life for both series.
June 6, 2015
A pretty interesting police procedural involving great characters and a likable protagonist with a strong sense of justice. Even though I highly enjoyed it despite quite a few editing errors, I wouldn't file it under the cozy category. The story was well-thought off and I really liked the multicultural element of Downtown L.A., where most of the action takes place. I'm looking forward to the second book in the series.
August 30, 2016
I was glad when I finished the book. I had a hard time keeping interested in it.. The pacing was slow for me. I thought at times the storyline was a little confusing. There were many characters. Ellie was a bicycle policemen who initially took and withheld evidence and information from her fellow officers. She seemed to side on her friends side then to follow the law. I just wasn't invested in any of the characters and the storyline fell flat for me..
April 21, 2014
Ellie is a bike cop on patrol with the LAPD after graduating from college early. When a former classmate shows up dead and the cops are wanting to shut down the case, Ellie begins to try even harder to solve the case. I really enjoyed Murder on Bamboo Lane. It's a great start for the beginning of a series.
May 28, 2014
Hirahara introduces a new character who represents today's world, half Japanese and half White. She is a bicycle cop which gets little respect from her friends but is a way to work her way up the chain. She steps into a murder and with tenacity helps to solve it. Plot runs like her Mas Arai series, a gentle murder plot with a character who happens into a murder and solves it.
March 19, 2015
This is another excellent story from Naomi Hirahara.
I really enjoyed the first person voice of her narrator.
All of the Los Angeles details were spot on.
The plot was convoluted and interesting.
I am looking forward to more in this series.
I purchased a copy of this mass market paperback.
I really enjoyed the first person voice of her narrator.
All of the Los Angeles details were spot on.
The plot was convoluted and interesting.
I am looking forward to more in this series.
I purchased a copy of this mass market paperback.
July 8, 2016
Enjoyable police procedural from the POV of a young Japanese American LAPD bike patrol officer. Naturally, for a book of this sort, she knows a murder victim and this is her chance to do a little extra snooping around while bucking for the detective track. It's not that simple, of course, but you get a good feel for L.A., the Asian community, and a good murder mystery.
May 18, 2014
Wow! This was one of the best mystery books I had read all year. Great characters. Interesting mystery. Well researched. Love the main character. Can't wait for the next book.
July 24, 2014
Slow paced
September 25, 2016
Lovely series start. I liked the details about how her Asian-American friends and family felt conflicted about her decision to be a cop.
January 21, 2024
I wanted to review this even before I read some of the other 3-2 star ratings. After that, I really wanted to review this.
Firstly, the book is a Cozy, so those of you complaining that it's not gritty and harsh enough need to get off.
Secondly, I can see your BS dog-whistle excuses as to why you don't like the characters or the setting. Being upset that non-white characters don't act like the racial stereotypes you want to see, says more about you than the characters.
Probably spoilers beyond this point:
Now, I liked the book and the setting. It was nice to get out of the usual and read about characters that felt real and relatable, even if they weren't the same race as me. It was nice to read about a person who wasn't so over-the-top traumatized and so jaded that I just rolled my eyes the whole damn time. OMG, she didn't have the most tragic backstory ever! You know, like a normal person.
I like that Elli was just at the start of her career and trying to navigate her career in the shadow of her much more famous relative. A relative whose position could potentially get Elli accused of nepotism and coat-tail riding. I like that Elli knows that as is trying (to varying degrees of success) to avoid that trap.
I like the dynamic of her family and her friends. Her friends all young people who are freshly out of college and getting ready to be thrown into the real world and all the hardships of becoming independent adults. They're clinging to the familiarity of their sheltered college lives while being thrust into the unknown world of finding real work, their own homes, and navigating life. Elli is no different, especially since she's chosen a career so counter to her friend's beliefs and morals.
The plot is good, and the mystery aspect of it is interesting enough to hold my attention. (And yes, I am also an erudite mystery master who can often tell the solution to a mystery before the end of the book, mehh mehh.) I like the blended cultures that must be navigated, and I like Elli's place in that blend: Never white enough, Never Asian enough. I like showing how people in her community interact with her, and I like Elli's naivete being slowly stripped away as the story goes on.
Are there moments where I want to slap her? Yes, that's the point.
