User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
I'm not sure what exactly I thought
Dial A for Aunties was going to be. Perhaps a cozy mystery because there's a dead body? But no, it definitely wasn't that.
Instead, it's more like a mishmash of romance, social commentary about Asian culture, satire/comedy, soap opera, and thriller. If you're like "What?" after reading that, then that about sums up my feelings.
The story is crazy right out of the gate, and it just gets more so from there. Each scene, when taken individually, makes sense. But when you put them back-to-back, it doesn't gel into one cohesive story. One moment, Meddy is running around hiding a dead body, then her mom and aunts show up and act overbearing, then she's making out with her ex. And it just keeps going round and round. I seriously got whiplash from it all.
It doesn't help that the treatment of each idea in the book is over-the-top, so it's hard to take any of it seriously. The aunties are caricatures of Asian culture, but in their most exaggerated and grating forms. Even while hiding a dead body, all they care about is filial piety and respecting your elders. One even busts out in tai chi every time she's stressed, right in the middle of whatever scene.
And every character is nothing more than a one-dimensional stereotype taken to the extreme. Meddy is such a dutiful Asian child that she's a complete pushover. She can't even broach the subject of leaving home, even though she's twenty-six. And Nathan is your typical besotted ex-boyfriend, who still pines for Meddy and follows her around like a lovesick puppy everywhere. I tell you, no real person acts like this.
It's not that I didn't enjoy any of of this book. I did. There were a bunch scenes that made me smile or laugh. But if you think about it, they don't really make sense as a whole. At one point, Meddy even comments on how unrealistic everything is. I'm like, Girl, that's the first time you've made sense in this entire book!
If you're going to approach this story, the only way to do it successfully is to suspend all your disbeliefs. Whatever chaos is happening on the pages, you need to just nod and accept. People acting utterly nonsensical? Accept. Impossible/illegal stuff going down? Accept that too. Random lovey-dovey scenes thrown in? Yep, just let it all in. Acceptance is the word of the day while reading this book.
Rating: really liked it
Holy shit this was so good. This is definitely a new favourite. I wasn't sure about it going in just because I didn't quite understand the synopsis but oh my god did it work. It literally took me like 10 minutes of the audiobook and I instantly knew I was in love. The family dynamics are incredible, I loved each of the Aunties and Meddelin's relationship with them. The story is so rich in Indo-Chinese culture. I alternated between the audiobook and physically reading, mostly audio though since I'm packing, and the narrator was perfect for the story! I loved each other love stories in here. I didn't expect second chance romance but I was soooo happy when that was what I got. This book is just steeped in so much love, wrapping in a little hilarious bow. I laughed out loud at multiple moments, and just couldn't stop smiling pretty much the whole time I was reading this. I'm obsessed with this book and definitely am going to pick up more from this author!
Rating: really liked it
i dont even know what genre this story would fall under. its 33% part crime, 33% part romance, 33% part comedy. but one thing is for sure - its 100% entertaining.
the thing that grabbed my attention first was just how perfect nathan is. i fell in love with him immediately. and i think, because of that, i wish the romance had played a larger part and didnt feel as underdeveloped. i would have easily given this 5 stars if this was predominately a romance story with a side of murder, rather than the other way around.
regardless, i had a lot of fun with the sense of humour of the book. its light and witty and easy to relate to. i also enjoyed learning about indo-chinese families and culture. reading about the different parts of the wedding ceremony was interesting and the family dynamics definitely gave me
‘crazy rich asian’ vibes.
so if youre looking for a great time, this is the book for you.
↠ 4 stars
Rating: really liked it
**4.5-stars**Meddy Chan works as the photographer for her family's up-and-coming wedding planning business.
Even though she did study photography, the wedding scene isn't exactly what she envisioned for herself.
After completing college, however, Meddy couldn't seem to extract herself from her loving, though overly-involved, mother and aunties.
Since the men in the family, and all her cousins, have left, Meddy is the sole focus of Ma's and the Aunties' attention.
When her mother fixes her up on a blind date, she agrees good-naturedly to go. How bad can it be?
As it turns out, bad. Really, really bad.
Her date ends up dead. Meddy freaks, as you would, and in her panicked state transports his body back to her house in the trunk of her car.
Fortunately, one of the best things about her Ma and Aunties is, they're always there when Meddy needs them and right now, she REALLY needs them.
From there, hijinks ensue as the body of her dead date ends up being accidentally transported to the island where the over-the-top billionaire's wedding they are working is being held.
