Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manasala
Arsenic and Adobo
By Mia P. Manansala
Series:
Tita Rosie’s Kitchen #1
Genre:
Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Thriller, Contemporary, Food & Drink, Fiction
Pages: 336
My Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars
Synopsis:
The first book in a new culinary cozy series full of sharp humor and delectable dishes—one that might just be killer....
When Lila Macapagal moves back home to recover from a horrible breakup, her life seems to be following all the typical rom-com tropes. She's tasked with saving her Tita Rosie's failing restaurant, and she has to deal with a group of matchmaking aunties who shower her with love and judgment. But when a notoriously nasty food critic (who happens to be her ex-boyfriend) drops dead moments after a confrontation with Lila, her life quickly swerves from a Nora Ephron romp to an Agatha Christie case.
With the cops treating her like she's the one and only suspect, and the shady landlord looking to finally kick the Macapagal family out and resell the storefront, Lila's left with no choice but to conduct her own investigation. Armed with the nosy auntie network, her barista best bud, and her trusted Dachshund, Longanisa, Lila takes on this tasty, twisted case and soon finds her own neck on the chopping block…
My Thoughts:
I absolutely love the cover of this book and had to get it from BOTM. Plus I love a good cozy mystery. This had everything in it and more! I loved the character of Lila and her cute little dog (although I wish there was more of the dog). You can tell she clearly cares about her family but is struggling with what she wants to do with her life.
At first I didn’t know what to expect with this book but it turned out to be more funny and better than I expected! It also made me really hungry after reading in detail about all the different kinds of food. The mystery itself was interesting and had me trying to guess the killer before the end of the book. I had my suspicions but it ended differently than I expected!
I loved the love triangle aspect that was introduced in this book and I can’t wait to see where it leads in the next one. The characters are funny and this is definitely a more modern cozy mystery. I loved the character progression in the book and look forward to seeing where the characters end up as the series goes on. Overall, the writing was great and kept me entertained - I will definitely be reading the next books.
