3.5 stars

The cover of the book is what intrigued me the most when picking this book! It’s beautiful, but unfortunately that was probably the best thing about it.

Overall this book wasn’t bad, it just left me wanting for more. I had questions about the timeline. There were too many characters to keep track of. It might have been a little easier in the book version vs the audio, but even then I think it would have been a little overwhelming as well. And it was a bit easy to envision what was going on in this story and a bit predictable.

I will say the writing was good and the story had great potential, but it just fell flat for me. I would love to try another book by this author, I have heard great things about her previous novels.

***Thank you Netgalley and Macmillan audio for an ARC copy***

Thank you to NetGalley, Camilla Sten, and MacMillion Audio 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 wonderfully Narrated by Laura Jennings.

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.

I switched from the audio to the ebook for this one at like 20% simply because of the dates. It was way too hard to keep track through audio for me.

The Bachelorette Party was an intriguing locked room mystery. It was a little slow for the first two thirds of the book but then picked up for the last third. There were a lot of characters to keep track of while listening to the audiobook. I think it was a little bit predictable at times but I overall liked the premise of the story and thought there were some interesting and exciting parts!

Although this book wasn't really for me, it's not a bad book. I personally had trouble following the different timelines and large cast of characters, but the actual writing itself was very good and easy to understand. This book is more on the slow-burn side of thrillers, and honestly I was a bit bored at times. It's a fun locked-room mystery type of book that's definitely entertaining, but not a literary masterpiece or incredibly unique.

I was able to read the eBook and listen to the audiobook - the narrator Laura Jennings did a good job, but I was so confused about the different timelines and had to really think about what date she said at the beginning of the chapter. This is easier to follow when reading instead of listening, in my opinion.

Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books, Macmillan Audio, and the author Camilla Sten for the ARC & ALC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

A decade ago, four childhood friends vanished during a trip to their favorite vacation spot, a remote island in Sweden. Ten years later, another group of four childhood friends travel to the same island for a bachelorette getaway.
Among them is Tessa, who has long been intrigued by the story of the missing friends. The island is now owned by the sister of one of the missing girls, Irene, who has turned it into a yoga retreat. Tessa is on a quest to uncover the mystery behind the disappearance and why Irene would want to own the island. The tension escalates when a someone goes missing and others begin to act strangely.
Tessa starts to lose hope of ever unraveling the mystery of what happened to the others and begins to question whether they will survive this trip themselves.
Thank you to the publisher/author for the opportunity to listen to this complimentary advanced copy. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

While I enjoyed this book, I felt like it was lacking. The story was unique but not executed well. Overall I found this one just okay.

This book started off strong, and I was really pulled in to the kissing group of friends. This was a slow burn that was unraveling nicely until it started to pick up speed. I just felt like the plot fell apart and there was way too much going on. It was hard to keep track of everyone because there were so many characters and then with the plot having so much going on it felt chaotic. This book had such a strong start so I’ll still read another book by this author.

Review: The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten

This book was wild in the best way! Camilla Sten delivers a chilling, twisty thriller that completely caught me off guard. I had zero suspicion about who was behind the strange events on the island—and when the truth hit, it hit hard. The resolution of the original murders? Absolutely unhinged in the most gripping way possible. I found myself genuinely shocked, which doesn’t happen often with thrillers.

That said, I was a little puzzled by how much time we spent on Tessa’s backstory—especially the lawsuit subplot. It was detailed and interesting in the moment, but in the end, it didn’t seem to serve a clear purpose or get any real closure. It left me wondering if I missed something, or if it was just meant to flesh her out a bit more than necessary.

The audiobook was a definite highlight. The narrator nailed the pacing—balancing tense, suspenseful moments with the more casual, light-hearted scenes between friends. It kept me engaged the whole time and made the atmosphere of the remote island feel even more immersive.

If you’re a fan of The Guest List or Scream-style stories with isolated settings, buried secrets, and messy female friendships, this one’s for you. It’s dark, unpredictable, and perfect for fans of psychological thrillers that aren’t afraid to get a little weird.

