Ugh horrible MILs are something I absolutely hate in books but other than that I enjoyed this story. It had a very cozy and bright setting with mouth watering food descriptions.

This was a delightful start to a new cozy mystery series - with spice! The main character, Miriam Quiñones Smith, is a Cuban-American food anthropologist with a concentration on the foods of the Caribbean, so there’s a lot of talk about food and some interesting background on some of the dishes Miriam prepares. She has recently moved back to Miami from NYC with her husband (not Latino, as you could probably guess from the Smith last name) and 4-year-old son, Manny (Manuel). They’ve landed in a snooty area called Coral Shores (presumably based on the real village of Miami Shores), because Miriam’s annoying, interfering mother-in-law has helped them buy a house there. The area is rife with social pressure and Miriam is having a hard time adjusting. It doesn’t help that her husband, Robert, is being secretive, spending money she doesn’t think they have, and working late hours, giving Miriam cause to worry about their marriage. Luckily, her BFF from their school days, Alma, lives in the area. Alma is a big part of the book and I absolutely loved her character, almost as much as Miriam. Alma hooks Miriam up with what is supposed to be a temporary gig on the Spanish-language network, filling in for a cooking pro who is on maternity leave.

So… the mystery: Two young women die under suspicious circumstances and Alma is a suspect in one of these, which is how Miriam gets involved in sleuthing, to help clear her friend. I was happy to see that the detective wound up asking Miriam to help, since he couldn’t blend in with the locals at social events and she could - rather than her trying to outsmart the police, as sometimes is the case with cozy mysteries.

The mystery itself wasn’t that complicated to figure out, but I enjoyed the ride anyway. I was really annoyed with Miriam’s prejudiced mother-in-law, who kept calling Miriam’s son by his middle name, Douglas (“Dougie”!). Very disrespectful to the parents. I also really liked some of the locals, including the Mambo-cise instructor, Jorge and Pepper, who grew up in Oklahoma and also doesn’t feel like she fits in.

Warning: there is a lot of Spanish sprinkled throughout this book. Even if you know absolutely no Spanish, you will mostly get the meaning through context. Some of it is directly translated (i.e., repeated, but in English), but some of it is not.

Content warnings: diet culture, references to drug use and addiction, reference to suicide

While I received the eARC from NetGalley, I wound up partly listening to the published audiobook by Dreamscape Media. The narrator, Frankie Corzo, did an excellent job with the many voices and accents. Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the opportunity to read an advance readers copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Raquel did a wonderful job of putting together a very entertaining cozy mystery with just the right amount of mouth-watering food talk. What makes this book different than many cozies is that Miram is the mom of a toddler. Usually, our sleuths are single and in their 20s or they may have older or grown kids. I enjoyed reading Miriam and Manny's daily interactions.


As a fan of the show Veronica Mars (but not the reboot) I really enjoyed Detective Pullman referring to Miriam as Veronica Mars, he is right, she inserts herself into the investigation, asks uncomfortable questions, and then puts herself in danger. Yes, she is a Veronica Mars! I loved that Miriam has a best friend with a voice of reason. Hopefully, Miriam will listen to Alma from time to time so she doesn't get herself hurt in future stories!

I greatly enjoyed the subplot where Miriam is able to share her knowledge as a food anthropologist via a youtube show. Now that leads me to wonder since she is getting recognized by strangers by the end of this book--will that affect how she is able to sleuth in future books? It could be used as a way she can get information from people or into places she wouldn't be able to get into otherwise, but it also means people will notice her more. What a fun development, I am really looking forward to seeing where Raquel V. Reyes takes us next.

My last comment, I really, really hope that moving forward the series doesn't have drama between Miriam and Robert. I would like her marriage to be solid so she has that safe place to fall back to whenever future murder investigations stress her out.

As you can tell, I found this book to be very engaging, I enjoyed meeting Miriam, and reading her adventure as well as all the cooking scenes. I'm ready to read book two today!
5 Stars to Mango, Mambo, and Murder

So cute and fun! This cozy is vibrant and diverse and full of yummy food. Book 2 comes out in November 2022, and I can't wait for more of this cozy cast.

Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this book, but unfortunately I couldn't finish it. It did not hold my interest at all. There was no sleuthing and the mom getting upset every time her son spoke English drive me insane.

Miriam, husband Robert and young son Manny move from NYC back to Florida for a new job for Robert and to be closer to family. Miriam's best friend Alma, now a successful real estate agent, takes her to a Women's Club luncheon to help her meet people and keep up with the Smiths. Sadly, the guest next to Miriam at the luncheon collapses on the table and soon, she is caught up in the country club set's manias. The setting and families are very multicultural. There are lots of Spanish phrases peppered throughout and delicious sounding recipes, several of which are shared in the back.

