Jesse Q Sutanto Books in Order
See all Jesse Q Sutanto books in order with short summaries, series overviews, and tips on where to start with her romcoms, thrillers, and cozy mysteries.
Last updated: January 15, 2026
As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases (at no extra cost to you).
Publication Order
19 books
Read Between the Lies
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2026
Fern Huang finally sells her debut novel and finds comfort in an online group of fellow 2020 first-time authors, until she realizes her high school bully Haven Lee is one of them. As old wounds reopen and career anxieties spike, their publishing rivalry twists into a dangerous game built on buried secrets.
Ms. Mebel Goes Back to the Chopping Block
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2026
When her husband of more than forty years dumps her for their private chef, sixty-three-year-old Mebel decides she’ll win him back by mastering gourmet cooking. At a not-so-glamorous culinary school near Oxford, she bonds with younger classmates and begins to suspect something off about the program.
An Edge Sharp Enough
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2026
In the industrial city of Velingard, a revolution was built on a supposedly indestructible new metal that now, alarmingly, has begun to fail. Privileged scholar Livya, charming con man Kaian, and loyal captain Fonde are drawn into a race across continents to uncover the lost magic that might save, or destroy, their world.
Worth Fighting For
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2025
Fa Mulan is the sharp young executive who keeps her father’s private equity firm running, but when he falls ill during a crucial deal, she secretly steps into his shoes. Posing as the powerful CEO to win over whiskey heir Shang and his skeptical family, she juggles axe throwing, cattle wrangling, and a growing attraction she did not plan on.
Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man)
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2025
Life is finally full again for Vera Wong, but she secretly misses having a good mystery to solve. When she meets a young woman searching for a missing friend and stumbles across a case file about a dead influencer, Vera dives into another unofficial investigation, determined to untangle lies both online and off.
Next Time Will Be Our Turn
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2025
At a flashy Chinese New Year dinner, seventy-three-year-old Magnolia Chen stuns her Jakarta family by arriving with a girlfriend and kissing her in front of everyone. Later she pulls her struggling granddaughter Izzy aside and unspools the long, complicated story of the forbidden love that shaped her life.
You Will Never Be Me
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2024
Momfluencer Meredith Lee taught her former best friend Aspen Palmer everything about building an online brand, then watched Aspen’s star eclipse her own. After Meredith secretly hijacks Aspen’s accounts and life from a stolen tablet, a disappearance and a flurry of threats turn their toxic rivalry into a deadly guessing game.
The Reunion Dinner
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2024
Josephine Ying is determined to host the most impressive Chinese New Year reunion dinner her family has ever seen and finally outdo her overbearing Big Uncle. When her son’s glamorous fiancée drops dead at the table, Josephine must figure out which guest is a killer before the evening is completely ruined.
The Good, the Bad, and the Aunties
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2024
On a trip to Jakarta for Chinese New Year, Meddy Chan and her new husband get swept into a decades long feud between powerful business families after a priceless document goes missing. To save Nathan and keep the peace, the aunties launch one last, utterly over-the-top rescue mission.
Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2023
Tea-shop owner Vera Wong finds a dead man on her Chinatown floor and decides the police are not up to the job. Pocketing a key piece of evidence, she turns her tiny shop into headquarters for her own chaotic, big-hearted murder investigation.
Theo Tan and the Iron Fan
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2023
After uncovering corporate corruption, Theo Tan and his fox spirit Kai learn that his brother’s soul is trapped in the Chinese underworld. Their mission to Diyu forces them to face demon kings, tricky bureaucracy, and their own grief if they want to bring Jamie home.
I'm Not Done with You Yet
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2023
Midlist novelist Jane Morgan is stuck in a dull marriage and a stalled career, but she cannot stop thinking about Thalia, the dazzling classmate she once idolized at Oxford. When Thalia resurfaces as a bestselling thriller writer, Jane chases her to a New York conference, determined to rekindle their bond no matter who gets hurt.
Didn't See That Coming
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2023
Seventeen-year-old Kiki Siregar survives a miserable transfer to a strict Jakarta school by escaping into an online game where she plays as a guy. Her anonymous best friend Sourdawg turns out to attend her new school, and keeping her gaming identity secret becomes much harder than beating any boss.
Well, That Was Unexpected
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2022
After her mom catches her in a compromising moment, Sharlot Citra is whisked from Los Angeles to Indonesia to reconnect with family. There she’s matched with rich, awkward George Clooney Tanuwijaya thanks to meddling parents, and a fake relationship slowly turns into something much more real.
Theo Tan and the Fox Spirit
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2022
Chinese American gamer Theo Tan never wanted a spirit companion, but after his older brother dies he inherits Kai, a prickly fox spirit. Following clues in his brother’s coded journal sends them to a heritage summer camp and into a mystery tied to a powerful tech-magic company.
