Unravel the Mystery of Arsenic and Adobo with Tita Rosie's Kitchen

Amazon Customer: This is a great book

United States on Nov 19, 2023

H.: Está bien para pasar un tiempo.

Spain on Oct 13, 2023

Lia Alexandra: This novel gets major plus points for trying her hand at a cozy mystery series. It's a fun genre to read. Also extra props for the Filipino cultural references and sharp dialogue between the Titas. And the best part was seeing the recipes at the end. Will definitely try them!

But unfortunately that's where the good bits end. The book fell flat due to poor and inconsistent execution. The plot was all over the place. Many loose ends were never tied up. It dragged on as they repeated much of the same thing over and over just with different characters (eat then investigate badly then have some coffee then investigate badly then get called in by the police and do things your lawyer says explicitly not to do then have more food and investigate badly after that). And while I appreciate the idea of a cozy mystery, I did think the characters could do with a lot more dimension and likeability to actually get it to feel cozy rather than just contrived and constricting.

It was a valiant attempt but just not for me. I was excited by the hype though so maybe if I had not read all the raves about this book i would have liked it better.

Netherlands on Sep 30, 2023

Rev. Beth Woodard: So many well-intentioned cozy mysteries overload the reader with cultural knowledge and insider information about the business that they bog down. “Arsenic and Adobo” is a perfectly balanced blend, well-written, and with a page-turner of a plot.

The relationship drama feels very real and familiar (as well as famial!), and the cultural and restaurant information is lightly dusted over the story, adding just the right kick of flavor.

United States on Aug 31, 2023

Kindle Customer: a good read. found it when watching 'withcindy' on youtube. i have read the first one, & it's worth the £7.50. when i'm not busy i'll get the other three and read them

United Kingdom on Apr 03, 2023

a random reviewer: As a foreigner who'd lived for 20+ years in the Philippines, I loved this book so much. It was such fun .. A comical mystery with food at the core!

United Kingdom on Oct 30, 2022

ricarda: This book was a lot of things I didn't expect and liked. It was way more murder mystery than rom-com and even though some plotlines were obvious to me, the major one I did not suspect.

Lila's ex-boyfriend was murdered and she is the prime suspect. Since the investigating detective seems to have it out for her, she takes matters into her own hands and starts looking for the killer.

I loved Lila's relationship with Adeena. Their friendship was so sweet. This book made me angry at the incompetence of police (I mean seriously for one of the things that happened she had an alibi and they still supected her). Luckily Lila had friends and family supporting her every step of the way.

Anyway, even though the book wasn't my usual genre, I really enjoyed it.

Germany on Aug 18, 2022

J. Amazing: Arsenic and Adobo is the debut novel by Mia P. Manansala. This is the first book in a series called "Tita Rosie's Kitchen Mysteries". In this book, Lila Madricapal has returned home from Chicago after spending a few years trying to escape from the small-town she grew up in. After not being able to finish college and a recent breakup, she finds herself trying to help her aunt save the failing family restaurant. As soon as she is trying to unravel how she has gotten herself in this situation, she finds herself as the main suspect in a murder of her ex-boyfriend who also happened to drop dead right in front of her as she is in the middle of her work shift at the restaurant. Along with her best friend, her dog, and a group of nosy aunties, we later continue on a journey to investigate and find out who the real culprit is.

This book was wonderful. As soon as you open the book, you are greeted by several terms and definitions of words that you will encounter in the book. I was instantly intrigued by the cultural fest that I was going to embark on. FYI, at the end of the book, you are also given some of the recipes for the meals that you hear about within the book. As a fellow...

United States on Oct 10, 2021

Phil DowellPhil Dowell: This was so much fun - think "Clue" from a Filipino POV with lots of great food, fantastic diversity, & a really great cast of characters. I'm all in for Tita Rosie's kitchen mysteries!

This was my first real experience with a cozy so I didn't quite know what to expect, but I really enjoyed it! It's very clean & family friendly, but that didn't take away from the mystery at all, in my opinion - in fact, I thought the way everything played out was really smart! I had no idea who the killer was & the motivation made sense, it wasn't far fetched in any way - she did a great job of placing suspicion on tons of people, throwing you off throughout. I just loved the diverse cast of characters, this was full to the brim with people we don't often see represented within the mystery genre - I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about Filipino food & traditions, you'll be so hungry throughout this! (& shoutout to the Calendar Crew, they were hilarious!)

All in all, this is a great way to start this series - there's tons of great setup for where things can go (love triangle w/ Amir & Dr. Jae?! & more Adeena, please!), & I'm really looking forward to...

United States on Aug 09, 2021

Linda P: As the first in a new series, this book set up the characters and setting well. I enjoyed the quirky relatives, especially the older aunts (the Calendar Crew) and the relationships among the extended Filipino family. Lila tried to solve the murder because the police focused on her, although I do agree with another reviewer that their evidence was unrealistically flimsy. The plot was good enough to be entertaining, although there were a few times when I wanted to yell “Don’t go in there!”. My only complaint was that the unfamiliar Tagalog terms interrupted the flow of the story for me. Either I had to stop and consult the glossary or the author had to stop and describe the dish. Not sure what the solution for this might be, except maybe that as I read more by this author I will familiarize myself with the terms. All in all, the book was worth the two evenings it took to read and offered an interesting glimpse into a culture I am not familiar with.

United States on Jun 08, 2021