Fierce, feisty Southern women are central to this one and it's a quick paced, charming read that happily takes down some toxic men. Great dialogue.

This was so much fun and I really hope it becomes a series! If it does, then this was the perfect way to set it up. I loved all the characters and there was just the right amount of drama and tension to make everything fun.

I’m really relishing the cozy mystery genre with a romance subplot, and this read was a great time! I particularly enjoyed the Winston-Salem, NC setting (tarheel born and bred gal myself) in addition to the vigilante slant of two southern grandmother bakers. Gram and her live-in partner, Celia, have escaped their own deadbeat husbands and achieved financial freedom with their baking business. But when Gram’s granddaughter, Kasey comes home to pitch an investment deal to expand the bakery, she stumbled into locked cabinets, hushed conversations, and ‘secret’ deliveries to customers whose husbands end up dropping dead. Concerned that Gram and Celia might be in legal trouble, Kasey forgers her childhood long-term crush, Jackson, to don their amateur sleuth hats to get to the bottom of this mystery before the police are involved.

The FMC, Kasey, has a curious + chaotic energy that I easily related to, and I really enjoyed the romantic tension between her and Jackson, who is her steady + practical opposite. With a great balance of humor, family secrets/drama, and “it’s always been you” vibes, I loved this fast-paced and fun new release! Narrator, Mia Barron, did a great job capturing the rollercoaster of action, suspense, and witty voice of Kasey!

Thank you to Avon and NetGalley for the advance digital ARC, and to HarperAudio via the LIBRO.fm program for my gifted audiobook copy.

Kasey is not doing well at her job - in fact she’s not even really sure what she’s supposed to be doing. So she packs her bags and heads to North Carolina to visit her grandmother, the woman who raised her. Once there she becomes suspicious that Gram and her partner Celia are poisoning awful men in town via the pies they make. All sorts of mayhem ensues.


I decided to DNF at 38%. I loved the premise but it didn’t deliver. The FMC wasn’t very likable; it felt like she loved creating chaos but no one really called her on it? Also there were so many vague plots - poison, Harlan, Kasey’s job, the pie company, dating…and I just wasn’t invested in any of them. I was never sure where it was going, I didn’t buy that Kasey and Jackson would have or develop feelings for one another, and I felt tired keeping up with Kasey’s exploits.

It might better appeal to those who enjoy cozy mysteries.

I liked the idea of this more than the execution. There was nothing glaring but it just didn't make a lot of sense. I kept wanting Kasey to just tell the truth. The cozy mystery vibes were ok but something just didn't click for me. Hope you have better luck!

The Usual Family Mayhem comes out next week on March 11, 2025 and you can purchase HERE.

"Running is like kale and quinoa. You've all convinced yourselves you like these things because someone told you that you should, but there's no way any sane person would partake in any of those choices absent undue pressure or the threat of bodily harm.

Revenge is a dish best served cold—especially when it comes in the form of one of Grandma’s “special” pies. Get the best of family hijinks, girl power, and hilariously justifiable crime

I went into this book completely blind and had such a fun time. I love the way the romance unfolded and thought their ending was really well done. The family dynamics were the best part of this book. Their conversations really gave “real life” for me.

Read if you like:
- Romance
- Mystery-ish
- Domestic violence rep

Thank you so much to Avon and NetGalley for allowing me to be an early reader. All thoughts are my own.

Oh my goodness this book really does have everything: potentially murderous grandmas (complimentary), horrendous and despicable men (derogatory), a gal clueless about ~feelings~ a la an Ali Hazelwood or Sally Thorne character, dessert descriptions that made me want to go to a bakery asap, adventure and mystery, love and comfort, and so much banter I was laughing my way through this book!!

HelenKay has created delightfully strange and brave characters and I love them all and want to protect them from the horrors that persist while also bowing down to them for the steps they take! Clueless but clever Kasey is such a fun protagonist’s head to live in, with her running sarcastic thoughts to her wild theories. Clearly yearning for Kasey is Jackson, and oh my goodness what a sweet and dependable boy he is! Grandmas Mags and Celia are tough broads with gentle spirits, and they deserve all the happiness life can bring after surviving through to this point. This world and these characters were so richly created and all I felt was joy while reading!!!

Thanks so much to HelenKay Dimon, Avon, and NetGalley for a chance to read in exchange for an honest review.

A fun little mystery about some baking grannies. Over all I enjoyed the plot of this book, but felt the synopsis gave away a little too much and stole some of the mystery. I found the romance aspect to have a fair amount of miscommunication which is not my favorite. Also, just as a heads up it is a closed door romance.

Thank you to Netgally for providing this ARC.

