If you are hoping this book is as riveting as Hidden Pictures, you might be disappointed. In this story we are following Frank as he reconnects with his daughter prior to her wedding. Frank, a blue collar UPS driver, attends the wedding for his daughter and realizes she is marrying into a VERY wealthy family. This story has a lot of great elements but fell a little bit flat for me. It has a semi-unreliable narrator in Frank, who somehow is like a combo of a sitcom dad and Liam Neeson’s character in Taken, and a real jerk. I was impressed by how complex Frank was as a character as it made him feel more real. The story also has a LOT of rich people behaving badly - that is essentially the entire plot of the story. I was surprised by some of the smaller plot twists at the end but this book didn’t quite hit the mark for me.

I squealed in excitement when I received the ARC for The Last One at the Wedding by Jason Rekulak. The audio narration for the eboak is by John Pichalla and he just absolutely NAILED the role of the dad, Frank. Totally brought that character to life for me.

Frank gets a call from his estranged daughter, Maggie, with an invite to her upcoming wedding. They haven't spoken in years and Frank is eager to get back into Maggie's life and right the past wrongs.

Maggie is secretive, and Frank learns that she's marrying the son of a tech billionaire. Family drama ensures, with mysterious conversations, family secrets, and trouble.

I think honestly that the narration made the entire book and kept me engaged. Having the point of view through Frank was very cool and his voice was so real that it honestly felt like it was a person you knew telling you what was happening to them. He had the old man vibe down pat. There was of course turns and twists, with family secrets, wedding drama, and a touch of domestic suspense.

If you enjoyed Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak, you're going to love this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Releases October 8, 2024!

I gave The Last One at the Wedding by Jason Rekulak 4 out of 5 stars. This novel brilliantly combines suspense, family drama, and mystery, all set against the backdrop of an extravagant wedding weekend. The protagonist, Frank Szatowski, is trying to reconnect with his estranged daughter, Maggie, after three years of silence, but things take a dark turn when he starts to suspect that her fiancé, Aidan, may not be who he seems. Rekulak masterfully builds tension throughout, with layers of secrets slowly unraveling until the final twist.

Jason Rekulak's first novel "Hidden Pictures" was is one of my favorite triller books, so I couldn't wait to read "The Last One at the Wedding". This book was perfectly done with twist after twist. The narration was perfectly done, and kept listening. I couldn't stop listening! This is sure to be one of the top thrillers of the year!

I would give this a 3.5-star rating. I found this audiobook entertaining, thanks to the excellent narration. However, I felt the pacing was a bit slow, as I waited for the twist to unfold. While I wasn't a fan of the ending, the storytelling was enjoyable and reminded me of 'The Perfect Couple'—rich individuals attempting to escape from their outrageous antics. Thank you, NetGalley and Macmillan Audio, for this ARC.

This was a slow burn for me. It didn’t start getting too until about 50% into it. It was a good book overall, but a bit predictable and a bit over hyped. I was hoping for something as catching as his first book I’ve read by this author, Hidden Pictures. I really like the narrators voice though.

Dove into this book without even skimming the synopsis and boy was I pleasantly surprised! Jason Rekulak is back at it with this latest entertaining suspense thriller and the unique Father daughter dynamic is truly brought to life through remarkable narration by John Pirhalla!
Excellent characterization of the self righteous loving father who struggles to comprehend his daughter and her flaws. Throughly enjoyed this riveting audio book version.

Thanks to Macmillan Audio for the ARC provided by NetGalley for my honest review.

First, I want to thank MacMillan audio & Netgalley for the advanced listening copy of this book.

This story follows a small town dad named Frank and his estranged relationship with his daughter Maggie. One day Frank receives a call from Maggie inviting him to her wedding. When Frank arrives at the secluded cabin he can sense that something is off above Maggie’s fiancée and his family.

I will say that the first 40-50% of the book was a little bit of a slow burn for me. However, the other half of the book things started to get more interesting.
I really liked Maggie’s aunt Tammy & her adopted daughter. They were both funny and made me laugh multiple times in the book.

I was given an ALC . The narrator was good and I caught myself laughing a few times. I feel like if I had read the physical copy I probably would’ve enjoyed it a little more just because I do enjoy physical books more than audio.

