This book was a bit unexpected and strange even after reading the synopsis prior and it was difficult to get into the story.

I enjoyed this unique premise and the quirky characters. We get to experience the story through several points of view. There is Joy, who is somewhat unreliable for various reasons. I spent most of the book trying to make sense of what was happening to her and trying to decide how to feel about the choices she made. Then twin sisters Cassie and Andie are also in the rotation with two distinct personalities. I was rooting for them both. The detective who is called on to help figure out what happened to Joy has her own chapters as well. I was less interested in those parts other than getting an outsider's perspective on The Moody Family. I've never thought of a laundromat as being a cozy setting, but this story makes it seem like a special place. The plot isn't cozy...It's actually pretty disturbing, but the setting was cute! Joy Moody is Out of Time has a similar feeling to Lenny Marks Gets Away With Murder but it's not quite as dark.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the review copy!

I absolutely loved Lenny Marks Gets Away With Murder, so I was thrilled to see that Kerryn had a new book coming out. Joy Moody Is Out of Time had the great writing and deeper topics that I loved in Lenny Marks with a fresh story that kept me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end.

I thought that the characters of Joy and her twin daughters Cassie and Andie were so well constructed, and I loved that the story felt like it had two distinct acts. This was a really unique book and I'm glad I read it. It was sad and yet also uplifting, and it handled the crime elements and heavier topics with care.

Annie Maynard is such a dynamic narrator. She is so easy to listen to and I had to wait to read this book until I could get the audio, knowing Annie would knock it out of the park.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio for the gifted copies. All thoughts are my own.

Hilarious, interesting, and kept me up reading late into the night to finish. Joy is my kind of character for when I'm in the mood for lighthearted reading. The storyline is full of life challenges. The writing is polished and engaging. I'm a fan!
Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an e-arc. FUN book!

A woman hides a terrible secret in order to protect the twins she’s raised. When she dies unexpectedly, the twins must piece together the truth by sifting through the lies their mother told them and figure out what’s fact and what’s fiction—literally. Author Kerryn Mayne is back with likeable characters in a heartfelt drama that doesn’t quite hit the mark with its plot in Joy Moody is Out of Time.

In the Melbourne suburb of Bayside, Joy Moody has been running her wildly successful laundromat, Joyful Suds, for more than two decades with the help of her twin daughters, Cassie and Andie. The girls have spent their entire lives folding sheets, keeping track of customer tabs, and making sure the vending machine is stocked. With Joy’s strict rules that prevent the twins from going out or making many friends, there’s really nowhere else for them to devote their energy and time.

But that’s okay. The girls have a secret that Joy shared with them when they were 10. They’re actually here from the future. In the year 2050, a terrible global conflict has erupted and the world’s scientists needed a way to keep their children safe. They sent their kids back to the past so they can grow up and prepare for the revolution that will bring justice.

Andie and Cassie have spent their whole lives getting ready for the fight. Joy never let them have any digital devices; they weren’t even allowed to watch TV. Instead, she homeschooled them in all the important academic subjects and made sure they have good ethics. The scientists of the future will need people ready to join a battle of the minds, and even though the thought terrifies the twins they’ve done everything they can to be ready.

Joy herself is terrified for very different reasons. She’s the only one who knows the truth about the girls’ origins, although there’s no way she’ll ever reveal that truth. She just keeps telling them they’ll travel back to the future on their 21st birthday, and their parents will be coming back to pick them up.

Except on the day of Cassie and Andie’s birthday, the most unexpected thing happens: without warning Joy dies, leaving the girls totally at a loss as to how to navigate the world. Andie is angry, because she’s long suspected that Joy has been lying to them about who they are. Cassie is bereft, grieving the loss of her mother and also suspicious that Andie has lied to her. Then the police show up claiming a crime was committed at Joyful Suds, and the girls suddenly realize they’re not just out of their depth—they’re adrift at sea.

