"The Wedding Party" by L.R. Jones is a psychological thriller revolving around a pre-wedding party gone wrong. The premise sounded promising, so I decided to give it a shot.

Carrie, a nurse, is engaged to Oliver, a successful businessman. They decided to combine their bachelor/bachelorette party and host it at the Historic Stanley Hotel located in Estes Park, Colorado. Lana, a good friend of the bride, invites FBI profiler Andi to come with her as her plus one, and after much hesitation, Andi accepts. She needs a break after all from her last case and from the constant references to her father, who was kicked out of the police force and opened his own agency. He is called Frank Castle, no less (is taking the name of the character Punisher even legal?). The plot thickens when a murder is committed at that weekend getaway. As Andi starts digging, curious tidbits pop up, befuddling the investigation.

The book opens with a bang, a murder that took place six months previously, then fast-forwards to the present. The book is written in the first-person POV, alternating between Carrie and Andi. I didn't connect to any of the characters, and some of Andi's methods of investigation made me raise an eyebrow. I liked the wink to the Punisher, but it seems odd to name a character after a TV series character. Also, to nickname a serial murderer 'Spiderman' seems a bit too much.

While this story has a lot of potential and is certainly entertaining, it does have its flaws. There were some plot holes - it wasn't clear why Oliver was bothered by Andy's presence at the party, for example, and the ending felt a bit abrupt, leaving me wishing for more closure.

I liked the dynamics between Andi and her father, but him calling her "daughter" all the time seems a bit strange. No one calls his daughter "daughter" while conversing with her. It doesn't ring true. Also, the repeated references to her father's conduct and to her being an FBI agent were redundant. We got it, she is an FBI agent, and he is like the Punisher. No need to rub it in our faces. Also, the writing was a bit stilted at times, and some of the dialogue didn't flow or feel natural.

Overall, I enjoyed the book despite it all. The execution of it was perhaps a bit lax in places, but I still enjoyed the journey and can forgive its flaws. I didn't guess the identity of the murderer, although I had my suspicions, and there were some interesting twists to the story I didn't see coming.

While I wasn't completely captivated by the tale, I wasn't bored by it either. I think the book does have potential, and straightening out its kinks will make this a better read. Until then, I rate the book 3.5 out of 4 stars and recommend it to anyone looking for some light reading in this genre. Just don't come with high expectations.

* Thank you NetGalley and (publisher) for the opportunity to read this arc. All opinions are my own.

Thanks for the chance to read and give an honest review. I didn't like this book very much. There was a compelling set up with a bachelor/bachelorette party at the Stanley Hotel for newlyweds Carrie and Oliver; the next morning, there's a murder. Thankfully an FBI agent is part of the group at the hotel and can help solve the crime.

After that, this book is a mess. An editor will probably catch some of the errors. For example, the groom's sister says she owns a gun, then the next page says she doesn't own a gun. In another case, a lawyer wears a pink shirt that changes to red in the next scene. Not to mention there are many threads that don't make much sense (Elsa's box) or are introduced super late in the game (Morrow). I also found the ending to be flat and feed into stereotypes about mental illness.

It was a quick read, but the book itself caused me to give lots of eye rolls. However, if you like James Patterson books - with quick chapters, descriptions of outfits, and cringe-y dialogue about how one doesn't "fight like a girl", then you might enjoy!

𝐈'𝐦 𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐣𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐩 𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐬 𝐈 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐫: 𝐟𝐥𝐚𝐰𝐞𝐝.

2.5 stars rounded up. Based on the synopsis, I thought the focus would be more on the infamous Stanley Hotel, but instead, it was only mentioned at the beginning of the book. So if the plot could have happened at any hotel, why even mention the Stanley?

Carrie and Oliver are getting married, and friends and family gather at the hotel to celebrate the upcoming nuptials. FBI Agent Andi Castle isn't known to the bride or groom, but she's conveniently invited as a plus one of a friend. That was the first thing that just didn't make sense. Andi's character, especially her relationship with her father, was just strange, and I didn't enjoy reading any scene that featured those two.

When Oliver is found dead in his hotel room and Carrie is found cowering, covered in blood, it's a race to uncover who killed Oliver and why. I will admit that I had no idea who the culprit was, but the reveal was over the top and almost cartoonish.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer for this early read. THE WEDDING PARTY will publish February 20, 2024.

save the date everyone!!! you will all want to read this!! so interesting and so fun to read!! if you like mystery you will love this book, would totally recommend to everyone.

