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Arsenic and Adobo
(Tita Rosie's Kitchen Mystery #1)
by
The first book in a new culinary cozy series full of sharp humor and delectable dishes—one that might just be killer....
When Lila Macapagal moves back home to recover from a horrible breakup, her life seems to be following all the typical rom-com tropes. She's tasked with saving her Tita Rosie's failing restaurant, and she has to deal with a group of matchmaking aunties wh ...more
When Lila Macapagal moves back home to recover from a horrible breakup, her life seems to be following all the typical rom-com tropes. She's tasked with saving her Tita Rosie's failing restaurant, and she has to deal with a group of matchmaking aunties wh ...more
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Kindle Edition, 1st edition, 336 pages
Expected publication:
May 4th 2021
by Berkley
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Popular Answered Questions
Mia Manansala
Hi! I can assure you that the dog does not (and will NEVER) die in my books. Longganisa is an important and beloved character <3
Community Reviews
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Start your review of Arsenic and Adobo (Tita Rosie's Kitchen Mystery, #1)
Oh no! I’m literally craving for more this fantastic Filipino family adventures! Why good things end so fast!!!
Let me introduce you the stars of this journey briefly:
The threatening, tough grandma Lola Flor, sweetest Tita Rosie, entertaining and smart Calendar Trio(sharp tongued April, negotiator May, smart June) our witty, brave, kind hearted, stubborn, tough heroine Lila who has impressive investigation and culinary skills and let’s not forget her loyal bestie Adeena who create hell of dreamy ...more
Let me introduce you the stars of this journey briefly:
The threatening, tough grandma Lola Flor, sweetest Tita Rosie, entertaining and smart Calendar Trio(sharp tongued April, negotiator May, smart June) our witty, brave, kind hearted, stubborn, tough heroine Lila who has impressive investigation and culinary skills and let’s not forget her loyal bestie Adeena who create hell of dreamy ...more
Jul 01, 2020
Shealea
marked it as might-read
Listen. Even though I’m a sinigang girl through and through, my Filipino heart is crying happy Filipino tears. 😭🇵🇭
ARC gods, hear my plea. 🥺
ARC gods, hear my plea. 🥺
This was my first time reading a cozy mystery!!
For one... I am obsessed with the cover. I absolutely loved the town of Shady Palms and Miss Lila Macapagal. This was quite the cozy mystery that stands out for the importance of family, full of heart, and tons of delicious food that I wanted to eat right out of the book.
What I absolutely loved? The Filipino culture!! And the cast of characters just absolutely loved. But, I have to say my most favorite is the dachschund Longganisa. Gahhh soooo cute! ...more
For one... I am obsessed with the cover. I absolutely loved the town of Shady Palms and Miss Lila Macapagal. This was quite the cozy mystery that stands out for the importance of family, full of heart, and tons of delicious food that I wanted to eat right out of the book.
What I absolutely loved? The Filipino culture!! And the cast of characters just absolutely loved. But, I have to say my most favorite is the dachschund Longganisa. Gahhh soooo cute! ...more
That was DELISH!!! This was my first cozy mystery & I devoured it, not just because of all the yummy food but also the Filipino family dynamics & culture along with the compulsive need I had to figure out who was behind the madness. I am so happy this is a series, I want MORE!
I was lucky to get a sneak peek at this terrific debut cozy mystery. What a terrific new series! A full review to follow shortly.
10/10 would read this just because of that cover alone
Feb 07, 2021
Nenia ✨️ I yeet my books back and forth ✨️ Campbell
marked it as wishlist
omg this sounds so fun. I love books about food.
When Lila Macapagal moves back home to recover from a horrible breakup, she’s tasked with saving her Tita Rosie’s failing restaurant and has to deal with a group of matchmaking aunties. But when a notoriously nasty food critic (who happens to be her ex-boyfriend) drops dead moments after a confrontation with Lila, her life quickly swerves from a Jennifer Crusie romp to an Agatha Christie joint. Armed with the nosy auntie network, her barista best bud, and her trusted Dachshund, Lila’s left wi...more
review to come.
Jul 01, 2020
stine
marked it as to-read
is that ADOBO I SEE??? HOLY SH*T!!!! FILIPINO OWNVOICES LETS GOOOOO
Obsessed! Such a fun, page-turning cozy mystery. All the feels reading about a Filipina heroine and her family. Loved the diversity in the book and omg all the food! It made me so happy but so hungry! Love love love this book and very excited to read the next book in the series.
