Andrea Stern is back. After the spectacular finish in the last book (going into labor very publicly) Andrea is on the chase once again. The hook in this case is not who did the killing but how and why. When there are friends involved Andrea's single minded pursuit of the truth might hurt feelings, wreck friendships and when the investigations come a little too close to home it may also bring irreversible changes to her own life as well. I love this author and I love this series. We get a little bit more information about what formed Andrea into the, investigator, mom of five children and wife that she is. We also get a little more backstory about Andrea's husband. I was thoroughly caught up in this story definitely a fantastic read.

Love this!! Such an entertaining book. Read it in one sitting which is rare! Will be looking for more books by this author. Highly recommend!

I loved “Suburban Dicks” so I was excited to read the next book in this (hopefully) series. This was certainly as good, maybe better? Our brilliant amateur detective, Andie Stern is again knee deep in solving both a murder and a huge financial scheme. Amazingly, she does it all while living in a suburb and juggling 5 (yes,5 ) children.

Characters from the earlier book are used again, but though I urge all my groups to grab Suburban Dicks, and preorder this, it will work fine as a stand-alone. The author cleverly solves these crimes, plus happily for me, plants the seeds for future books.

This was delicious from start to finish. The author writes in an extremely engaging style, which I especially love. I also like the other “Dick”, Andie’s unlikely partner Kenny Lee. We are also seeing the introduction of Satwitha,, a brilliant potential partner.

I really enjoyed this book. It came at a time when I needed a great female detective to add to my list of favorites. Thank you Netgalley for this ARC and introducing me to the incredible Andie.

Thanks to Netgalley in exchange for my honest review of The Self-Made Widow, it is not that is was a bad book. I just connect with anything any of the characters or storyline. To me, it felt like any other girly book one would pick up while at the beach. I'll have to pass on this one. Even the plot twist didn't surprise me.

This is the 2nd installment in the “Suburban Dicks” series, and former FBI profiler Andie Stern and disgraced journalist Kenny Lee are again front and center, as another death befalls the West Windsor community. Although the death appears to be from natural causes, Andie starts digging a little, and uncovers some secrets that may have been better off undiscovered. Plenty of humor and sarcastic back and forth dialogue lead the way as the mystery untangles. We also get some background on the main characters, also told with a perfect blend of humor and heartbreak that culminates in one mystery solved, and two relationships going in different directions. Totally entertaining, irreverent and topical, this is a fun book from start to finish, and a worthy follow up to the 1st book. Hoping for more! I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you #Netgalley for the advanced copy.

In this read we begin with a perfect husband and wife and their two boys liking on the East Coast. All seemed perfect until Molly came in to the bedroom one morning to find that her husband, Derek was dead. We all think he peacefully passed in his sleep due to a heart condition he was diagnosed with years ago. However, for Andrea, Molly friend, she has different theories. Andrea is known for helping the FBI in solving murders, she consults and investigates, and has been successful. Andrea takes it upon herself to look into this death even though it involves one of her mom friends. Andrea has to balance her many kids, often times investigating with her youngest child on her hip. Andrea calls in an old friend Kenny, who is also a documentary maker who quickly gets involved and begins using his team for investigative work. When you think you have it all mapped out, you realize you don't. That there may be more to Molly and not just Derek's shady past. This book was a little long for me, I felt that though it was a good story, it dragged on for a bit too long especially tying together so many pieces in the end.

I have not read the first book in this series, and it took me a while to adjust to it.
from description: From the cocreator of Deadpool and author of Suburban Dicks comes a diabolically funny murder mystery that features two unlikely sleuths investigating a murder that reveals the dark underbelly of suburban marriage.

I'm not sure what I thought of The Self-Made Widow. There were, after I began to finally get a grip on the characters, some amusing and satiric elements, but I didn't find it "diabolically funny."

Andrea (Andie) Stern and Kenny Lee, college friends who were successful in solving an important crime, have another crime to involve them. Kenny, a journalist, won a Pulitzer for his articles about their college crime-solving, but he has not lived up to his promise. Andrea, married with five kids, has begun to find the domestic situation exhausting and less rewarding than if she had joined the FBI as a profiler as originally planned. The two got back together in the first book in this series and once again they are finding crime solving as interesting and invigorating as before.

Currently, one of Andrea's friends has become a widow. At first sympathetic, Andrea begins to wonder if Molly's husband actually died of a heart attack...or was helped along by Molly?

NetGalley/Penguin Group

Mystery. June 21, 2022. Print length: 400 pages.

Having just read and loved Suburban Dicks by the same author, I was delighted to be given the opportunity to read an advance copy of its sequel, thanks to Netgalley and the publisher. I enjoy the author's sense of humor/sarcasm as well as the clever murder investigation. I particularly appreciate that a male author was able to do such a great job bringing suburban women to life. The book was a great combination of mystery and humor, and the general premise was unique. I enjoyed reading more about the characters introduced in Suburban Dicks, and I look forward to more in future books, as well as possibly learning more about the back story of the main character. I highly recommend this book and the series to mystery lovers with a sense of humor.

This is the second book in this series that follows Andrea and Kenny. When a man dies, Andrea and Kenny immediately suspect the widow and delve into an investigation into her.

I struggled to get into this mystery past the first chapter. I didn't really think the characters had much chemistry and the pace of information wasn't f

Thank you to both #NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam/G.P. Putnam’s Sons for providing me an advance copy of Fabian Nicieza’s mystery novel, The Self-Made Widow, in exchange for an honest review.

#TheSelf-MadeWidow is the second and latest installment in the #SuburbanDicks series. The novel satirizes the banality of the contemporary suburban lifestyle punctuated with elements of noir. Although the noir elements (e.g., dry humor, exaggerated character descriptions for voiceovers) mostly blend seamlessly with the story due to the humorous effects it adds to the text, it can at times feel as if the characters were penned by an amateur auteur—which the author certainly is not.

Having never read the first installment, I did not know what to expect and was worried after reading the first few pages, which are intentionally dreadful. However, the book does get better as soon as the cops and the protagonist (Andie Stern) arrive. Once I learned that the author was a co-creator of Dead Pool, it all started to make sense. The story is a Naked Gun meets Psycho Beach Party with a hint of David Lynch a la Twin Peaks.

So, why only a three-star rating? The satire could not sustain itself throughout the entire novel and eventually turned into your standard domestic crime thriller. It also became evident that the material was clearly intended for the outline of a script. Another issue I had was how incredibly annoying the kids are—especially, the baby (I know, I am a monster). Hoping the author was just showcasing his brilliance and that the whole point of the annoying kids is a continued riff on the banality of suburbia.

Additionally, while this does not detract from the rating, the book could use some trimming in a few sections that will likely be complete by the time it gets released. For instance, it is extremely repetitive and starts to get old by the tenth time we hear about two of the characters acting in unison.

Despite these negatives, I am still curious and looking forward to how the remainder of the series plays out. Something about the plot makes for a genuinely entertaining read. The dry humor was a nice touch as well.

I somehow missed Suburban Dicks book one, so needless after reading
The Self-Made Widow I went straight to my kindle store and bought it.
I enjoyed the light, humorous, murder-mystery.
The main characters are very well put together and all around funny.
This witty, compelling, fast paced read captured me right off rip and before I knew it, it was 1am and I was half way through with it.
The story keeps you intrigued and moving.

G.P. Putnam's Sons,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review closer to pub date.