In Vivien Chien's Misfortune Cookie, Lana Lee returns for another delectable cozy set in a Chinese restaurant in Cleveland, OH. “Pair your noodles with this steaming mystery, and you have the perfect chilly night combination!”—PopSugar They say fortune favors the bold, and Lana Lee is determined to prove that true. Lana, now officially manager of her family’s restaurant, the Ho-Lee Noodle House, is headed to sunny Irvine, California to attend a restaurant convention with her sister, Anna May, along for the ride. The girls’ very Americanized Aunt Grace has asked them to stay in her posh rental, and as the trip begins, it seems to be just what they both needed. Even the restaurant convention proves to be worthwhile and entertaining, especially when Lana witnesses a dramatic cat fight between a fortune cookie vendor and a journalist. Lana and Anna May can’t imagine things getting any better until they learn their aunt has yet another surprise in store for them—a swanky cocktail party hosted for the freelancers of Southern California. But on the night of the party, things go south when a close journalist friend of Grace’s mysteriously plunges from the roof top of the hotel. Even more suspicious is the fact that Aunt Grace’s friend is the same journalist Lana saw getting into a screaming match with the fortune cookie vendor at the convention. The police rule the death a gruesome accident, but Aunt Grace refuses to accept that explanation and begs Lana for her help uncovering the truth. Lana, Anna May, Aunt Grace attempt to keep up appearances as they search for answers, but unwanted attention from suspicious colleagues and convention attendees starts to surface, causing Lana to wonder if they’ll find the killer in time...or if they’ll be the next ones pushed over the edge.

Esther Diamond's year gets off to a rocky start when NYPD's Detective Connor Lopez, who slept with her and then didn't call, shuts down the Little Italy restaurant where Esther works between acting jobs and gets her arrested. Once she's out of handcuffs, Esther takes a small role in a grad student's film project in Chinatown—where her friend, semi-retired hit man Lucky Battistuzzi, is hiding out in a Chinese-Italian mortuary. Esther and Lucky soon realize that something strange is going on in Chinatown, where mysterious gourmet fortune cookies are inflicting deadly mystical curses on the hapless victims who receive them as gifts—and before long, Esther learns that Detective Lopez is one of the recipients. As preparations heat up for the Chinese New Year, when the icy streets will be filled with costumed lion dancers, firecrackers, and dense crowds, Esther and Lucky summon the help of their friend Max, a semi-immortal mage, to help them save Chinatown and Lopez—though he doesn't deserve it—from the menace of a maniacal murderer. The Misfortune Cookie is the sixth installment of the acclaimed Esther Diamond series.

Just when the HEA agency was about to relax and have fun, the SEA strikes again! The Weasel Sisters from the menacing SEA put a curse on Woodcutter, so wherever he went misfortune followed him. Throughout these events, Wolf and Goldilocks suspected someone else was helping the SEA. They had to find out who. In this mysterious case, Wolf and Goldilocks will face a cursed fortune cookie, an arson, a man with a dark past, tomato sauce, and double buttoned coats.

What would you do if your fortune cookie fortunes started coming true? Confucius says something very weird is going on! Could his thirteenth adventure be Zack's unlucky number?

"Esther Diamond's year gets off to a rocky start when NYPD's Detective Connor Lopez, who slept with her and then didn't call, shuts down her current place of employment and gets her arrested. Once she's out of handcuffs, and with no paying work on the frigid horizon, Esther takes a small role in a grad student's film project in Chinatown—where her friend semi-retired hit man Lucky Battistuzzi, who escaped Lopez's sweep at the Little Italy restaurant where Esther works between acting jobs, is hiding out in a Chinese-Italian mortuary. Esther and Lucky soon realize that something strange is going on in Chinatown, where beautifully handcrafted fortune cookies are inflicting deadly mystical curses on the hapless victims who receive them as gifts—and before long, Esther learns that Detective Lopez is one of the recipients. As preparations for Chinese New Year heat up in the ice-covered neighborhood, when the streets will be filled with costumed lion dancers, firecrackers, and dense crowds, Esther and Lucky summon the help of their friend Max, a semi-immortal mage and semi-solvent bookseller, to help them save Chinatown and Lopez (with whom Esther is not on speaking terms) from a mystical murderer of maniacal menace."--Publisher description.

