This is the first book in the mystery series by Singapore author Ovidia Yu. It features a wonderful character, Su Lin, who comes from a Chinese family and has a limp from polio. Set in colonial Singapore, Su Lin becomes a nanny in the home of the Singapore governor just after the previous nanny is found dead in mysterious circumstances.

The mysteries in this series are good but what makes them really enjoyable is the depiction of the diverse ethnic groups in Singapore and how they are brought to life by the author. It is also paints a critical portrait of the British in Singapore. ( )

Singapore, 1936. Chen Su Lin, only sixteen, nevertheless faces a crossroads. She has a certificate from the Mission School—first in her class—which, in theory, would entitle her to a good job, if she could find one. Her dream is to become a secretary, but she’s revealed that to nobody, because such positions are rare, whereas her relatives would object on principle to a woman working outside the home.

Sure enough, as the story opens, Su Lin’s uncle, a wealthy merchant with a finger in many pies, wants to marry her off, probably to some dutiful, boring minion whose sole virtue is his ability to earn a living. But Uncle Chen hasn’t reckoned on Miss Vanessa Palin, sister to the acting governor of Singapore and a presence at the Mission School, who tells him his niece is cut out for better things. However, the “better thing” Miss Nessa has in mind involves housekeeping or caring for children—being a servant—and Su Lin doesn’t want that.

Enter Chief Inspector Thomas Francis LeFroy of the CID, who needs a housekeeper—at least, that’s what everyone tells him—a most intriguing fellow who owes much of that intrigue to a famous reserve. He signs papers taking legal responsibility for Su Lin’s employment—how that works isn’t entirely clear—but, more immediately, he has a possible crime to investigate at the acting governor’s mansion.

Charity Byrne, the eighteen-year-old Irish nanny to the governor’s developmentally delayed daughter, has fallen off a balcony to her death beneath a frangipani tree. The Palins, who apparently had mixed feelings about the beautiful, flirtatious deceased (also of a low social class) want LeFroy to rule the death an accident. But he’s not so sure, and his insistence on conducting a proper investigation involves Su Lin as unofficial eyes and ears within the mansion.

She takes over for the late Charity in caring for seventeen-year-old Deborah Palin, called Dee-Dee, who acts like a seven-year-old, with all the difficulties that implies, and who instantly takes a liking to Su Lin. But LeFroy holds his cards so close to his chest that Su Lin doesn’t always know whether “unofficial” means useless or forgotten, and Miss Nessa Palin has begun to show a side of herself the girl never saw at the Mission School. Su Lin doesn’t want to admit it, but her mentor is gradually proving herself cold and hard, perhaps even a racist.

What’s more, Su Lin, who chafed under her traditional Chinese upbringing, finds that life among the Europeans, has its drawbacks, not least the “reserved, well-bred silence of my British employers,” which leaves her feeling isolated and lonely. To Su Lin, Dee-Dee, despite her often irritating behavior, seems like the most authentic person in the household.

A chief charm of The Frangipani Tree Mystery is Yu’s portrayal of the racial, ethnic, and cultural conflicts of polyglot Singapore, with the Europeans running everything in hit-and-miss fashion. You see the superstitions about bad luck among the Chinese, set against the Europeans’ social snobbery, and the notions about shame and pride, strength and weakness upheld by the different groups. I particularly like how Su Lin, though proud of her heritage, shows rather too much admiration for the colonials, and how that changes over time—accurate, I think, given her education and circumstances.

The novel takes a minute to sort out Su Lin’s place in the governor’s residence, Miss Nessa’s role, LeFroy, and the crime. But if you read The Frangipani Tree Mystery, and I suggest you do, bear with this ballet despite the step or two that might seem too convenient, and you’ll be rewarded. The mystery takes yet another minute to hit its stride, chiefly because an antagonistic character seems like a stock figure, at first, only to deepen as the narrative progresses. But in the end the story satisfies.

