A fun, slapstick romantic comedy. When a first date goes terribly wrong for Meddy, she panics and suddenly needs to hide a body. She calls in her meddlesome Aunts, who only make matters worse with their cover up. I had trouble suspending disbelief with this one, but was willing to try. The detail that took me completely out of the book was the <spoiler>realization that her date had been alive when he was stuffed in the cooler. It turned her from a witness to an accidental death to a murderer, and I just couldn't keep rooting for her happy ending.</spoiler> Definitely a book that will appeal to those in search of humor and heart, so long as they aren't too set on realism.

I LOVED this book! It was so funny and such a fast read.. I went in thinking it was YA and then quickly realized it wasn't. Honestly, this book was just so cute and lighthearted. I think it's going to be the beach read of the summer. After reading this ARC, I went out and got a copy for my mom for mother's day. I think this is such a cute mother/ daughter read as it is short and easy to follow.

This is a book that I will read again and again. It was uproarious with laughs and surprises. Author, Sutanto just has an amazing skill of writing the characters in such a way, you really want to befriend them or you feel as if you already know them. This book is fast paced and either has you amused or in suspense, so you never end up putting the book down. It will be finished by most in one sitting, it’s that good.
*****
Meddelin Chan comes from such a loving and spirited Chinese-Indonesian family & is raised by her mother. Saying “her mother” actually means also her mother’s 3 sisters whom are Meddelin’s Aunties. They are closely tied by a bond that cannot be broken and they are very protective of each other. They are oh so hilarious at butchering common English one liners and comebacks, you’ll need to catch your breath. The family is especially protective of Meddelin because she is the only girl in the family out of their children and she has remained loyal by coming back after college to work for the family business. They know Meddlin won’t leave them like the men of their family curse.

Yes, Meddelin’s mother and Aunties believe there is a curse on their family, all men either die or leave and the ways things have played out; you begin to wonder if it’s true after her mother sets her up on a blind date and she accidentally ends up killing him. Now the family must come together to save Meddelin’s future and her chance at true love.

Okay I was very intrigued by the tag line "what happens when you mix 1 accidental murder with 2 thousand wedding guests and then toss in a possible curse on 3 generations of immigrant Chinese-Indo family? You get 4 meddling Asian aunties coming to the rescue"
We have a main character Meddy and she feels stuck in her family business with her three aunties and her mom. She has lived in a home with big personalities and felt as if she could not bring her college self to her life with her family. She managed to be filial but is regretting that decision has she has to break up with her partner for ~reasons~
Her meddling mother managed to catfish a guy on a dating site and ropes Meddy into a date which leads to the plot rolling
The book felt like a telenovela with the layers upon layers of the plot thickening and the plot unveiling itself. I think this lighthearted and hilarious book is perfect summer read and a perfect laugh if you're looking to solve a murder
I love how Meddy was able to step into herself and accept the love she knows she deserves

3.5 rounded up, I enjoyed this book it definitely made me laugh with all the Aunties crazy antics. But I just felt like there was almost to much going on and it made the book feel a bit disjointed. I enjoyed the characters, I liked the love connection between the main characters and I did enjoy the plot even if it was outlandish but, I need a little less side stories. I’ll definitely pick up more by this author!

This book was too funny! I completely related to the main character Meddy with the cultural aspect of putting your families needs before your own desires first. It is so refreshing to be able to read books where you relate to the characters! The Aunties are hilarious in this book. This is a great cozy mystery mixed in with a little romance. I’m not even sure what the book would technically be classified under.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this digital ARC!

Happy Pub Week to Jesse Q. Santano and her hilarious, heartwarming book baby, Dial A for Aunties!

Friends, this book was the breath of fresh air I didn't know I needed this week. I can't tell you how many times I laughed out loud, and as I tried to explain the synopsis to my husband, I laughed even harder because, I kid you not, this is how that conversation went:

Me: I am loving the book I'm reading right now. It's so good! The main character accidentally kills her blind date and -

Husband: Wait, wait wait; the main character kills someone, and you think it's funny?!? Is there something I should know about you? Did I marry a serial killer?

Me: Well, the way it's written is funny! The dialogue is so great!

Husband: Oh yeah, hilarious. I'm sure Jeffrey Dahmer thought murder was funny too!

Me: You're just going to have to read it!

Meddy Chan never expected to accidentally kill her blind date, but when she does, she turns to the women she knows will always have her back - Ma, Big Auntie, Second Auntie, and Fourth Auntie - to help her figure out what to do next.

But with the biggest wedding of the year on the line the next morning, she knows she can't leave the big day (or getting rid of the body) up to chance; as her family's wedding-planning business motto proclaims, she has to "leave it to the Chans!"

Please, please please stop what you're doing immediately, take the afternoon off from work, and READ THIS BOOK. It is laugh-out-loud funny, heartwarming, and ridiculous in the best possible way. It's got it all - amazing characters, hilarious dialogue, a long-lost love, some mystery, and oh yeah, a dead body!