Dial A for Aunties drew me in from the very start. Meddy, as a protagonist, is sharp and super relatable.
I loved her relationship with her Ma, as well as that among all the Aunties. There is such a fun family dynamic throughout this entire story.
This is basically
Weekend at Bernie's with a Romantic Comedy twist, so if that sounds interesting to you, pick it up. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
I had an
absolute blast reading this and am so happy books like this exist in the world!
Thank you so much to the publisher, Berkley Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I truly appreciate it!
Rating: really liked it
ngl this was a little all over the place in terms of genre. but the last 25% of this book was SO enjoyable that i'm willing to overlook it. also i mean... it was fun as hell and the aunties were fucking awesome. would recommend for a summer read HOWEVER do not go in expecting a murder mystery because that's not really what this is.
Rating: really liked it
This book is pure Chinese-Indonesian chaos, and I love it.
You don’t even know how excited I was to read this. Jesse Q. Sutanto’s heritage is so similar to my own (although I’m farther removed from my Chinese ancestors by several generations, and the Chinese traditions weren’t as strong in my family). The author’s note before I even started reading just made me feel
seen. And that’s rarely happened with a book before.
This book was Chinese-Indonesian culture mixed with a hectic rom com. Meaning that it was impossible
not to love.
“Meddy, how can you say that? Your aunties coming over, so late at night, coming to help us get rid of body, and we don't even offer them any food? How can? Oh, we have dragon fruit, good, good. Big Aunt's favorite. Wah, got pear too. Very good. Help me peel, don't be so rude to your aunties, you will bring shame.”
“Oh, right, it's the lack of fruit that'll bring shame, not the dead body in the car.”
But less than a minute later, I’m standing at the kitchen island with a peeler in one hand and a Korean pear in the other.”The
plot was wild. The book starts off with Meddelin Chan going on a blind date that her mother (and aunties) have set her up with. And then she ends up killing him. So she calls on her aunties for help. The thing is, her family’s business has a huge job the next morning, providing for a billionaire Indonesian couple’s wedding. Which means that very inconveniently, there is no time for Meddy to hide the body.
Thus begins a wild ride of attempting to find a way to get rid of the body in the middle of the big day, during which several dozen things go wrong. Oh, and then there’s Meddy’s old college romance, which failed spectacularly, but springs up again.
So, chaos.
And I loved every word of it. This was so fast-paced and hilarious, and so unrealistic in the best way possible. I literally devoured this book, and I only stopped reading to comment to my mom about stuff that was happening. And, you know, eat and sleep and stuff.
“I told you to buy Glad brand. Haven’t you seen their ads? Glad bags will hold his cut-up body just fine, no leaks!”
I look at the ceiling. Pretty sure that when Glad was planning their marketing campaign, they didn’t think their target market would be a bunch of middle-aged Chinese women arguing about how to best dispose of a body.”One of my favorite things was the
culture. Guys, this is
my culture. I was so fucking excited to be reading about things that I recognized and places I’d been and meals that I’d eaten. At one point (about seventeen pages in), I put down the book and looked over at my mom squealing “There’s an Indonesian word! There's an Indonesian word!”
And I could pronounce it and translate it and everything! Which technically isn’t an accomplishment, since I’ve grown up speaking a mixture of Indonesian and English, although I can’t read or write Indonesian very well.
The traditions of the wedding and the terms used by Meddy and her aunties were so familiar (except for the one that I asked my mom about and she said it was made up, but then again my family has been separated from some Chinese traditions so it could have been that).
But still. The Asian humor that I just innately understood, the Indonesian sentences that I could read, the fact that Meddy’s Chinese is only slightly better than mine (which isn’t saying a lot)...I was just absolutely giddy reading this book.
Big Aunt's nostrils flare. “I'm just here to buy soy sauce.”
Okay, that definitely can't be right. I lean toward Ma and whisper, “Why's Big Aunt talking about buying soy sauce?”
“Tch,” Ma says. “This is why I always say to you: pay attention in Chinese class! Big Aunt is saying to Second Aunt to mind her own business.”I don’t even know the Mandarin words for soy sauce, so...good job, Meddy.
The
characters were all hilarious.
Meddy - her narrative was so much fun. Her being a first-generation Chinese-Indonesian immigrant was portrayed perfectly (probably because Jesse Q. Sutanto is just like me in that regard). Her sarcasm, wit and complaints were so personally relatable, and I loved her reactions to literally everything. She was so perfect.