I'm sorry, I can't read this. I literally can't make myself pick up this... this thing. It is SO badly written. The characters are SO terrible. Everything just feels off, like this is set in some Twilight Zone-y Other Dimension, one where plain girls with a heart of gold doing nursing work on a children's ward (where else, I ask you) snatch themselves millionaire bachelors who bonk them on "a comfortable mattress" (seriously) before leaving them notes saying, "I didn't want to wake you. I have to close up this deal I'm working on. Work now, play together soon. I can't wait to call you my wife." Who talks/writes like that?!? And if he's so busy with this deal or whatever, how does he spend half an hour writing some douchy note?

DNF@5% (new record) and deleted this from my Kindle. Life's too short for dross that should have stayed self-published (also for stuff set loose upon this unsuspecting world by Amazon Publishing, which I'll steer clear of from now on).
My thanks to Netgalley for the ARC; the "Read Now" button should have given me pause. Oh well. Lesson learned.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book. When I was reading this book kept me on my toes. I was blown away by all the plot twists.

Thank you NetGalley for an arc of this book.

I really enjoy reading wedding thrillers so I thought this would be the perfect book to read. As it turns out it is the perfect wedding thriller. I enjoyed reading this book and could not put this book down.

This book has so many mysteries .. like why does a 300 page book have 92 chapters? If you are able to look past that and the other plot holes and unanswered character motives, it’s actually a quick read.

The story focuses on Andi, AN FBI AGENT (this is mentioned on virtually every page), as she attends the joint bachelor/bachelorette party of a friend of a friend. There is weird vibes but Andi looks past it … until a murder is committed. She works to catch the killer as secrets are revealed and the other guest’s true characters are revealed.

This is the kind of book that I would recommend to someone who wants a quick easy vacation read, you definitely don’t want to think too analytically about this book because it falls apart fast. This book could’ve benefited from either having less red herrings or more pages, to clean up some the murkiness.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 rounded up
Detective novel
Carrie and Oliver are getting married.
Is it wedding jitters, or is Oliver acting differently than usual
A strange box that he doesn't want to discuss arrives at the doorstep, and suddenly, he's working late at his tech firm trying to close a deal. The bridal party meets at a lodge for wedding activities, and yet Oliver is still acting out of sorts
Then Oliver ends up dead
Carrie is found hiding and covered in Oliver's blood. Did she kill him? She couldn't have. He is the man of her dreams
Agent Castle was invited to the wedding activities through a mutual friend of Carrie's. Now she finds herself on the case of who has killed Oliver and why

Carrie and Oliver are the ideal couple; sweet and caring Carrie who met her perfect match in the tall, dark, and handsome Oliver. Their wedding is all set, and their joint bachelor/bachelorette parties start off without a hitch. All until someone is killed and party guest, and FBI profiler, Andi Castle starts to uncover their secrets.

I don't normally read murder mystery/investigative thriller type novels, but I'm pretty happy I read this! Jones does a fantastic job with the way she set up the different POVs. The characters were decent and the ending was good, I wasn't expecting a few of the twists. I genuinely would read a prequel/sequel about Andi or her father, they're both so badass and hot.

*projected release date- February 19th 2024*
Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer for the ARC!

▪️𝘮𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘪 𝘗𝘖𝘝
▪️𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘣𝘰 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘳／𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘺
▪️𝘩𝘢𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘭
▪️𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵

this book is a psychologically charged whodunit following FBI Agent Andi, bride-to-be Carrie, and a few flashbacks to piece together this puzzling murder. FMC Carrie was so intriguing to me with her messy past, her secretive current life, i loved following her story. thank you for the author for the eARC via Netgalley for exchange of review.

