The Bachelorette Party is about a group of friends who go to a secluded island hotel for Anneliese's bachelorette party. Ten years before the bachelorette party a group of friends disappeared from the island. This book is mostly told from Tessa's point of view while she tries to figure out what happened to the four childhood friends who disappeared.

The cover of this book drew me in. I think I would have liked the book a lot better if I would have read it verse listened to the audio. The narrator did a good job with the narration. There were just times it was hard to follow with how many friends there were and also with it bouncing back and forth between past and present. I had a hard time keeping track on who was who. There was a chapter in the book that rattles off phone numbers and messages they were leaving it was hard to remember what phone number left what message.

I would the book to be different than what it was.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the Arc copy.

Rating: 4/5 Stars
Pub Date: 6/10
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The Bachelorette Party is going to be one of those books that just hit hard for that beach read list this summer.
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Set on a remote island, The Bachelorette Party is set in a dual timeline ten years apart. One setting is where one group of friends goes missing, the other is during, you guessed it, a bachelorette party where things take an unfortunate turn for the worst. This is a very easy book to follow. Sten also does a fantastic job at creating the perfect atmospheric read and really brings in those more eerie elements to the story. I thought this was more of a slow to steady paced with some parts that had those adrenaline rushing moments. I found the twists to be executed well and I really enjoyed the ending!
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I listened to this one while reading my eBook. Laura Jennings was perfect for this role. I think that she did a fantastic job. One thing I will state (which has nothing to do with the quality of the audiobook) is that I am very grateful to have had the audiobook to listen to the story along with the eBook because there is a large cast of characters that I found myself mixing up quite often. So a recommendation to do both!
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Definitely a book I think thriller lovers will love for the summer!! Be sure to check this one out! Huge thank you to NetGalley, Camilla Sten, MacMillan Audio and St. Martin's Press for the ALC and eARC in exchange for my honest review.
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Favorite place to vacation?
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2025 releases • early release copy • summer beach read • summer slasher • thriller • mystery • dual timeline • podcast • murders • missing persons • beach read • summer 2025 reads • four star read • book recommendations

(Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!)

This was a fun summer read, but nothing very memorable. I kept expecting another twist, but the plot was fairly predictable and not particularly satisfying. I'm not mad that I spent time reading this, but I'm not sure I would pick up another book by this author.

I wanted murder. I wanted secrets. I wanted wine-fueled confessionals around a campfire while the wind whispered "someone here is lying." What I got instead was an island full of trauma, resentment, and some deeply unpleasant women who would likely benefit from individual therapy and group accountability. Not a yoga retreat.

Tessa Nilsson made a name for herself with her hit podcast "The Witching Hour," a true crime series that once had real teeth. But when her obsession with one particular case ended in tragedy and derailed the show, her career crashed and burned. Now, with the podcast dead and her credibility circling the drain, she’s heading to a remote island for her best friend Anneliese’s bachelorette weekend. An island that just happens to be the last place the "Nacka Four" were seen. Ten years ago, four women went to that island for their annual girls’ trip and were never seen again — no bodies, no answers, just a single chilling clue left behind in the sand.

The setup should be everything. Bridesmaids with secrets. A crumbling friendship. A creepy inn run by Irene, the sister of one of the long-missing women. Flashbacks to the original girls’ final, fragmented trip. It’s a whole buffet of potential chaos. But instead of tension, we get simmering mood and no one willing to light a match.

Here’s the thing: I didn’t like any of them. Not Tessa. Not Anneliese, the bride-to-be with a vision board and a death wish. Not the other women orbiting this supposed celebration. Everyone’s emotionally calcified in a way that makes sense on paper but reads flat. Even when things start to go sideways, and they do, I didn’t care who got hurt. Because honestly? Some of them kind of deserved a karmic slap. The rest? I just couldn’t be bothered to care.

Alongside Tessa’s unraveling in the present, we get a second timeline set in 2012, following the four girls during their final, doomed trip to the island. The girls who disappeared then are full of the kind of petty, youthful tension that could tip into something deadly, and their scenes had more rawness than anything in the present. Meanwhile, Tessa mostly drifts through the bachelorette weekend on autopilot. The current-day plot doesn’t truly kick into gear until very late, and by then, most of the emotional momentum is gone.

Atmosphere? Gorgeous. The island is bleak, wild, isolated. The cliffs, the sea, the tangled forest paths — all 9 out of 10 spooky energy. But this isn’t a setting problem. It’s a human one. And no amount of wind-whipped ambiance can make characters interesting if they’re not giving you anything to hold onto.

The audiobook, narrated by Laura Jennings, is the best way to experience this story. She gives voice to each timeline with enough variation to make the jumps feel a bit distinct. I won’t say it transforms the material, but it adds structure and urgency the prose didn’t quite manage on its own. If you’re going to do this one, go audio.

