Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

Arsenic and Adobo, by Mia P. Manansala

14 reviews

emily_mh's review

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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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maggies's review against another edition

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mysterious slow-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? No

2.0

Perhaps cozy mysteries are not for me. I really wanted to like this book, but it was too slow, too long, with too much reminiscing and not enough action. Loved the yummy-sounding food, but that also took up so much real estate of the book, so a bit of a double edged sword. Never really warmed to Lila, either.
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gabyhat's review

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

3.75

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marissasa's review against another edition

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lighthearted mysterious relaxing 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? No

4.0

This was my first cozy mystery type book and although it was lighthearted and not as tightly focused on the murder as I thought it would be, I enjoyed it and found the characters well-written and likable. The *freeze frame* "yep that's me, you're probably wondering how I got here" style of narration and abundance of explanatory details in the writing were so cheesy, but that honestly made this book feel even more Filipino than it already was with its very realistic depiction of the aunties and lola, its notion of "family = relatives + every family friend in existence", and the mouth-watering traditional foods that seem to be in every chapter, because if Filipinos are anything, its cheesy! The book wasn't perfectly paced and I did predict who the true killer was at around the 2/3 mark so the reveal in the last couple chapters wasn't a shocking one, but it was a fun read and a treat to listen to on the audiobook complete with proper Tagalog pronunciation and Filipino accents. I'll definitely listen to the rest of the books in the series in the future.
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aimzthereader's review

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funny mysterious 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? Yes

4.0

A cozy mystery that will make you very hungry. Loved the emphasis on family and culture especially with all of the Filipino food ! This book does a great job describing all the food and makes your mouth drool. It’s very much a cozy mystery because the deaths are a bit outlandish and they aren’t taken very seriously . there are clues throughout the. Ok but I only solved half the mystery. The family and friendship relationships with very slight romance storyline really makes this a fun and light mystery. There were  times that I found myself rolling my eyes at the choices and some of the nonchalance about death  but that’s to be expected from a cozy. Overall this was fun, cute, comfy, and delicious . Bonus is that there are recipes at the back of the book 
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professional_grandma's review against another edition

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funny mysterious 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? Yes

5.0

4/13/2022 - As of this reread, I yet again confirmed how much I love this book. It keeps you on the edge of your seat with well-written plot twists while also endearing you to the characters and providing comic relief. I honestly forgot about the whole love feud between Dr. Jay and Amir. That scene was actually hilarious. I loved the fresh point of view this book brought to murder mysteries and the descriptions of the food had me craving some ube crinkles. Overall, this book is still a stunner for me and I can’t wait to read Homicide and Halo-Halo!
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moonlitemuseum's review

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emotional funny mysterious relaxing medium-paced
This is one of the comfiest, coziest reads I've had all year! If murder mysteries are "cosies" then Arsenic and Adobo is a warm hug served with a latte and delicious Uber cookies on the side. The characters were lovable and often very like people I know from my own life, and while the protagonist can seem a little /too/ obsessed with appearing progressive (an aside about how "of course platonic friendships are just as, or more important than romantic ones" felt a little preachy—and it's something I believe, too!) I think this does a great job of setting her apart from her small-town peers. The food is chock full of delicious sounding dishes from the whole world over, with an added focus on dishes from the Philippines. It was sometimes hard to read this without my stomach growling. The murder mystery was relatively standard fare and easy to suss out if you have any familiarity with mystery crime novels, but the real joy was the huge cast of delightful characters and the urge to see Tita Rosie and her restaurant succeed. Loved it!
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readwithde's review against another edition

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adventurous 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? No

4.5

I absolutely loved everything about this book. 

Lila was a great narrator and main character; despite getting distracted and running late, she was smart, remembered things, and did pay attention. She was very insightful and reasonably emotional without being uncaring or explosive.

I loved the supporting cast, who had enough character to be fun without taking over the narrative or unnecessary time.
Spoiler Her semi-romances with Amir and Jae were fun without turning the story into a rom-com or annoying love triangle. Even her friendship with Adeena was colored by her time away in Chicago, leaving some tension and secrets between the two.


Spoiler As for the twist, Kevin seemed weirdly connected, but when he helped clean the restaurant and spent time with Lila's family, he seemed disconnected from the Longs and what had been going on. Though I correctly guessed that he might be involved with the inspection scheme, I had no idea how much he had actually done -- it made a lot of sense and only added to the rest of the story.


While this book could stand on its own, I'm glad that the next story has been announced, and I'm hopeful that this will become a long running series of fun, foody mysteries.
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cdiddy's review

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adventurous funny 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? It's complicated

3.25

Captures the family dynamics so well and was a fun, quick read. Can’t wait to try out the recipes in the back! Best friend was a little bit of a brat, though. Looking forward to the next book.
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casey_sunshine's review

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emotional funny 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
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