The Bachelorette Party is an enjoyable quick read. Camilla Sten tells the story in two timelines 2012 and 2022. I loved the way she describes the island.

I got some of the characters confused but was able to keep the main storylines separate. I wouldn’t say this was the most unique plot. I do think it makes an easy summer thriller read.

Thank you to NetGalley & St. Martin’s Press | Minotaur Books for letting me read this ARC.

I was VERY skeptical of this when I first started reading it. The Prologue/first chapter was intense & caught the readers attention immediately (in all good ways)!! I was thinking ok the author isn’t messing around here lol. But then how it ended I was thinking “you’ve got to be kidding me?!”. Then we get into the next chapter & we’re faced with the standard storyline of a women’s fancy getaway on some remote island with no phones 🙄🙄 with borderline snobby women. Not my favorite thing to read about because in those types of books most or all of the women are usually incredibly unlikable & it often affects if not ruins the book [for me]. Thankfully it wasn’t what I expected. The book goes back & forth between past & present so the readers still get POV’s from the characters in the prologue which is necessary for the book imo & for me liking the book. I am very impressed at how Sten tied all of the characters & past/present (about a decade of timeline difference) storylines together, and I sure didn’t see that ending coming! Once I was at around 50% or so I couldn’t put the book down!

Random but I do have one question on why & how on one character/couple that I feel will just go unanswered …but I want to talk to someone about it that’s read this😂😂

Thank you so much NetGalley & the publisher St. Martin’s Press for the ARC! I feel like I never get a bad book when it’s backed by St. Martin’s ..so thank you for being a reliable publisher 😏😍

PS How about that gorgeous book cover?! 😍😍💙

Disclaimer: I read for vibes, I don't make predictions. So this was an enjoyable read! Read it in a day. Would recommend for mystery/thriller peeps.

2.5 overall, I wanted to love this but truly I felt like the ending and the twist left something to be desired. The premise follows a group of women in for a bachelorette trip at a luxury getaway, but it so happens to be the same island where a group of women disappeared never to be seen again. The rest divulges into a game of cat and mouse as a killer appears to be on the loose yet again.

Ten years ago, a group of friends went on their annual trip to Isle Blind and never returned home. Now, Anneliese and her friends are celebrating her upcoming marriage on the same island. Will they meet the same fate?

Set between the past and present timelines, we've got a lot to unpack here! There are lots of characters with so much history together that it's a little difficult to keep up with them at first, but once we're really in the story, it all starts to click.
Ten years ago, a group of friends went on their annual trip to Isle Blind and never returned home. Now, Anneliese and her friends are celebrating her upcoming marriage on the same island. Will they meet the same fate?

Set between the past and present timelines, we've got a lot to unpack here! There are lots of characters with so much history together that it's a little difficult to keep up with them at first, but once we're really in the story, it all starts to click.

Tessa, former podcast host, and our POV for the present timelines is such a fascinating lead. Because she knows there's more to the original story than what the press wanted them to believe, she thinks she can solve the cold case and maybe ease some guilt she has over a mysterious event surrounding her shutdown podcast. We're quickly drawn into her feeling that something's off about the island and, suddenly, everyone feels suspicious.

While Tessa is quick to piece together what happened, I wasn't quite as sure. The final reveal turns out to be a lot more complicated than either of us expected.

I loved this thriller, not just for the fact that I could see the movie play out in my head, but because it made me care so deeply about all these characters and their friendships. Everyone here was dynamic and had such a vital role in the mystery and in their shared lives. I sobbed so much knowing how much they fought to survive for each other. I didn't think I'd be so compelled by the love between these women!

The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten has action, jaw-dropping twists, and so many badass women. I can't recommend this book enough.
Tessa, former podcast host, and our POV for the present timelines is such a fascinating lead. Because she knows there's more to the original story than what the press wanted them to believe, she thinks she can solve the cold case and maybe ease some guilt she has over a mysterious event surrounding her shutdown podcast. We're quickly drawn into her feeling that something's off about the island and, suddenly, everyone feels suspicious.

While Tessa is quick to piece together what happened, I wasn't quite as sure. The final reveal turns out to be a lot more complicated than either of us expected.