I absolutely loved this read. I never knew what was going to happen next. Each chapter ended with a cliffhanger that kept me wanting to keep reading. It was practically unstoppable (audiobook) or unputdownable (book)! The narrator was engaging and reliable. If you love thrillers this one is fascinating and fun to read! Loved it.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review. The Last One at the Wedding has been hot in social media and I was thrilled to find the audiobook on NetGallery.

Let me start off by saying I did not see the twists coming! I read a lot of thrillers and usually figure out the plot relatively early. Not the case here!

The Last One at the Wedding is a slow burn until about halfway through. The second half of the story kept me guessing and on the edge of my seat. The last chapter was a bit disappointing but overall a worthwhile read!

Narrator was great! Definitely brought all the characters to life and there was a lot of them. This book was a lil disappointing as I thought it would be suspenseful like his first book but this book failed at bringing that suspense to life. Was a slow read but did manage to keep me a bit intrigued to finish it so that's a plus.

The Last One at the Wedding
Jason Rekulak
Pub: 10/8
4☆

Synopsis:
Frank Szatowski is shocked when his daughter, Maggie, calls him for the first time in three years. He was convinced that their estrangement would become permanent. He’s even more surprised when she invites him to her upcoming wedding in New Hampshire. Frank is ecstatic, and determined to finally make things right.

He arrives to find that the wedding is at a private estate—very secluded, very luxurious, very much out of his league. It seems that Maggie failed to mention that she’s marrying Aidan Gardner, the son of a famous tech billionaire. Feeling desperately out of place, Frank focuses on reconnecting with Maggie and getting to know her new family. But it’s difficult: Aidan is withdrawn and evasive; Maggie doesn’t seem to have time for him; and he finds that the locals are disturbingly hostile to the Gardners. Frank needs to know more about this family his daughter is marrying into, but if he pushes too hard, he could lose Maggie forever.


My Thoughts:
I was drawn in right away and even though it’s a slow burn, it holds you in its grips throughout. With its suspense, family drama, and jaw dropping WTF moments, I could not stop listening. I had to know how it all played out. Overall I enjoyed it and can’t wait to go back and read Hidden Pictures.

What I enjoyed;
💍 Slow Burn
💍 Mystery Thriller
💍 Suspenseful
💍 Complicated Families

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the ALC. John Pirhalla’s narration as Frank was so well done and added another layer of palpable tension to the story.

The last one at the wedding. This is story. Of the devotion of parents., sometimes our own children will never appreciate what others find so worthy in us. I became angry with some of the story’s characters. I wanted to just shake these people

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for providing me with an audio galley of this book to listen to and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I heard really great things about another book by this author and thought I'd check out what his writing was about.
I jumped into this one thinking it will be a bit of a mystery, thriller. However, it turned out to be more of a mystery/family drama than anything else. There was no suspense at all. No edge of the seat thriller with this story.
I enjoyed the narrator. He definitely brought the personality of the main character alive. I laughed in many places and was also a bit shocked in others at the things he said or thought. However, I really found the Frank rather chauvinistic and full of entitlement.
The dynamic between the main character, his sister, his daughter, and the other supporting characters was a mix of odd and tender. I didn't relate to any of the characters, though. Nor did I find any of them really likeable so I wasn't truly invested in where this story was going. They were also very underdeveloped.
A lot of craziness happened during the book which I thought for sure would turn it to more of a thriller. But it didn't get there. The mystery was meh at most. I almost felt like this one was more satire than mystery/thriller as it's billed. I was actually a bit bored at times. There seemed to be a lot of repetition happening with the way things would come to fruition. I ended up speeding up the narration as I found myself losing interest less than half way through the book.
And I hated the ending. It just kind of ended with no real true resolution to anything regarding the feelings of the characters. It was totally unfulfilling. Talk about anti-climatic. I almost wonder why the author wrote it in the first place if there wasn't going to be a good wrap up. And don't get me started on the title. I don't even know what it means or how it relates to the story besides there being a wedding in the plot.
All this being said, the book was just not for me. However, given the higher ratings I have been seeing, I seem to be in the minority. After speaking with some other readers who read Hidden Pictures by this author and then this one, I see a tendency to agree this was nothing like the other book. So don't jump into this one thinking it will be similar.

