Take a photo of a barcode or cover
notesbynnenna 's review for:
Arsenic and Adobo
by Mia P. Manansala
Thank you to the publisher for giving me a free copy of this book! All opinions are my own.
At one point I was reading this book before dinner and I had to put it down because I just could not take it- that’s how hungry it was making me!
I’m pretty sure this was my first time reading a cozy mystery. I think the combination of all the warm and delicious food, plus cold weather, definitely gave me cozy vibes. For that reason, I think this would make a great fall or winter book, something to read while you’re snuggled up under a blanket. I loved reading about all of the tasty sounding food, learning more about Filipino culture, and getting to know Lila’s family. Those were definitely my favorite parts of this book and I’m so glad that it includes some recipes too. I’m saving those to hopefully try at some point!
However, I did feel that the pacing was off. It felt like we kind of stalled in the middle, for a good chunk of the book. Also, Lila clearly means well, but she’s a terrible detective, lol! I don’t think the mystery aspect fully came together for me and I also found the tone confusing because we go from humor and sarcasm to murder and trauma quite quickly. It’s a tough balance to strike and I don’t think the author quite hit it off.
Despite feeling that perhaps this book was perhaps trying to do too much and was a bit all over the place, I did like it and think it was a fun read. And again, the food! I would read it for the food descriptions alone.
At one point I was reading this book before dinner and I had to put it down because I just could not take it- that’s how hungry it was making me!
I’m pretty sure this was my first time reading a cozy mystery. I think the combination of all the warm and delicious food, plus cold weather, definitely gave me cozy vibes. For that reason, I think this would make a great fall or winter book, something to read while you’re snuggled up under a blanket. I loved reading about all of the tasty sounding food, learning more about Filipino culture, and getting to know Lila’s family. Those were definitely my favorite parts of this book and I’m so glad that it includes some recipes too. I’m saving those to hopefully try at some point!
However, I did feel that the pacing was off. It felt like we kind of stalled in the middle, for a good chunk of the book. Also, Lila clearly means well, but she’s a terrible detective, lol! I don’t think the mystery aspect fully came together for me and I also found the tone confusing because we go from humor and sarcasm to murder and trauma quite quickly. It’s a tough balance to strike and I don’t think the author quite hit it off.
Despite feeling that perhaps this book was perhaps trying to do too much and was a bit all over the place, I did like it and think it was a fun read. And again, the food! I would read it for the food descriptions alone.