I was lucky to receive an ARC of Mia Manasala's debut mystery. Now I wish I could transport myself to Shady Palms to hang out with heroine Lila Macapagal and her friends--and eat her Filipino-inspired cooking. This is a stand-out cozy mystery full of heart, the importance of home, and tons of good food. A multicultural cast and mouthwatering fusion foods add layers to an already impressive debut mystery.
...more
Nov 14, 2020
Sai at theengineerisreading
rated it
it was amazing
Shelves:
2020-reads,
net-galley,
from-publisher,
pinoy-pride,
mystery-thriller,
own-voices,
asian-rep
It's been days since I finished the digital galley provided by the Berkley team and I still can't find the right words to finally craft a decent and honest review.
Disclaimer: The main character in this book is a diaspora Filipino-American who was born and raised in the United States so even though I can relate to the Filipino culture, foods, and history mentioned in this book, I can not say that I am a full ownvoices reviewer.
Now, where to begin?
Synopsis
When Lila Macapagal moves back home to rec ...more
Disclaimer: The main character in this book is a diaspora Filipino-American who was born and raised in the United States so even though I can relate to the Filipino culture, foods, and history mentioned in this book, I can not say that I am a full ownvoices reviewer.
Now, where to begin?
Synopsis
When Lila Macapagal moves back home to rec ...more
If there's one thing Filipino people are good at, it's showing up for other Filipinos' achievements. That's essentially why I jumped to get a review copy of
Arsenic & Adobo,
Mia P. Manansala's debut installment to a cozy mystery series featuring Filipino protagonists and food. Cozy mysteries have long been a genre I wanted to get into, but all of these factors and more were what really made me stay for the rest of the book. The things I liked:
✓ So much diversity; our main character, Lila, is ...more
✓ So much diversity; our main character, Lila, is ...more
I love cozy mysteries and was beyond excited to get the chance to read Arsenic and Adobo.
The cover got me interested right away, the dachshund and food, and I was hooked right away. I was not disappointed. I love that this focused around Filipino food and their culture.
I loved Lila and the town of Shady Palms. The diversity in this book was wonderful and I loved that they were able to bond over the great uniter, food. Reading this book made my mouth water, the food descriptions were realistic. ...more
The cover got me interested right away, the dachshund and food, and I was hooked right away. I was not disappointed. I love that this focused around Filipino food and their culture.
I loved Lila and the town of Shady Palms. The diversity in this book was wonderful and I loved that they were able to bond over the great uniter, food. Reading this book made my mouth water, the food descriptions were realistic. ...more
this was such a fun small town cozy mystery!! can’t wait for the rest of the series
Jan 15, 2021
J.Paul Thunders
marked it as to-read
my filipino ass is dying to read this book!!!
Arsenic and Adobo caught me from the first line, and it only got better from there. Manansala's fun, fresh voice spins an enchanting fusion of Filipino-American food and culture, artfully and seamlessly woven into a smart, satisfying mystery that made me laugh out loud.
- Olivia Blacke, author of Killer Content ...more
- Olivia Blacke, author of Killer Content ...more
Dec 10, 2020
ysa
marked it as to-read
a dachshund named Longanisa? i'm in.
(i know, but it's written by a filo author so 💁🏻) ...more
(i know, but it's written by a filo author so 💁🏻) ...more
I loved everything about this. I was hooked from the very beginning with the way Mia wrote and described things. For me there was an ease with her writing and it had a good flow. The Filipino family dynamic was spot on for me. I liked that she had the respect for her family but also had that rebellious side of her. I loved her friendship with Adeena. There were so many twists and turns. I enjoyed ALL of the food talk and there’s even recipes in the back of the book!! Definitely going to try them
...more
Debut novel ARSENIC AND ADOBO, is the first in the new Tita Rosie’s Kitchen Mystery series by Mia P. Manansala. This cozy mystery has been highly anticipated and it delivers all it promised and more! Combining a fresh take on diversity surrounding a group of strong Filipino women and their community, the characters, particularly protagonist Lila Macapagal, makes the story come to life. Her humor is a bit snarky around the edges but it elevates the voice of the story and makes Lila more relatable
...more
I loved this book! Mia is one of my fellow Sisters in Crime, so I had met her at a conference back in 2017, and I had her as a guest on the Indie Writer Podcast a few months back. Mia was a Pitch Wars mentee and is now a mentor. I knew that this book would be funny, because Mia said on the podcast that she leans toward humor, so I gravitated toward it when I needed a lighter read, although it was more serious than I expected. Our heroine, Lila Macapagal, is back to the small town of Shady Palms,
...more
I loved everything about this. I was hooked from the very beginning with the way Mia wrote and described things. For me there was an ease with her writing and it had a good flow. The Filipino family dynamic was spot on for me. I liked that she had the respect for her family but also had that rebellious side of her. I loved her friendship with Adeena. There were so many twists and turns. I enjoyed ALL of the food talk and there’s even recipes in the back of the book!! Definitely going to try them
...more
Jul 03, 2020
Myka Kobb
marked it as to-read
Hahaha, the dachshund's name is Longanisa! Bc, you know, dachshunds look like a sausage? They're literally called sausage dogs??? (Though the Filipino spelling is longganisa!)
