I've held back on reading this as there are so many cosy mystery books out there at the moment, but after the 2023 Goodreads Choice Awards were released I picked up a copy at my local bookstore, and quickly fell in love with Vera Wong! This book balances humour so well, it's difficult not to like Vera, even if some of the decisions she makes are questionable 🫣😂
What this book does differently is that the murder victim, Marshall, is someone we don't hold in very high regard, it is clear from the get go that he has hurt a lot of people. Now usually we want to discover who the killer is for justice for the victim. Instead, this book flips this premise on its head and Jesse Q. Sutanto did such an incredible job of creating a small group of suspects which are so likeable that you just want them all to be proven innocent. This book relies on characterisation and Sutanto does it so incredibly well. 
I found the ending to be pretty heart-wrenching actually, but I did like the conclusion which I didn't see coming. I did guess one of the minor twists, but it wasn't because it was boring and unpredictable, rather I was just left feeling smug I guessed correctly. This is the best instance in a murder mystery for me, when you don't guess the outcome correctly but it's not too convoluted that you're left unsatisfied. It was a perfect murder mystery for me!
I would definitely be interested in reading more from this author in the future, and I think it is a very well deserved nominee of the 2023 Goodreads Best Mystery & Thriller category. 
5 stars