As for the twist? I mean, it’s technically there, but if you saw it coming three chapters ago, does it even count? It doesn’t shock, it doesn’t wreck you, it just... shows up, shrugs, and leaves

Three stars. Solid premise. Atmospheric setting. Clean narration. But the characters left me cold, the emotional stakes never snapped into place, and the pacing dragged its feet until the last possible moment. This island might be cursed, but the real haunting is how much potential this story had and didn’t use.

Whodunity Award: For Spiraling on a Remote Island While Everyone Pretends It’s Still a Vacation

Huge thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the early audiobook. This one wouldn’t have hit half as hard without Laura Jennings keeping the pulse alive.

The book drew me in immediately and I was invested in the story! It was predictable and the ending wasn't my favorite but it was a decent read.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the review copy.

It's hard to like a book with such unlikeable characters. I wanted to enjoy the mystery but it fell flat for me. Would be interested in other works by this author in the future.

3 stars for The Bachelorette Party. The prologue got me so invested but the book ended being only okay for me. The dual timelines and many characters made it a bit challenging to follow and overall lacked shock value for me. It needed more to be an exciting thriller for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced audiobook. The Bachelorette Party hits shelves on June 10, 2025.

The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten was not nearly as corny as I thought it was going to be, although parts of the plot were still very predictable. That being said, there were still some things I hadn't totally figured out by the end, and I really enjoyed sitting down to read this book.
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 3ish stars!

I debated rating this story 2 stars, but felt a little bad about it because there were pieces of the book I did enjoy. The dual POV between 2012 and 2022, seeing two sides of the same story, and a conclusion that pulled it all together were in the positive column! The fact that the drama didnt really get going until about the 60% mark, and the REAL action didnt hit until about 90% made this a slow read for me. When the real action finally hit, it felt rushed and dramatic. The final resolution of the story felt like it was lacking substance for me personally.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Macmillan Audio for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was fortunate enough to get this advanced copy of the audiobook from #NetGalley.

First, the narrator is fantastic. Her voice was perfect and it didn't come off like she was trying too hard.

The storyline is a little difficult to keep track of because it's two separate girl groups during different time frames. So if you're not paying attention, the names seem to overlap and you forget which group you're reading/hearing about. This was just my personal opinion and may not be the same for everyone

I was able to peg who the killer was but did not guess the motive. So a nice surprise.

Pros:
-not your typical predictable ending as far as motive is concerned.
-The story is entertaining and well-written
- Narrators voice is well done and not overly animated. perfect narrator.

Cons:
- I would definitely seek the print copy to read instead of an audiobook for this one


#TheBacheloretteParty hits the shelves June 10th and would be a great summer read.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Macmillan Audio as well as the author and the narrator for these ARCs in exchange for my honest opinion.
#NetGalley @NetGalley #St.Martin’sPress @St.Martin’sPress #MacmillanAudio #MacAudio25 @MacAudio25 #Mystery #Thriller #Fiction #BookReview #audiobook #LauraJennings

Title: The Bachelorette Party
Author: Camilla Sten
Formats: eBook and audiobook
Narrator: Laura Jennings
Publishers: St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio
Publication Date: June 10, 2025
Themes: Friendships, relationships, LGBTQ+, marriage, murder mystery, remote island
Trigger Warnings: Disappearance, murder, some homophobia, remote island, isolation

I really enjoyed Camilla Sten’s previous books and I loved the synopsis of this one.
Tessa is a disgraced podcast host and a true crime junkie. She has long been obsessed by the mystery of the four friends who met for their annual weekend at a remote island off the coast of Sweden. When her friend Annaliese gets married on the very same island, Tessa sees the opportunity to revive her podcasting career by solving the mystery. This is her chance to get her life back on track. It’s also another's' chance to exact their bloody revenge. When history starts to repeat itself, Tessa tries her hardest to solve the mystery before it’s too late.

I really have enjoyed this author’s work in the past. I was excited to start this one. Unfortunately, it was a lot harder for me to get into than her other books have been. The characters were hard to like, which made it hard to care what happened to them. The plot was engaging, the pace was gripping, the writing was great. When I have trouble engaging with the characters, it’s hard for me to care enough to follow the mystery and, unfortunately, that’s the trouble I had here. Tessa was a weak character and her relationships with the other characters were never really firm. I felt like Tessa was as disengaged with them as I was. I found the ending unsatisfying as well.

The narrator of the audiobook, Laura Jennings, did a nice job. I may not have finished the digital copy if I hadn’t listened to it first. She was able to bring some life to these characters. Her voice was pleasant to listen to and her interpretation was great.

All in all, I will continue to read Ms. Sten’s work, but this particular book wasn’t my favorite.

The Bachelorette Party offers a suspenseful narrative set against the backdrop of a mysterious disappearance. While it may not break new ground in the thriller genre, it provides an engaging read for fans of atmospheric mysteries and psychological suspense. I enjoyed myself but was not terribly surprised at the twists.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

📖 Bookish Thoughts
This one kept me guessing. I struggled a bit with the timeline jumps because they were confusing at times, and it wasn’t always clear which POV we were in. Tessa as an MC is messy and I kept moving between liking her and finding her insufferable. She’s a bit delulu to think she can solve a cold case at a bachelorette retreat. I kept wondering if Tessa was actually paranoid or if something sinister was really happening.