I don't want to give too much away, but just know if you're needing a light read that is guaranteed to make you laugh, this one is for you! It definitely gave me Crazy Rich Asians, Weekend at Bernie's, and My Big Fat Greek Wedding vibes, and it reminded me of my own crew of amazing aunts (swipe over to see them!)

All the stars for this absolute gem of a book!

Thank you, thank you, thank you to @Berittalksbooks @jesseqsantono @berkleypub and @letstalksbookspromo for my gifted eARC and opportunity to read this incredible book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review!

I know this is going to be a popular one. It was fun. On the plus side, I enjoyed getting to read a something from an author with a different heritage. The author's insight into Asian weddings and families was my favorite part of this book. But the book had some parts that I did not enjoy quite as much.

All told, I liked, but did not love this book. I thought the plot was kind of ridiculous at times. Also, the circumstances of the (accidental) murder were on the crazy side, and kind of ... I don't know. I felt the comedy was a little over the top and maybe even inappropriate? I can get behind dark humor, but when your comic antics end up causing a death, I have trouble seeing that as very funny. I enjoyed the Aunties--especially how the author made them each have her own distinct voice. However, another reviewer mentioned a concern that the Aunties were on the edge of being cultural caricatures, and I think she could have a point. It raises a difficult issue when one writes about characters and events that are specific to a particular culture: I know the author wanted to highlight tendencies in order to entertain, but how far is too far? And is it OK to go too far because it's her culture and heritage that she's writing about? But maybe I'm overthinking it all and taking the fun out of it

All this aside, it was a fun quick read and I fully expect it to fly off the shelves at my library.

When I picked up Jesse Q. Sutanto’s Dial A for Aunties, I had no idea what to expect. My initial thought was that this was hilariously funny. However, the word hilarious doesn’t do this story justice.

Meddy Chan is 26-years-old. She lives with her mother and works as a photographer for the family wedding business which is owned by her mother and three aunts. Meddy doesn’t date. This of course, doesn’t go over well with her mother and aunties. Meddy’s mother decides to set up an online dating profile for Meddy and doesn’t tell her until the day of the date she’s set up while pretending to be Meddy. Meddy has no choice but to go on the date. From the start, the date is bad. But it gets worse when the guy gets handsy and Meddy defends herself. Now she finds herself with his body in the trunk of her car and no idea what to do. Good thing her aunties are only a phone call away and live nearby.

With the help of her mother and aunties, they hide the body in a freezer at Big Aunt’s bakery, thinking they can bury it in the California desert, after the big weekend wedding which will put their company on the map. Of course, things don’t go according to plan. The body ends up on the private island where the wedding is taking place. After several attempts to get the body off the island, the body ends up seemingly everywhere. The story definitely gives off a Weekend at Bernie’s vibe, with Crazy Rich Asians added to the mix.

Dial A for Aunties is a feel-good, make you laugh when you're feeling down book. It's like Jesse thought of the craziest, most outlandish things and put them in the story. There’s a little romance, some mistaken identity, and a little theft. This story is simply over the top. I've read somewhere the book has been optioned for a movie. I laughed so hard my stomach was hurting just reading the words. Seeing the words in action is going to be just too much. I can’t wait to see it.

Meddy is the good girl in her family. Amongst her cousins - she's the only one to go into business with her mom and her meddling aunts. She's the photographer for her family's wedding business and they've been pretty successful so far!

One part of working with her family that Meddy isn't too fond about is how they love to get into her business about everything. Including her love life (or lack of one). When a blind date (hilariously set up by Meddy's mom & her sisters) goes horribly wrong - and Meddy ends up killing him (whoops) she's going to need as much help as she can get from her family. With a looming wedding the next day that they have to prepare for and an ex that Meddy can't stop thinking about showing up at the same time - Meddy is way in over her head. Will she find a way to clear herself of the mess she's in?

I'll be honest, I wasn't quite sure what kind of book Dial A for Aunties was going to be. Was it a thriller? A murder mystery? A romance? I guess the best way to describe Dial A for Aunties is that it was a mix of all of these and throw in some humor that had me laughing out loud on multiple occasions. Think Weekend at Bernies + friends-to-lovers second chance romance. And while the plot line was a bit out there - I found myself enjoying it so much. Especially the scenes where Meddy talks about her heritage and culture. I identified with so much of the Indo-Chinese culture that Meddy discusses in the book and that made me really connect with her character and the storyline.

I am so excited that Dial A for Aunties is going to be made into a Netflix movie! I kept on stopping to share funny passages with my husband and I can't wait to watch the movie. Definitely add this book to your TBR if you're looking for an own-voices book to make you laugh with just the right amount of romance sprinkled throughout!

I absolutely loved this coming-of-age story!