WHEN EVEN THE FORTUNE COOKIES HINT AT CALAMITY AHEAD, WATCH OUT! Best friends Sue Jan and Lovita run a beauty shop/boutique in the little West Texas town of Wachita. They share a passion for food and fun. But one day, over lunch in a Chinese restaurant, Lovita opens a fortune cookie with a sinister message: "Your father was murdered. . ." a clue that leads them to God, an international spy ring, and several devastatingly handsome strangers. A most unlikely pair of detectives, these girlfriends "comb" the countryside with style, sarcasm, and lots of Szechwan. This tale is like good take-out food--definitely worth bringing home.

Sophie owns a chocolate shop where she sells Misfortune Cookies-dipped in bitter chocolate they contain messages she handwrites each day such as "Your car seems fine now, but just wait...it will eventually be a source of frustration and unexpected delay." What starts as a gimmick, turns into a surprise hit with customers. But when her ex-fiancée moves back to their small Washington town, he is surprised at how bitter and unhappy Sophie has become. He proposes a bet--she must place an ad in the paper that simply states "Wanted: Happiness." If at least 100 people respond, proving happiness isn't a myth, she agrees to a date with him. If not, he'll leave her alone forever. Sophie is convinced she'll win, but fate has other ideas when a reporter at the paper is intrigued by the ad as a story and posts it in newspapers across the country.

A Scottish isle hosts a literary festival in this humorous yet tragic novel by the author of A Method Actor's Guide to Jekyll and Hyde. On an island like no other, populated by writers, the annual Brilliant & Forever Festival is a much anticipated event; its participants a story away from either glory or infamy. This year, three best friends—two human, one alpaca—are chosen to compete, so victory is not only about reward. This is a novel like no other; a wonderful, provocative tussle, a whip-cracking, energetic, laugh-out-loud satire on what we value in culture, and in our lives. And yet, written with exquisite warmth and empathy, it’s also a moving exploration of integrity, friendship and belonging. It’ll split your sides and break your heart. Praise for The Brilliant & Forever “Laugh-out-loud funny. It’s so refreshing to read a book that isn’t like anything else.” —David Robinson “A wise warm-hearted meditation on the human condition.” —TheScotsman (UK) “Full of wry detail and satirical flourish, a demonstration of virtuoso storytelling. MacNeil atomizes the process of othering by which communities define themselves. All of that makes it sound overly serious, which it isn’t: MacNeil’s prose style keeps things light, lyrical, and funny.” —The Skinny “The reader will realize that this charming, sad novel is inspired by Italo Calvino . . . . It is a joy to read such an engaging, luminous novel, which dissects rather than enacts our cultural cringe.” —The Guardian (UK)

Everything Happens For A Reason.....or does everything happen just by chance? is the sequel to Just By Chance....or does everything happen for a reason? At the end of Just By Chance, Finley and Gertrude Final at the It's All Down Hill From Here retirement home, are mourning the loss of Harry and Mandy Hanson. Finley and Gertrude envy the Hansons dying of natural causes, peacefully, and at the same time, and they set out to try and duplicate what they did. The task proves harder than they expect and funny things happen on the road to trying to accomplish what remains the last thing to do on their bucket list. While all this is transpiring, Finelope Final, the funeral home director, spends her time throughout the novel trying to convince seniors in the local retirement homes that dying and coming to her is better than living and staying in the retirement home. Meanwhile, those in charge at the retirement homes fight back and come up with monthly incentives to entice their residents to want to keep on living and stay with them.

Take a Chinese Industrialist, and then add a Nationalist Generalissimo, a Royal Princess and Old Leatherface to the mix. Jolles puts on his chefs hat to cook you up a recipe filled with plenty of shoot-em-up excitement. Then stir briskly with lots of insane characters as well as historical ones. The result is Operation Code Name Sushi!. One whale of a kidnapping and a hell of a joyride. Jolles will tickle you with the feather tip of his words. This is an interactive book, and without you the heroes will never win. So get ready to do some serious singing as well a lot of cheering. Reader victory is in your hands. So sit tight in your seat folks and grab hold of its edges, because you're seconds from blast off!