Author Kerryn Mayne’s second book has all the hallmarks of her first, Lenny Marks Gets Away with Murder. Both books offer characters who immediately endear themselves to readers. Mayne’s knack of writing strong characters with clear voices and compelling conflicts will hold her in good stead for a long career.

Joy’s agony over what she’s hiding from the twins rings with authenticity, and the entire world of Joyful Suds and the little street where the laundromat sits feels lived in. Mayne has no trouble mining her real life living in the suburbs of Melbourne in creating believable settings that make her novels three-dimensional.

This book struggles at times with the core plot, however. Cassie and Andie spend almost too much time trying to figure out Joy’s secrets, and the resolution of the conflict comes faster than the pacing of the rest of the book. Mayne’s breezy voice will reassure readers from the outset that all will be well in the end, yet some readers will probably wish the author had made the characters work a little harder to get to that positive conclusion.

With a unique premise, no doubt readers would have been willing to wait a little longer for some parts of the story to be developed more. The entire subplot with Britney White needed a little longer to simmer as did the troubles with Uncle Grant. The shopkeepers next to Joyful Suds are absolutely delightful, and some readers might feel a little put out that there isn’t more of them on the page. Had Mayne not bounced back and forth between Joy and both twins for point-of-view chapters, the novel might have moved along at a more even pace and built up even more dramatic impact.

Pacing aside, the book is a great read about small-town secrets and drama. Those who enjoy novels with those things at their core will like this one.

Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I think I may have found a book with the quirkiness was just too much, which is unfortunate as I really enjoyed the author's last book. The beginning part of the story dragged on and on and then the ending felt very rushed. While there was certainly an emotional payoff at the end of the book, I just did not connect much with the main characters and the side characters were not developed enough to become fully engaged. While the story was interesting and unique, I was not as invested as I had hoped.

I am so sad giving this book only 3 stars. I absolutely adored Lenny Marks to the point it's one of my top books - like ever. That may have caused me to overhype my expectations of this one. Unfortunately, this book just left me feeling depressed. Joy was just not successful as a morally gray "likable" or "understandable" character. I just felt ick at the end.

How would you react if your mom told you that you're actually from the future?

That's exactly what Joy Moody has told her daughters since they were old enough to understand it. And they've done their best to keep this secret. But getting older can make one want to push boundaries, so you can imagine what may come. Meanwhile, Joy has also told them that on their upcoming 21st birthday they will go back to the future.

Bizarre right? I promise it will all make sense. If you're looking for a quirky, quiet novel with some unexpected twists then this is one to watch for. Publishing in August 2025, Joy Moody is Out of Time is the newest book from the author of Lenny Marks Gets Away With Murder, I'd recommend adding it to your tbr list now so you don't forget!

For much of their lives, Joy has been lying to Cassie and Andie. What started as a colorful tale to explain how the twins came to live with her grew over the years. She meant to tell the truth.
Joy really did think she had more time. But, Joy is struggling to define the truth from the lies. Why is she struggling? The girls have been told they are vital to the future and must stay hidden to stay safe.
Joy has told them that their impending twenty-first birthday is significant; their parents will come for them from the future and take them to the future. The twins will step into their roles as leaders of a revolution in 2050. On Andie and Cassie’s birthday, Joy Moody is found dead and her girls face a world they are not prepared for without their mother. What will the twins do?

The author writes a compelling mystery with a bittersweet story about misguided love. Joy is equal parts infuriating and admirable, but isn’t able to tell the twins the truth. The author writes a
delicate line between light and dark; even when the storyline seems bright and funny. By turns quirky and suspenseful, I found myself intrigued wanting to know more about Joy and the twins.

Joy Moody is out of time and I am out of patience.
I feel like I've been catfished. Please know, this could absolutely be a me problem, but I could not get into this book at all. And I tried a few times before deciding to throw in the towel. This just wasn't my cup of tea, and that's ok.

Thank you St. Martin’s and NetGalley for this ARC!