Well paced mystery that grabbed me early on and kept me guessing. Didn't like the characters much. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

The pacing in this was good for the first 2/3 or so then got a bit wacky. The ending felt very rushed and not well fleshed out through the novel. Kinda felt like it was more for shock value than anything. I also wish Andi’s backstory played a bigger role - it made me wonder if this was a series (or the start of one) that follows her and her dad.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

@bookwormdanii ⭐️ BOOK REVIEW ⭐️
The Wedding Party by LR Jones
My Rating: 2/5 ⭐️

Review: This was a tough read. It was repetitive, unorganized, and predictable. It was cringey how the author portrayed women and idolized men in this book. The only redeeming characteristic that the author gave a female was Andi being an FBI agent, which was mentioned at least 5 times every page. I think a little research would go a long way when having a character be an FBI agent. Most of the time people that work for the FBI can’t tell people they work for the FBI.

The ending was predictable and included zero shocking twists. This book was a struggle to get through and truly not worth it if your a true thriller/mystery reader.

What a snoozefest. DNFed at 70%. A lot of dialogues and inner monologues of the FBI agent sounded so petty and unprofessional. I was rolling my eyes. The pacing was also terrible. Too slow of a read.

I didn't care for this one at all. It was the setting that first drew me to this book. I absolutely love the Stanley...but this plot could have been set absolutely anywhere else. Nothing in it captured the feel of the actual place. That could've been fine, but there was nothing else about the murder or characters or investigation that held my interest. Chapters switch between the bide-to-be and an FBI agent who was invited to the party as a plus one and if you don't read the name that indicates that it's switched or if you put the book down and pick it up again later, it's easy to go a few paragraphs before figuring out whose head you're in.

I received an advanced copy of this book from Thomas & Mercer via NetGalley.

Carrie and Oliver are the perfect couple, deeply in love and ready to host their dream wedding at the Stanley Hotel in Colorado. The celebration is set to be unforgettable, with family and friends coming together to share in their joy. However, the morning after the wedding, the festivities turn into a nightmare when murder strikes. Andi Castle, an FBI agent who was just attending as a plus-one, finds herself thrust into the role of investigator. As the hotel goes into lockdown and long-held secrets are exposed, Andi must race against time to uncover which secrets are worth killing for and prevent further deaths.

I'm giving this book a four-star rating, but I have to admit that I wasn't entirely pleased with the ending. The anticipation leading up to the resolution and the identity of the murderer left me with high expectations, and the ending fell a bit short for me. Nonetheless, I must credit the author for keeping me captivated throughout most of the book, especially with the detective, Andi.

Andi is a compelling character, and I appreciated the depth of her personality. Her struggles with commitment and her tenacity in pursuing the truth make her a great detective. Her unwavering trust in her instincts and refusal to take the easy way out were traits that added to her appeal. One aspect that occasionally grated on me was the repetition related to the stigma surrounding Andi's father. It came up frequently in interactions with other characters, and it started to become a bit annoying.

The setting, taking place in Denver, was intriguing. Even though I haven't personally visited the city, it's on my list of places to explore in the United States. The incorporation of "The Shining Hotel" was a fun touch, not necessarily crucial to the plot but still an enjoyable idea.

While the overall pacing of the book may be considered slow, the engaging writing style of the author kept me invested in the story.

A really suspenseful story about wedding reception which ends in a murder!
Luckily FBI agent Andi Castle is a guest, she tries to detangle secrets in a bid to find a killer.
I loved the locked room element of this story along with the tension and suspense I thought that this story had everything.

I really enjoyed this book. It was fast paced but still provided important details to work thru the mystery. I liked the quirky characters and would be interested in reading more books with them in it. Especially the dad and fellow investigators. It was also fun to "spend some time" at the Stanley Hotel! I don't read a lot of mystery and it kept me guessing until the end who did it. I will read more by this author!

Definitely unpredictable. This was a thrilling read. You will not want to put it down. You won't be disappointed with this one!

Carrie and Oliver. A couple completely in love and the hosts of a wedding to remember at Colorado’s legendary Stanley Hotel. This is Carrie’s fairy tale come true. Her fiancé, Oliver, is Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome; successful; and utterly devoted to her. Now family and friends have gathered to celebrate. It’s sure to be a wild night as the drinks flow freely and the fun begins.

But the morning after is murder.

FBI agent Andi Castle was just supposed to be a plus-one. This should have been a calming weekend getaway from what she does best: catch killers. Instead, Andi’s on the hunt again. The hotel is on lockdown. Secrets are being unearthed. And no one is above Andi’s suspicions. But which secrets are worth killing for? Andi’s forced to find the answers fast…before someone else dies.