a highly entertaining read packed with cultural inspiration, a crazy wedding, and lots of humour. and I also think the cover art for both this and Sutanto’s previous novel is extremely on point and unique!

i listened to the audiobook of the first one last year and had a lot of fun, with the whole family and dead body providing a lot of entertainment. from a biased pov i always love books set in oxford and christ church is right next to my work, where i have lunch every day in the summer, so i really liked those elements of it. the writing was fun, the plot was fun

I absolutely loved the first book in this series so I was excited when I managed to be allowed a copy of book two. It didn’t disappoint.

If you need a laugh go with this series, after all we all need a bit of cheering up with all the doom and gloom around us, this is one of those books you find yourself chuckling out loud to, luckily I live on my own so have no one to answer to. With funny looks or anything. It’s also a book I would happily buy my 81 year old mum and know she would enjoy it.

We are back from book one with Meddy Chan along with her crazy family members, including her mum and the three but totally one of a kind aunts.

Meddy’s love Nathan has finally got around proposing to her and she now been able to introduce him to the family. There are very bits of Meddy doing some wedding shopping. Along with the aunties love of purple which happens to be my mums favourite colour.

Nathan is from a rather posh family, the wedding is to take place at Oxford Christ Church, as meddy’s mum and aunts attempt to steal the show with there sparkling purple costumes, Komodo dragon hats and fake British accents. With this family involved whatever could go wrong?

Or on the other hand with the aunties around it maybe should be what could go right. The family of five are tight knit, but what business is going on whilst the wedding is taking place? The plan is to execute someone who is important and is attending the wedding, but Meddy can’t mention any of this to Nathan or they could find themselves in big trouble, which could land both of them in prison because of a mistake she made.

Meddy is still being haunted by her past and she knows she has to stop the guest being killed by the dangerous people. The good thing is the aunties are already clever enough to get away with murder. As far as they are concerned they can stop the killing and the wedding can proceed as normal as planned with no incidents. Or maybe not!

This is a fun cozy read, that will have you laughing out loud, so if you like your mysteries cozy, along with a few chuckles then grab yourself a copy of this, but if you haven’t read the first book I would recommend that as well Dial A for Aunties.

I would like to thank #netgalley and # Berkleypublishing for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest, fair and unbiased review.

Thank you to Netgalley, Jesse Q Sutanto and Harper Collins UK for my copy of this book.

This was a good follow up to Dial A For Aunties, but it just didn’t hit me the same as I absolutely adored the first book.

While the humour was still there throughout and the relationship between Meddy and the aunties was amazing, I felt the plot was borderline ridiculous and just overshadowed the humour that I loved from the first instalment.

I still really enjoyed it and will definitely carry on reading books by Jesse, it just didn’t have the same spark as the first book unfortunately.

The day Matthew calls off the wedding, Freya’s once-perfect life is destroyed. Everything she thought she knew about love and herself, is shattered into pieces. To make matters even worse, hers was the first wedding of the season and she has seven more to go and somehow, she has to get through all of them!

This was a simple, fun, easy and quick read. The perfect type of book for your holiday, beach, pool kind of read. This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

3.5/5.

I didn’t think it could be more chaotic than the first book but my 'Four Aunties and a Wedding' was insane. There was so much happening on Meddy’s wedding day that I thought I was losing the plot! As ever, the aunties were hilarious and out of this world crazy from the weird British sayings (I have to admit that made me laugh) to their komodo dragon head pieces. I loved how this book went deeper with the Asian culture, particularly with the familial bond and wedding traditions. But admittedly, I didn’t think this book hit the mark as well as the first book. I felt like there were too many ideas being thrown around and the whole mafia thing didn’t stand out personally. Also the aunties were ramped up a notched too high that it seemed too bizarre and unrealistic. That said, I did enjoy the book and I still love the premises of the whole 'Dial A for Aunties' books.

I have no hesitation in saying that this sequel holds its own after the titan that was Dial A for Aunties. We return to the charming perspective of Medi, a frantic photographer about to marry the man of her dreams. However, when the Mafia decide to get themselves involved in her special day, everything goes awry.

Dial A for Aunties was such a fun, crazy ride, that I was highly anticipating this sequel, and as such the bar was pretty high. This is always a danger zone for me, as I can often fall in love with the idea of a sequel more so than the execution of it. But this book felt like coming back to family. The aunties, with their eccentricities and individual ‘isms’ such as random bouts of Tai Chi which hurt rather than help back problems, falling in love with the bad guy, and their constant sparring steals the show every time. This series is reminiscent of Agatha Raisin and her hairbrained schemes to solve crimes, but with much better rep, a fresh and modern author and lots more tension.