Meddy’s Ma and her aunties all got on my nerves the way they were supposed to, but I also loved the sibling chemistry between them. Their distinct personalities and jobs were so in-character and I laughed so hard and rolled my eyes so much at their drama and antics.
“There is a mix of noises from my aunts - Big Aunt is tch-tching and shaking her head, muttering, “This is what happen when parents don't raise the son well,” Fourth Aunt is staring openmouthed with what I can only describe as horrified glee, and Second Aunt is...
“What are you doing, Second Aunt?”
She hardly glances at me as she goes into a deep lunge. “Snake Creeps Through the Grass,” she mutters.
“What?”
“She doing Tai Chi,” Ma says. “Doctor tell her do it for high blood pressure.”
“Uh. Okay.” I suppose we all have our ways of dealing with stress.”Literally the way they interacted felt so familiar to me. My own family is more assimilated to Western culture (for those that live in the West, anyway), but the sibling banter? The drama? The beef between Ma and Fourth Aunt reminded me so much of the way my uncle and aunt (my dad’s older brother and younger sister, respectively) cannot go a single reunion, visit, vacation, etc. without blowing up at each other. The rest of my family has a running bet on how long we can go before they start screaming.
The record is five days, if you wanted to know.
Nathan was a beautiful person and I couldn’t help loving him. I was supposed to, because Meddy loves him, but HOW CAN I NOT? This boy was so kind and sweet and somewhat sassy. I don’t want to date or get married, but if I did it would be with someone like him.
Jacqueline wasn’t a major character, but I liked her as well. Her involvement in the story, especially at the end, was gorgeous, and I wished we’d gotten more of her.
The rest of the characters are either involved in spoilers or too minor to mention, or both, but I’m just going to say that Jesse Q. Sutanto has a real talent for making me hate people. I’m amazed at the amount of asshole-ishness she managed to fit in and how realistic it was. I was dying of laughter and rage at so many of the antics that occurred throughout the book.
“Yes, you right, more respectful.” She pats me on the cheek. “I raise you so well.”
Hysteria rises from deep in my stomach and I have to swallow it. Trust Ma to take pride in my etiquette when I've just shown her my date, whom I've killed, in the trunk of my car.”The whole rom-com theme of this book was
peak Asian humor. I died laughing at so many of the things that were said just because they were so true in the most random, twisted ways. Meddy’s narrative combined with the chaotic hilarity of the situations she ended up in were so fresh and witty.
The mix of random superstitions, Chinese-Indonesian tradition and Asian-American perspective was just so relatable - but even if you happen
not to be a Chinese-Indonesian-American first-generation child, it would still be pretty funny. I’m just personally attached to this book.
“You're not a mess. You just kill by accident only. Bad luck. Can happen to anyone.”The
representation in this book, as I’ve said 120481059284907 times, felt so real to me. Meddy’s perspective said the exact words that I’ve thought over and over again - with a bit less cussing and a little more romantic dreaminess, but still. I could empathize so much with the personal experiences of Meddy (and I guess Jesse Q. Sutanto). It felt amazing to see my parent’s (and technically mine as well) culture being shown in such a vivid light.
“This is what always happens when one of my generation dares to talk back to our parents. They band together and reduce us to kids having a tantrum, dismissing our words so we can’t pierce their armor.”The pure rage I feel when my parents pull the “how can you disrespect us like this when we’ve given you so much” shit is indescribable, but this book described it.The
romance between Meddy and Nathan was so amazing. I like to pretend I’m not a romance person, but I shipped these two so hard. I was just obsessed with their relationship and how they worked together so well. I sighed over their dreamy moments, and the shock I felt at their angsty scenes was surprising.
Reading the ups and downs of their relationship was actually fangirl-worthy. I’m impressed. I didn’t think there would be that much romance in this book (even though it’s touted as a Crazy Rich Asians-esque romcom and mentions romance in the synopsis), but there was and it was beautiful.
“Ever since UCLA, I’ve wondered what happened with us. I’ve always wanted to reach out to you, but I wasn’t sure if you wanted to talk to me—I mean, what happened back then?”Overall, I was fucking obsessed with this book. I flew through it way too quickly. I want to reread it already, and it’s only been a day and a half. I usually don’t consider “new” books my favorite (this one literally came out a few weeks ago) but this is an exception.
