Carrie and Oliver are getting married but things turn dark when someone ends up murdered. FBI Agent Andi is there as a plus one and finds herself investigating.

I think Jones tried to do too much here with narrative structure. We had multiple POVs, each with multiple chapters in a row, AND flashback chapters. I think they should’ve picked one or the other. Or made clearer divisions between Carrie and Andi’s sections.

I enjoyed the short chapters, however it felt a bit repetitive and slow at times. Appreciate the opportunity to review and give my opinion.

I am not sure why others did not like this book. I read it in 2 days. I am a sucker for a female law enforcement agent and Andi did not disappoint. Set at a bachelor/bachelorette party, this wedding party was anything but normal. I had a fun time reading this and enjoyed the twists of the story. Do I think that some of the backstory characters could have been fleshed out more? Yes, but it didn't detract from the story for me.

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.
Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer for giving me an advance copy.

This was one of those fun mysteries that really kept me guessing right up until the very end. You get two POVs, Andi an FBI agent who is attending events with an old friend of hers and Carrie, the bride to be. I loved Andi as a character and thought she was so interesting and layered, I could easily see her carrying a series because there was so much about her to like. The author used some dark humor throughout which I always like and things were pretty fast paced with me guessing and second guessing my opinion every chapter. Lots of suspects to choose from with plenty of secrets to uncover and when all was revealed I was satisfied.

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Absolutely LOVED this suspenseful and twisty thriller!! Characters with dark secrets…and explosive conclusion. It’s a must read in my opinion!!

This story is about a bachelor/bachelorette party at a haunted hotel. One of the guests brought a plus one who is an FBI agent with quite a reputation. There is a dead body, a missing bride-to-be and lots of suspects with no apparent motive. I enjoyed the way the story progressed and the twists that kept me guessing late into the night. The FBI agent took charge and with help from her PI father she figured out the who did it and why the crime occurred. I'd recommend this book to anyone who likes a quick read thriller.

PUB Date 2/20/2024
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I have been waiting for a mystery that sucks me in from the beginning and makes me devour the book in one day, and this was it!

I love a destination, locked door murder mystery. This one kept me guessing and looking at all the party goers. At one point, I thought I had it nailed down, and then the gears switched. I would love this to be a series so we get more of Andi and Eddie Castle!

There were some loose ends I wish had been tied up, maybe a chapter showing the murder from the killers POV, or maybe more red herrings with the wedding party, but overall I wasbso completely engrossed with this story it didn't change my rating.

Definitely check this one out when it publishes next month!

Thank you NetGalley and L.R. Jones for the ARC!

This was a fun and fast paced thriller with extremely short chapters that are sure to keep readers intrigued. I found the premise of this book very intriguing and I did enjoy it as I was reading it.

As far as the groomsmen, I think there may have been one too many involved in the questioning as I was getting a bit confused on who was who. I remember Brody and then what I referred to as “the other two”.

I liked the red herrings thrown in about who it could’ve been and I truly was continuing to guess until it is revealed who the killer was. I did enjoy Andi’s character as an FBI agent. I didn’t connect with the characters as well as I would’ve hoped. I did particularly like Andi’s dad and their relationship.

If this became a detective series following Andi I would definitely continue to read.

I would recommend!

2.5/5 The Wedding Party
Thank you to NetGalley and Nerdy Girl Book Club for providing me with an ARC of this title.

A mysterious red ribboned box, a wedding party in a haunted hotel, and family drama for days draw out the plot for The Wedding Party.

The initial setting was intriguing - taking place during a co-bachelor/bachelorette party sometime around Halloween (the date isn't specified but the holiday is mentioned) in the Stanley Hotel, otherwise known as the hotel from The Shining movie. But the location takes a turn about a quarter through the book, and the story ends up primarily taking place in a hospital where FBI Agent Andi Castle spends the majority of the time questioning characters and gathering information.

The opening prologue for the book was such a a hook that I expected to ride that thrill for the rest of the novel but instead there was more interrogation room style questioning than trills, chills, and even character development. We spend so much time with Andi that the other characters are mostly left to the wayside if not completely forgotten until the final act.

The blurb for this book gave me high hopes but in the end it wasn't the thriller I'd been hoping to read.

𝑺𝒆𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒌🔪𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒓 𝒄𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏......

Special thanks to @netgalley @amazonpublishing for this #gifted eARC.

MY REVIEW::
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Ok, so this is a perfect example of a book I probably should've read the WHOLE synopsis before requesting this one on netgalley. Don't get me wrong, it was a very intriguing read, but there were some parts of this story that just did not belong.
I looked back and was like, but why was there a haunted👻 hotel tour. And whyd they have to stay in certain rooms to see certain ghosts👻? It LITERALLY had nothing to do with the story....😐😐😐😐😐
If the story would've had a spooky undertone, and that played into it - I think it woulda been real cool - but this did not make sense to me.

There's alot of unreliable and unlikeable suspects.... I mean characters in this book 😜😜😜😜
It leaves alot to the imagination for who did it. At one point I even swear I turned on Carrie because this situation just seems so far-fetched for her to not remember ANYTHING!

Either way, I would say this is a decent read. Weird but decent. It kept me wanting to find out if Carrie would ever remember, and if it was Brody or one of the other Groomsman who sent the "disgusting" gift.

PUB DATE:
Feb 20, 2024

QOTD ❓️⁉️❓️ Do you read the full synopsis, part of the synopsis, or even any of the synopsis - before going into a book?

AOTD - most of the time I read part of it and then go in blind cause I won't read the rest. It usually works out for me.

