Reviews with content warning for War - Like Water for Chocolate

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Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel

20 reviews

sophee_568's review against another edition

2.5

I didn't enjoy this. I think the magical realism elements and the recipes for Mexican meals are cool, but everything else sucks. Tita and Pedro's "love story" is one of the worst I've ever read. It's not love but pure lust. They barely talked through the whole book. I feel bad for Tita's sister who was married to Pedro.

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tashtasher's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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motherofpearly's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Mixed emotions about this book. Loved how the rich imagery made me feel like I was in the kitchen with Tita. The author took care in describing each flavor, aroma, and cooking technique. I loved how Tita’s emotions infused with each dish and magically affected those who ate it.

However I felt that the meals were more developed than the characters, and many large plot points were skimmed over. A few times I had to re-read sections to make sure I didn’t miss a page or two. Ultimately I had little emotion about the romance, heartbreaks, or traumas that any of them experienced.

Also I found the spicy scenes to be boring and sometimes creepy. Especially the first time between
Tita and Pedro which I expected to be more passionate since the sexual tension had been building up to a boing point. One night, he decided to hide in a dark room, and pop out unexpectedly when she came in. Startled, she asked what he was doing, and he answered by “throwing himself upon her, caused her to lose her virginity and learn of true love”.
Super creepy and made me feel uneasy. Don’t even get me started on Gertrudis
losing her virginity on horseback after being found naked in a field by a man who literally tracked her down by her magical scent.
Probably could have done without reading this book, but it was definitely memorable

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mals_reads's review against another edition

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reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.75

there’s a lot to like and dislike about this book.

firstly, i did enjoy the prose and how it read quite a bit. it was whimsical and it read like a fairy tale to me. i thought the way the author intertwined the recipes within each chapter was delightful and made me want to test them out myself!

i think there were a lot of faults with many of the characters. i think it’s meant to be read as a fast-paced melodramatic story, and i’m not mad about that, but so many of the characters were so unlikable to me. many of them acted so childishly — i think Tita was the only one who even had the right to act in that way considering her circumstances. i might have disliked Pedro the most, unfortunately, given he’s the primary love interest.

and i would have really loved John if it weren’t for the fact that he was so much older than Tita!

i read this for a book group and am very much looking forward to the conversation — definitely a book that can carry its weight in a discussion!

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