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A review by pinesandpages
Blackmail and Bibingka by Mia P. Manansala
3.0
This was perfectly fine which I was quite taken aback by since the second book in this series was one of my top 15 books of 2022. And to have this be just ok was a huge let down.
The writing felt much more “tell” not very “show.” It was a lot of exposition. At one point Lila finds a hidden note and literally thinks to herself: “A hidden note usually means someone has something to hide.” (This is not a direct quote, but a fairly accurate paraphrasing imo.)
Bc everyone involved in the murder plot was new (cousin Ronnie, the winery partners, the investors), I didn’t really care about them. I was not invested in either clearing their names or implicating them bc I simply didn’t know about them - they were introduced so briefly and sparingly.
Also, why would these new people confide so heavily in Lila, a complete (yet friendly) stranger? I was baffled by how much they disclosed to her at almost every turn.
It seems like Lila was fully over her PTSD, as if it had never existed, and had forgotten all of her previous emotional breakthroughs too. This novel felt much more surface level, just a basic mystery without the heart of the previous two.
And what was going on with Jay? The first two were fun in this department bc there was a brief love triangle possibility, there was flirting, there were some emotions. This one has none of that. Jay was just…..there. He was nice, he occasionally helped Lila out but they never flirted nor did their relationship progress in the slightest.
And, my final note: idk how Lila or Tita Rosie are staying in business with the amount of free food/drinks they give away. It was constant and always thoroughly described.
The writing felt much more “tell” not very “show.” It was a lot of exposition. At one point Lila finds a hidden note and literally thinks to herself: “A hidden note usually means someone has something to hide.” (This is not a direct quote, but a fairly accurate paraphrasing imo.)
Bc everyone involved in the murder plot was new (cousin Ronnie, the winery partners, the investors), I didn’t really care about them. I was not invested in either clearing their names or implicating them bc I simply didn’t know about them - they were introduced so briefly and sparingly.
Also, why would these new people confide so heavily in Lila, a complete (yet friendly) stranger? I was baffled by how much they disclosed to her at almost every turn.
It seems like Lila was fully over her PTSD, as if it had never existed, and had forgotten all of her previous emotional breakthroughs too. This novel felt much more surface level, just a basic mystery without the heart of the previous two.
And what was going on with Jay? The first two were fun in this department bc there was a brief love triangle possibility, there was flirting, there were some emotions. This one has none of that. Jay was just…..there. He was nice, he occasionally helped Lila out but they never flirted nor did their relationship progress in the slightest.
And, my final note: idk how Lila or Tita Rosie are staying in business with the amount of free food/drinks they give away. It was constant and always thoroughly described.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder and Alcohol