I loved this thriller, not just for the fact that I could see the movie play out in my head, but because it made me care so deeply about all these characters and their friendships. Everyone here was dynamic and had such a vital role in the mystery and in their shared lives. I sobbed so much knowing how much they fought to survive for each other. I didn't think I'd be so compelled by the love between these women!

The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten has action, jaw-dropping twists, and so many badass women. I can't recommend this book enough.

Gorgeous cover that drew me in immediately. The story left much to discover though and I’m not sure how much I like it.
There was so many similar names that I found myself back tracking and re reading parts to figure things out

I likedThe Bachelorette Party. I didn’t figure out the plot twist. However, I don’t agree with the synopsis that it is Scream and it was confusing at times with the change of narrators. If I like a book I will the but a physical copy. I don’t think I will do it with this one. It was good but not my favorite.

Thank you to NetGalley, Camilla Sten, and St. Martin's Press for the eARC. Wow—this was a fast-paced psychological thriller packed with twists and turns. The remote island setting added the perfect layer of isolation and tension, and the unfolding whodunit kept me completely hooked. An addictive and great read!

I’m not sure if I’m in a thriller slump or if they’re all the same lately.

I don’t feel this story was unique or new in any way. It was the same concept as many locked door or secluded island thrillers out there. I guessed the twist, who was after everyone, even who killed the case from 10 years ago, and that was quite disappointing. I was waiting for a jaw dropping twist but all I got was more cookie cutter story.

Such a pretty cover and the synopsis sounded pretty good. Although I feel like women stuck on an island with no way to contact the outside world or get off the island before the designated time has been way over done, I thought this could be a good story.

Theresa (Tessa) is a podcaster whose career has taken a terrible turn, is headed to an island with 4 of her friends for a bachelorette party. The island is also the location where Tessa believes that 4 women who disappeared 10 years ago, may have been killed.

There were just too many things that I couldn't get on board with so I really never connected with any of the characters. Wish I would have liked it more.

I was thankful to get a digital ARC of The Bachelorette Party for review from Netgalley and St. Martin's Press, and I was so excited to get into it, because I adore a good twisty murder mystery. Shortly after I found myself not in the best headspace for twisty murders and went on a romance binge, so only recently cracked this beauty open. I just finished it, and I loved it!

The prologue begins with four friends during their annual trip to an isolated private island, and then jumps 10 years forward to another group of friends journeying to the same island for a bachelorette get away, including our main character, Tessa. The four friends we started with, Linnea, Matilda, Anna and Evelina have been missing, presumed dead for most of these. The story unfolds, moving back and forth in time showing us the truth to what happened then while the terror slowly grows for Tessa on the island as she attempts to solve the old mystery and revive her podcast career.

One of the things that I love about the story is that as the story unfolds, the reader gets to find out everything. There are no holes in this plot that I noticed, and the writing style is engaging. Even though I started out not in the mood for the genre, it drew me in very quickly. No spoilers here, but I really recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good murder mystery. I was super satisfied with the ending, and all the unraveling leading up to it. One of my favorite things about the book is the exploration of personal accountability, and thoughts about how we move on from mistakes and tragedy. This story has more depth than many, and I'm so glad I had a chance to read it

This was a solid thriller, but I wasn't as connected with the story or characters as I wanted to be. I really enjoyed the writing style, though, and would be interested in reading more from this author!

The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten published on June 10th, 2025 is an atmospheric thriller set mostly in an isolated location, far removed from any form of communication setting the tone for a tense and suspenseful read. In 2012, four women vanish without a trace. A decade later, Tessa, an aspiring crime journalist desperate to revive her career sees an opportunity to dig into the case. But her pursuit of the truth might just cost her life.

The book is fast-paced, well-written, and kept me engaged for the most part. While the twists weren’t entirely unpredictable, I still enjoyed the ride. What held me back from fully loving it was the lack of deeper connection with the characters. Other than Matilda, none of them are given real backstories, including Tessa, who as the protagonist, felt underdeveloped in places.

Also, while the remote, communication-cut-off setting adds to the tension, it’s starting to feel a bit overdone in thrillers. That trope didn’t feel particularly fresh here.