The tender narrative around the cultural differences between Medi and Nathan’s family could only have been crafted by an Own Voices author, and it’s great to see more Indo rep in commercial novels like this.

I loved the first book in this series but the second one just doesn't have the same spark or magic that hooked me in the first book. It's still pretty funny, the aunts are as always on best form and Meddy's internal reactions were hilarious. But this book veered more into unbelievable farce and second-hand embarrassment than the first. While the first one was comically overexaggerated, it still felt like a situation that could happen in reality but the second book got so ridiculous sometimes that it broke my suspension of disbelief and took me out of the book. All the drama at the wedding put more of a sad spin rather than a funny one to the book since it's the main character's wedding that's being completely ruined. I honestly felt so bad for Nathen who doesn't know what's going on for most of the book and is clearly upset that his new wife keeps disappearing with no explanation while her family are acting so bizarrely.

It's a fun read and I do love how close Meddey is to her mum and aunts, I just wish she had more fun with her husband on her wedding day but I guess she had bigger things to deal with. If you like the first book then the sequel is still worth checking out even if it doesn't reach those same highs.

I've not read Dial A for Aunties but there is alot of reference to incidences from the past so I'm assuming that it's to bring the reader up to speed with the story from the first book. I'm not really enjoying this, and feel maybe I should have started with Dial A for Aunties. I'm finding the aunties really annoying coupled with the fact that Meddy is really embarrassed by them therefore I'm going to stop for now and read the other book first then come back to this later. I can't enjoy the humour until I like the Aunties first.

Meddy and Nathan are getting married in Oxford, England. They need to find wedding vendors, so that her aunties can enjoy the day. And when they find the perfect vendors, a Chinese-Indonesian family, just like them, she hits off immediately with them. But they are not who she thinks they are, and things become complicated. I didn't enjoy this book as much as I enjoyed the first one. It was still enjoyable and I laugh a bit, but it was a bit too much crazy auntiness and the wedding and everything else was a bit forgotten.

Jesse Sutanto's previous book 'Dial A for Aunties' won the Comedy Women In Print Prize 2021, so the follow up had a lot to live up - and this is a worthy sequel to the first book in the series. In 'Four Aunties and a Wedding' Meddy moves on from the escapades in the first book to find herself planning her dream wedding. She & her family are just as entertaining to read about this time round - chaos abounds.

I really enjoyed the first book in this series, Dial A For Aunties, and was looking forward to catching up with Meddy, her mum, and her aunts, and delving into some entertaining reading. Right away I remembered how much I love this family, how they like to meddle in each other’s lives and how the aunts always want to outdo each other.

I was pretty certain that this book would be just as much fun as its prequel and it certainly started out feeling like it was going to live up to my expectations of a lot of hilarity caused by many unbelievable antics, especially when the aunties get involved. I have to say though whilst this was still fun and enjoyable, the balance just wasn’t quite right in this book, and I think if I’m being honest it is the setting that did it.

A lot of the scenes involved Meddy being almost absent from her wedding day and nobody seeming to notice, for me it meant that even the scenes that could be funny felt tinged with an overarching sadness. It also didn’t feel quite as natural as the last book, there were a few antics that actually I feel could have been left out because it was getting a bit too much, instead of relying on the aunties to bring the comedy to the situation, I felt like they were the comedy and it didn’t quite work in the same way.

As I said I still did enjoy this book but I think I was just a bit disappointed because there were so many interesting dynamics already in the story that I feel could have been used rather than resorting to such an outlandish story. I know this because as we started to find out more about why the mafia wanted to infiltrate Meddy and Nathan’s wedding I started to feel a lot more invested, I felt like I was finally seeing the characters that I loved from the first book once again.

There was still a lot of entertainment to be had from this book, even though it didn’t quite meet my expectations, I’m sure that it will provide many a giggle to other readers.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

Apologies for the delay in reviewing this book, a spell of Covid put me behind in my reading!

While this book had be laughing and smiling I still think the first book is my favourite of the two. I just loved hearing more about the Aunties and their antics! There is a lot of second-hand embarrassment in this book which just goes to show how well these ladies are written.

Meddy is such a loveable character too and I just love her point of view and the way she loves her family.

Have already been recommending these to friends!