Books like this are why I love cozies. It checked all of the boxes I look for. It was also a fun, quick read. I will definitely be buying a copy for a gift.

Loved reading this book and author. If you haven't read it yet I highly recommend her and her books. Happy reading

I am a member of the American Library Association Reading List Award Committee. This title was suggested for the 2022 list. It was not nominated for the award. The complete list of winners and shortlisted titles is at <a href="https://rusaupdate.org/2022/01/readers-advisory-announce-2022-reading-list-years-best-in-genre-fiction-for-adult-readers/">

All the cozy mystery series that I have read till date are set in small towns/villages. Mango, Mambo and Murder is set in Miami and celebrates Cuban culture by having a female protagonist of Cuban heritage, a healthy dose of Cuban cuisine and a significant amount of Spanish dialogues. The overall feel was vibrant and colourful introducing me to a whole new culture through food but I had issues with the Spanish dialogues. There was quite a bit of it and without the basic translation within the dialogue for a person like me (who doesn't know the language) to easily follow. The murder mystery wasn't as twisted and mysterious since I managed to guess who the culprit would be long before the last chapter. I have my doubts about Miriam's husband Robert and I do hope she gets a chance to give her snooty and racist mother in law a dressing down in the coming books.

I received the e-Arc of the book by the publisher Crooked Lane Books and the author via NetGalley.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐💫

I tried to like this book but could never get into it. I understand what the author was trying to do with switching back and forth between English and Spanish but not knowing Spanish all it did was make me put the book down and start reading something else. I returned to this book a dozen times and still couldn't finish it. Which is a shame because there are very few Cozy mysteries I can't find some enjoyment from.

I did not post about this on Goodreads which is my normal place for review in hopes that maybe this feedback can save future editions to this series.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ -- #52bookclub2022 -- A bilingual character

First off, can I just place a request with this author that the murder victim in book two be Miriam's MIL? Please, pretty please?! This woman was horrible. 🤬 Aside from the racist MIL, I enjoyed this book quite a lot. It was well written and well paced. The plot kept me guessing. It had a lot of enjoyable and quirky characters. Miriam was a likable lead. I know from reading a few reviews many people had issues with the amount of Spanish in this book. It didn't bother me overly much. 90% of the time I could suss out what the characters were saying. The only issue I had was when she spoke to her son and then there would be 3 or 4 sentences and no follow up to what they were discussing. But again, not a huge issue for ME. Last, the food in this book sounded SO good, and I was extra delighted that the author gave us a few recipes at the end. 🤤

I look forward to reading the next book in this series!

**ARC Via NetGalley**

An enjoyable cozy mystery, this was a well-planned first in series.. Most of the characters were likable and I loved the setting. The main character's new found occupation was interesting and I'd love to see where she goes with it!
The only aspect that was less enjoyable was the frequent Spanish words and phrases that made me feel like I was missing out and not a part of the party. I would have loved some type of footnotes at the bottom of the pages with translations.
I would like to read the next book in this series to see if it gets easier to read.

I really wanted to enjoy this book but the first 25% was so focused on the FMC life and the mystery was secondary. I wanted more focus on the mystery part. The writing was fine as were the characters it just felt like this was not a cozy like I wanted. DNF

My mouth was watering from the amount infused abs described in the cozy mystery. I loved Miriam as she deals with the everyday life of moving from her home in NY to Miami abs the challenges of being a stone throw away from her mother in law. She’s trying to adjust to all of these changes while also dodging microaggressions from her MIL and also trying to clear her old childhood & best friend from murder. I loved the Cuban-American experience that was told through this coz mystery; it felt so down-to-earth writing style which I loved each one one of the characters

Mango, Mambo, and Murder is a fun cozy mystery. The mystery was not all that mysterious, but there were some twists that I had not foreseen. It was the characters, Miriam in particular, that really made the story. As a Cuban-American, Miriam does speak quite a bit of Spanish in the book. I understand enough Spanish that I knew everything that was said. But there are also enough context clues that you really do not need to understand Spanish to read the book. Phrases were not always translated word for word, but the information was given in both English and Spanish. I hope I do not have to wait too long for the next book in the series.

Thank you to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a bit different than other cozies I've read, and I enjoyed that. I loved how Spanish was incorporated into the book seamlessly and the Cuban and Haitian culture that were present. It was a fun mystery with great characters.

This cozy mystery was an introduction to a new profession and an interesting setting. I had no idea there was an academic profession of food anthropologist. Such a person studies how food, culture and history intersect. And that leads to the setting of Miami and the Caribbean culture there.

