More Jesse Q Sutanto Fun in “Well, That Was Unexpected”

Well, That Was Unexpected is Jesse Q Sutanto‘s newest novel.  I absolutely loved her dark comedy / family drama Dial A for Aunties, and quite liked the sequel, Four Aunties and A Wedding. I also enjoyed the prep school thrillers with delcious food in The New Girl, and the YA parody / obsession thriller The Obsession.  So basically, I knew I’d like this one, but I didn’t know what it would hold.

Well, That Was Unexpected is a double-catfishing, fake dating, romcom YA, absolutely full of nosy relatives and delicious snacks, of course.  Sharlot (yes, that’s supposed to be Charlotte, and her Chinese name also has a bit of a typo)  finds herself dragged to Indonesia for the summer. It’s Sharlot’s first visit to her mother’s homeland, and her mom’s first trip home since she was a teenager. 

Her mom arranges a “date” with George Clooney Tanuwijaya, explaining that she’s been chatting with George, as Sharlot, and that he’s a nice young man. Likes calculus and dutifully working in the family business. Sadly, George is equally upset with their date, since his father (and nosy little sister, Eleanor Roosevelt Tanuwijaya) has been chatting with Sharlot, as George, and has decided she’s a nice young woman. Likes cooking and cleaning.

The attraction is instant, the misunderstanding are ridiculous, and the story quickly builds out of control. It’s over-the-top fun, with some Crazy Rich Asians vibes and Candace Bushnell-style designer name-dropping, on top of the Sutanto wild plot twists. But Well, That Was Unexpected includes some sweet coming-of-age moments, too, slipped in with all the hijinks.