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A review by mspilesofpaper
Dial A for Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Meddelin "Meddy" Chan's mother set up a blind date for her daughter with a rich hotel owner whom the mother met on an online dating app. Unwillingly, Meddy agrees to meet with the man and ends up killing him; accidentally of course. In panic, she drives home and ends up with her mother and aunties trying to help get rid of the body, which turns out to be much more complicated than any of them expected. Especially with an over-the-top billionaire wedding at an island resort to take care of as it is the family's biggest job for their wedding business yet. Things just become even worse when Meddy sees her college love, her first love, again at the wedding. As the hotel owner ... What is going on?
Dial A for Aunties is certainly a contemporary fiction novel but it does not really fit into a subcategory as it is 1/3 contemporary romance, 1/3 contemporary crime with humour and 1/3 social commentary about SEA/EA culture, family structures and traditions that can cause actual issues. With a sprinkle of racism as parts of the "how to get rid of the body" stems from "we cannot go to the police, no one will believe us as we are immigrants". Plus, there's a racist sheriff towards the end (although he feels like satire as well). The additional mystery feels very shallow as well.
The entire story is very fast-paced and just ... well, wild. Each scene/chapter might make sense on its own but combined with the rest, it just left me flabbergasted. It isn't cohesive because they jump from "we have to get rid of the body" to "wedding stuff" to "aunties and mother being overbearing and/or fighting with each other" to "Meddy making out with her ex". It's just crazy and exhausting. Especially since everything is always so over-the-top and you can't really take anything seriously. While I might be white, I have read enough EA/SEA novels by now to have a basic understanding of their cultures and the aunties are just caricatures of them. They are very exaggerated and so over-the-top that it's just exhausting to read. Everything is about filial piety and respecting your elders to the point where Meddy cannot do anything out of fear and they always argue about the body instead of being realistic about it. I can understand why their husbands and children left them. I would have left as well because it must have been exhausting to grow up with such mothers.
All the characters are very one-dimensional and just feel like stereotypes. Meddy is the dutiful Asian daughter who's a complete people pleaser/push over due to it. The aunties are just caricatures of actual aunties (including their arguments). The ex, Nathan, is the stereotypical besotted ex-boyfriend who's still in love with our main character despite their break up at the end of college (So 3-4 years ago?). The Sheriff is the stereotypical dumb, racist one who doesn't want any mainlander (especially not foreigners) on his beloved island where he rules; he can't tell the Asians apart because "you all look alike to me" and he doesn't believe in modern technology that helps in police work either. The groom is an arrogant nepo baby, the bride is super sweet but slightly stupid. The maid of honour is a joke and just as stupid as the bride. The rest of the characters are just names.
The end is extremely rushed and unrealistic but by the time, I was just glad to be done with the book. While parts of it made me laugh, the overall story just exhausted me and I had no actual interest in continuing the book.
Dial A for Aunties is certainly a contemporary fiction novel but it does not really fit into a subcategory as it is 1/3 contemporary romance, 1/3 contemporary crime with humour and 1/3 social commentary about SEA/EA culture, family structures and traditions that can cause actual issues. With a sprinkle of racism as parts of the "how to get rid of the body" stems from "we cannot go to the police, no one will believe us as we are immigrants". Plus, there's a racist sheriff towards the end (although he feels like satire as well). The additional mystery feels very shallow as well.
The entire story is very fast-paced and just ... well, wild. Each scene/chapter might make sense on its own but combined with the rest, it just left me flabbergasted. It isn't cohesive because they jump from "we have to get rid of the body" to "wedding stuff" to "aunties and mother being overbearing and/or fighting with each other" to "Meddy making out with her ex". It's just crazy and exhausting. Especially since everything is always so over-the-top and you can't really take anything seriously. While I might be white, I have read enough EA/SEA novels by now to have a basic understanding of their cultures and the aunties are just caricatures of them. They are very exaggerated and so over-the-top that it's just exhausting to read. Everything is about filial piety and respecting your elders to the point where Meddy cannot do anything out of fear and they always argue about the body instead of being realistic about it. I can understand why their husbands and children left them. I would have left as well because it must have been exhausting to grow up with such mothers.
All the characters are very one-dimensional and just feel like stereotypes. Meddy is the dutiful Asian daughter who's a complete people pleaser/push over due to it. The aunties are just caricatures of actual aunties (including their arguments). The ex, Nathan, is the stereotypical besotted ex-boyfriend who's still in love with our main character despite their break up at the end of college (So 3-4 years ago?). The Sheriff is the stereotypical dumb, racist one who doesn't want any mainlander (especially not foreigners) on his beloved island where he rules; he can't tell the Asians apart because "you all look alike to me" and he doesn't believe in modern technology that helps in police work either. The groom is an arrogant nepo baby, the bride is super sweet but slightly stupid. The maid of honour is a joke and just as stupid as the bride. The rest of the characters are just names.
The end is extremely rushed and unrealistic but by the time, I was just glad to be done with the book. While parts of it made me laugh, the overall story just exhausted me and I had no actual interest in continuing the book.