Tessa Nilsson is struggling. She had been a successful podcaster. Her true crime podcast The Witching Hour, about Sweden’s most notorious cases, was wildly popular. She just bought an apartment. She had a girlfriend. And it all fell apart because of one bad choice. Now she’s unemployed, possibly getting sued, and about to be kicked out of her apartment. So of course, she has to go on a four-day bachelorette party to a private island with a luxury yoga resort. In fact, she wouldn’t go at all, except for one reason. The private island in the archipelago near Stockholm sounds a lot like Isle Blind.

Isle Blind is a place Tessa had been wanting to visit. There is a cold case about four women who had gone missing ten years ago. The police had said that they had clearly had too much to drink and then tried to boat back home. None of the women arrived though. It was thought they had fallen overboard and died in the water. But Tessa didn’t believe that story. She thought that the women had been to Isle Blind, and something had happened on the island. It was a private island, owned by the parents of one of the women who had gone missing. And now Tessa has a chance to go to this private island and investigate what might have happened ten years ago, and with her job situation so dire, she could use a breakout podcast, and this could get her there.

But first, she has to endure four days of bachelorette fun, sunrise yoga, mindfulness, and vegan food. And she has to forfeit her phone, tablet, and laptop, as there is no wi-fi on the island. It’s bride-to-be Anneliese, maid of honor Mikaela, Caroline, photographer Natalie, and Tessa’s sister Lena at Baltic Vinyasa, celebrating their years of friendship and the great things that are to come for them.

The resort isn’t officially open yet, so owner Irene and chef Adam are the only staff there for the weekend. The women found out about the place because Lena and Irene were friends. Irene agreed to let them come for the weekend in exchange for good social media chatter, and since the women come with their own photographer, they are certain that they will get plenty of beautiful photos to share. Tessa is happy to be there with her friends, but she is also itching to explore the island, see if she can find anything that could indicate if she really was on Isle Blind, if she really was at the location of four murders. But mostly. she wants to get close to Irene, because it was her younger sister Matilda who was one of the four women Tessa thinks was murdered on this very island.

As the festivities begin and the wine gest poured, Tessa tries to join in and not make it obvious she’s investigating. But as the days go by, there are strange things happening. The small boat that’s kept on the island is see loose out on the water. Caroline has to leave suddenly, leaving just a note. And Tessa finds a bone on the beach that she thinks looks like part of a spine. Irene assures her that’s it from a deer, but Tessa is unsettled. She came to the island thinking that it was the place where four women lost their lives. But what it’s more than just four? How can she be certain that they’ll be safe on an island with such a reputation?

The Bachelorette Party is a chilling story of intrigue and danger that escalates slowly. Author Camilla Sten describes the island and the women with beautiful prose that underlines the ugly crimes that run through this story. It’s told in alternating timelines, mostly in the present but sometimes dipping back ten years, so readers get the whole picture of both get-togethers on Isle Blind and find out what happened to each woman involved.

I listened to The Bachelorette Party on audio, narrated by Laura Jennings. I thought she did a lovely job telling this story, but there were times I struggled to figure out which timeline we were in. I thought that this was a story that would benefit from two narrators, one telling the story of the present day bachelorette party and the other telling the story of ten years ago, to help listeners keep the stories separate. But Sten’s writing is so thorough, so detailed, that having just one voice narrate the entire story is still enjoyable. It just took me a little more work to keep the stories straight.

For a fairly horrific crime story, The Bachelorette Party is beautifully told. I would almost call it horror, but with sophistication. It’s not dark like Nordic noir, but there is a darkness to the perpetrators of these crimes that can’t be denied. This has an honesty about human nature, an inevitability that comes from the jealousy, the rage, the insecurity that we all have. Some characters use that as a fire to survive while others use it to burn down everything they care about. I found this story both disturbing and hopeful, and I look forward to more of Sten’s writing, as she strips away human pretense and shows us with all our flaws and potentials.

Egalleys for The Bachelorette Party were provided by Minotaur Books, and a copy of the audio book was provided by Macmillan Audio, both through NetGalley, with many thanks, but the opinions are mine.

I absolutely LOVE Camilla Sten and her latest, "The Bachelorette Party" was phenomenal!!! Scream vibes all the way!!!!!! The reader was GREAT!!!

