Vera’s life has been good since solving her first mystery. Her son finally has a girlfriend who is none other than Officer Gray. That doesn’t stop Vera from wishing for another dead body or two. After all, she needs a purpose! 

When Vera meets a distressed young woman with a missing friend, she is more than ready to help. Soon, Vera (thanks to her snooping) finds out about the case of a dead influencer who must be the missing man. But the dead man seems to have popped out of nowhere. No one seems to identify him. Why is that? Who is he? What is this case? 

Well, Vera is determined to find out! 

The story comes in various third-person POVs. 

Well, after quite enjoying the previous book, I was excited to read this one. I also knew what to expect, so the book was more entertaining. While this can work as a standalone, it will be better if you start with the first book. 

While the book is pretty lighthearted, the second half, especially the last quarter, gets darker. The narrative style and Vera’s natural talent do add some comic relief, but comparatively, things get a bit grim (don’t skip the author’s note at the end). 

I’m not a fan of the influencer trope, but I wanted to read this knowing the author would give us something fun. And, oh boy, does she deliver with Vera’s enthusiasm. Never have I enjoyed a book about influencers as much, and the credit goes to Vera. 

Of course, Vera’s ability to collect the lost ones is unparalleled. She is more than happy to adopt countless nieces, nephews, and grandchildren and feed them until they can’t eat a bite more, lol. 

All the humor and OTT drama aside, the book highlights some important points about life, loneliness, circumstances, decisions, guilt, faking happiness, etc. I rather liked the conversation in the principal’s office. That’s a very important question from Vera. 

The way this ended makes me hopeful there will be another book. Please, please write it! 

To summarize, Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping (On a Dead Man) is a humorous cozy mystery dealing with some heavy topics but using a light touch. The book doesn’t take itself seriously most of the time. However, it raises some poignant questions, too!