It has been a few years since I first read Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel. To be honest, I don’t remember much. I know I liked the final chapter, which brought the story to a close in a heartfelt way. Apart from that, I thought it was maybe average. That was until I reread it.

My mood reading is often influenced by other media I consume throughout the day. Coincidentally, on Max, they released a new adaptation of this story. And I loved it! I liked it so much that I had to pick the book back up again to refresh my memory. You see, this first season is only half of the story. Only next year (probably) will I see the ending of Tita’s life story. That’s too much time to wait for. So I went back to the shelves.

To my surprise, I really enjoyed this book. Like Water for Chocolate is not a romance novel. Yes, there is a romance at the centre of the story, but it’s not all of the story. Tita is the sole protagonist of the book. This is the story of her life told through the eyes of her great-niece as an omnipresent narrator.

Tita loves to cook. Food for her is special. It can evoke emotion and create memories. And the foods and recipes present in each chapter of the book are just that. Recipes tied to memories. To moments of her life, from sad to joyful. And the magical realism present in this story only adds to this importance. One of the most memorable scenes happens in the early chapters when Tita’s sad tears fall into the food, and later, everyone who eats it becomes nostalgic and melancholic. She pours herself, literally, into her food. And the magical realism allows this usually metaphorical feeling to become a reality.

But Tita’s passion goes beyond food and lands on Pedro. Lovers as teens, hoping to marry someday. That’s until Mamã Elena breaks the news that in true family tradition, the youngest daughter, Tita, needs to never marry and stay at home caring for her mother as she grows old. Tita’s not thrilled about the prospect of her future, and Pedro, in a desperate and stupid act, decides to marry Rosaura, Tita’s sister. Now that marrying Tita is out of the question, this is his only option to stay close to her. Yes, that man thought it was a brilliant idea. Most would vouch never marrying, but oh well… No one ever said he was the smartest of the bunch.

And this is the romance that will move this story along. Pedro and Tita. The forbidden love. The beginning of Tita’s life of suffering. That woman can’t catch a break. But it’s not all about their repressed love. In the middle of it all, life moves on, and as it does, more things start to happen, and Tita grows sadder and sadder. Sadness that doesn’t come from her love story not being fulfilled, but instead from all the misfortune that falls upon her. The people who truly love her begin to disappear, and she becomes more alone, surrounded only by people who despise her. Rosaura, out of jealousy and her mother because… I still don’t know why her mother hated her so much.

While Gertrudis, the middle sister, ran away to fight in the revolution and eventually became a general, Tita was also a fighter. It was just on a smaller scale, in her own way. She was a free spirit. Who longed to be free, to love who she wanted. She spent her life doing what was asked of her, and it brought her a lot of suffering. She describes her love for Pedro as “angst and suffering” because that’s the only thing she knows about loving him. She wasn’t allowed more. When Mamã Elena died, Tita cried at her funeral not for losing her mother but for the woman who never got to live her love story. And Tita spends her life trying to avoid the same fate. To have a great love and to live it.

It can be a bit questionable, Tita’s choice of a great love. Pedro is a shell of a character. He’s not the only one, but as part of this great love story, it’s quite evident how much we don’t know about him. He is inconvenient. Tita has a lot to lose and is usually the one suffering from the consequences of both of their actions. His idea of marrying Rosaura is far-fetched and stupid. Even Tita agrees. It’s a strange way to show his love for her. He doesn’t care about anything or anyone other than himself and what he wants. He doesn’t care if he’ll hurt Rosaura to stay close to Tita. He doesn’t care if he’s hurting Tita because, in his little mind, it makes sense to do something a certain way. And he’s also a coward. But Tita still loves him. Even after a long time apart, she describes hugging him as making her body “tremble like gelatin”.

Over many years, many misfortunes, much suffering, and family drama, Tita still loves Pedro. And while I say the book isn’t a romance story despite such big emphases on their forbidden relationship, as a whole, the book feels like a love letter to Tita. She’s the character better developed. Everyone else gets their personality based on the role they play in Tita’s life. A lot isn’t shown, which I think keeps the reader from forming a connection with any other character apart from Tita. She’s the one we follow more closely. And I wish the book was longer to explore deeply the whole cast of characters and also more parts of Tita’s life since there are some time jumps. Although for a story like this to be expanded in that sense, then we would end up with something like My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante, a four-book series.

Side note: In 2016 and 2017, two more books were added to the De la Garza Saga, making this officially a book series. The first one is Tita’s Diary, which I’m guessing expands and gives a better insight into Tita’s feelings and perspective. The second one is The Colors of My Past, which jumps to the future and explores questions of race since that’s something present but not explored in Like Water for Chocolate.

Inevitably, and why I wanted to do this review, we have to talk about the adaptation. I already said I loved it even before rereading the book. But now, I think it’s even better. We see so much more. We see Tita and Pedro falling in love. We see Pedro’s point of view. And while marrying Rosaura is still stupid, having the character discuss it better highlights why he’s doing it. Adding his family story to the mix creates more problems and another reason why marrying Rosaura might be his only chance to be close to Tita.

Despite the changes, it’s still an incredibly faithful adaptation of the novel. The way it uses food like the book and how it presents the story of the characters is captivating, dramatic, and elevates the story. It turns Pedro and Tita’s story into a star-crossed lovers forbidden romance. And I can’t even imagine what else is yet to come in the second and final season. In a way, the series expands the story the way I wanted. I never thought I would read this story again and would enjoy it even more. Despite if you already read the book or not, the series is a must-watch.