At first I thought that this was a really lighthearted, fun cosy crime novel but as I got further into the book it just became increasingly histrionic and ridiculous. The storyline seemed to be abandoned in favour of bizarre and unlikely set pieces, which is a real shame as, from everything I’ve heard, the first book in the series was really good.

I hate to leave bad reviews but I’m afraid that I’ve just got to be honest and this one really didn’t live up to its initial promise.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an arc of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Chaos in the best possible way!

I absolutely loved Dial A for Aunties and was ridiculously excited to see that a sequel was coming!

Being back with the aunts was everything I wanted and more. Chaotic and absolutely hilarious, I couldn’t stop laughing out loud. Especially when they were using British slang, some of the best comedic scenes I’ve read in ages.

Absolutely adored it!

I loved being back with the Aunties but it doesn't hit the same as Dial A for Aunties.

It sounds way more stressful than fun and while the Aunties were hilarious, Meddy's second hand stress made me so stressed. Will continue with the trilogy but the novelty has worn off and the same formula doesn't work its magic

Recommended for the hilarity

I received an earc of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Jesse Sutanto has me in stitches all over again with the sequel to Dial A for Aunties set at Meddy's own wedding. I was laughing from the get go as Meddy and the Aunties get themselves tangled up in drama a second time, keeping secrets and causing chaos. Nathan really does have his work cut out for him!

I think this might have been even more chaotic than book 1 which is saying something. Again, don't go in expecting a believable plot but do expect to laugh out loud all the way through. Love this series, I hope there's a third one.

Meddy Chan and her aunties are back, and this time they have the wedding if the year to plan. Meddy's. But Meddy is unsure how her family will be received by fiancé Nick's posh English relatives. They're a little on the eccentric side, complete with matching komodo dragon fascinators. Add the mafia, murder and mayhem into the mix and Meddy might get more than she bargained for on her big day.

As with the previous book, it's the four aunties who shine through here. Each of them is distinct and hilarious in their own way, with a hierarchy among them, and internal squabbling, that makes them feel believable and incredibly endearing. However, that's where the realism stops as most of this plot just defies logic and all credibility. Although I could look past this for the first book in the series, this one just felt a bit too similar and silly for me. It's just way too over the top, light and fluffy, without much substance. I think the novelty of the aunties in the first book has worn off.

A fun time, but this felt very chaotic and lacked some of the shine of the first in the series.

I enjoyed the first book in this series so much but cannot believe how disappointing this installment was.

The level of absurdity was that off the scale that I started to find it boring. Nothing made sense because so much was going on. Meddy and Nathan hardly got any time in the actual story as Meddy wasn't even around for her own wedding.

The first book set it up so lovely with the quirky characters and this second one has made me think that any further installments I won't bother with.

Just as fun, outrageous and hilarious as the first, Four Aunties and a Wedding continues to follow the adventures of Meddy and her aunties getting up to their latest shenanigans but this time at Meddy's own wedding! A little over the top and cheesy it provides a thoroughly entertaining read that will have you laughing out loud whilst also providing some touching, heartfelt moments and exploring some of the more nuanced elements of diaspora culture.

In this instalment it is Meddy's own turn to be getting married and just wants a perfect today - but of course with the aunties involved nothing goes to plan! When the family they have hired to organise the wedding turn out to be a lot more than they seem it is up to the aunties to try and save Meddy and her special day.

The family dynamics in the book as just as good as the first (and probably my favourite thing about these books!!) I love all the aunties and their different personalities and how they all fit together. I also like the exploration of Meddy and her slightly complicated feelings towards her aunties and mum - she loves them a lot and wants to live up to their expectations (and they can often be quite overbearing) but at the same time wants to forge her own path which I think is something a lot of young people can relate to.

Another thing I really enjoyed in this book was the introduction of some other families and how their dynamics and attitudes to their culture both differ and are similar to Meddy's family. The author says in her note she wanted to explore how not every diaspora family has a universal experience and the clashes that can come from this and I think she did this really well.

I thought this book was somehow more more and less over the top than book 1 - the premise is slightly more farfetched but the events that happen are slightly less ridiculous haha. Without getting too spoilery I loved some of conflict in this book, I'm a sucker for crime families (and fake crime families lol) and this book delivered on that perfectly.

The only thing I'm not the biggest fan of in this series is the "romance" - it is not the main focus so it doesn't really bother me that much but it's just very meh, however I do feel that Meddy and her family dynamics more than make up for it.

Overall if you enjoyed book 1 you definitely don't want to miss out on the sequel - it's just as good if not better!(However I do think if you didn't enjoy book 1 probably give this one a miss as they are very similar in style.)