Showing Death in Little Tokyo by Dale Furutani

It's Ken Tanaka's turn to stage a mock mystery for the Los Angeles Mystery Club and he's determined to do it right. Tanaka sets himself up as a fake P.I., office and all, only to have a femme fatale straight out of the movies try to hire him. Taking the case on a whim, Ken's detecting leads him to a mutilated corpse in a Little Tokyo hotel room.

Ken is taken on a twisting path of intrigue that leads him to seedy theaters, the Japanese Yakuza, his own past, and a grudge held for over half a century.

Death in Little Tokyo is the first book written by an Asian American to win major mystery awards. It won an Anthony Award, a Macavity Award, and was nominated for an Agatha Award. Because it provides an insider’s view of Japanese-American culture, it was even used in University level Ethnic studies courses.