If Mags and Cecilia were the main characters, I would have given this 5 stars.
I loved Mags and Cecelia, from the first moment we met, both of them all I wanted was more. Kasey felt like a lot right off the bat, impulsive, scattered being in her head sometimes felt like a tornado that never stopped. And when it was just Kasey or her and Jackson I found myself bored, and not really sure why Jackson was into her.
However, Mags and Cecelia were such a fun duo, especially when we uncovered the reasons why they were hiding things from Kasey. I would read a book featuring those two!
While this one didn't really work for me, I loved this author's previous book, Moorewood Family Rules, so I will absolutely be reading more by this author in the future.

Moorewood Family Rules was one of my favorites last year. However, Dimon’s newest novel was more Dial A for Aunties, and just a bit over the top for me. I really didn’t like Kasey’s character. She just lacked direction of any kind. The poison speculation (which I think was supposed to be funny) just became annoying. The romance was odd. Very off-kilter. I feel like there was a lot about “men are bad”, but then here’s this one male that you can like. It was very off-putting. As the reader, I wasn’t sure if I was cheering on the relationship or wanting Kasey to pull a Wonder-Woman-don’t-need-no-man solution.

Overall, I rate this novel 3.5 out of 5 stars.

The Usual Family Mayhem by HelenKay Dimon is a quick quirky read about family relationships. It uses humor, romance, and drama to bring the story to life. You'll enjoy the character dynamics and the uniqueness each of them bring to the story. It is a fun clever story about how a little misunderstanding can lead to the wrong assumptions. It is also about how family always looks out for each other regardless of circumstance. You'll enjoy this if you like strong family dynamics, romance, drama, and little mystery thrown in.

Thanks to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager for the advanced copy.

⭐ 4
🌶️ 0
📚 Tropes/Themes: snarky banter, mystery, cozy, childhood friends to lovers
👀 Single POV 1st person
🩷 Something I enjoyed: The self deprecating humor
🧠 Triggers: vigilante justice, mentions of DV in the past, murder
🛍️ Available: Now!

💬 This was a great read. The plot is hilarious and the kisses are swoony. I really love the sarcasm and witty banter. Jackson is a pretty great character, but Gram and Celia are the star of the show in my opinion. I’m pretty torn on the FMC though, Kasey. She is simultaneously endearing and annoying as shit.

I think it boils down to her being an immature character, but I think that was the point? It’s probably because of the stage of life she’s in where she's sort of lost and listless and starting over a little bit. But there's something about it that I cannot suspend reality enough to find her believable. And I understand her hesitation with her grandmother and her partner, but she just is really immature and childish.

Add to that the fact that she never fesses up to her grandmother and her grandmother's partner until she's busted- I think was supposed to be funny, or comic relief? Or maybe just her overbearing boss is a commentary on women and male dominated industries? Either way it just made me so unbearably uncomfortable LOL.

I will say the ending/comeuppance was pretty delicious.

Despite what I’ve said about Kasey’s character, I still think this is a solid read that most readers will enjoy so I recommend it.

This book made me think of old Cary Grant movies. Think Arsenic and Old Lace with a little bit of Philadelphia Story.

Kasey tends to jump before she looks; boy, did she land in it this time. Now she has to go home and explain to her Grandma and Celia why her boss wants to invest in their small bakery—something they do not want. Of course, when she gets home, she jumps into a mystery. Why are Grandma and Celia being secretive? Why do they have locks on some of the ingredients? Why did a client's husband pass away after getting a pie delivery? And why was there a star by the order?

This book has Romance, Mystery, and Comedy. Perfect for a Cozy Mystery Read.

Funny. Quirky. Family closeness with problems. Misunderstandings. Two very sharp older women and a semi-clueless granddaughter. Pull them all together and there is a wonderful story plus a little mystery and a long awaited love. Delightful.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

It's been awhile since I've read a mystery and I think this one was just right. I enjoyed all the banter.