Yu pays close attention to cultural and social markers, which inform the narrative and enrich the background. The publisher pretends that the novel portrays the world of 1936; it doesn’t. But it does explore the barriers to women, whether European or Asian, the frequent emphasis on power or money to the exclusion of empathy, and a protagonist caught between a world she admires and the one she grew up in.

Consequently, The Frangipani Tree Mystery is one of those deceptively slight novels that offers much more than the sum of its parts. I recommend it. ( )

This series is set in colonial Singapore in 1936. The heroine is a Chinese woman who is also a bad-luck girl. She got polio and her parents died from the disease. As a result of polio she walks with a limp, but she is very smart and observant. She also knows the local culture and provides her English employer with insights he needs to do his job. She is the granddaughter of the local Chinese mafia leader and so has sources for information among her relatives. This book makes for colorful and pleasant reading. I would class this book as a cozy mystery set in a exotic local and historical time. ( )

The first in a series set in Singapore in 1936, featuring SuLin, an English educated amateur sleuth, who becomes a governess to the family of Singapore's acting governor, in an effort to discover who killed the first one.

Definitely a series that's striving to keep off the beaten path of mainstream mysteries, and I think it not only succeeds at that, but also as a solid, well-written first book. It's not perfect; it drags a bit in the first half, and the culprit was obvious in that it's-always-the-one-you-least-expect kind of way. But the characters are engaging, and once the story got going, I found I looked forward to picking the book back up again after a break. There's a hint of maybe a romantic entanglement between SuLin and the Inspector, but she's only 16 in this book, so it's only the vaguest of allusions.

I'll definitely be looking for the other books in the series. I'm looking forward to immersing myself again in 1930's Singapore. ( )

The Frangipani Tree Mystery is set in Singapore, then a British Crown Colony, in 1936. It is pretty much a perfect cosy mystery and with an original voice, a novel historical setting and a lot more excitement than I’d expected.

The main character SuLin is sixteen years old, the granddaughter of a powerful Singaporean woman who is the de facto ruler of her son’s not-always-strictly-legal businesses. Like her grandmother, SuLin is sharp and independent but she carries the stigma of being the unlucky granddaughter because both of her parents are dead and she has a permanent limp as a result of childhood polio. She has had an education, speaks fluent English and dreams of avoiding the marriage her family is arranging for her and becoming a journalist.

Through a series of events, SuLin finds herself under contract as a housekeeper to the man running the local British Police but, before she can take up her post, the governess of the Acting Governor’s only daughter dies suddenly, and SuLin is roped in to fill the gap until a white governess can be hired.

SuLin comes to believe that the governess was murdered and sets about finding out by whom.

What I liked most about the mystery was the mirror that it held up to the way the English Colonial Class thought. Initially, the arrogance and casual racism of the Governor’s family is presented as amusing. For example, here is how SuLin describes an attempt by the Governor’s wife, Lady Palin, to compliment her about how well she is looking after her step-daughter:

“Lady Palin didn’t try to hide her relief: ‘Thank you. It’s such a pity you’re not one of us. You would have made a good teacher – or mother.’ For a woman who did not set out to be offensive, Lady Palin certainly managed it.'”
As the novel progresses and the secrets the Lord and Lady Palin are guarding become known to SuLin, the tone becomes darker and SuLin is placed in danger.

The passage where the senior police officer warns SuLin of the danger she is in resonated with me. He explained to her that the Palin’s were very good with people but that the Palin’s didn’t regard her or him as people but rather as useful accessories, as disposable as a horse or a gundog. I think this shows a very clear understanding of how the British Empire worked. It seems to me that it’s a mindset that’s shared by our present government.

I had a lot of fun with the book. It was cleverly done. The mystery was straightforward but the resolution was more complex and more satisfying. It was original enough to feel fresh and stimulating while still being familiar enough and gentle enough to be soothing.

It also laid the foundation for an intriguing series. I will definitely be back to find out what SuLin does next. ( )