Jesse Q. Sutanto is the author of over a dozen books for middle readers, young adults, and adults. Her books range from rom-com to fantasy to mystery. She is the 2021 Comedy Women in Print Prize winner for her debut novel Dial A for Aunties. We’re especially interested in her Vera Wong series for its close ties with tea. In Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers we’re invited into the world of Vera Wong, a lonely little old lady who makes an unexpected discovery in her San Francisco tea shop one morning, a dead man. She starts her own – and hilarious – investigation into the murder and, along the way, makes friends with her many suspects. Releasing on April 1, the second book in the series, Vera Wong’s Advice Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man), has Vera happy and a little bored. So she decides to “help” her son’s girlfriend – a police officer – solve the murder of a mysterious influencer. After reading five of her titles, I found one underlying thread: chaos is always around the corner.
Jodi Webb: Let’s start with the most important question…what is your favorite tea?
Jesse Q. Sutanto: It would have to be one that was mentioned a lot in the book: Tie Guan Yin. It translates to the Iron Goddess. I love that it tastes bitter, but the leaves your mouth tasting sweet like it’s full of sugar. It’s the most delightfully surprising feeling.
Originating in the Qing Dynasty (18th century), Tieguanyin claims that Xiping Town, Anxi County, Quanzhou City, and Fujian Province as its birthplace. In English it is known as “Iron Guan Yin”, “Iron Goddess of Mercy” and sometimes just TGY. Although it is produced in other locations, only that grown in Anxi is considered truly authentic. A benchmark oolong tea, it is an interesting combination of the fresh fragrance of a green tea and the rich flavor of black tea, especially known for its fragrant aroma. Another special quality is the fact that it is partially fermented. Different fermentation and roasting processes can affect the final result, ranging from a light flavor to a woodsy flavor with a honey aroma. Repeated shaking and air drying promote enzymatic oxidation and the tempting aroma and flavor. Despite these different processes, they all use the barou method of being wrapped in cloth and rolled into tightly knitted balls of leaves without any branches. Tieguanyin is often served using the Gongfu tea method, which uses small clay pots and cups. First, the cups are warmed with boiling water before adding the appropriate amount of tea leaves and brewing them with boiling water. This process is repeated three times, with only the tea lovers enjoying the final brewing. The first two are said to increase everyone’s enjoyment of the aroma before actually tasting the tea.
Jodi: It sounds delightful. You’ve lived (and enjoyed tea) in Jakarta, Singapore, and Oxford. Which is your go-to place for tea?
Jesse: Growing up in Singapore and going to Chinese restaurants, I developed an appreciation for tea. So, I would have to say that Singapore fostered my love for tea. Oxford and Jakarta are much more into coffee, which I also love!
Jodi: Tell us more about the three fascinating places you’ve called home. In case I decide to plan a getaway, what is something you love about each place: Jakarta, Singapore and Oxford?
Jesse: Jakarta. How friendly everyone is. People are just so happy and so open here.
Singapore. How efficient everything is. Everything in Singapore just WORKS. From the moment you arrive at the airport, you’ll find that Singapore is living in 2050. It’s just like…the most advanced country I have ever been to.
Oxford. How incredibly steeped in history everything is. Every street is beautiful. And then you’d find some random tree, and you’d discover, oh, it’s a thousand years old, and it’s just some random tree in a park.
I also lived in the US for about six years and I loved it! I was in California and I consider it my second home. I just felt like I belonged there, probably because most people I came across in Cali are also transplants, just like me. I have always harbored a dream of retiring there one day!
Jodi: You make every place sound amazing. I want to hop on a plane right now. Let’s talk about the creation of the Vera Wong series. We’ve seen a growing trend of books with tea shop and murder combinations. What made you decide to place your murder victim in a tea shop?
Jesse: At first I thought maybe I’d set it in a bakery or a restaurant, but I realized that too many books are set in those establishments. I wanted something a little different, and I recalled that I was raised to have a strong knowledge of Chinese tea, so I decided it was time to put that knowledge to good use.
Jodi: And you definitely did, I was taking notes when tempting teas were described throughout the books. I’d like to share a little more about my experience reading Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers. One night when insomnia hit, I dug it out of my TBR pile at 1 am. I was laughing so hard I had to stop reading because I was worried I would wake up everyone in the house. How do you manage to combine humor and more intense subjects like murder?
Jesse: Oh my gosh, thank you so much! I think the humor came very naturally, because they’re based on things I have experienced with my parents. Pretty much everything Vera says in the book is based on things my parents have said. Like, just last week my dad said to me, “If you go to sleep after nine p.m. you’ll get a brain tumor.” So the humor pretty much writes itself!
Jodi: Next time I want to write something funny, I’ll have to summon memories of the wackier members of my family. How did you first become a writer? Needed to capture your family and all their quirks?
Jesse: I wish I could share some amazing, mystical story, but the truth is simply that I am aggressively mediocre in everything else.
Jodi: Well, you must have been saving all your talents for writing. You’ve written for a variety of ages, do you have a preference for writing for one group?
Jesse: I prefer writing for adults because I’m oldddd, waaah! I read a review for my YA that said, “This is why we need to stop letting millennials write YA books” and I think it has scarred me for life!
Jodi: Don’t be scarred. After all, you’ve had two successful series, the Auntie series and the Vera Wong series. Do you plan an entire series or write one book at a time?
Jesse: I always assume that no one wants to read more than one book from me, so I don’t plan a series unless my publisher asks for more books. So as of now, I don’t know if there will be a third Vera book. It all depends on how well the second book does.
Jodi: Vera Wong is so unforgettable, I have a sneaking suspicion you might find yourself going on another adventure with her. For now we’ll have to satisfy ourselves with your latest book, Vera Wong’s Vera Wong’s Advice Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man). Thanks for visiting with us!
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