Japanese-American Ellie Rush is a rookie LAPD bicycle cop with aspirations to be a detective. Ellie's inspiration is her aunt, who's the highest-ranking Asian officer in the LAPD. Assigned to porta-potty street patrol during the Chinese New Year parade, Ellie is close to the alley where a dead body is discovered. Ellie fears the murdered woman may be a former classmate who's been reported missing -- and she's right.

Assigned to work on the case by her aunt, who seems to have ulterior motives, Ellie starts contacting Jenny's friends for answers. But the deeper she probes, the more questions arise. And the closer she comes to the truth, the closer she is to becoming a victim of the killer.

Naomi Hirahara affords a fresh perspective of LA's rich multi-ethnic residents in MURDER ON BAMBOO STREET. As the first in a new series featuring Officer Ellie Rush, the uniqueness of the cast of characters and the insightful plot premise holds great promise for future novels.