Guilt and Ginataan is the fifth book in the Tita Rosie’s cozy mystery series by Mia P. Manansala (3.5/5 stars)

Guilt and Ginataan is the fifth book in the Tita Rosie’s cozy mystery series by Mia P. Manansala.

I borrowed the audiobook from my local library and I had a fun time listening to the narrator. She has great comedic timing and I like the way she voices different characters.

In this installment, Lila’s best friend and fellow co-owner of the Brew-ha Cafe–Adeena–is accused of a murder in the middle of a corn maze. This would be a great book to read in fall, and I’m glad that I read it in the latter part of August.

I absolutely adore all of the various descriptions of food throughout, and appreciate the recipes at the back of the book. There’s a little more movement on the romance sublot for our main character (and her aunt, respectively), which was lovely to see.

While I did figure out the whodunit pretty quickly, I still had fun with the book overall. And the cover designer is still knocking it out of the park.

Rep: Filipino FMC, queer side characters

CW: physical violence, anti-fat comments, possible stalking, political corruption, mentions of past sexual harassment

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The Tita Rosie’s Kitchen Mystery Series includes:

• Arsenic and Adobo
• Homicide and Halo-Halo
• Blackmail and Bibingka
• Murder and Mamon
• Guilt and Ginataan
• Death and Dinuguan (expected 2025)