The Good, the Bad, and the Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
The Good, the Bad, and the Aunties is the third, and reportedly final book in the Aunties series by Jesse Q. Sutanto.
This is an Adult Contemporary Fiction series that leans heavily into the humor. I have enjoyed all of the books and actually feel really sad that it’s over.
In this third installment, we travel along with Meddy, her husband, Nathan, her Ma and three Aunties, as they travel to Jakarta to visit their extended family for Chinese New Year.
This is the second novel I have read from Sutanto this year that is set in Jakarta, and I love how she brings both the place and culture to the page. You can tell it’s a place near and dear to her heart, it feels special.
Meddy was nervous about the trip, as it was Nathan’s first time being there and meeting her large, high-energy family. She should’ve known he would take it like a champ.
I loved meeting Meddy’s extended family and learning about the traditions they have surrounding their Chinese New Year celebrations. It’s at one of these parties that the big blunder at the heart of this story occurs.
A old beau of Second Aunt arrives, bearing a bevy of gifts. Unfortunately, one of them was actually an important document he was intending to gift to a business rival to cement a new partnership. This packet gets mixed in amongst the other gifts and accidentally gets handed out.
Once the mistake is discovered, it seems simple, just track down the person who received the gift and they’ll give it back. But we all know Meddy and the Aunties could never be that lucky, or simple.
It seems the packet didn’t go to any one of the Chan family members. There was a teenage girl who stopped by to visit one of Meddy’s younger cousins, and she’s the one who ended up with it.
The business rival is not happy and serious repercussions are threatened if this document isn’t found and given to them. Now it’s a race against the clock to clear up this mess before one, or more, of them get hurt.
I thought this was so entertaining. I love the relationships in these books. It’s the family vibes. They get me. They drive each other crazy, but they love each other so much and would do anything for each other.
I also have enjoyed watching Meddy and Nathan’s relationship blossom. She’s truly found her person. He’s helped her to relax and feel comfortable being herself. He’s so patient with her family as well; huge plus.
Determined to get the document back, Meddy, Nathan and the Aunties end up interacting with some of the most powerful people in Jakarta.
Their scheming, plotting and overall efforts, OMG, they’re so funny. Only the Chans. And I actually think it humbled Big Aunt a little bit being around some folks more powerful than herself. It made me so happy.
As I was reading this, I actually didn’t know it was slated to be the last one and I was coming up with a bunch of great ideas for the fourth book: Abi and Second Aunt’s wedding, Meddy and Nathan starting a family, Big Aunt rekindling her singing career, etc.
Sadly, it seems like this is it. Regardless, whatever projects Sutanto is working on next, you know I will be reading them. She’s definitely become one of my go-to authors over the last few years. I love it all!
Thank you to the publisher, Berkley, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I’m sorry to be parting with the Chans, but they’ll live on in my heart!