Such a great read! Loved the characters in this book. I don’t want to give anything away, suffice to say that there are plenty of twists and turns to keep everyone interested. Very enjoyable!

This was a great book. Loved the story behind the creepy island. I liked all the backstory with the characters and how Tessa connected with the island. Loved the flashbacks. A great read!

This atmospheric tale has all the Nordic noir vibes I’m learning I really enjoy! I loved the settling in the Stockholm archipelago, and the dual timeline structure was perfect. Tessa was a character I was very invested in throughout the story, and the author did a wonderful job crafting character dynamics. I will definitely read more from this author.

A twisty locked-room thriller with tropical vibes—perfect for beach days when you want your escape read with a side of suspense.

📖 The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten
Rating: 3.5+⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book was a quick addictive read. I enjoyed it. Dual timelines. Intense, good creep factor, light horror, dark & moody. It’s a Locked room type mystery, so dive in and just go along for the ride.

Think Scream meets I Know What You Did Last Summer with tropical vibes. This would be a good “escape” read on vacation or at the beach if you enjoy a quick mystery thriller during the summer.

And of course I love the cover 🩷

Another book I enjoyed by this author is The Resting Place. Also dual timelines and set at a strange, atmospheric and eerie estate. Perfect for a Fall read with its unique plot and wintery setting.

In The Bachelorette Party, Tessa joins a yoga retreat on a remote Swedish island to celebrate her best friend’s wedding. What should be a peaceful getaway turns tense when a guest goes missing and dark secrets from the past come to light. With no cell service and devices confiscated, the group is completely cut off—creating a perfect locked-room mystery.

The moody, haunting landscape heightens the tension, and the story’s shifts between past and present slowly reveal the characters’ hidden truths. Tessa is a compelling, flawed protagonist who keeps you engaged right through to the shocking and satisfying conclusion.

Read this if you like:
• Moody, isolated island settings that feel like a character of their own
• Locked-room mysteries where escape isn’t an option
• Past-and-present storytelling that gradually unearths long-buried secrets
• Shocking, well-earned endings that truly deliver
• Female-driven thrillers with layered relationships and dark undercurrents
• Complex themes like trust and betrayal, past trauma and redemption, secrets and hidden identities, isolation and suspense, revenge and justice, and the complicated nature of female friendship and rivalry
• Authors of atmospheric psychological thrillers with twists, like Ruth Ware, Shari Lapena, Lucy Foley, and Lisa Jewell

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️¼ (4.25/5)

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press Minotaur Books for this e-ARC which will be published June 10th 2025.

Perhaps I can find more information after it is published, but this book seemed translated from another language. Most of it was easy enough to follow. A few places seemed a little wonky which could have been due to it being an early copy. Overall, I enjoyed the story. It was a slow start with a lot of build up, but once the story started unraveling, it had me on the edge of my seat.

This was a great story! I loved that it confirmed what I believed was going to happen, but also twisted it on its head. I always love to be surprised when I read mystery and this did not disappoint! The characters were well written and fully fleshed out. I love that I got to see some of the aftermath as well! Great book!

Am I stupid or is this book a little hard to follow? I kept getting confused with all the names.. I also found the twist to be a bit predictable.

However, I do think that the overall book was intriguing, I just don't know if it's for me. It's a fast paced, dual timeline thriller. There was lots of suspense, twists and turns to keep you on your toes!

Overall, I think although it was predictable and I got confused by the names, I do think it was enjoyable!

The Bachelorette Party: ★★★☆☆ 3/5

Pub date: out now!!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars for me but rounded up to 4. I think overall the storyline was great. I liked trying to solve two mysteries in one — however, given the amount of characters and dual timelines, it would sometimes be hard to keep everyone straight. I also felt like it was a little too much of a slow-burn for me. Still would recommend a read.

A bachelorette party on an island where 4 women were killed....sure, that sounds like a GREAT idea!
I would recommend this to readers who appreciate stories that include friendship, life celebrations gone wrong, private/secluded trapped island mysteries and mysteries told from multiple timepoints and POV's. All of these aspects made for a very interesting story to follow!
I also appreciated that I was able to start making connections and forming my own theories because of the way the story was told!

This was 2.5 stars rounded up to 3. I feel like this story line has been so overdone lately. A few female friends run off to an exotic resort where there is no cell service or they don’t have their phones and then bad things start to happen. It was clear to me from the beginning who the bad guy was going to be.

I love a dual timeline and multiple characters but in this book, the names were all similar to each other and it was hard to keep straight who belonged to which timeline and who was who. There were no stand out characters of the characters to make them memorable. Overall, this book wasn’t terrible but it wasn’t great either. 3/5⭐️

A fast-paced, binge-worthy thriller with a locked-room mystery twist, The Bachelorette Party had me hooked from page one. Set on a remote island off the Swedish coast, the story blends dual timelines and POVs to deliver a chilling, claustrophobic atmosphere full of paranoia and secrets.