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This had a fun premise that reeled me in right away. I think some parts are a bit hard for me to get through but it was still a fun read.

Since dropping out of law school, Kasey has been struggling to find her place in the world & hold on to a job at the same time. While sitting in a meeting at her current place of employment she inadvertently pitches her grandmother’s bakery business as something the company can invest in & her boss loves it and sends her home to close the deal. Now she’s back home, avoiding telling her gram about the deal she’s supposed to be brokering, while trying to figure out why everyone is acting so weird. Can she survive the chaos of being home or will she finally lose it?

I was in the mood for a lighthearted cozy mystery and this book definitely delivered. I absolutely loved Kasey. She was strong, sarcastic, kind, loving and extremely relatable.
Her character proved that it’s okay to not have it all figured out & that you can always change your course if the one you’re on isn’t suiting you. And then there was Jackson who completely balanced her out without her even realizing it. Without him, I feel like the story would’ve fallen flat. Definitely one of those books where I wouldn’t be mad if it got turned into a cozy little series.

***Thank you #NetGalley and Avon Publishing for providing an ARC for my honest opinion***

The Usual Family Mayhem by Helen Kay diamond, I in no way liked Casey’s perpetual damsel in distress and woe is me personality. let me list the things she couldn’t do; describe and or do her job, having an adult conversation, be honest with her grandmother and aunt, think for herself, bake, cook or basically any thing attached to being an adult. it almost seems absurd that these two poised southern women raised her because they are so conpedent and she is so not. don’t even get me started on how the Taseturn Jackson, would even be attracted to this bumbling idiot. It takes so long for her to even tell her Gram and aunt Cecilia why she is even there and the only reason they do find out is because her boss’s shows up due to her not responding to their calls. I have read other books by this author and found them hilarious and all so worth reading but sadly this one was not. I will still read her books in the future but as for this one I wouldn’t recommend it. #NetGalley, #TheBlindReviewer, #MyHonestReview,#HelenKDiamond, #TheUsualFamilyMayhem,

To save her job, Kasey Nottingham needs to come up with a good idea for her work that invests in the "next best things." With nothing else on her mind, Kasey pitches her grandmother and Celia's small baking business, Mags Desserts. Surprisingly, Kasey's boss eats it up and sends her to broker the deal.

But when Kasey gets back home, she notes some oddities in the business, including some recent clients' husbands ending up dead. Teaming up with her childhood crush Jackson (Celia's nephew), Kasey aims to find out what is going on. And maybe finally get closer to Jackson.

This novel was a super quick and cozy read. I would have given it a higher rating if it had pulled more toward the mystery side. It felt like the romance aspects and mystery aspects were pulling the storyline in different directions at times. Other than that, it was a thoroughly enjoyable book that even had me laughing out loud at some points.

Thank you to Avon Books, Haper Voyager, NetGalley, and HelenKay Dimon for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Usual Family Mayhem takes your usual rom-com and mystery and twists them into a fun romp.

Kasey tries to save her job by pitching her beloved grandmother's pie company as a possible franchise... then she has to go home and see if she can convince them to bite. Before she brings it up, she gets suspicious of husbands dying after eating their pies. Throw in some family squabbles, unrequited crushes, and corporate backstabbing, and you've got a fun book.

Kasey is a flighty FMC, but her heart is in a good place, and it's easy to root for her. Her grandmother and her partner are HILARIOUS. I also love the banter with Jackson.

The corporate backstabbing and philandering politician father are a bit annoying-- but don't detract from the enjoyment as a whole.

Really enjoyed this one!

The Usual Family Mayhem by HelenKay Dimon is a wildly entertaining dive into the chaos of a dysfunctional family. Packed with drama, secrets, shifting alliances, and plenty of backstabbing, this family is anything but ordinary. Amidst all the madness, there are a few standout characters who break the mold and fight to carve their own paths. It’s messy, hilarious, and completely addictive. I couldn’t put it down!

I really liked Moorewood Family Rules, so I was hopeful for this one, but I soon realized it was more cozy than I typically like and didn’t have the humor and bite that made Moorewood Family Rules fun. Probably will stick to the author’s thrillers under her pen name. DNF at 21%.

The Usual Family Mayhem is a cozy mystery with a side of romance. The title for this book does not fail to deliver on the mayhem. Kasey is chaos and mayhem. She somehow gets herself into a situation at work by telling her boss that she has an idea for a business acquisition, a bakery run by her grandmother, Mags, and her best friend, Celia. Of course they have no interest in selling.

She returns to her small town in North Carolina to talk to them about the situation she got herself into but everyone is suspicious about her return…assuming that she is in a mess or going to cause one. Which is accurate.