Joy Moody is Out of Time was an interesting story. It took a bit for me to get into the story but once I was, I had to keep reading to figure out what was going to happen. I enjoyed the layer of mystery of the story had and a kooky cast of characters. I didn’t necessarily like the alternating timelines and multiple POVs but understood it was necessary for the plot. I rated this story 3.5/5. Overall, it was good but the ending was my favorite.

Kerryn Mayne has a way of writing stories that seem like simple mysteries on the surface but dig much deeper than you are expecting them to. This one follows identical twins, Cassie and Andie. They have grown up knowing that they were from the future and would be called back to save the world on their 21st birthday. What they don't expect is for their adoptive mother, Joy, to drop dead on said birthday. This is a tough book to review. I enjoyed it; however, it was different from so many others I have read. There are a lot of layers to the novel that I didn't expect. Joy was tough to like and yet you somehow end up feeling for her in the end. She makes you question what you would do in her situation as a mother. This is a story about sisterhood and family. The ways in which these girls look out for one another was so heartwarming. There are quirky, delightful neighbors and several mysteries at the core of the plot. All in all, I would recommend this one for anyone looking for something truly different. I have enjoyed this author twice now and will continue to recommend her in the future.

I had mixed feelings about Joy Moody Is Running Out of Time. The beginning was a real struggle for me. It started off slow and I found it hard to connect with the characters or the pacing. Honestly, I almost put it down, but I’m glad I pushed through because the middle section of the book really picked up. That’s where I finally started to feel more invested in Joy’s story and where the themes became more engaging.

That said, the twists didn’t do much for me. They were easy to see coming, and I was hoping for a few more surprises along the way. Still, even if the plot felt predictable, the subject matter carried weight. The book touches on some very heavy topics, especially mental illness and assisted suicide, and those parts really made me stop and reflect. I appreciate when a story pushes me to think about issues outside my comfort zone, even if the execution isn’t perfect.

I came into this one with really high expectations after loving Lenny Marks, and maybe that’s part of the problem. I kept waiting for that same spark, but it just never quite reached the same level for me. While I didn’t love it as much as I hoped, it wasn’t a bad read — just not the standout I wanted it to be.

If you’re interested in books that take on difficult topics with some heart, this is worth a read but go in knowing it’s a slower start and not as twisty as it tries to be.

Overall, I give this story 3/5 stars and recommend it for people who enjoy less known, quirky novels.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this free digital arc in exchange for my unbiased review.

I can’t recommend this book. It’s very meh. Not funny, suspenseful or intriguing. It earns three stars because the characters are well developed and the writing proficient.
Joy Moody is raising twin girls in her Laundromat nearly cutting them off from the rest of the world. Now they’re almost 21, the time they’re destined to return and battle for the world’s freedom. (This storyline would likely be more interesting). But it’s all an elaborate lie Joy told them for over a decade to isolate them. This was disturbing to me and bordered on child abuse in my opinion. When Joy suddenly dies and the girls discover the truth they must find their own way forward.

This book was just not for me. I actually hated it.
I won't be leaving a review anywhere as I don't want to possibly ruin it for others who may love it.

Joy Moody is Out of Time
August 19,2025 Publish Date - OUT NOW!!

What a book full of family - even if you make your own family and to what lengths you will go to protect them even making a fantasy tale which becomes your truth.

A mom named Joy has twin girls who she decides to teach at home at the laundromat she owns and runs with them and she is preparing them to be time travelers to save the world with their brains. Joy is so prepared that when they turn 21 she has it all covered for them when they travel to the future or will they? Who know what she is keeping the girls safe from ??? Is it her world she made herself or was it her brain tumor that blurred the lines and made her give such a mixed up view of the world or is it something she did in the past she is protecting them from..

I loved getting to know her quirky neighbors and how they made their own family and loved each other and protect each other throughout the story. I wish we had gotten more of the neighbors stories - I really loved Monty and would like to have seen more of his story with Joy and their early relationship but maybe Joy was closed off when things got real with him.

