Death and Dinuguan

Manansala misses the mark with the final installment of her cozy series featuring Illinois café owner Lila Macapagal (after Guilt and Ginataan). A series of robberies in the Chicago suburb of Shady Pines have targeted the town’s female-owned businesses, making Lila and her colleagues at the Brew-ha Cafe fear it’s only a matter of time until they’re victimized. The stakes increase after the robbers hit candy shop Choco Noir, killing the store’s owner and leaving new employee Hana Lee—the cousin of Lila’s boyfriend, Dr. Jae Park—in a coma. The police mount a cursory investigation, but Lila calls Jae’s older brother, private detective Jonathan Park (who happens to be dating Lila’s aunt, Tita Rosie), to help her unravel the mystery. Manansala’s cast remains charming, and the recipes for dinuguan and Mexican hot chocolate fudge are easy to follow, but the pace is lethally meandering this time, even for a cozy. Die-hard series fans will enjoy their last hurrah with these characters, but this is a step down from the previous books. Agent: Jill Marsal, Marsal Lyon Literary. (Nov.)