Are there moments where the plot resolves just a bit too easily? Yes, again, it's a flipping Cozy.
Can I fortell certain relationship outcomes? Yup, and that's ok too.
It's a good book; it's well-written, and the characters feel real and likable. I'm looking forward to the next book (will I eat crow? Who knows.)
I do know the majority of the comments I read putting the book down are overblown, and some of them need to sit down and rethink their issues.
Firstly, the book is a Cozy, so those of you complaining that it's not gritty and harsh enough need to get off.
Secondly, I can see your BS dog-whistle excuses as to why you don't like the characters or the setting. Being upset that non-white characters don't act like the racial stereotypes you want to see, says more about you than the characters.
Probably spoilers beyond this point:
Now, I liked the book and the setting. It was nice to get out of the usual and read about characters that felt real and relatable, even if they weren't the same race as me. It was nice to read about a person who wasn't so over-the-top traumatized and so jaded that I just rolled my eyes the whole damn time. OMG, she didn't have the most tragic backstory ever! You know, like a normal person.
I like that Elli was just at the start of her career and trying to navigate her career in the shadow of her much more famous relative. A relative whose position could potentially get Elli accused of nepotism and coat-tail riding. I like that Elli knows that as is trying (to varying degrees of success) to avoid that trap.
I like the dynamic of her family and her friends. Her friends all young people who are freshly out of college and getting ready to be thrown into the real world and all the hardships of becoming independent adults. They're clinging to the familiarity of their sheltered college lives while being thrust into the unknown world of finding real work, their own homes, and navigating life. Elli is no different, especially since she's chosen a career so counter to her friend's beliefs and morals.
The plot is good, and the mystery aspect of it is interesting enough to hold my attention. (And yes, I am also an erudite mystery master who can often tell the solution to a mystery before the end of the book, mehh mehh.) I like the blended cultures that must be navigated, and I like Elli's place in that blend: Never white enough, Never Asian enough. I like showing how people in her community interact with her, and I like Elli's naivete being slowly stripped away as the story goes on.
Are there moments where I want to slap her? Yes, that's the point.
Are there moments where the plot resolves just a bit too easily? Yes, again, it's a flipping Cozy.
Can I fortell certain relationship outcomes? Yup, and that's ok too.
It's a good book; it's well-written, and the characters feel real and likable. I'm looking forward to the next book (will I eat crow? Who knows.)
I do know the majority of the comments I read putting the book down are overblown, and some of them need to sit down and rethink their issues.
February 19, 2021
Bike cop Ellie Rush finds her first dead body on the job, and realizes it is a former college classmate, Jenny Nguyen. Ellie ends up in the middle of police department politics when her Aunt Cheryl, the Assistant chief, maneuvers her into investigating Jenny's murder with Detective Cortez Williams. Making everything interesting is Ellie's nosy best friend, her over-involved ex-boyfriend Benjamin, an attraction to detective Williams. The killer is dangerously close and the motive reaches back to Vietnam.
Ellie Rush is half Japanese, half Caucasian who speaks Spanish and gets a large amount of derision from her peers and most of her family for becoming a police officer. She has to deal with issues of broken trust close to her in this novel. Nay Pram is her best friend who is loyal and blunt at times. Detective Cortez Williams is an interesting character, perhaps even the breakout in this story, and I look forward to seeing him more. Aunt Cheryl is so ambitious she is dangerous. Making for a layered story beyond just the murder.
Los Angeles many areas and events that Ellie patrols provide a neighborhood perspective to the sprawling city. The mix of cultures is a defining feature of the novel which made it more alive. The plot was interesting and took turns I wasn't expecting. It maintained a good and balanced pace. The climax wasn't my favorite high octane, but was handled well none-the-less. The wrap up left me with that feeling of wanting more so it won't be the end. Always a sign of a good book. It did take a few chapters to get used to the youthful lingo in the narrative.
Ellie Rush is half Japanese, half Caucasian who speaks Spanish and gets a large amount of derision from her peers and most of her family for becoming a police officer. She has to deal with issues of broken trust close to her in this novel. Nay Pram is her best friend who is loyal and blunt at times. Detective Cortez Williams is an interesting character, perhaps even the breakout in this story, and I look forward to seeing him more. Aunt Cheryl is so ambitious she is dangerous. Making for a layered story beyond just the murder.