And yes, I’m probably more than a little biased. I came into this book fully prepared to adore it just because it mentioned my culture and my parents’ home country. And yet it still blew me away. I had such high expectations, and to say I’m overjoyed would be the understatement of the century.
“Just wait until you see what Meddy do to the body. She was very respectful,” Ma says.
I can't believe she's taking this moment to boast about me being respectful. This is peak Asian parenting.”I don’t know what else I can say, other than READ THIS BOOK! IT’S FUCKING PERFECT! I CAN’T EVEN THINK OF ANY OF THE PROBLEMS I HAD WITH IT! Because there were actually a few things that weren’t absolutely 100%, but I don’t remember any of them because this was SO DAMN GOOD.
And it's going to be made into a fucking NETFLIX MOVIE. Hollywood better not let me down, I'm counting on this to give me Indonesian actors - or at least FUCKING ASIAN ONES. I know whitewashing has been a trend for the past few centuries, but it's very last season. Accuracy is in, people.
AND THERE'S GOING TO BE A SEQUEL AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH
GIVE ME IT NOW.
Ending with a bit of wisdom imparted by Big Aunt:
“Nothing beats Indonesian mangoes.”
Rating: really liked it
Dial A for Aunties (Aunties #1) by Jesse Q. Sutanto (Author), Risa Mei (Narrator)
Okay, I'm here for the Aunties although I can see why all their kids (except Meddelin) scrammed as soon as they could do so. The Aunties are four trilingual sisters of an immigrant Chinese-Indonesian family who now live and work together in California. Twenty six year old Meddelin, being the good, loyal, obedient daughter that she is, became the photographer for her Aunties' business once she graduated from college. The story starts on the eve of a huge island wedding extravaganza, which will be the biggest job the Aunties and Meddelin have ever worked.
But, wait, first Meddelin's mom wants her to go on a blind date. Oops, Meddelin accidently kills her blind date! What a mess, with the Aunties having to help to dispose of the corpse during all the big wedding obligations. No matter, each Auntie has ideas on how to manage each step of "getting rid of the corpse" with all the infighting of sisters who harbor resentments and jealousies. Thankfully TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) and Tai chi save (or not) the moment more than once.
For me, the audiobook was the best way to experience this story because my mind could never have conjured up the narration of the Aunties. I would be willing to follow the Aunties to the ends of the earth just so I could hear them talk about everything under the sun. The accidental murder (horrors, it's worse than you think) and the romcom aspect of the story are overshadowed by the very existence of these Aunties. They made me laugh, they made me blush, and they made me rack my brain as I tried to figure out what they were saying.
The story is so over the top and unrealistic and the romance part of the story had me rolling my eyes. I know, I'm biased. I let those Aunties get away with everything while expecting Meddelin to make better decisions, sorry, can't help it. The Aunties always know what is right except there were will four opinions on every subject.
Published April 27th 2021
Rating: really liked it
i wanted to like this book so badly, especially because it seemed like jesse q. sutanto would be attempting to subvert genre conventions, but i just think i'm ultimately the wrong kind of person for this style of romcom. people i think
would like this book (for no reason other than energy):
• millennial disney adults
• ppl who peaked freshman year of undergrad
• fans of
modern family• anyone who wears a birkenstocks + ankle sock combo to trader joe's
i gave this an extra star because the general concept carried enough momentum to keep me engaged for most of the narrative, even as the novel's execution failed spectacularly. i encountered
far too many logistical inconsistencies and plot holes to list out fully, but i'll try to go through the most pressing issues i had with
dial a for aunties. a lot of it simply amounts to technical skill—or a lack thereof—since i
do feel that the heart was there:
• unfortunately, meddy is my least favorite kind of romantic protagonist. i cannot handle adults whose inner voice reads like tiktok millennials making videos with captions a la, "trying to understand gen z lingo LOL #boomeralert #whatsurharrypotterhouse!" if you use internet acronyms in-text,
especially if your main character is upwards of 25, i will be docking a star from my rating. your prefrontal cortex has already finished developing. you have no excuse. beyond the juvenile inner voice, meddy is extremely wishy-washy and almost never acts with an ounce of intelligence or critical thinking, which made the journey more harrowing than it needed to be.
