Murder at the Matcha Café

Welcome to the Matcha Cafe, where every cup holds a story… and perhaps a secret. Hana Takahashi moved to Uji for a fresh start – to help her grandmother, Reiko, run the family’s beloved matcha café and leave her old life in California behind. But six months after Reiko’s death, Hana is barely keeping the business afloat. Just as Hana thinks things can’t get worse, a powerful local councillor collapses during a ceremonial tea tasting in Reiko’s honour – poisoned. With suspicion falling on the café, Hana refuses to let her grandmother’s legacy be ruined. Teaming up with the handsome local detective assigned to the case, she begins digging into the town’s secrets – uncovering secret deals, jealous rivalries, and grudges steeped far longer than tea. But strange things are happening inside the café: a tea bowl reflecting something that isn’t there, steam forming a pattern Hana recognises, her cat Momo reacting to shadows she cannot see. Reiko always said the café had a spirit of its own. Hana never believed her… until now. Can Hana untangle the truth before the killer strikes again – and before the Matcha Café is destroyed for good?