The pacing dragged a bit in the middle, but the ending flew by! I couldn’t stop listening. Tessa mostly grew on me by the end. She’s complicated, messy, and real. Overall, I enjoyed this audiobook!

🖤 What You Can Expect
• Thriller
• Bi FMC
• Cold case
• True crime podcaster
• Dual timelines
• Bachelorette retreat

🗓 Pub Date: June 10, 2025
🎧 Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the ALC. All thoughts are my own.

10 years ago, four women vanished without a trace from an isolated island north of Sweden.

Now, a disgraced true crime podcaster has been conveniently invited to that island for a bachelorette party. Tessa, who actually vaguely knew one of the missing women, Matilda,, is convinced they were actually murdered. If she can solve this cold case, she can have a dramatic comeback.

This book started off strong, floundered in the middle, and finished with a lot, I mean A LOT of gore. It was kind of predictable, but there was at least one twist I didn't see coming. The book is primarily told from Tessa's POV with backflashes to Matilda from ten years earlier. From the moment Tessa arrives on island, she feels like something is wrong. She is treated badly by her friends, laughed off by everyone, but the joke is on them as people start dying.

There were a few things about this book that didn't make sense, but I don't want to spoil anything, so I will just say, being in Tessa's brain really made this book anticlimactic. She was kind of a dud, and I think this book could have been a lot more "thrilling" had it been told in third person.

I appreciate the ARC. I did not like the voice that the narrator used for Tessa, which is probably another reason I didn't like being in her head, but I liked the rest of her voices. The narrator also could have infused my mystery into her reading to make the book more entertaining.

First off, I love the cover!

I was excited for the mysterious island vibes and gripping nature of the whodunnit. Unfortunately, I found that the mysterious island vibes fell flat and the story didn't grip me. It had potential, but the ending seemed to take forever to arrive and when it did, it was unbelievable and disappointing. I enjoy dual timelines and find they add intrigue and propulsion to a story. This was partly true in this case, but the characters didn't stand out to me, which made it slightly confusing with the back and forth.

3.5


This nothing like Scream, it’s more of a distant cousin to The Guest List.

I was entertained by The Bachelorette Party. I’ve always been a fan of past/present timelines and this did a good job weaving those together. Focal to the story is toxic female friendships. Lots of betrayals, pandering, posturing, and in the end it led to a lot of deaths. I was wrong about a hunch and didn’t expect that twist! CS did well in redirecting us, ensuring we’re looking at the wrong thing until the very end.

The narrator was ok. I wish some of the lines were more animated. For example, some dialogue was described as being flirty or teasing but she read it flatly. Overall it wasn’t bad, there’s enough lilt, intonation, and feeling for me not to miss the overall tone of the book.

Prepare for the Bachelorette Party of the decade!

In 2012, four young women gathered for their annual girl’s trip at a small remote island off the coast of Sweden. Those girls went missing and were presumed drowned. It was suspected that they took the boat out joyriding while intoxicated. They became a cautionary tale for drinking and boating. Or did they? Maybe there was something more sinister at play that weekend!

In 2022, Tessa is invited to a bachelorette party on the very island that the girls in 2012 disappeared from. The island has been transformed into a wellness retreat boasting lots of yoga, fancy vegan meals, and champagne. Perfect! Tessa is broke and shouldn’t make the trip but she has been obsessed with the missing young women for many years and wants to look around and ask questions. But the information she uncovers may be much more than she was expecting.

Clearly this is a locked room mystery and I don’t want to spoil it by adding too many details. I really enjoyed the Swedish island setting. This story was told in dual timelines and there was a large cast of characters to follow.

The audio narration was fantastic performed by Laura Jennings.

Thank you Netgalley, MacmillanAudio, and the author for this ALC in exchange for my honest review. This book will be available for purchase on June 10, 2025

Thanks to NetGalley for an ALC. I enjoyed this toward the beginning, and then just kind of grew bored with it. Just very mediocre.

This was a quick and fun read but unfortunately was not a huge standout for me. I did really enjoy the premise: Tessa is a disgraced podcaster who sees an opportunity when invited to a bachelorette party - she may be able to discover new information on the disappearance of four women and revive her career once again.

Camilla Sten is not afraid to get down and dirty with some gory details, that actually do add to the impact of the story. Although this was a fun read it felt fairly obvious where the story was going and what the outcome would ultimately be.

I did appreciate that we got a detailed explanation for the events prior in the end, but didn’t feel there was enough to tie it in throughout the story to feel believable.

Ultimately it was entertaining and well paced, and I’d be interested in more by this author after this intro to her work!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advance audiobook!

This book definitely had lots of twists and turns but I was able to predict some of those form early on. There was some gore till the end and I felt like we didn't get to know some of the characters as well and I would have liked. Some of the girls were flat out mean and I guess it set the stage for what was to come. There was some redemption for the mean girl but they still mostly. felt distant. It was a good, quick listen, but at times just too much going on to keep up with at once.