• i appreciate sutanto's disclaimer about representing trilingual immigrant families in anglophone contexts, but still feel like the aunty characters were written as punchlines. they rarely ever transcend that plot function and it always seems to be specific to their cultural experiences (the way they speak, their adherence to practices like chinese martial arts or medicine, the hierarchical/filial strife they feel with each other). for example, second aunt's entire portrayal boils down to "doing tai chi in ill-timed/awkward contexts." like! what! please flesh these women out! the sisters' filial strife is one of the few aunty-specific plot points that i felt had the potential to enrich the narrative (beyond "haha, tai chi pose funny!"), and i would have loved to have seen that explored outside of throwaway commentary or sisterly side-eyes. even the abandonment curse and all the men the aunties have lost would have been interesting to delve into! but both of these details remain one-dimensional/unexplored from start to finish. the filial strife is never resolved. the curse is waved away (as are most plot points in this novel) during a single ending interaction where meddy's mom is like, well, actually, it's not a curse! it's a blessing! like, okay, can we get some backstory? some cultural history? flashbacks? heart-to-hearts with complex interplay? IS EVERYTHING A JOKE IN THIS NOVEL?
• in that same vein, no one in this book reads as three-dimensional. like, okay, it's a romcom with a lot of mystery/murder elements going on. the plot/backdrop is busy, i get it. but in a romance book, your love interest—AT THE VERY LEAST—should have? flaws? a personality? anything beyond a basic point a (MEET LOVE INTEREST) to point b (KISS LOVE INTEREST) plot formula. nathan
did not have a personality. not in his flashback introduction or his present day reappearance. like. no development or growth. at all. he barely has any interests. i could not name one defining characteristic of his besides "is in love with meddy" and "literally does not know how to communicate."
• the "literally does not know how to communicate" detail is particularly aggravating. i'm so sick of couples breaking things off in books without anything that extends beyond "okay, i'm gonna go" after an offhand lie/miscommunication. like. BRO. YOU'RE TELLING ME THE GUY WHO'S MADLY IN LOVE WITH MEDDY IS NOT GOING TO PROBE ANY DEEPER WHEN SHE TELLS HIM OUT OF THE BLUE THAT SHE WANTS TO SEE OTHER PEOPLE? WHEN THEIR RELATIONSHIP HAS BEEN NOTHING BUT SUNSHINE AND ROSES UP TO THIS POINT? LITERALLY NOT EVEN GONNA ASK, "WHEN DID THIS FEELING START?" PERHAPS A, "IS THERE SOMEONE SPECIFICALLY YOU'RE INTERESTED IN?" EVEN A "WHY? HAVE I DONE SOMETHING WRONG? LET'S TALK ABOUT THIS OVER COFFEE BEFORE WE MAKE ANY RASH DECISIONS" WOULD DO! AHHH! HETEROSEXUAL PEOPLE!!!!!!
• moreover, how the fuck do you end one of nathan and meddy's first (present day) interactions with her explicitly saying she's not seeing anyone, only for nathan to go, "YOU HAVE A BOYFRIEND?" like two interactions later. and then just make this face about it 🥺 without asking any follow-up questions? like??? any regular human being would go, "oh, but literally an hour or two ago, you said you weren't seeing anyone? so was that a lie? can you be a little more transparent with me since we've been kissing and reaffirming our attraction to each other?" not just stand there like 😢👉👈 ouchie and walk away. if by this point i'm supposed to believe nathan knew the feet he saw belonged to a dead person, i would have liked to see some descriptive hints, like him raising his eyebrows or squinting at meddy, rocking back on his heels, putting his hands in his pockets with a contemplative look, something to imply skepticism or uncertainty,
ANYTHING TO CREATE A SENSE OF SUSPENSE?
• you can see why i had trouble with the writing in this book. there are no breadcrumb trails to be followed. it's like, i just entered the tree line, BAM, i run smack dab into a carnivorous wolf. except the carnivorous wolf probably wears crop tops that say UWU and says stuff like, "i can't point a gun at another person," after literally pointing a gun at another person.