Kasey is struggling at her new job a friend got her, so when she is put on the spot in a meeting, to pitch an idea. She pitches an idea however, the idea is to market her grandmother and her partner's baking business. When her boss likes the idea, she must return home and try to subtly tell her grandmother what her pitch was, and don't forget her job is on the line.
When she arrives home, Kasey doesn't have the heart to tell her grandmother or her partner, however, her teen crush Jackson is at home. slowly, that spark comes bac,k and they realize they have feelings for one another. However, Jackson's father hates Kasey and doesn't want his son to get involved with Kasey because he has political aspirations for Jackson.
Although with all of that going on, Kasey's boss shows up and puts more pressure on Kasey and she is stuck between a rock and a hard place. On top of that, Kasey has been snooping in the business and realizes that there might be a lead to deaths around town because their wives bought a package from Gram's business. She must work hard to figure out what her Gram is involved in and settle her feelings with Jackson and then on top of everything, she must figure out what to do with her new job and if she will still have it when all of this is going on.
This is a new cozy mystery to and also a new author to me but, it will not be the last and I loved it! This story had everything mixed into one love, mystery, murder, and then romance all into one!
Thank you, Netgalley Avon and Harper Voyager books for the extraordinary opportunity to read and review this one! I loved it!

I requested this mostly blind, it felt a little dial A for aunties-esque (which was so extra and I loved every minute of it) and so I was curious about this one for sure.

Ultimately I didn't love it. I expected something a bit more light hearted, a romance that I wanted to root for and some sluething on the side for what the family was getting up to and overall it was a little too messy, the romance had no depth and didn't fit/was competing with the mystery and let's be honest the FMC was more than a little insufferable.






Thank you Netgalley, and Avon, and Harper Voyager for the ARC in exchange for my review!

This was a DNF for me. For the most part this was just too predictable and I found the main character to just be kind of whiny and always making bad decisions. It was also more of a romance than I enjoy.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for a honest review.

Rounding up from 3.5 stars.

This old ladies in this book were deeply chaotic in the very best of ways, and I think they’re the strongest part of the story. They have strength and convictions and moxie.

While the mystery elements were interesting. I wish the romance had been equally as strong as those ladies. I didn’t really feel the connection between our leads, and their family histories and the way he knew she’d liked him since she was way too young have me a little bit of an ick.

This was a fun premise and I was excited to read it but I didn’t really enjoy Kasey as a character. I got really frustrated with how much she just couldn’t fess up to her grandmother and “Aunt” about what she did and in doing that just kept making her situation worse. She just couldn’t get her act together and it wasn’t in a fun way. This was just not my cup of tea but the writing was good and I will try another book by this author.
Thanks to Avon and Netgalley for the complimentary copy of this book. All opinions in this review are my own.

✨ Thank you to Avon and HelenKay Dimon for this ARC! ✨

Revenge plus cute sapphic grandmas running a pie business in a small town—sounds like an absolute delight, right? 🍰👵 Unfortunately, this one didn’t quite live up to its incredible premise.

What did you love the most?
I struggled to connect deeply with any of the characters, even the charming grandmas. However, I did enjoy the small-town vibes, the quirky banter, and the themes of found family. That said, everything felt a bit surface-level, leaving me wanting more depth.

Read if you like:
🕵️‍♀️ Cozy mysteries
🏡 Family secrets
🍮 Yummy desserts

🔥 Steam level: Closed-door

How was the romance?
I just couldn’t buy into the romance. The FMC really irked me—her actions often felt immature, and there were some offhand comments about body image and eating disorders that didn’t sit well with me. The romance itself felt clunky and inconsistent, making it hard to get invested in the relationship.

Do you recommend this book?
If you're looking for a story with a similar premise but stronger execution, I’d recommend Dial A for Aunties instead. This book started off hilarious and dramatic but quickly lost its spark, leaving me disappointed. 😕

This was a little cheesy but overall a really fun read.

I loved all of the characters at play here. I LOVED Kasey and Jackson together so much. I loved Gram and Celia. I loved the mystery of it all and the looming deadline that helped move the plot along.