While the characters leaned a bit dramatic, the two main narrators were easy to root for, and the horror-movie vibe—complete with a shadowy villain, rising body count, and relentless tension—was pure fun. Think One by One meets a slasher flick.

Graphic, eerie, and addictive, this is a must-read for fans of psychological thrillers and survival stories. Just maybe leave the lights on.

A big thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, Minotaur Books, and Camilla Sten for the digital ARC of The Bachelorette Party. All opinions are my own!

⭐️⭐️⭐️

In need of a good popcorn thriller? Consider giving this one a try! Follow Tessa, a true crime podcaster, and the rest of the bridal party on a remote island and luxury yoga retreat that quickly turns upside down!

One thing I can usually count on is that, even if the story isn’t revolutionary or the characters aren’t engrossing, I’ll still be pulled in to a summer thriller. I had several complaints about this story, but overall, I still wanted to see where the story would go.

Did I find the story of the original 4 women that went missing unnecessary? Yes. Did I find Tessa’s story and motivation to be less than convincing? Yes. But when the action FINALLY picked up, I was ready to go. Pick this up if you want a quick, mindless palate cleanser!

Didn’t love it or hate it. Has everything you want but missing something. Was easy to follow. Wasn’t in love with the ending…

Four and 1/2 stars, actually. But - I loved it! Not going to lie, I didn't initially care for this book - another bachelorette party gone awry kind of story, with distinctly unlikeable characters. Gave it a chance and it came through with flying colors. I had a feeling for who the villain was going to be, only because someone else was constantly pushed in front of us as 'the bad guy'. But I didn't guess the reason. My biggest complaint is that the names of the 'Nacka Four' and the names of the current women at Isle Blind were very similar and it was difficult to keep them straight at times. And I was a little taken aback - Tessa's friends were a bit ugly to her that first night, and yet she didn't really acknowledge that. And they didn't apologize. And the next day, they're back to being best friends. I think I held a bigger grudge than Tessa did. But overall, I would highly recommend this book!

This ARC was provided by NetGalley and the publisher, the opinions expressed herein are strictly my own.

This was a decent, creepy read with a great setting. I’m always drawn to locked-room mysteries and dual timelines, and the remote island vibe definitely worked for me. The whole idea of a bachelorette party being held on the same island where four friends disappeared years earlier was super intriguing.

That said, it was a pretty slow burn overall. Not a lot really happened until later in the book, and I did get a little lost with the big cast of characters (some of the names felt a bit too similar), so it was hard to keep track at times. The timeline jumps also got a little foggy — with the dates being so close (just the year changing), I often found myself flipping back to check which timeline I was in. I did enjoy Tessa’s podcast background and her personal struggles, which added some depth.

While this wasn’t a total standout for me, I think readers who enjoy a slower-paced, atmospheric thriller with a strong setting might enjoy it more.

This was a little more horror than I usually read, but I’m glad I did! It was a good read that surprised me at the end with why it all happened. I will definitely read more by Camilla Sten.

2.5 STARS - A bachelorette party on a secluded, bleak Swedish island where a group of women disappeared years prior and a podcaster on the hunt for a good story? What could go wrong?!

I love a good, locked room, tense and twisty story. I do! But (unpopular opinion incoming ...) despite the setting and sinister past of the island, The Bachelorette Party failed to deliver a gripping, edge of your seat read for me.

With the constant switches between the two time frames, its very slow burn tension (nothing happening until past the 50% mark) and its large cast of very similar characters, it was just too convoluted. The characters needed more fleshing out and clear motivations because they blended into each other and I struggled to remember which friend was in which timeline or even who was speaking at the beginning of each chapter.

It was simply a complicated and disjointed way to tell the story.

I'm in the minority with this book so if you love a creepy, desolate setting with a slow burn story, then give this book a try.

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to Minotaur Books for the complimentary digital copy of this book that was given in exchange for my honest review.

Every year on a remote island near Sweden, four friends meet for one night to reminisce. One night, they disappear. Years later, someone is obsessed with their story as a true crime enthusiast. She is invited to a bachelorette party on this same remote island that is now a yoga retreat. Will she be able to solve the mystery? Will she meet her own demise. This is a must-read summer novel.

I do enjoy locked room thrillers although I think they are being overdone currently, especially the “old” stranded on an island trope. This book grabbed my attention when Tessa’s character was introduced because she was so different from the other women in both timelines and my curiosity was sparked over what happened with her podcast. The mystery around the disappearance of all four women in the first timeline laid a good foundation for the events taking place during the current bachelorette party. To avoid spoilers, I will only add that when one of the characters is revealed to be connected to one of the past victims, that person became instantly suspicious. The book offers lots of action and several twists. The revelation about Tessa’s podcast was a bit of a letdown. In spite of the entertainment factor, I wasn’t wowed by this book. There were almost too many characters to keep track of and the basic plot wasn’t anything new or creative. Overall, a mediocre read.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own.