Things are heating up for Lila Macapagal. Not in her love life, which she insists on keeping nonexistent despite the attention of two very eligible bachelors. Or her professional life, since she can’t bring herself to open her new cafĂ©Â after the unpleasantness that occurred a few months ago at her aunt’s Filipino restaurant, Tita Rosie’s Kitchen. No, things are heating up quite literally, since summer, her least favorite season, has just started.
To add to her feelings of sticky unease, Lila’s little town of Shady Palms has resurrected the Miss Teen Shady Palms Beauty Pageant, which she won many years ago—a fact that serves as a wedge between Lila and her cousin slash rival, Bernadette. But when the head judge of the pageant is murdered and Bernadette becomes the main suspect, the two must put aside their differences and solve the case—because it looks like one of them might be next.
Release Date: Feb 8, 2022
Series:Â Tita Rosie’s Kitchen
Book:Â 2
Publisher:Â Penguin Group
Imprint:Â Berkley
Price: $11.99
Lila Macapagal should be getting ready for the grand opening of her and her best friend’s new restaurant, but recent events in her life have left her feeling uninspired in her baking. Lila has two wonderful men interested in her, but has also put her love life on hold. She agrees to fill in as a judge in the Miss Teen Shady Palms Beauty Pageant that she won as a teenager as a distraction from everything going on in her life. The wealthy sponsor and head judge of the pageant is murdered and Lila’s cousin and sometime rival, Bernadette, becomes the main suspect. Lila puts her past with Bernadette and her current issues aside to prove her cousin’s innocence.
Homicide and Halo-Halo is the follow-up to the author’s first book Arsenic and Adobo. This is a new cozy mystery series featuring a Filipino-American family who live in a small town outside Chicago. Lila has been helping at her aunt’s restaurant, Tita Rosie’s Kitchen, but has always dreamed of opening her own bakery. Now that her dream is close to coming true, Lila is feeling unhappy and anxious. She hesitates to speak to a counselor because she has been raised to get through things on her own. The portrayal of Lila’s anxiety is realistic, but not the typical topic for a cozy. Having the murder mystery centered around a beauty pageant that looks at the inner beauty and intelligence of the contestants makes the book entertaining. Portions of the beauty pageant storyline help lighten the mood of the book, but then one of the judge’s questionable behavior brings up additional serious issues.
The best part of the book is the glimpse into Filipino culture and the discussion of the various dishes served at the family’s restaurants and in their homes. I love reading about so many different types of food that are new to me with recipes for a few of the dishes included at the end. I like Lila as a main character and Tita Rosie is a sweet woman that I would like to have as my aunt. Both men that may have a romantic interest in Lila are good guys. However, there are so many other unlikable characters in the book. Lila talks about the importance of family in her culture, but most of Lila’s family members and closest friends not only aren’t supportive of Lila, but are rude and unsympathetic. This has the potential to be such a unique and wonderful cozy mystery series, but I hope future books are a little more upbeat.
~ Christine
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