Reviews tagging 'Adult/minor relationship'

Homicide and Halo-Halo by Mia P. Manansala

12 reviews

auudrey's review against another edition

fast-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body shaming, Classism, Fatphobia, Murder, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Gun violence, Infidelity, Death of parent, Adult/minor relationship, Grief, and Bullying

cleo_wylde's review against another edition

adventurous funny inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Cozy murder mystery! Nothing groundbreaking but it's good fun and made me smile - and desperately crave Filipino food!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Racism

greatexpectations77's review against another edition

lighthearted mysterious relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

These books are so much fun, and the food always sounds absolutely divine. I'm also such a sucker for a book with recipes included. Shout out to younger me reading Diane Mott Davidson at age like ??? 14??? What a little weirdo. I will definitely keep reading this series and recommend them for a nice cozy mystery.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

Moderate: Death, Infidelity, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, and Murder

Minor: Bullying, Alcohol, Adult/minor relationship, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment

psnchz's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Adult/minor relationship

thebougiebookworm's review against another edition

emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I’ll say it — I love cozy mysteries! This series is great for so many reasons; the characters, the dialogue, the pacing, but what I love about this - and what makes it so unique - is all of the vivid descriptions of food. And not just because my inner chubby girl likes to eat! Food is such an important staple in so many cultures and I love getting to see Filipino, Mexican, Korean, and Middle Eastern staples represented in this book! 

The plot drives forward pretty quickly, and in true “whodoneit” fashion, everyone is a suspect at one time or another. I love how Manansala uses misdirection to keep you guessing. I’m usually pretty good at figuring these out early on, but I didn’t get it until the last 50 or so pages!

While this is a fun read for the sleuths out there, this book is a bit darker and explores some potentially triggering content, which I feel the author did a good job calling out in her author’s note. Please check these warnings before diving in!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Stalking, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Murder, Suicide, Sexual harassment, and Infidelity

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Medical content, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Pedophilia, and Pregnancy

bookhoarderbea's review against another edition

funny lighthearted mysterious

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Adult/minor relationship

kimveach's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I enjoyed this even more than the first book, which is often the case with cozy mysteries.  

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Death of parent, Sexual content, Alcohol, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Classism, Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual harassment

uranaishi's review against another edition

emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Alcohol, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Death, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Infidelity, Death of parent, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexism, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infertility, Medical content, Self harm, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Abandonment, Pregnancy, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Incest, Violence, and Racism

alisonreadsitall's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I absolutely LOVED this cozy mystery. 4.5 stars! One of the best parts is the descriptions of all the amazing Filipino dishes! 🤤😋 (unfortunately, where I live is severely lacking Filipino restaurants so I’m going to attempt some of the recipes in the back. 🙃)

I also appreciate when a book is encouraging towards therapy- there’s no shame in seeing someone!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Gun violence

Minor: Death of parent, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Adult/minor relationship, and Murder

alexafuson's review against another edition

medium-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

After Arsenic and Adobo, the first book of this series, I found this one a bit disappointing. This was a really fun book to read, and the plot was mostly engaging. I find it unrealistic that Lila was involved in this case to the same extent as the previous book, and the dialogue and internal narration are stiff and unrealistic. There are SO many side characters that I can’t keep track up. Even with the big murder reveal, I found it hard to care because I barely remembered who that character was. This book presented great conversations about race, class, gender, and privilege, but I fear the representation of therapy and mental illness in this book could give people the wrong impression. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Adult/minor relationship, Suicide, and Mental illness