Los Angeles many areas and events that Ellie patrols provide a neighborhood perspective to the sprawling city. The mix of cultures is a defining feature of the novel which made it more alive. The plot was interesting and took turns I wasn't expecting. It maintained a good and balanced pace. The climax wasn't my favorite high octane, but was handled well none-the-less. The wrap up left me with that feeling of wanting more so it won't be the end. Always a sign of a good book. It did take a few chapters to get used to the youthful lingo in the narrative.
January 22, 2022
Hirahara's "Murder on Bamboo Lane" begins with great promise--23-year-old Ellie Rush is just beginning her career with the LAPD, and her duties on bike patrol give a fresh view of of the city, street by street; the fact that Ellie's aunt is Assistant Chief of the LAPD (and her role model) gives her insight into department politics that most rookies can't have. When Ellie identifies a body found while she's on patrol--and it's a college classmate, Jenny Nguyen, who has gone missing--Ellie gets a chance to help with the investigation. All proceeds swimmingly for about two-thirds of the book: leads followed, interesting characters interviewed, surprises and red herrings, and a few rookie mistakes. But then the story shifted its direction, and became more of an ambitious expose and an "education of the protagonist" story in which Ellie is consistently disillusioned by people she has trusted. I found the result bleak and disappointing, and the satisfaction of finding a criminal caught and justice done was blunted. I also ended thinking less of Ellie's abilities as a detective at the end than I had at the beginning, which is perhaps not the arc the writer intended. Normally I love Naomi Hirahara's work, so perhaps I set the bar too high here. Lots of fine ingredients, but ultimately not a successful dish.
June 12, 2018
Hirahara writes in a first-person perspective, giving the narrative a straightforward, slightly clinical tone which fits Ellie’s character well. I loved the characters and the plot, but it took me weeks to finish this mystery. The pacing is sometimes slow and the awkward romance is something the story didn’t really need. But there’s way more here to like than to dislike. Ellie provides a lot of insight into the city’s locales, as well as into the difficulties of being a bicycler in a city of motorists. She’s surround by a realistic cast of diverse characters and the mystery of Jenny’s death is not one that is easily solved. I will say Ellie doesn’t always make the best decisions when she’s torn between the legal boundaries of her job and her personal need to find out what happened to Jenny, but her missteps do eventually lead her in the right direction. I didn’t finish this book in one sitting, or two, or even five. But I did keep picking it up because I wanted to finish it. Eventually. Almost like it was an old friend I bumped into every once in a while: “Hey Ellie! How’s that murder thing going?”. I really, really enjoyed getting to hang out with Ellie and I’m bummed there’s only one more book in this series—Grave On Grand Avenue—in which to do so.
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May 26, 2023If you look past the tonally flat writing, utterly static characters and a narrative that mirrors almost every Urban Fantasy novel from the past decade, you'll find the bones of what could've been an interesting story in Naomi Hirahara's Murder on Bamboo Lane.
I'm not willing to do that - or even finish this novel. DNF at 63%.
(I will say there was a smidgeon of potential in the intrinsic conflict of our Asian-American heroine pursuing a career as a cop in spite of being fully aware that most of the police in her world amount to nothing more than legal and racist gangs. That is an interesting point of tension based on a natural conflict, and powerful point of both internal and external division for our heroine. However, it's severely under-utilised, and never even really explored, to the point it makes you wonder whether this would've been a better book without all the brief allusions. It's fine to not be an advocate or even ignorant, but it's significantly worse to be fully aware of the issue and yet refuse to acknowledge it.)
I'm not willing to do that - or even finish this novel. DNF at 63%.
(I will say there was a smidgeon of potential in the intrinsic conflict of our Asian-American heroine pursuing a career as a cop in spite of being fully aware that most of the police in her world amount to nothing more than legal and racist gangs. That is an interesting point of tension based on a natural conflict, and powerful point of both internal and external division for our heroine. However, it's severely under-utilised, and never even really explored, to the point it makes you wonder whether this would've been a better book without all the brief allusions. It's fine to not be an advocate or even ignorant, but it's significantly worse to be fully aware of the issue and yet refuse to acknowledge it.)
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