The New Girl
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2022
Track star Lia Setiawan wins a scholarship to elite Draycott Academy and quickly discovers a toxic world of anonymous gossip apps, rich bullies, and crooked teachers. Exposing a cheating ring might save her future, but every risky choice pulls her deeper into danger.
Four Aunties and a Wedding
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2022
Meddy Chan wants her Oxford wedding to be simple, romantic, and free of disasters, so she hires another Chinese-Indonesian family business to handle the big day. When she learns her new vendors are tied to the mafia, the aunties swing into action.
The Obsession
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2021
Logan is sure he and Delilah are meant to be, so he watches her every move online and through hidden cameras. When he witnesses her kill her abusive stepfather, his obsession curdles into blackmail, and Delilah must decide how far she’ll go to reclaim control of her life.
Dial A for Aunties
by Jesse Q Sutanto
2021
Wedding photographer Meddy Chan accidentally kills her terrible blind date and turns to her mom and four aunties for help. As they juggle a billionaire wedding on a remote resort and a corpse that will not stay hidden, family loyalty collides with romantic second chances.
Where should I start?
If you want wild family romcom capers: Dial A for Aunties → Four Aunties and a Wedding → The Good, the Bad, and the Aunties.
If you prefer warm, cozy mysteries: Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers → Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man).
If you like YA thrillers and romcoms: The Obsession → The New Girl → Well, That Was Unexpected → Didn't See That Coming.
If you’re choosing for middle-grade readers (8-12): Theo Tan and the Fox Spirit → Theo Tan and the Iron Fan.
If you want darker adult suspense and drama: I'm Not Done with You Yet → You Will Never Be Me → Read Between the Lies → Next Time Will Be Our Turn.
Author bio
Jesse Q Sutanto is a Chinese Indonesian author whose stories bounce from riotous wedding capers to eerie psychological thrillers to magical adventures for kids, but they are all rooted in family, culture, and a sharp sense of humor.
She grew up moving between Jakarta and Singapore in a large Chinese-Indonesian family, then later spent time in California and in the English city of Oxford. Books were a constant through all of those moves, and she started scribbling stories long before she learned what a publishing contract looked like.
That feeling of living between worlds shows up everywhere in her fiction.
After earning a degree from the University of California, Berkeley, she went on to complete an MFA in creative writing at the University of Oxford. The degree did not lead straight to overnight success. By the time her first novel was finally published in 2021, she had already drafted multiple earlier manuscripts that never saw the light of day.
That first book, the young adult thriller The Obsession, introduced her knack for pairing dark subject matter with a propulsive, very readable voice. Soon after came Dial A for Aunties, a madcap mystery about a wedding photographer, an accidentally dead date, and four meddling aunties who refuse to let even a corpse ruin the family business. The novel won the Comedy Women in Print Prize and was picked up for a film adaptation, putting her firmly on the radar of readers worldwide.
Since then she has kept up a busy schedule across age categories. For adults she has written cozy mysteries like Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers, in which a lonely tea-shop owner in San Francisco decides she can solve a murder better than the police, as well as twisty psychological suspense such as I'm Not Done with You Yet, You Will Never Be Me, and Read Between the Lies. An upcoming dark fantasy duology that begins with An Edge Sharp Enough shows yet another side of her imagination.
For teen readers she blends sharp humor with real emotional stakes in books like Well, That Was Unexpected and Didn't See That Coming, which follow Indonesian and Indonesian American teens as they navigate messy families, romance, and the pressures of school and social media. Her middle-grade Theo Tan and the Fox Spirit series sends a Chinese American boy and a snarky fox spirit companion on fast-paced quests that weave magic, technology, and Chinese mythology into one adventure.
Whatever the genre, she gravitates toward characters who seem chaotic on the surface but are quietly carrying a lot.
Her work has found an international audience and has been translated into multiple languages. Along the way she has picked up honors including an Edgar Award for best paperback original and the Comedy Women in Print Prize, but she tends to talk more about readers who see their own families and cultures reflected in her pages for the first time.
Sutanto now lives in Jakarta on the same street as her parents, surrounded by a huge extended family that includes dozens of cousins and aunties who happily supply new material. She has spoken about once being an avid gamer; these days, writing and raising two young daughters with her English husband leave less time for hobbies. She is outspoken about diversity in publishing and women’s rights, regularly mentoring aspiring writers and offering critiques, especially to those from marginalized communities. Fueled by coffee and a steady weekday word-count goal, she keeps moving between romcoms, crime novels, and fantasy, always chasing the next story that makes her laugh, cry, or stay up too late writing.
Edited by
Software engineer whose passion for tracking book recommendations from podcasts inspired the creation of MRB.
Lead investor at 3one4 Capital whose startup expertise and love for books helped shaped MRB and its growth.





































Comments
Did we miss something? Have feedback?
Help us improve this page by sharing your thoughts