#mysteryandthrills #thrillerbooklovers #theweddingparty #netgalley #lrjones #thriller #bookbuzz #upcomingthriller
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I DNFd about half way through. While the atmosphere of the Stanley hotel was one that I thought was fun, the interactions between the characters didn't feel authentic and it was overkill on pointing out that Andi was an FBI agent. It just didn't flow smoothly and maybe this isn't the right writing style for my preferences. I think the storyline may be one that fans of the show Criminal Minds would like due to the mystery and criminal profiling aspect.

The murder mystery kept me interested but the writing needed a little elevation to make this book amazing. Since this copy is an ARC there are some issues I can look past but I was left with questions, and I don't think that was the author's intention. But maybe it was, and in that case, good job.

One very specific issue I had reading this was the overuse of the word "belly". A character has a stab wound in the abdomen. This person, the doctor, the FBI agent and every other person who talks about it, calls it a cut in the belly. A medical professional would not say that. I doubt an FBI agent would either. It felt wrong reading a variation of that phrase over and over. (I work in medicine and I only say "belly" when talking to my youngest patients).
Without getting into specifics too much, there were some other things that stood out to me. Details about time frames and motives mostly.

Hmmm.. a bridal weekend at the Stanley Hotel? Well, of course things go awry. Well, murderous. Luckily, Andi, an FBI SA, is there, meant only to be a plus one but as it turns out the one who will solve the whole thing. This is deeply implausible in spots as well as over the top. And the prose is purple, I ultimately DNF. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Over to others.

I absolutely love a locked room mystery and this one delivers with a bang!!!! This was written beautifully and I could not figure out who actually did it til they told us. I was totally in suspense. Perfect book to curl up to on a rainy day! So good! 5/5 stars!!
I just reviewed The Wedding Party by L. R. Jones. #TheWeddingParty #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

My second book by this author and it was just as good as the first. I love the idea of the joint bachelor/bachelorette party at the Stanley Hotel. Agent Andi Castle is looking for a get away after a huge case but the drama just keeps following her. The humor was great and I was intimidated at first by so many chapters but they were quick and had me hooked. This was a fun mystery that will keep you drawn in wanting to know what happens next.

Ahh, this was seriously so much fun to read! I think I am getting back into my juicy thriller era and I am obsessed. This was a delight from beginning to end. And what an ending!

Told in dual narrative, we get this rapidly unraveling whodunnit… a truly juicy popcorn thriller.

Carrie and Oliver are the cutest couple. Everyone thinks so. They have a real honest to goodness love for each other and with their nuptials fast approaching, they have family and friends join them for a weekend getaway to The Stanley Hotel, home of well known paranormal activity…

A gruesome murder turns the whole weekend on its head, but detective Andi Castle, a friend of a guest brought as a plus-one, just so happens to be in the right place at the right time to begin investigating.

What I love about books with isolated settings and big groups is that there is always so much to dig through. This person looks guilty until this person does… and so on. And Jones doesn’t disappoint in this book. The blame is all over the place, with everyone having their own assumptions. Andi doesn’t deal in assumptions though… she deals in facts and she refuses to quit until she digs up every single one.

I just had so much fun with this that there was no other rating to give it but five stars!

Wow this book had you on your toes guessing right from the start. Carrie and Oliver were very much in love and about to be married. Oliver is CEO for his family’s company. Carrie is adopted and is a nurse working in the ER. They invited guests to a wedding party which turned out to be one they would never forget. FBI agent Andi was not friends with either of them but was asked by her friend to accompany her as her plus one. Andi needed the break after cracking a big case. This was not to be after Oliver is found stabbed to death on his bed and Carrie is found hiding naked in the attic covered in blood. This book will have you trying right to the very end to figure out who did it. If you like a good murder mystery I highly recommend reading The Wedding Party

This book was during for me. I could not get through reading this. One seen other people enjoy this but it wasn't for me

Carrie is a nurse living in Denver, engaged to Oliver who just took over Phoenix Technology after his father retires. Oliver is a JFK Jr clone and Carrie believes herself to be average compared to him. Their paths crossed when Oliver was in a car crash and taken to the hospital where Carrie was a nurse. The two are excited about their upcoming combined bachelor/bachelorette party which will take place in the infamous Stanley Hotel in Estes Park.

The two are relaxing at home, waiting for dinner to arrive when the doorbell rings. Concerned that Oliver isn't returning to the kitchen quickly with the food, Carrie makes her way to the door to find a stunned Oliver, holding a card and box. Carrie asks what has him so upset and is brushed off with Oliver saying it must be a sick prank from one of the groomsmen. Her concern grows when Oliver excuses himself to his office and locks the door.

Meanwhile, Lana - a coworker of Carrie's - invites her friend Andi to be her plus one for the bachelorette party. Andi hesitantly agrees but knows it would be a good idea for her to get out of town for a few days. Andi is an FBI agent who just tracked down and caught the serial killer known as the Spider Man. The press are hounding her not only for her latest capture but also because she's the daughter of Eddie Castle - legendary FBI agent known for beating up a criminal who was in custody.

Unfortunately, when a member of the party ends up with 50 stabs wounds and another takes a knife to the stomach, Andi is no longer just a guest attending as a plus one; she's immediately on the job to figure out who came to the party with murderous intentions.

I gave this book 3.5 stars, rounded up to four. It seemed as though Andi's status as an FBI agent was mentioned multiple times on every single page. There was also some dialogue that seemed rather out of place and unnecessarily derogatory toward women. Women overly worried about appearing thin for men; divorcee's needing a man to tell her she's beautiful; referring to women as bimbo's are a few examples.

Aside from that, I did enjoy the overall plot. It was fun to read about places and people I'm familiar with - loved the Mahomes reference when the men were sitting around drinking and talking about football!

I would be interested in reading other works from the author.

Thank you NetGalley, L.R. Jones, and, Thomas and Mercer for the opportunity to read this book ahead of its proposed release date on February 20th, 2024.