Mango, Mambo, and Murder

Mango, Mambo, and Murder (2021) Raquel V. Reyes (A Caribbean Kitchen Mystery)

Miriam Quiñones-Smith has finished her PhD in food anthropology, but instead of becoming an author or education, she has moved back to Miami, where her husband was able to find a better paying job closer to support from his family.

“I’m a food anthropologist.”

“You dig up old food?” Ileana asked.

“No, I … I …” I’d never had it put that way before.

Unfortunately, some of that family is Robert’s not-so-subtly racist mother, who won’t even call her godson by his given name.

The mother-in-law is a piece of work, and you want to punch her in the throat the entire book. Luckily, some people notice how terrible she is.

I’m not happy with the way Aunt Marjory treated you tonight. She should have set a place for you at the table. She has more chairs.

She is truly awful. And I am positive there are plenty of existing humans out there exactly like her.

When she gets a part-time job offer she thinks things might be better until she witnesses a young woman die at a luncheon. And then another woman die at at a seminar. And then her best friend is accused of murder.

Although this is a murder mystery, it is also about Miriam finding her place in the world, both as a mother and daughter, and a woman whose life plans were upended and she has to decide who she wants to become.

Also, there is a TON of cooking, and there are recipes in the back! I do wish we had a greater variety of restaurants in this area, because I now want to try Cuban food.

It was a good story and had a huge variety of characters and I would like to read another like this.

Publisher: Crooked Lane Books
Rating: 8/10

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