ellaticonstellation's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Spoiler
As I expected, the Aunties and Meddy had me cackling at the first book. I would've given this a 5-star, but I had a bit of a dilemma on how they handled the kidnapping and supposed murder. It must be innocent, but there came a point when I was questioning what the fuck they were prioritizing. But I still liked the characterizations of the aunties and Meddy. Gosh, I was giggling like a kid even though I wasn't supposed to, but because of the dark humor, I found myself chuckling. Overall, a fun and scary read. Scary because the Aunties are dangerous!Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, Confinement, Kidnapping, Murder, and Violence
emily_mh's review against another edition
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I am SO SAD that I was so disappointed by this one!! It just completely lacked all the complexity and extravagance of the first book in the series (which was my favourite book of 2021 and one of my favourite books of all time!!). There was no character development or exploration of interrelationships, it had a very linear, simplistic plot direction, and it definitely wasn’t as funny as Dial A for Aunties. The wedding completely faded until it was a simple backdrop for repetitive action. The first third of the book was probably the best and definitely had some laugh-out-loud moments - it really saved this rating. But this book was in my top three most anticipated 2022 releases and it definitely didn’t live up to my expectations.
Moderate: Cursing, Murder, Violence, Death, Alcohol, Drug use, and Kidnapping
Minor: Ableism, Drug abuse, Gun violence, War, Injury/Injury detail, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual violence, Excrement, Addiction, Abandonment, Animal death, Misogyny, Vomit, Sexism, and Physical abuse
Major warning for blackmail. Minor warnings for disownment and a bomb. HP references.
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