From the quirky hilarious family and banter between the Aunties to the fast-paced page turner plot that’s guaranteed to bring the laughs and the suspense. I loved reading about the delicious food and rich culture woven through the story too. I was addicted from the very first page and can’t wait to read more by this author!

*many thanks to Berkley for the gifted copy for review. All opinions are my own

Dial A for Aunties was a modern rom/com and a murder by mistake romp of a good time. There was a lot of joy in this story that came from the auntie’s antics. (Say that a few times!) For me they were the highlight of the book. There were four aunts and everything from their looks, birth order, profession and offspring affected their relationships with one another. Honestly, I’ve been bingeing Kim’s Convenience on Netflix, so the book came to life with their accents and misinterpretations of many English sayings and euphemisms.

Let’s face it, the truth is often stranger than fiction, so I suppose this murder by mistake could have happened, but it all seemed far-fetched to me. It had the I Love Lucy type of humor; characters getting into hopelessly ridiculous situations and somehow, they always came out unscathed.

This is the perfect book for the beach or when you just need a light and funny read. I loved reading about Indonesian characters and even more so when it’s penned by a Jarkartan author as well. Definitely look out for it on Netflix…can’t wait!

Me: hysterical laughter for three pages straight.
Husband: it cannot possibly be that funny.

But you guys, it is. It’s absolutely laugh out loud fun.

If you take Crazy Rich Asians, subtract the name brand dropping, add a corpse and three Indo-Chinese aunties, and it makes for the BEST possible vacation read.
I loved it.
That’s all.

This book is super fun!

Situational comedy is tough to write in books, but the author does a pretty good job. Dial A for Aunties is about Meddy, who is surrounded by her strong Chinese-Indonesian family consisting of her mom and aunties. A blind date goes wrong and Meddy accidentally ends up killing her date the night before the family is working on a billionaire wedding on an island. Hilarity ensues when the body gets shipped onto the wedding venue and Meddy and her mom and aunties have to find a way to get rid of the body.

Of course, you can guess from the plot that it seems a little too far-fetched. You do have to suspend disbelief while reading this book. But once you do that, you'll definitely enjoy reading the book. From Meddy's mom and aunties who are hilarious and have different priorities to their ongoing feud to one up each other in the middle of getting rid of the body, there is one situation after the other to makes you continue reading it. Like the rest of the book, how everything gets solved by the end is also far-fetched but hey, sometimes that is a good thing.

Read this one if you want to read a hilarious situational comedy and don't mind outrageous plots.

This book was hilarious. It had me laughing out loud the whole time I was reading. Yes, it could get a little silly at times but it was supposed to be. I loved Meddy's aunts. They were so funny and I love the light-hearted tone of the book. It was very enjoyable.

This is not my usual fair, but it has been getting so much buzz I had to check it out. Light-hearted and fun mystery about an overbearing but loving and close family.

This was a funny read but you really have to step out of reality to enjoy it. The theatrics were a bit much for me.
I did enjoy the premise and the way the author incorporated a little suspense, with theatrics, and love. I enjoy the theme of strong women, and the relationships between them. I think this would make a great movie.

Really loved this story! Jesse Q. Sutanto can definitely write such interesting character and plot lines!

I really enjoyed how this novel fell between two different genres -- mystery and romance! I really enjoyed how much humor was written surrounding Meddlin Chan and her Aunties while they are trying to cover up a murder but also throw a wedding.

As someone who has lived in Jakarta, I have to say this book was perfection in so many ways!!! I loved the wackiness, the voice, the twists and turns, the love and the cultural snippets that just hit. Cannot wait to read Jesse Sutanto's next book.

Meddelin "Meddy" has always been the dutiful Asian daughter, the one who is loyal to her family, the one that didn't leave. At the end of college, Meddy breaks up with the love of her life because he was moving from California to New York. Meddy's deep-seated loyalty makes her choose her mother and aunties over her boyfriend. She works as a photographer in the Aunties wedding planner business. As they prepare for the wedding of the year at a resort on the island, Meddy is having trouble committing to the job and is feeling bereft and stuck in a place where she does not want to be, working at a job she does not want to work at. She agrees to go on a date that her mother has set up for her via an online dating service the night before the wedding. The date does not go well and Meddy accidentally kills her date. In a panic, she dumps his body in her trunk and drives home. Her Aunties and Mother immediately band together to help her dispose of the body.

This book was hilarious! I wasn't quite certain how Meddy was going to get out of killing the jerk she went on a date with, but I should have never doubted a band of Asian Aunties. Crazy wedding fails, (turns out the groom-to-be is a jerk, too) and Meddy coming face to face with her ex-boyfriend whom she still thinks about often, and a glimpse into Asian wedding traditions make this a great option for a beach read. Add this to your TBR list if you are planning on traveling and or needing a light, relaxing book for this summer.