I was given the opportunity from Netgalley to listen to an advanced copy of The Last One at the Wedding by Jason Rekulak, and I loved it!
The story follows a UPS driver named Frank, and his estranged daughter Maggie, who out of nowhere, calls him and invites him to her wedding. A mystery full of toxic relationships and murder, this story is bold, chilling, and anxiety inducing, but such a fun read. Definitely worth your time. The narration was spot on.

This was definitely an interesting one. At no point could I quite tell where this was going, not necessarily a bad thing it kept me interested. It did feel a bit drawn out at times - overall just ok for me, I think I liked his first book better.

I listened to the audiobook version of this book, and it did not influence my opinion in any way.

This is the second book I have read by this author, and although I absolutely loved Hidden Pictures, I have to admit that The Last One at the Wedding was fantastic. I listened to the audiobook version, and the narrator was also fantastic.

While Hidden Pictures was more of a paranormal/scary book, his new book was different in that sense. However, it still had suspense elements that made me a little afraid of the outcome. With unexpected twists and very complicated characters, this book is well-written and fast-paced and keeps you engaged from the beginning to the end.

Thank you, Macmillan Audio and Netgalley, for the Advanced Free Listening Copy, in exchange for an honest review.

I've never been a big fan of books where there's a prominent character who's thoroughly unlikeable. It's even worse here, where we're seeing things through a male chauvinist character's annoying point of view. Why did no one warn me how triggering dad Frank, our first person POV character, would be?

I spent the first few chapters of The Last One at the Wedding thinking he's everything that's wrong with middle class men who ooze indignant entitlement, who wish we could go back to the "great" 1950s where their manly word is never questioned, where their scornful suspicions of everyone not exactly like them are treated like they hold water, and where appearances are so valuable no one's feelings should even be considered. I despised his old school character.

I actively and passionately hated The Last One at the Wedding. I can't even tell you if it was well-written or not, because I was too distracted by mister mansplainy manly man just being his scornful and snide self. It wasn't fun to hate him when he made comments like they're hiring women now too, because of that 'me too' stuff, or when he mistrusted every single person's intentions because only he knows better.

Does he happen to be right about a few things? Yeah, sure, but a story that relies on an Archie Bunker-styled character to solve a couple mysteries is absolutely a no go for me.

The Last One at the Wedding by Jason Rekulak is an upcoming mystery/thriller novel.

Rekulak’s upcoming release is a suspenseful story with an intricate plot that will keep you reading. However, it does not feature any paranormal or bone-chilling aspects in the way that the author’s previous release, Hidden Pictures did.

The Last One at the Wedding follows Frank, a hardworking UPS delivery driver (this was a repetitive thing in the story so I mention it), who receives a call from his estranged daughter inviting him to her wedding to the heir of a billionaire. Frank is thrilled about being invited back into his daughter’s life and tries to be as involved in the wedding as possible. Only when he arrives at the secluded wedding venue does he realize that all might not be as it seems. While Aidan, his daughter’s fiance, seems like a stand-up guy, the characters surrounding him, his family and their billion dollar empire are anything but clear in their intentions.

Frank, being the protective father he is, tries to get to the bottom of all the mystery surrounding Aidan’s family and their history. But he is met with challenge after challenge, including a missing girl, an ill mother and the sense of entitlement that comes with being wealthy.

Rekulak creates a complex and engaging plot in The Last One at the Wedding. The characters in this story are incredibly unlikable and in a thriller, this works really well! I found the story interesting and especially appreciated the commentary on what the rich think they can do because well, money talks.

The Last One at the Wedding releases on October 8th. Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the ALC (advanced listening copy) of this book!

3.5 stars. The Last One at the Wedding is a fast paced thriller about a father (and proud UPS driver) going up against his billionaire in-laws-to-be. Fans of Linwood Barclay will like this one, I think--Frank Szatowski is very similar to Barclay's everyman protagonists suddenly thrown into situations they had never imagined. I enjoyed this book and was thrown for a loop by some of the twists, but I also began to get annoyed with Frank by the end--he is slow to see certain truths that are obvious to the reader. The audiobook narrator did a great job and seemed perfect for Frank's character. Overall very entertaining and a good popcorn thriller--would recommend!