Arsenic and Adobo
By Mia P. Manansala
Berkley Prime Crime, 2021. 316 pgs. Mystery
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 who shower her with love and judgment. 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 Nora Ephron romp to an Agatha Christie case. With the cops treating her like she's the one and only suspect, and the shady landlord looking to finally kick the Macapagal Family out and resell the storefront, Lila's left with no choice but to conduct her own investigation.
This is such a fun book, especially since I've lived in the Philippines and had most of the Yummy Food they talk about. There are some Tagalog words throughout the novel, but most of them are explained in the text or there is a handy translation page in the front of the book. This is a fun cozy mystery with lots of humor and yummy food! Excuse me while I go find the nearest Filipino restaurant!
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By Abby Collette
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Recent MBA grad Bronwyn Crewse has just taken over her family's ice cream shop in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, and she's going back to basics. Win is renovating Crewse Creamery to restore its former glory, and filling the menu with delicious, homemade ice cream flavors--many from her grandmother's original recipes. But unexpected construction delays mean she misses the summer season, and the shop has a literal cold opening: the day she opens her doors an early first snow descends on the village and keeps the customers away. To make matters worse, that evening, Win finds a body in the snow, and it turns out the dead man was a grifter with an old feud with the Crewse family. Soon, Win's father is implicated in his death. With the help of her quirky best friends and her tight-knit family, she'll catch the ice cold killer before she has a meltdown...
Mimi Lee Gets a Clue
By Jennifer J. Chow
Berkley Prime Crime, 2020. 324 pgs. Mystery
Owner of a pet grooming business, Mimi Lee, after the local breeder she exposed for mistreating Chihuahuas is murdered, must clear her name with the help of her talking cat, Marshmallow, who is the only one who can get her out of this mess.
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