Every interaction left me on the edge of my seat, hoping to find useful information that might lead to solving the crime. I tried to put the pieces together as Lila worked through her network of high school classmates, crushes, a possible new love interest, and fellow restaurant owners. Arsenic and Adobo fills the void of Filipino representation in literature through her use of Tagalog, family traditions, and food.Īnd yet, Manansala still somehow finds a way to satisfy those who love a good crime-solving novel. Not being very familiar with the Filipino culture, I appreciated these tidbits of knowledge to help me along (even if I became frustrated that I couldn't eat the food I was reading about). Manansala provides a pronunciation and translation guide at the beginning of the novel, and a few authentic Filipino recipes at the end.

The food descriptions might even make your mouth water. These familiar elements will resonate with anyone who understands family obligations and expectations. Arsenic and Adobo has nosy and match-making aunties, cooks who find comfort in feeding people, and name-dropping when it comes to food ingredients (I'm assuming anyone of Filipino descent will recognize most if not all of the recipes touched upon in the story). Readers of any ethnic background will appreciate the overall vibe of Lila's family dynamic and Tita Rosie's restaurant. manansala is well-paced, has relatable characters, and is heavily sprinkled with food references and recipes. If she doesn't solve the case, she might go to jail and her family's business will shut down for good. All evidence found during the investigations following the incident point to Lila being the murderer. Having moved back home after a horrible breakup, she has quite a bit to catch up on – for example, the fact that Derek's stepfather is also Tita Rosie's landlord and owner of the building that houses the restaurant, and the person in charge of leading the investigation happens to be a well-known drug buster. Lila's ex-boyfriend Derek also happened to be a food critic who was notorious for writing bad reviews of her family's restaurant, as well as other local spots in her hometown of Shady Palms. Since law enforcement is treating Lila as the only suspect, she and her best friend Adeena begin their own investigation into who killed her ex and why, in order to save her family's restaurant. Arsenic and Adobo is a suspense-filled story about a college-aged Filipino woman named Lila who returns to her hometown to help her family's restaurant business, only for her ex-boyfriend to die in said restaurant while interacting with her. Foodies, Crime Novel Lovers, and Filipino Americans, rejoice.

Arsenic and adobo review