This book is divided in 4 parts: - Life in a Laundromat, Death in a Laundromat Dear Customer (see the acknowledgement page) and the Under New Management with the epilogue.. The book is a good quick read about family, death, love and how we all want to protect our found family - which isn't family just that - the people we find and love!! I like how this book wraps everything up and I could see this laundromat family in a city near me. Go read this book and find out how Joy decides to protect her girls and how love will win in the end.

Thank You to Kerryn Mayne and St. Martin’s Press for the gifted ARC provided through NetGalley.

This pains me to write. I loved the author’s previous book, Lenny Marks Gets Away with Murder. I was excited to get an early audiobook copy of this book, which had been on my radar for months. Unfortunately, the book was a total miss for me.

The entire premise is implausible. We’re supposed to believe that the twin young women, soon to turn 21, are completely naive and wholly gullible. This might have worked if they’d been raised by Joy in a rural area, where the twins had no contact with anyone or anything outside of Joy’s control. But they live in a normal town, listen to current music, read books, talk to people, and interact with the world. Keeping them away from TV and homeschooling absolutely does not account for, well, any of what follows.

Pacing is slow, and I almost gave up early on. I should have, to be honest. Around the halfway mark, things start happening that further stretch plausibility. And worse, we learn things about Joy that make her impossible to empathize with.

Plus, there are plot holes galore. The twins’ birth was never recorded. They have no birth certificates. So did they never go to a doctor? Never get vaccines? Did Joy not have one single acquaintance that questioned the twins’ sudden appearance? Did they never require an ID for anything? They didn’t want to drive, like normal kids? They simply accepted the bizarreness of their mother’s rules? And why not just tell the twins they were adopted? Why create such an elaborate and ridiculous story? Ugh. (END SPOILER)

Okay, I’m done ranting.

Annie Maynard does a great job narrating the audiobook, which is really the only thing that kept me engaged.

Thanks to Minotaur Books for my gifted copy that I read on one of my flights last week. I started with the audio (thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley), with great narration by Annie Maynard, but I wasn’t quite sure what was happening at the beginning, so I followed along in the book while also listening. This is one of my favorite ways to experience a book - the mix of narration and reading helps me get invested in a book more easily, especially in a distracting environment like a plane durig takeoff!
Joy Moody is an interesting character - she runs the laundromat Joyful Suds with her daughters in a beach town in Australia. She aims to provide the best experience possible for her clientele, maybe going a little overboard with some things. But that’s how Joy is - she goes a little overboard, including in the raising of the twin girls. She has told them they are from the future, preparing them to travel to their birth year of 2050 when they turn 20. There are, of course, reasons for Joy’s seemingly unhinged ideas, but you have to read the book to see the layers peeled back little by little.
I really enjoyed this book, similar to the author’s debut last summer, Lenny Marks Gets Away With Murder. The main character in both is a bit unusual, intriguing the reader to continue reading to find out why. The first 70ish pages of the book were a bit slower paced, but once I was about 25% in, I was hooked and had to finish reading it!

𝐉𝐎𝐘 𝐌𝐎𝐎𝐃𝐘 𝐈𝐒 𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄 is a quirky, unconventional domestic crime novel with a lighter tone. Strange happenings unfold at Joyful Suds Laundromat, making for an offbeat and engaging story.

I was equally charmed and exacerbated by the elements of this book.

- An utterly "out there" tale.
- A love her/hate her character.
-Secrets lurking beneath the surface
- An unbelievable yet possibly believable scenario

Recommended for readers who enjoy unique, unconventional fiction featuring medium-paced family stories with quirky characters and gentle mysteries.

READ: Concurrently in print (thank you for the finished copy) and audio (@macmillianaudio) I thoroughly enjoyed the Australian accent on the audio narration.

This is a nice blend of family drama, unique characters, and mystery to create an enjoyable read. There are a few unexpected twists, too. Numerous cliffhangers throughout the story keep readers turning the pages. Characters are flawed and relatable. I've never read anything by this author, but I'm likely to check out future books.