While Kasey is home she starts to suspect that her Mags and Celia are in the business of selling “special” pies leading her to start snooping around. And there is also her long standing crush on Celia’s nephew, Jackson. He tries to be the voice of reason for Kasey but isn’t always successful.

I enjoyed the author’s writing style. This was a fun and cute read with banter among all the characters and Kasey’s chaotic schemes. That said there were some heavier topics that were touched on so check the CW more details.

Read this if you enjoy:
cozy mysteries
slow burn
family drama
pies and scones
closed door romance

Sugar-Coated Shenanigans Abound in The Usual Family Mayhem

Kasey is on her last chance at her business investment firm in DC. She has never been able to hold a job and has no idea what her role is even supposed to be. So when she’s put on the spot to come up with a pitch to save her skin, our babbling & bubbly lead panics: She suggests investing in Mags’ Desserts, her family’s pie business back home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

There’s just one problem, though. Her gram, Magnolia, and her partner, Aunt Celia, would never sell and can spot bullshit coming a mile away. But Kasey keeps her half-promises and even-less-than-half-truths coming and she winds up in a tangled web of her own making. Especially when Kasey’s longtime crush, Jackson, fans old flames and gets far too involved with her business for comfort. Especially, especially, when she catches whispers of Gram and Celia serving poisoned pies to abusive husbands who wind up dead. Whew, girl, what mess has Kasey got herself into?

As someone blessed with a formidable grandmother, as well as a dear friend (RIOTUS’ own Sherin) who is from Winston-Salem and now lives in DC, The Usual Family Mayhem was destined to be a big hit with me. I couldn’t resist this title and, if you’re into the family business of vigilante justice with a dash of cinnamon, you won’t be able to resist either.

Kasey is undeniably chaotic, often frustrating but always hilarious as she collects fibs like Pokémon and leaves them trailing behind to bite her in the ass every time. Jackson is a charming love interest, balancing out Kasey with calm confidence but truly coming alive when they’re together. And his father Harlan is a great antagonist, as smooth-talking as a politician and just as sneaky. Coupled with Kasey’s too-big-for-their-boots investment firm, who comes knocking at the most inconvenient times, and you’ve got yourself a recipe for disaster; the suits will trigger your squeamish side as they try to slimeball their way in.

But it’s the star bakers who steal the show: Gram is the Southern lady with all the sass and knowledge of “proper” etiquette to weaponize it to the greatest effect. Celia is the calming presence at her side, plying others with sweet treats to remind them of who they’re dealing with. Watching them conspire and strengthen one another will make you want to call the matriarchs in your own life; Kasey is lucky to have them.

The twists take unexpected and highly enjoyable routes as nothing is as it seems and the messes grow more and more unhinged. The payoff at the end might not have quite the sugar rush you were hoping for but the recipe is still sweet and delicious. Author HelenKay Dimon’s writing is witty and sharp, keeping you on your toes while also letting you in on the jokes, even if the characters haven’t caught up yet. I giggled the whole way through. There are also some darker emotional moments that serve to make the characters more endearing, placed well within the overall amusing narrative.

The Usual Family Mayhem is a delightful read that mixes family, murder-mystery, and romance and serves it up with a side of pecan pie (or apple, or lemon icebox, or coconut cream—whatever your heart desires). Dig in and enjoy!

What a fun quirky, cozy mystery! This is a great read when you want a mystery but also some laughs and romance. I loved the characters, especially Gram and Celia. The banter was laugh out loud. This was my first read of Dimon's and won't be my last.

Read if you like:
🥧 Banter similar to Gilmore Girls
🥧Cozy Mystery
🥧Romance
🥧Strong characters
🥧Yummy desserts

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
This book was a perfect mix of mystery and romance and was overall a fun read! I loved each of the characters (with the exception of you know who) but the characters i hated are meant to be disliked so they’re written well as well. The plot was well paced and so good. Thank you for my eARC!

This was a lot of fun. In one sentence, it's about mischievous older women baking pies that may or may not contain poison.

When Kasey piques the interest of her bosses in a frantic sales pitch, she accidentally brings them to her hometown. She also manages to do this just before she starts to suspect that her grandmother and her grandmother's partner, Celia, may be involved in the deaths of terrible men in their town. As she investigates these shenanigans, she enlists the help of Celia's son, Jackson, for whom she has harbored feelings for years.

I don't know how much more I can say without spoiling anything, but this book was entertaining. It was sweet to see Kasey and Jackson's relationship unfold, and I adored how many of the characters really had each other's backs throughout.

It was a fun read, but I found a few sections slow. I feel it was missing something, but I'm unsure what.

In half stars, I would give this a rating of 3.5 stars.