The Bachelorette Party was a gripping and vivid mystery taking place in the unique setting of New Orleans. Lynch does a great job fleshing out all of the characters within her story, and builds suspense by telling the mystery through the different perspectives of all of the guests. The backdrop of New Orleans was fun and colorful, even with the murder, and the descriptions brought the party scene to life. I loved how throughout the book, I never knew what was coming next; I always had my own theories and they were continuously proved wrong! I thought the writing was fast paced and fun. Totally worth binging in one night.
Personally, I would have loved to see more of the setting of New Orleans! Similarly, I would have enjoyed going more in depth with the dark history of the mansion, and possibly seeing it more intertwined to today's murder. Still, it was such a fun read! Definitely a 3.5.

2024 has been the year of me trying to clean out old mystery ARCs from my Kindle and next up on the hit parade is The Bachelorette Party by Carissa Ann Lynch. I suspect this was another impulse download thanks to a Netgalley email, having gotten sucked in by a premise that was too delicious to ignore.
Rosalee is madly in love with Asher, a handsome, successful lawyer who is absolutely crazy about her - so naturally when he proposes she says yes. They've purchased a beautiful old farmhouse, they're blissfully in love, it's just too bad there's drama surrounding them - and because Rosalee is too damn nice for her own good, that drama is coming to her bachelorette party in New Orleans.

The guest list for a fun-filled (sarcasm) weekend is as follows:

Elizabeth: Rosalee's soon-to-be mother-in-law, a total bitch who has been taking not-so-subtle jabs at Rosalee because she KNOWS she's not good enough for her precious baby boy. The woman he should be marrying and giving her grandchildren is his best friend, but more on her in a minute....

Bri: Asher's sister, Elizabeth's daughter. She's not the girly, feminine daughter of Elizabeth's dreams. She's built like her father, tall, square jaw, broad shoulders, and not the least bit interested in marriage or babies. No, Bri is a computer genius and has her own start-up. Like her mother she's not a big fan of Rosalee.

Mara: Rosalee's BFF from college and the only character who just might be a bigger bitch than Elizabeth. She's fiercely protective and loyal to Rosalee, and is part street fighter, part mean girl. This is a woman you do not want to cross and she planned the entire bachelorette weekend.

Tinsley: Rosalee's cousin. When Rosalee's parents died in a car accident when she was younger, she went to live with her aunt and Tinsley. The two are more like sisters, very close, but having drifted apart when Rosalee went to college and hitched her wagon to Mara. Tinsley is the co-planner of the weekend and is already a little hot under the collar, having max'ed out her credit cards to pay for the party with Mara promising to "pay her back."

Georgia: Asher's best friend since childhood. Former nurse, now owner of a struggling yoga studio, impossibly gorgeous and the woman who Elizabeth thinks her son should be marrying. Too nice Rosalee has asked Georgia to be a bridesmaid even as she struggles with doubts that Georgia and Asher are "just friends."

The book opens up with a local New Orleans detective walking the crime scene at the mansion where the bachelorette party was staying. A dead body having been found, hung by a noose from the rafters in the dining hall. Then the author backtracks, introducing the reader to all the characters and the drama that unfolds leading up to the discovery of the body. Half the fun of this story is that the reader doesn't know who the victim is until the final third of the book as the detective has hauled in members of the bachelorette party for questioning. They all have secrets, many of them hinted at as the drama preceding the murder unfolds, and it's in this final third when it all comes spilling out.

Sometimes when I read a book I'm struck by vibes, or a feeling, that I can't quite articulate in a meaningful way and that's what's going on with me here. This story read young to me. As in impossibly young women squee'ing about it on TikTok and making me feel like the embittered old crone I'm beginning to suspect I'm becoming. This smacked of a TikTok book to me, but that doesn't mean I didn't have a good time reading it even if it did make me feel old (for some reason?) and even though it didn't change my life.

First, we have a creepy mansion in New Orleans as the setting. I can't say no to that. Second, there's a dead body but you don't know who the dead body is until the final chapters of the book which makes for riveting reading especially since you kind of dislike or outright hate every character. Seriously any of them could have been the victim and it would have made me happy. Lastly, this is a short, fast read. Less than 300 pages. No filler, no fluff, just get down to business with the sniping, passive aggressive behavior and secrets.

I wasn't totally in love with the ending but the author throws in a twist at the end to keep things interesting and just reaffirms what a nest of vipers this crew is. I was entertained and you know what? That's good enough for me. I'd never heard of Lynch before picking up this book but I've heard of her now. I'll read more.

Final Grade = B-

I found this book to be a fun and fast-paced mystery thriller, but ultimately a bit disappointing. I enjoyed the alternating perspectives, which gave me a chance to piece everything together like a puzzle, and the drama-filled bachelorette party setting had plenty of intrigue. The characters were entertaining, and the build-up of tension between them kept me hooked. However, I was expecting more from the New Orleans setting and the haunted estate—it felt underutilized and lacked the depth I was hoping for. The murder mystery was predictable, and in the second half, the characters’ personalities seemed to shift in ways that didn’t quite fit. While it was an easy and entertaining read, it felt rushed and could have used more development, especially in the setting and plot. I still like Carissa Ann Lynch as an author, but this wasn’t her best work for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this copy.