• one of the most frustrating aspects of this reading experience is just how slipshod + haphazard the conflict resolution is. every. single. time. sutanto expends all of her effort setting up absolute chaos—at the cost of realism—but doesn't seem able to grasp the concept of slowburn or even emotional impact. one of the best examples of this is present day meddy
finally confessing to nathan that she's killed a man, only for him to be like "call me temperance 'bones' brennan cuz babe i already know 🤣" this entire confession/reveal scene takes place over two pages. two. this was one of the few unresolved plot points that had propelled me through the book, and you're telling me, NATHAN KNEW ALL ALONG AND NEVER GAVE US ANY IN-TEXT CLUES TO INDICATE IT? WHY THE FUCK WAS THIS MAN CRYING OVER MEDDY HAVING A BOYFRIEND IF HE KNEW THE BITCH IN HER BED WAS A CORPSE? I READ 300 PAGES FOR AN ANTICLIMACTIC NON-REACTION?!! "...It doesn't exactly take a rocket scientist to put two and two together." DAMN, THEN ARE YOU TELLING ME THE ISLAND YOU'RE BOTH ON IS POPULATED BY NOTHING BUT DUMB BITCHES? BECAUSE YOU'RE THE ONLY MOTHERFUCKER WITHIN FIVE MILES WHO GUESSED HER ENTIRE HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER PLOT BASED ON NOTHING MORE THAN A LITERAL COOLER? BY THIS LOGIC, YOU'D THINK SHE'D HAVE A HARDER TIME DUPING A WEDDING GUEST LIST OF LIKE 2,000? BUT NO? EVERYTHING IS MIRACULOUSLY SOLVED WITH 35 PAGES TO SPARE?
• meddy doesn't even have the excuse of annalise keating's charisma or bisexuality she's just like FFS I AM A LAWYER. AND A HUFFLEPUFF 😂 and the sheriff is like fair enough have a seat ma'am
• nothing in this damn book makes sense :/
• i know this opinion isn't shared by most, but the minute maureen was introduced i sniffed the air and went...oh no we got a covert lesbian in our midsts, except i was hoping i would be wrong because i hate the maniacal wlw trope when it's poorly executed and this instance was no exception! why the hell did you write one of your only lesbians like that! 😄 none of her characterization made a lick of sense! she had no character development! there was literally no lead-up to her and her f/f relationship! came out of fucking left field!
• none of these people act like adults with prefrontal cortexes. like. in what world is this a logical conclusion to come to: in order to get my bestie to love me, i will hatch a burglary plot, then rescind it like halfway through so she knows i'm sexy. THIS BOOK MUST THINK I'M STUPID!!!!!!!!!! AND I AM!!!!!!!! BUT I STILL HAVE STANDARDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!
• AND THEN THE F/F COUPLE GETS TOGETHER WITHIN LIKE TWO MINUTES—RIGHT AFTER A RUSHED REVEAL! EVERY! SINGLE! TIME!
• this book is about as subtle as jared leto's "joker" depiction. which is to say. not at all.
• if you've read my reviews before, you know that i
hate far-fetched plot events in non-fantastical fiction, particularly when they're blundering or heavy-handed. so. i think you can guess how i felt about the forensic science + true crime writing in this.
• it made me want to launch my book at a wall.
• i just feel. that before undertaking subject matter as complex as modern murder, novelists need to do a little bit of research and outlining. ask your editors/creative consultants to mine your outline for plot holes before you throw yourself into the writing process. just. at least try to convince me you've made it past the
law and order theme song once or twice. i. i can't. i can't accept the way meddy waltzed her way into the criminal justice system after claiming not to give a fuck (or know anything...) about it and then skipped right out within a chapter or two because no one except her boyfriend suspected she'd had a hand in the murder or cared enough to pursue the crime any further.
• and then we're immediately thrown into an unearned epilogue with a marriage proposal, after meddy went on and on about hating weddings—especially the fact that they're a consumerist farce. god, i would have much preferred her aunties brought up marriage proposals, only for meddy to take nathan's hand and say something to the effect of, "we don't need a wedding to be in love." boom. you made your point and solidified her (admittedly flimsy) character development. but no. we can't have nice things!
• NOT EVEN A MOM/MEDDY CONFLICT RESOLUTION WHERE THEY SPILL THEIR GUTS TO EACH OTHER WITHOUT ANGER TO BLIND THEM.
• AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
so, evidently, i cannot cope with nonrealistic contemporary writing. 😫 2/10 for me yall
Rating: really liked it
Oh my goodness! I wish to be next of kin of those sarcastic, witty, ultra protective, quirky, one of a kind aunts! I haven’t laughed so hard for months!
This book should be prescribed as mood-healer and sold at drug stores, recommended to all those grumpy people who forgot the meaning of true fun!
Which aunt is your favorite? I went back and forth with authoritarian, queenly, wise, cool big aunt and ultra entertaining, blunt, bold fourth aunt!