Miriam is the academic who becomes a presenter on a Spanish language food show. When the second person dies from ingesting something, perhaps from an herbalist, Miriam is on the case. An aspect of this cozy mystery I really appreciated is that the detective investigating the case actually asks for Miriam's help. I like that, rather than having an antagonistic relationship.

The mystery is pretty good for a debut fiction effort. The most interesting aspect of the book is the food, however. We are presented with a variety of traditional Caribbean foods and an exploration of ethnic shopping opportunities. Lots of recipes are included too. The one aspect of the novel I did not like at all was the Spanish. While I understand why characters spoke Spanish, I would have liked to know what was being said. It was a bit frustrating.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

Dr. Miriam Quinones-Smith along with her husband, Robert and son, Manny have moved from New York to Coral Shores, Florida. Her best friend, Alma drags Miriam to the Women’s Club luncheon where Sunny Weatherman collapses and later dies at the hospital. Detective Frank Pullman focuses in on Alma as the guilty party. Miriam knows that her friend is innocent and sets out to prove it to the consternation of Detective Pullman. Mango, Mambo, and Murder by Raquel Reyes is the debut of A Caribbean Kitchen Mystery series. I liked Miriam and her son, Manny as well as Alma. There are a couple of other friendly secondary characters. Miriam has a doctorate in food anthropology, and she is also an excellent cook. Her cooking along with her food knowledge lands her job at UnMundo doing cooking segments. I was frustrated with Miriam’s mother-in-law, Marjory Smith who treats Miriam terribly (likes she is dirt on her otherwise pristine shoes) and Miriam’s husband, Robert. He does not listen to Miriam, does things without consulting her, and believes his mother is just wonderful (talk about wearing blinders). The mystery followed the standard formula. Sunny Weatherman is killed early in the story, but there is little action until the second half of the book. Miriam asks good questions and uncovers clues that help her investigation. Detective Frank Pullman is your standard detective. He asks questions, arrests the wrong person, and appreciates Miriam’s help (the information she uncovers) while telling her to keep her nose out of his investigation. I ended up liking the detective more by the end of the book. I like how he calls Miriam Veronica Mars. The mystery can easily be solved early in the story. As clues were revealed, it reinforced my decision. They why took longer to figure out. I liked how the mystery came together at the end. The biggest problem I had with Mango, Mambo, and Murder was the Spanish dialogue. Miriam is Cuban and I expected there to be some Spanish in the story. There is a significant amount of Spanish dialogue with no translation (I tried to learn Spanish, but I was not successful). There is plenty of cooking in this cozy that will have you hungering for Cuban food. There is humor scattered throughout the story that I enjoyed, and I loved little Manny. Mango, Mambo, and Murder is a cute Cuban cozy with a monster mother-in-law, a mysterious murder, a key conundrum, a television triumph, an unhelpful husband, and shrewd sleuthing.

The story blends food, family, relationships, and murder into a suspenseful and charming start to a new series. These elements are woven throughout Miriam's transition to a new place where she's now with her family and in-laws constantly. Her husband takes a new job that has him working alongside his ex-girlfriend and leads Miriam to wonder if more than a working relationship is brewing. This adds some tension between the married couple and drama within the plot as he starts working too much and she's struggling to find her place when she lands herself in the middle of a murder investigation. She's strong-willed and empowering, working to find balance in her life which makes her a relatable and well-rounded character. She's looking for work, dealing with an overbearing mother-in-law, bonding with her sister-in-law, worried about her marriage, and striving to figure out who she is outside of being a mother.

Reyes excels at drawing out different layers to Miriam with each serving equal importance to her character as a mother, a wife, a friend, a businesswoman, and as an amateur sleuth. She's relatable through her jealousy, her spirit, her struggles to multitask all aspects of her life, and her spitfire nature. The attitude and empowering strength that Reyes has infused within the character make her unforgettable. The familial elements are an important part of her journey as Miriam faces the fear of her marriage ending and deals with an overbearing mother-in-law which adds to the realness of the story. Miriam's bonding with her sister-in-law adds humor to the story and gives her a sidekick dealing with her husband's family. Reyes explores various themes such as marriage, family, finding your place, and changes. As Miriam learns to embrace the new changes in her life, she's learning to balance every element of her life while taking the opportunity to explore herself. The strain on Miriam's marriage creates tension, drama, and humor (loving Miriam's temper and attitude) after they move to a new location and her husband takes a new job. Though it's to be noted that this isn't a story about the crumbling of a relationship but the strength of one as Miriam and her husband come to a stronger place by the end of the mystery.

Charming, funny, and relatable, Reyes delivers a murder mystery that sets up an addicting new series that is hard to put down from the first page.