But most of all, I loved that I could feel the personality of each character seeping through the pages. Everyone was so distinctly themselves, that it was easy to follow along and keep reading.

Such a fun time with this book and these characters!

The Usual Family Mayhem is a perfect romcom-cozy mystery that I couldn't put down. As soon as I heard there were sassy grandma's I knew I had to give this book a try and I was not disappointed. I love how lively this book was, full of family hijinks and possibly poisoned pies. This was funny and quirky and a feel good read. I love the dynamic between the main characters and their relationships. Kasey and Jackson are adorable and southern charm is always a plus for me because southern women are full of sass and "Bless your heart's" and I love that. I also adored how they accurately touched on domestic violence issues. Fun read! Looking forward to more from HelenKay Dimon.

P.S. I also listened to the audio, Mia Barron was fantastic!

This is a first by this author for me but definitely won’t be the last!
What a great read! By the third chapter I was all in. It gave me serious Arsenic and Old Lace vibes 😁

Thank you to Netgalley for this arc. This was a cozy mystery. It was very enjoyable and I had a good time reading it.

Huge thank you to Avon for the ARC!

I love HelenKay Dimon books and really enjoyed Moorewood Family Rules and was so excited for this one!

The cover and synopsis sold me entirely! So cute!

While I thought the overall idea was fun, it just didn't work for me as much as I hoped it would. I didn't find myself wanting to pick it up. I'm sure this is just a me issue and not a book issue.

I hope this one is a big hit for many!

Do NOT read this book hungry. When Kasey's career stalls in Washington DC, she heads home to Winston Salem to convince her grandmothers to expand their pie bakery business, while dealing with nosy childhood friend Jackson, who knows Kasey is up to more than she says.

I really loved that this book was about the quiet ways that women take care of themselves and other women, and often in very quiet ways. I will warn readers that Kasey has an incident of horrifying family violence in her history, which I hadn't expected from the book's marketing. But her grandmother Mags and Mag's companion Celia have their own ways of empowering women, as well as encouraging Kasey to enjoy her cupcakes and find her dreams - and so the plot line does become quite empowering.

The book was set in Winston Salem and very specific about the story Dimon is telling - this is a place with North Carolina barbecue, sweet tea and delicious lunch spots. I was also impressed that the book was open and appreciative of Mags and Celia's LGBT relationship. There is far less representation amongst older characters and these sweetly settled, kinder older ladies, were wonderful to see. I also enjoyed the the relationship between Kasey and Jackson. He might be a corporate lawyer (boo, hiss), but he's supportive both of Kasey and of the women, in addition to looking great in a never ending array of suits.

I'd recommend this one to anyone who loves a cozy romance and enjoyed She Doesn't Have a Clue or the novels of Sarah Adams.

The Usual Family Mayhem by HelenKay Dimon centers on Kasey Nottingham, who, in her rush to deliver something for her company, promises them that her grandmothers would be interested in having investors in their small-town pie business. Her boss loves the idea, and sends her home to North Carolina to gather information and pitch the idea to her grandmother, Mags, and her "best friend" Celia.

However, Kasey reads cryptic signs in their records and overhears them having whispered, mysterious conversations, leading her to the conclusion that the business is selling poisonous pies to murder abusive men. Kasey then has to keep this from coming out, balance keeping her job, and deal with her crush turned frenemy, Jackson Quaid, Celia's nephew.

This book was such a cute idea in theory, and definitely a fun read. However, the main character, Kasey, was hard to root for. First, she lied to her company and pitched something she knew her grandmother would never go for, then she consistently avoided telling them anything or telling her boss anything, deciding to put off all decisions in the hopes it would go away. Her "work nemesis" who comes to check on her progress is considered a villain, but honestly, he's entirely right.

I had trouble enjoying the more fun parts of the book because Kasey was so consistently irresponsible and read very young for her age. In the end, everyone saves her, instead of her solving her own problems, but it wraps up happily with her discovering she's able to create a great filing system.

Thank you to NetGalley for this arc! 3/5.