The story’s genre is laugh out loud comedy meets cozy mystery with romantic vibes. The synopsis reminds us of Crazy Rich Asians meets Weekend At Bernie’s and Kevin Hart’s Wedding Ringer!
Think about a top Chinese socialite wedding with two thousand guests takes place at an exquisite island resort on the Californian coastline.
Meddelin Chan is part of family wedding organization company. Her big aunt makes the cake, second aunt focus on bride’s makeup when she has spare time to perform ta chi positions, her fourth aunt is professional entertainer and her ma designs best wedding bouquets as Meddelin works as wedding photographer who doesn’t like her job but is too afraid of admitting it to her family.
Meddelin is adamant to do whatever it takes to turn this night into success for her family’s own good!
But there are some obstacles which may prevent the night goes flawless like the fact she accidentally killed her blind date 10 hours ago and the corpse has been accidentally removed from her big aunt’s fridge, brought into resort’s kitchen freezer.
Now she has to get rid of the body before the eyes of entire wedding guests but the hotel’s charming manager is her ex: Nathan: her 3 years long boyfriend she couldn’t forget for years, watches her every move and appears out of nowhere when she secretly tries to carry the body in a freezer.
In the meantime there is also a thief trying to rob the bride’s gifts. And an army of drunk groomsmen who already started at 9 a.m in the morning! Let’s not forget never ending fights between big aunt and second aunt and snarky banters between her mother and forth aunt!
Meddelin should get rid of the corpse without getting caught,coming clean about her feelings to Nathan and admitting everything to her aunts and getting through the wedding night without any problem! Well, good luck with that Med! You’re gonna truly need it!
I loved sincere, obedient, good hearted Med who is truly loyal to her family. Nathan was the perfect book boyfriend from the beginning till the end. He was true definition of sweet pie!
Their chemistry was so intense! They were perfect for each other!
But the aunts stole the entire show! I loved them soooo much!
This was %100 big laughs guaranteed, extremely hilarious book I highly recommend!
I’m so happy there is a sequel on its way because I can’t get enough of those witty, unique, adorable aunts with dark sense humor! I need their more adventures and I’m looking forward to read about Meddelin’s wedding!
Rating: really liked it
This is the perfect summer read! This book was a lovely surprise! It’s a little more romance than I was expecting, but I had so much fun with this story from beginning to end. I listened to the audiobook, which was fantastic! I love thus main characters, I love her Asian family and their culture. I love the complicated situation this main character finds herself in! This book reminded me a lot of Finlay Donovan is Killing It and Arsenic & Adobo! It has the same fun, cozy murder mystery vibes!
Rating: really liked it
Jesse Sutanto's comedy thriller is an absolute hoot, but you are going to have to suspend your sense of disbelief to fully appreciate and enjoy this offbeat fun fest. It celebrates the Chinese and Indonesian heritage, traditions, rituals and culture of 26 year old Meddelin 'Meddy' Chan, caught between being the good girl and daughter to her Ma, and her 4 Aunties, with their competitive rivalries and grudges, who have brought her up and poured their unconditional love and support into her, and being true to herself and embracing her needs and desires. English is her language, although she does try the mother tongues, she only ends up irritating her aunties with her poor grasp of them. Meddy is afraid of the family curse, one where all the men died, but which has mutated into all the men and boys leaving. This informed her choice of university, settling for the local UCLA so that she can remain with her ma, not wanting to let her family down, resulting in her role in the family wedding business as a photographer.
In a narrative that shifts from the past and present, we learn of her best friend Selena, but more importantly her 3 year relationship with Nathan at UCLA, the love of her life, and how she comes to break up with him, keeping the family completely in the dark about him, choosing her family above moving to New York with him. If romance is your thing, then I should mention that this is a minor thread in the novel. Worried about the lack of romance in Meddy's life, her naive ma poses as Meddy on a dating app, setting her up with a date with hotelier Jake. However, when Jake refuses to hear the word no, she ends up accidentally killing him. There is nothing ma and her aunties will not do for Meddy, including trying to get rid of the body, the only trouble is that they have the biggest wedding to organise on an island off the Californian coast.
Follow the mayhem, crazy and chaos that ensues at the wedding, and with Nathan unexpectedly revealed as the hotel owner, Meddy's desperate efforts to get back together with her soulmate. She finds herself being pushed into taking control of her own life as events conspire against her. There is the issue of the true identity of the dead body, there is a deranged maid of honour threatening to derail Meddy's life, all the trials, tribulations and rituals of the wedding, with the wealthy entitled groom, Tom Cruise Sutapo, turning out to be a callous, mean and manipulative man. This is a fabulously entertaining and engaging read that tips into the territory of farce and the ridiculous which will make you laugh. I loved the aunties, their banter, and perhaps that family curse is a blessing in disguise! Many thanks to HQ for an ARC.
