Reviews tagging 'Vomit'

Arsenic and Adobo, by Mia P. Manansala

12 reviews

emily_mh's review

lighthearted mysterious 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? No

4.0

This was enjoyable and entertaining, which is all I really ask of a “cosy mystery”. I was really pleasantly surprised that this one went deeper by bringing in a complicated family dynamic: Lila felt a lot of tension over wanting to support her elders in thanks for their sacrifices, while also wanting to be independent and do her own thing. I also love how much food was centred in the story. It was mouthwatering to read about and themed the narrative well. 

The plot itself was investigation-focussed with multiple avenues being explored at once, which was fantastic for me as it drove the story and also meant I could speculate and form different theories. The resolution ended up being well-suited. 

The characterisation was excellent. This book has a large cast but each character felt distinct, including Lila the MC who was stubborn, loving, and confused about what she wanted. She was a realistic depiction of a 25 year-old, as someone who is very nearly 25. I do think that her character development could have been better realised, though, as it felt a little quick. 

I have two other criticisms. The first is that the romance (in the form of a love triangle) was totally unnecessary, and there was also no chemistry whatsoever with either LI. The second is that Lila was smart enough to have figured out more of the mystery on her own, but instead we got a little villain monologue. 

But overall, as I said before, I enjoyed this read. I definitely want to continue with the series! 

Rep: Filipina-American MC, Filipino-American SCs, Muslim Pakistani-American LI, biracial white/Korean-American LI, lesbian Muslim Pakistani-American SC, biracial white/Korean-American SC, sapphic Mexican-American SC, Black SC, Japanese-American SC 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Death

Moderate: Car accident, Drug abuse, Kidnapping, Infidelity, Violence, and Addiction

Minor: Body shaming, Medical content, Alcohol, Sexism, Bullying, Racism, Xenophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Domestic abuse, Blood, Grief, Abandonment, Deportation, Ableism, Fatphobia, Alcoholism, Addiction, Misogyny, Colonisation, Death of parent, Vomit, Drug use, Hate crime, Gun violence, Homophobia, and Physical abuse

Major: medical emergency, false legal accusations Moderate: imprisonment, break-in Minor: loss of a loved one, gambling, police corruption, extortion, disordered eating, blackmail, sick loved one

bookhoarderbea's review against another edition

emotional funny lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Drug abuse, Murder, and Death

Moderate: Fatphobia, Body shaming, Racism, and Xenophobia

Minor: Vomit

karcitis's review

mysterious fast-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Drug use

Moderate: Violence, Infidelity, Domestic abuse, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Racism, Vomit, Lesbophobia, Death of parent, Chronic illness, Body shaming, Fatphobia, Confinement, Blood, and Addiction

supernova_reader's review

adventurous challenging dark mysterious fast-paced

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

3.0

The book is billed as a lighthearted cozy mystery and while there are great descriptions of food and small town antics, there is too much of the uncomfortable realities of the world to truly qualify it as cozy. Too real, and the mystery’s a little obvious. I appreciate the warning at the beginning of the book though, it does warn you about its “real”ness, I should have taken it more seriously.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Murder, and Vomit

Moderate: Xenophobia and Racism

Minor: Police brutality and Hate crime

saurahsaurus's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• 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

Moderate: Body shaming, Drug abuse, Murder, Trafficking, Violence, Death, Drug use, Grief, Addiction, and Blood

Minor: Cursing, Vomit, Toxic friendship, Infidelity, and Fatphobia

kbairbooks's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

I love how good based this book was, I love the diversity, the friendships, and the culture. But I didn’t like the fat phobia and the aunties …. at all. I didn’t like the romances and she didn’t have chemistry with anybody. Her reactions to everything were so dramatic for a 25 year old. The ice at the end was random and I really didn’t connect with this book at all. Not for me I guess. Probably won’t read book 2.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death

Moderate: Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Blood, and Murder

Minor: Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Vomit, Hate crime, and Panic attacks/disorders

coacklebee's review

lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

This was fun! A light cozy mystery that I read in one sitting. I loved all the food descriptions and the fact that there are recipes at the end!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Blood, Death of parent, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Kidnapping, and Murder

Minor: Body shaming and Vomit

oliviabriscoe's review

funny mysterious relaxing medium-paced

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Violence

Moderate: Drug use, Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Addiction, Racism, and Vomit

Minor: Abandonment

bookwormie's review

adventurous lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

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

4.25

I am embarrassed to admit I thought they meant "adobo" as in the seasoning, but it is a Philippine cooking technique! The connection to food in this story made me salivate and I learned a lot about the authors' culture I'd never expereinced myself before! A fun mystery for sure and I look forward to the next book!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Medical content and Kidnapping

Minor: Vomit and Bullying

internationalreads's review

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Murder, Racism, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Vomit