The Bachelorette Party was a tricky book. I didn't think i was going to like it and before I knew it I was done with it. It is an easy read but has a great plot. If you like quick thrillers without a lot of fuss and it gets straight to the story this one would be for you.

What a cast of unlikable characters! This was a fast read and all the twists and drama kept me engaged throughout. I read it in one sitting.

Fun, quick read! 6 women, 1 body – all these women had interesting stories and issues themselves – but who was upset enough to kill? And who ended up dead? This was pretty fast paced, had multiple character POV but wasn’t confusing at all. There was the bride to be, the monster-in-law, the sister-in-law who isn’t much better than her mother, the groom’s best friend, the bride’s best friend, and the bride’s estranged cousin – sounds like a perfect bachelorette party! I loved all the drama, the setting of a bachelorette party, and then adding a murder, was perfect. I would have been sucked in even without the murder.

I also really enjoyed the story’s layout – it started from the detective discovering the murder scene in present day, then moved back to the start of the bachelorette party, then back to present day and the detective solving the crime. It also gave some aftermath for each of the characters which was appreciated!

Thank you Netgalley and Harper 360 for this ARC!

I love a good, fun, quick thriller where everyone has a motive so pinning down a suspect if hard to do. What's better is that each chapter is told from the a different point of view of one of the six women on the bachelorette trip, each of whom expose the secrets they may be hiding. The twists and turns along the way keep you on the line, desperate to figure out what really happened that fateful night their lives all changed, and what will be left of the survivors.
Stories like this are the reasons why I love thrillers. Please, Please, Please give me more!

This was a fun, fast paced thrilled. kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Everyone has secrets to be revealed. loved the setting of a creepy mansion in New orleans. It adds to the eerie vibe of this book.

I thought this was really well written and I look forward to reading more from this author in the future. I think it will find readers at our library, so we will definitely be purchasing for the collection.

This book was.. interesting. I just think that books of this type are very overplayed and it takes a lot to wow me on one. I was intrigued by the bachelorette concept, but overall wasn't impressed by the end. This book was lacking that wow factor to keep you thinking about this book. I finished and pretty much forgot everything that had happened. I also just found almost every character to be unlikeable. I think this is one you could easily pass on.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.
Wow! I enjoy locked room thrillers but this one was better than most.
Perfect theme and setting. Great writing and kept me waiting to see what the ending would be.

I love all Bachelorette party stories and this one was super juicy and fast paced! I read it in one sitting. This would be fun to read with a friend! It was entertaining and fun!

Thank you NetGalley for this advance reader copy in exchange for my free and honest review. Highly entertaining, suspense filled novel. Interesting characters with a multitude of different personalities that succeeded in adding to the suspense. Looking forward to more books by this author.

A fun , fast read.

Marrying the man of your dreams is everything, but surviving the bachelorette party ? That’s a whole other story !

6 women excited for , what’s supposed to be an amazing evening, but one game ill change it all.


Thanks netgalley !

I attend a lot of bachelorette parties so I had high hopes for this one, but I did not finish. The plot lost me about 50% through. I did enjoy the New Orleans setting.

Sometimes you just need an easy thriller to enjoy, and this definitely scratched that itch for me. The Bachelorette Party is filled with a cast of unlikable women who head to New Orleans got, you guessed it, a bachelorette party. The descriptions of New Orleans were easily the best part of this book - I love the city & know it well, so it was fun to read about it!

I enjoyed that this book spent the first half building up the characters and their general interactions with one another, and then the second half focused more on the criminal investigation following the murder.

To me, this was brain candy. It was a fun piece of escapism where I didn’t need to think too hard. I had a good time reading it, and would recommend it to anyone looking for a simple, slightly suspenseful story.

didn't hate this book, but I didn't love it. I did enjoy the characters, even though I hated most of them. I'm sure that was the feeling the author wanted to invoke. This was a whodunit mystery/thriller that was set in New Orleans. This was quick read that held my attention. I really wanted to know what happened. I really liked the detective's character. The ending fell flat for me and there was no "wow" factor. That's something that I look forward to in my thrillers.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for this ARC in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

Was so excited to read this thriller set in the fun city of New Orleans. From the start you know it will be a chaotic trip based on the personalities of each of the women and that death has occurred. The book was told from the different perspectives of all the characters attending the bachelorette party allowing you to decide who you think the villain is in the story. A fast paced thriller that was easy to read! Thank you NetGalley for the ARC

This book was genuinely fun and intriguing to read. I appreciated the many plots and twists in the book and I enjoyed it a lot.

Wow this was genuinely such a super fun and fast paced mystery/thriller book for me, and I think this is genuinely such an underrated book in my opinion!

I really loved the New Orleans setting of this book for this bachelorette party themed story, while also being totally invested with the dynamic of these characters relationships toward each other as the plot went on. I love how the book is broken up into separate parts with them being the events leading up to the murder, after the murder takes place, and then the aftermath of what happens after everything dies down. Overall, I really enjoyed the fact that there was a cliffhanger essentially after every chapter which just made me want to keep reading to see what would happen next, and the crazy twists and turns that were in this book absolutely had my jaw on the floor. Also, nothing could have prepared me for the ending of this book at all!

Thank you so much to HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter, and NetGalley for a copy of this book!