Rating: really liked it
I loved this book SO much. I have truly never read anything like this book. It has murder, romance, and was super funny. The family dynamics are also incredible. And we got to learn so much about Indo-Chinese culture which I loved. Overall such a fun book where I truly never knew what was going to happen next.
Rating: really liked it
AllegianceJesse Sutanto has delivered a debut success with the most outlandish comedy adventure I’ve read this year,
Dial A for Aunties. If you are prepared to suspend believability, this entertaining ‘Mad Mad Mad Mad World’ romp is delightful, with lots of comedic situations and witty dialogue, balanced with quite a few moments of mystery and suspense. One thing is for sure, the pace of the story makes it very difficult to put down.
Meddelin ‘Meddy’ Chan is the main protagonist, and she shares her life with her mother ‘Ma’ and her three aunts: ‘Big Aunt’, ‘Second Aunt’ and ‘Fourth Aunt’. In this Indonesian Chinese family, the extensive female and cultural demands are brandished at Meddy as a sense of duty. Not to mention, a curse on the family that all the men leave, either through premature death or abandonment, her concern of finding a male partner and following her own dreams seem unlikely. While at university years earlier, Meddy met Nathan, and they fell madly in love, a connection that felt right until, upon graduation, Nathan found a job on the opposite coast of the US in New York. At the time, the only conceivable course of action for Meddy was to end the relationship and remain with her family. A family she wouldn’t abandon and a man she loved too much to suffer the curse.
The array of female characters is fascinating, each with authority dictated by age seniority. However, a daily battle of arguments, criticism and grievances exists while remaining loyal and unwavering in their support for each other. All the women have skills that flourish in their family business of providing wedding services such as hair & makeup, cake design and baking, entertainment, flower arrangements, and photography. Meddy is the wedding photographer, and it’s not the job she imagined spending her life doing, but the rut has set in, and she hasn’t even dated properly since Nathan. On a blind date arranged and manipulated by Ma, Meddy kills her date with a taser. In a panic, she bundles the body into her car and brings it home. The Aunties and Ma step up to help but considering they have a wedding to deliver, they take the body to the wedding on an exotic island, hoping to dispose of it while there. Yeah, that bit is totally believable - but the fun is in getting there. The next twist, which was also totally believable, ahem, was who should Meddy meet at the wedding but Nathan, the new owner and manager of this exquisite hotel.
Sutanto does a remarkable job weaving competitive family rivalries and superstition to derail various plans and create hilarious moments. The shifts in language between Mandarin, Cantonese, Indonesian, English, and even the use of emojis, provide the perfect opportunity for comic dialogue, with misinterpretations, insensitivity, and regular point-scoring. Elements of slapstick comedy are vividly drawn with laugh out loud scenes and antics.
If I were to be overly critical in my review of the novel, I would have issues concerning the believability, plot holes and the convenience of tying up the ending. However, if you can overlook those drawbacks, as I did for the most part, then you are rewarded with an adventure full of drama, some romance, mystery, a wonderful insight into family and cultural dynamics, comedy, and a journey of establishing one's own place in life. This is a light-hearted read (minus the murder) that makes you feel good, and I’m up for that.
I read this book as a buddy read with my dear friend Sarah, and I have her to thank for winning us this book in a competition (it seems to be the only way I ever win competitions – when I don’t enter them). As always, Sarah is brilliant in discussing the book as we go, and it adds such a valuable bonus to the enjoyment, her review is fantastic. I would recommend this book, and I would like to thank HQ Books for providing me with a copy as a competition winner.
Rating: really liked it
This was such a blast omg. DEFINITELY recommend listening to this one via audio!
Rating: really liked it
This is a light hearted funny Mystery/Romance, and This is the first book in the Aunties series. I have to say there is so much in this book that is unbelievable, but it is so funny that I just loved it so much. The characters in this book is laugh your a** off funny, and I love the Aunties. If you are looking for a book that is going to make you laugh then you have to pick this book up. The mystery does not really happen until later in the book, and the romance is not a big part of this book. Most of this book is just about her and her Aunties trying to put out fires they have made, and they get into some really funny events.
