Date of Completion: 01/10/2021
‘Dial A for Aunties’ was a light, fun read filled with lots of drama. Between the murder cover-up, rekindling romance and wedding chaos, there was certainly more than enough to keep me entertained!
I can’t believe my aunts’ rivalry with each other is jeopardising us getting away with murder.
Sadly, my high expectations for this book got in the way of me fully enjoying the story.
My first mistake was expecting the story to be so funny it would make me howl with laughter. I realise now this high expectation was part of the reason I felt unaffected by the humour in the story. Each comical scene or line simply got a pat on the back while I craned my neck to see if a bigger, better joke was coming.
My second mistake was expecting the story to be realistic. Yes, I had expected parts of the story to be overly dramatic and exaggerated but, I was unprepared for just how over-the-top it actually is. Everything – from the characters to the conversations and events – is completely over-the-top and absurd!
This overly dramatic flair may have been entertaining initially, but it soon raised a few issues. For instance, it made the storyline messy and repetitive as the characters were limited in their reactions to the never-ending problems. This eventually caused my interest to wane, and I found myself struggling to pay attention to the story.
The dramatic nature of the story also causes the characters to lack relatability and complexity. Most characters felt like they were in the story just to drive the plot. Only the main character, Maddy, seemed to be somewhat developed as she experienced some personal growth during the story.
There’s been so much love in my life that I took for granted.
It is, therefore, unsurprising that it was not the drama or humour that made this story appealing to me. It was actually the Chinese-Indonesian culture that Jesse Sutanto brilliantly presented. I really love how this culture is both showcased and celebrated. In fact, Jesse’s love and respect for the culture are so strong it is contagious.
In short, ‘Dial A for Aunties’ was definitely an entertaining read. However, this was mainly due to the incorporated Chinese-Indonesian culture rather than the brilliance of the plot or characters. Perhaps, I would have enjoyed the story a lot more if I had not had such high expectations…
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[…] narration made it hard for me to remain invested in the story. Those who enjoyed could also love Dial A for Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto, as it is another light, comical […]