...more
First off, I have to say that this book made me hungry. I am predisposed to enjoy cooking mysteries, but do realize that the food is usually just a perk, rather than an integral part of the mystery. That is not the case here -- food is completely embedded in every aspect of this novel. The victim reviews restaurants, the suspects own or work in them, inciting events tie into the restaurant world, some of the clues deal with food, and food is essential to family and relationships. I can't express
...more
Arsenic and Adobo is a cute cozy mystery with an ever-increasing body count. It stars Lila Macapagal who leaves the big city to return home to Shady Palms to help out at her failing family restaurant. The supporting cast includes her grandmother, Lola Flor, and many other members of an extended family plus those who are family by custom and/or acquaintance, like the Calendar Trio, three spunky women coincidentally named after months: April, May, and June. Lila’s best friend is a vegetarian Pakis
...more
This fast-paced debut cozy mystery will make you laugh, cringe, and salivate simultaneously.
Lila's returned home to help with the family's failing Filipino restaurant. Unfortunately, Shady Palms is a small town and she can't escape her food blogger/restaurant reviewer ex who seems to have it out for the restaurant, consistently giving it bad reviews. Because that's not stressful enough, the landlord who wants the restaurant off his property is her ex's new stepdad. Yikes!
When the landlord and th ...more
Lila's returned home to help with the family's failing Filipino restaurant. Unfortunately, Shady Palms is a small town and she can't escape her food blogger/restaurant reviewer ex who seems to have it out for the restaurant, consistently giving it bad reviews. Because that's not stressful enough, the landlord who wants the restaurant off his property is her ex's new stepdad. Yikes!
When the landlord and th ...more
A debut cozy mystery with a smart and complicated protagonist under the age of 30, a diverse cast, and mouthwatering descriptions of a variety of cuisines alongside the murder? Yes please!
A warning: don't read ARSENIC AND ADOBO unless you've already eaten, or you'll have to take a break to try one of the recipes in the back of the book (or if you're an indifferent cook like me, visit your local Filipino restaurant for takeout).
Other things I loved about this book: the fact that the killer (no sp ...more
A warning: don't read ARSENIC AND ADOBO unless you've already eaten, or you'll have to take a break to try one of the recipes in the back of the book (or if you're an indifferent cook like me, visit your local Filipino restaurant for takeout).
Other things I loved about this book: the fact that the killer (no sp ...more
I love cozy mysteries and was beyond excited to get the chance to read Arsenic and Adobo.
The cover got me interested right away, the dachshund and food, and I was hooked right away. I was not disappointed. I love that this focused around Filipino food and their culture.
I loved Lila and the town of Shady Palms. The diversity in this book was wonderful and I loved that they were able to bond over the great uniter, food. Reading this book made my mouth water, the food descriptions were realistic. ...more
The cover got me interested right away, the dachshund and food, and I was hooked right away. I was not disappointed. I love that this focused around Filipino food and their culture.
I loved Lila and the town of Shady Palms. The diversity in this book was wonderful and I loved that they were able to bond over the great uniter, food. Reading this book made my mouth water, the food descriptions were realistic. ...more
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| Book of The Month: Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manasala | 12 | 32 | Apr 09, 2021 09:37AM |
Readers also enjoyed
Mia P. Manansala is a book coach and the author of ARSENIC AND ADOBO (Berkley 2021), the first in the Tita Rosie's Kitchen Mystery series.
She uses humor (and murder) to explore aspects of the Filipino diaspora, queerness, and her millennial love for pop culture.
She is the winner of the 2018 Hugh Holton Award, the 2018 Eleanor Taylor Bland Crime Fiction Writers of Color Award, the 2017 William F. ...more
She uses humor (and murder) to explore aspects of the Filipino diaspora, queerness, and her millennial love for pop culture.
She is the winner of the 2018 Hugh Holton Award, the 2018 Eleanor Taylor Bland Crime Fiction Writers of Color Award, the 2017 William F. ...more
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