I like the trend for cozies to be more realistic, whether it's dealing with family matters, cultural issues, or real world crime. A trend in cozies I don't like is how hyper quirky many are. "Mango, Mambo, and Murder" fulfilled the first while avoiding the trap of the second. It was engaging, interesting, and enjoyable. The lead, Miriam, is not a basic white-bread American but Cuban American and proud of it. The story is set in Florida and reflects the mix of cultures. I enjoyed seeing the different languages and cultures and how they played into the story. While I didn't love the book, it was slow at times, Reyes mostly avoided the first book info dumps and TSTL heroine, and I enjoyed the setting and the characters. Also, Reyes' references to old TV mystery shows made me smile. I'll definitely continue with the series.

"I was never the life of the party, that was Alma."
Well, that is a true statement.
I DNF'd this book in chapter 7.
Miriam was just too angry, negative and frankly mean spirited for me to go any further.

4/5 stars!

Cozy mysteries are so much fun! A great combination of brain teaser and feel good moments - Where you laugh out loud. Mango, Mambo and Murder is just the right combo of mystery and fun.

Synopsis:

From the publisher:
Food anthropologist Miriam Quinones-Smith's move from New York to Coral Shores, Miami, is traumatic enough without having to deal with her son's toddler tantrums and her husband's midlife crisis. Her best friend, Alma, adds some spice back into Miriam's life when she offers her a job as an on-air cooking expert on a Spanish-language morning TV show. But when the newly minted star attends a Women's Club luncheon, a socialite sitting at her table suddenly falls face-first into the chicken salad, never to nibble again.

When a second woman dies soon after, suspicions coalesce around a controversial Cuban herbalist, Dr. Fuentes--especially after the morning show's host collapses while interviewing him. But then, Detective Pullman learns that the socialite's death resulted from a drug overdose--and an anonymous tip fingers Alma as the pusher.

Pullman persuades Miriam to ply her culinary know-how and her understanding of Coral Shores's Caribbean culture to help find the killer and clear Alma's name. While her hubby dallies with his ex-girlfriend, Juliet, Miriam quizzes her neighbors for answers and researches all manner of herbs.

As the ingredients to the deadly scheme begin blending together, Miriam is on the verge of learning how and why the women died. But her snooping may turn out to be a recipe for her own murder.

I really loved this cozy mystery and have already purchased the next in the series! I recommend for anyone who enjoyed Dial A for Aunties or Arsenic and Adobo.

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.