Dial A for Aunties

If you didn't grow up with Chinese aunties, you might not be able to fully appreciate Meddy's challenges and why she feels like she can't just leave. If you didn't grow up with Chinese aunties, you might also not get why Big Aunt's formidable nature is at turns terrifying and reassuring. This book is a love letter to all the tough-as-nails, nosy and yes, meddlesome aunties who dominate the world of all Chinese children and make some grown-ups feel like kids again.

The family drama at the center of Dial A For Aunties ultimately springs from a case of well-intentioned catfishing, if such a thing even exists. This may turn some people off, either on account of it hitting TOO close to home or because they find themselves struggling to suspend disbelief while shouldering the weight of DAFA's ludicrousness. While this is not the most serious book, it does have a consistent internal logic, which probably wouldn't be out of place in a Stephen Chow movie.

Though DAFA has romance elements, they're not particularly strong even if they are cheesy in a comforting if slightly nauseating way. Meddy's love interest is incredibly wholesome but also really bland. So is the secret romance which is revealed at the very end of the book. DAFA works best when it shows us how the aunties work together to fix the latest catastrophe, thanks to Meddy being a wonderful catalyst for disaster. That's where DAFA shines and personally, that's where the book peaked for me---when her aunties and Meddy first "meet" the ill-fated and lecherous man who sells cheap lilies. If there's a sequel, I might give it a miss if it's heavy on the romance but light on the aunties. (There's a potential here, for a more chaotic sort of mystery series that is the anti Rosemary & Thyme. Think Chinese aunties living in the Tenderloin accidentally becoming true crime celebrities after solving a murder, after many sleepless nights playing mahjong and supping on dim sum.)

PS Though I am delighted that DAFA is going to become a Netflix movie, I am still not pleased that The Wicked And The Willing is getting no such treatment.

This is ridiculous, and hilarious! Perfect entertainment for a bank holiday afternoon.

Full review:
Dial A for Aunties was a ridiculous delight! It’s pretty rare for me to laugh out loud at books, but Jesse Sutanto managed to elicit multiple laughs through this madcap rom-com.

The women in Meddy’s family are cursed. First it was Chinese curse, the men in their lives fated to die before their time, but since moving to California the curse now just makes all the men leave them. This is partly why Meddy so easily gave up the love of her life, who we meet through flashbacks to her college days. Despite her closeness to her mother and three aunties, she never told them about him. So of course, they assume she’s just terrible at dating, and her mother decides to impersonate her on a dating site…leading to the aforementioned death. Her mother’s use of the aubergine emoji is just priceless.

The hiding of the body is the main purpose of the book, but there is also a second chance romance, if only Meddy can avoid getting caught. In a series of unfortunate events, the body ends up at the wedding, and they run round trying to save the event whilst coming up with ideas for the body. It’s a riot!

Meddy and her family are Chinese-Indonesian, as are their clients, so we get to see some of their wedding traditions when things aren’t going wrong. There’s a lot in it about family obligations and loyalty, but it is kind of heart-warming how that translates into their matter-of-fact help with the body. They never doubt Meddy that it was self-defence and they don’t bat an eyelid at the situation. They are awesome aunties, even if they have their own sisterly rivalries.