That said, fans of isolated-setting mysteries will likely enjoy this one for its pacing and intrigue.

Thank you to Minotaur Books for the review copy.

I always like a good scary story set in a remote location with no way to get away and The Bachelorette Party delivered what it promised! Great characters that I wanted to hear more from, two mysteries that I wanted to get to the bottom of, great writing, unique plot and an ending I didn't anticipate! This is a must read this summer.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Read if you like:
🍸 LGBTQ+ rep 🌈
🍸 dual timeline
🍸 dual POV
🍸 1st person POV
🍸 creepy island murder scene
🍸 group of friends who-dun-it 🕵🏼‍♀️
🍸 slowww burn

I really enjoyed this book right from the beginning! I was invested almost immediately and I could NOT put it down.
The author did very well with describing the scene and situations; I could very clearly picture exactly what was happening in my head 😁
I absolutely love a dual timeline thriller because it’s like you’re getting little pieces of the story randomly, and it doesn’t all quite make sense until the very end when it all comes together 🩵💙🩵💙 A few times in here I had no idea what was going on (in the best way possible 🤪🤪) and it was so satisfying when it all came together in the end! The ending was shocking and crazy, and I absolutely loved it!
This one was definitely slow to start, but once it did BOY WAS I HOOKED! I could not put it down after the first half!!
Thank you so much to St Martin’s Press and Camilla Stan for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review 🩷🩷

Once again, Camilla Sten proves why she’s an auto-buy author for me!

This is my favorite book by Sten so far! The Bachelorette Party starts off hard and fast, and keeps the pedal on the gas for the rest of the drive. Tessa, a semi-unreliable narrator who is a recently-disgraced true crime podcast creator, agrees to a bachelorette party weekend getaway for her childhood best friend after hearing it’s taking place where an unsolved case took place 10 years ago. While she isn’t really looking forward to celebrating, she *is* looking forward to trying to crack the case wide open and save her reputation. But what started
as an investigation masked as a celebration turns into a fight for survival when one of the bridal party goes missing.

The action, suspense, and fast-moving plot kept me interested, and — there’s no gentle way of saying this — the gruesome deaths felt like an adult version of R.L. Stine’s OG Fear Street novels I devoured as a kid. The culprit wasn’t really a surprise and this dampened the biggest twist, but the plot was so interesting that it didn’t take away from the story for me. Tessa is a bit wishy-washy at times (one minute she’s tough and bitter, then she’s wilting) but that’s part of her character flaws. Sten never paints her to be likable. (*shrug*) Great story from beginning to end and would make a nicely distracting late summer beach read. Just be prepared for a bit of violence and gore, which Sten doesn’t shy away from in her other books, either.

**Thank you, NetGalley and publishers, for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.**

From the opening scene, this novel is gripping. I wanted to know what happened to these characters.

I enjoyed this story, I think the characters introduced to us are relatable and interesting. I think the story buildup on a single location of an island is a great idea. I ate up every bit of this!

I would definitely give this 5 ⭐️ for the cover. I found the premise of the story to be very interesting but I had trouble keeping the characters straight. I do feel some readers would really enjoy so give it a try.

Entertaining but Predictable

The Bachelorette Party is a fast-paced thriller with all the right ingredients for a twisty ride—secrets, tension, and plenty of drama. It kept me turning the pages, and I was definitely curious to see how it would all play out.

That said, the plot felt a bit too familiar at times. While the suspense was there, some of the twists were easy to spot, and I found myself guessing what would happen long before the reveals. There wasn’t much that truly surprised me.

I also struggled to connect with the characters. They were interesting enough to follow, but none of them really stood out or felt fully fleshed out. I didn’t find myself rooting for anyone in particular, which made the emotional stakes feel lower than they could have been.

Still, it’s a decent read if you're in the mood for something light and dramatic with thriller vibes. Just don’t expect it to break the mold.


Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this and I wish I could give it a 3.5 but here we are.
Tessa and her girlfriends created a fun, realistic group dynamic. It was interesting to see the various types of friendships and how they'd ebbed and flowed over time.

...but, I didn't find myself reaching for this. im not sure what it was missing but it just didn't propel itself along, in my opinion.