Not my favorite book. I found it to be pretty obvious how the ending would go. Took a while to finish because nothing really pulled me in or made me feel connected to any of the characters.

Things I loved:
– Dual timelines (2012 disappearance + 2022 yoga retreat turned murder tour)
– Locked-room island setting with serious Baltic creep factor
– Messy, complex women who are not here to make friends—and I mean that literally

This is one wild bachelorette party. Within 30 pages, you know someone’s not making it off this island. It’s dark, fast-paced, and had me guessing why (even if I had a hunch about who). True crime podcaster Tessa is here for one last chance to solve a decade-old case—but when her own friends start vanishing, it turns into a full-blown nightmare.

It gave me everything I wanted from a thriller: secrets, tension, a remote setting, and just enough female drama to keep the stakes personal. If you like stories where the island is basically a fifth character, add this to your list.

Would I attend a bachelorette party on a cursed Scandinavian island? No. Did I love reading about it? Absolutely.

This is an interesting little thriller set in Sweden. We have a story that mixes timelines. Telling the story of the "present" and mixing it with the past until we hit the big reveals and we hit the climax. Our first timeline follows a group of friends who go to a remote island for a bachelorette weekend. Tessa is a podcaster whose career imploded and she goes into investigation mode because she knows that this is the sight of an infamous disappearance of 4 women. Tessa is hoping to find out what happened all those years ago and it just so happens that the owner of the retreat is one of the missing women's sister. Our second timeline follows the 4 women as they prepare for their annual retreat to the island to have a grand time, and as we reveal more about them, we find out what happened. The similarities between now and then are suspicious, and then people start disappearing. The story is interesting and gets a little bit brutal (not overly) at the end. The mystery aspect is not a big mystery because it is glaringly obvious from the beginning. However, the author keeps the pacing at a nice jog, and then we sprint to the end. It was entertaining, but I wanted to find out more about Tessa's podcast because I felt more shocked about what happened to her career than who did all the murdering. The narrator does a good job, but the women sound a bit older than they should. I felt like our Yogi was retirement age instead of 30-40 years old. At the end of the day, the story was engaging, and it was easy to follow.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 out of 5 stars)
The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten delivers a solid locked-room thriller with an eerie backstory and plenty of secrets to unravel.

What stood out to me was the multiple POVs—each woman brought something unique to the narrative, especially with their shared history and how a long-buried mystery (involving the murder/disappearance of young girls) starts creeping back into their lives. The way everything and everyone is interconnected added tension and depth without giving too much away.

That said, the audiobook format made it a bit tricky at first to follow who was speaking. But once I got into the rhythm, it smoothed out. Overall, I didn’t see the plot twist coming, and that always earns points from me.
A good pick if you like your thrillers with layered relationships and a haunting past.

Isolated thrillers are my favorite and this one starts off with a bang. The pacing is done well throughout and the story moves quickly, with small details being revealed as you move through. I thought there would be more to do with Tessa’s podcast fallout but it really didn’t come into play much. The ending is definitely splashy and a bit gory so if that is your thing than check this one out!

Just finished listening to this book. Very good story! Liked the narrator. I suspected one of the twists part way through, but it did not lesson my enjoyment at all. Great story, loved the charecters and dual timeline that weaved together. Definitely recommend!

This was a very bingeable listen on audiobook! Thank you Macmillan audio for the advanced listening copy! I was very intrigued and couldn’t stop listening to figure out the ending which I didn’t see coming. I enjoyed the Tessa character.

I will say the end once the twist was revealed was very drawn out.

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. The narrator was wonderful, with both male and female characters.

I was so excited to dive into The Bachelorette Party, especially after loving The Lost Village. This one had a lot going for it—an eerie, remote island setting, a decades-old mystery, and a group of women with layered secrets. It’s noted as Scream meets The Guest List, and the premise hooked me immediately.

But while the atmosphere delivered and the pacing kept me turning the pages, the plot felt a little too familiar. I guessed several key reveals early on, which dulled the tension. The characters were intriguing, but I never quite connected with them the way I hoped to. Still, it was an entertaining read with just enough suspense to keep me invested.

If you’re new to Sten, this is a solid intro to her work, but The Lost Village remains her strongest (and spookiest!) in my opinion.

Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.