A trendy tech startup company goes on their annual lavish company trip. New employee Caitlyn in tow. This gripping novel will have you engulfed in a drama, sex, drug and even a suspected murder all on one corporate trip. The author does a great job keeping the reader wondering and wanting in on the tea. Anything can happen on a company trip. Highly recommend this audiobook.

I will be writing an actual review on Goodreads over the weekend but I have finished the book and I LOVED IT!

I will be giving it 5 stars!!

Thank you for the opportunity to review it.

I was excited to listen to Very Bad Company by Emma Rosenblum after enjoying another of her audiobooks last year. This one didn’t disappoint! The characters were really characters and I loved that this book was set with Miami as the backdrop for the mystery!

And I was entertained! This audiobook was fun - in a dark and twisted way. Set in the corporate world it was a fun and different feel than what I usually gravitate toward, but it brought all the drama right along with it.

Taking place at a corporate retreat for tech company Aurora, we're introduced to a very "colorful" CEO, John, who's low-level obsessed with Winston Churchill. He's also shady as all get out. When one of his closest associates is found dead in her hotel room, we start to get a picture of the "Very Bad" level of corruption, lies and all around dysfunction in play behind the scenes.

The character development and storyline were great. There were domestic thriller vibes in a corporate setting. I enjoyed Very Bad Company more than the author's first novel, Bad Summer People. The narration was also exceptional, January LaVoy knocked it out of the park.

I'm giving this audiobook a solid 4.5 stars. I definitely recommend putting it on your TBR list!

This audiobook was made available to me by Macmillan Audio and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The narrator of Very Bad Company by Emma Rosenblum is January LaVoy. There are multiple point of view (pov) characters and January was able to very effectively give each of these characters a unique tone, inflection and style of speaking to make it easier for the listener/reader to differentiate between the characters.

Even with the wonderful narration, there were so many similar characters I found myself confused in places. About 20% into the book, I started a character list and took light notes. The characters were not complicated, really, just rich and shameless. Parts of this story almost read like a season of HBO's The White Lotus TV show. The novel wasn't quite as funny as the show but definitely had quirks that would easily be laughable on camera. I tend to enjoy thriller novels with unlikable main characters, and this was no exception.

The main action of this novel is set at the annual week-long retreat for the senior staff of Aurora tech startup at an exclusive resort in Miami. The founder John, his assistant, and his most senior seven-figure salaried chief officer of their department staff members, including a new hire who has yet to work her first day at the company. This has an eccentric founder, Elon Musk-style, a hard-nosed investigative reporter, and vapid, competitive, shallow, selfish staff members. The cast is perfect for this type of domestic thriller. Revealed during the retreat are surprises planned by the founder as well as unplanned surprises revealed by the various founder and his staff members. In between these reveals, the characters are busy heavy drinking, with hook-ups, hard drugs, dancing, swimming, and planned group excursions. Most of the staff members have a long and secretive history with each other and the company with a major financial incentive to keep the company's secrets hidden. This is fast-paced, amusing, quirky, and an excellent thriller. I thoroughly enjoyed this fast-paced story.

I think the story would have benefited from maybe 2 fewer pov characters. Also some of the Black woman characters’ personality & bio felt stereotypical, including her background and dating situation. I liked this author's previous thriller and will definitely read her next novel.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook novel. All opinions and viewpoints expressed in this review are my own.

This book was definitely a fun time it most certainly had alot of Chutzpah much like her first one...this was a fun in the sun work retreat in Miami that goes horribly wrong and truths come out the reason Im rating this one lower then the first one is because I found it at times hard too follow with these group of people and even though her last book had a large amount of people in it as well I still found that a lot easier for me to read for some reason but I was given this audiobook on netgalley and I found it fun so I definitely would give it a try! #bookstagram #mystery #thriller #books #reading #domesticthriller #miami #vacationdrama

Sadly, this book disappointed me. I honestly think if I had read this as a physical copy as opposed to listening to it, I would have liked it a bit more. Listening to this book was very confusing. There were a lot of characters with not enough difference in tone between each character. I think this would have been a more successful listening experience had there been more than one narrator. The narrator had great inflection in their voice and brought passion to the characters, but there were too many to keep track of while listening.

The story was okay. I felt like it was really repetitive with John constantly talking about shares and each of the women gossiping. None of the characters had redeeming qualities, but I can't figure out if Emma Rosenbaum intended that to be the case. I wasn't rooting for anyone, and I ultimately did not care about the outcome of the shares, business or the workers.

I"m rating this book 3 stars because I do think that the audio did detract from my experience. I would recommend this book to people who like a quirky and fluffy romance with multiple characters, I would tell them to grab a copy of this book to enjoy.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for allowing me this advanced copy.

Listened at 3x narration speed with no issues.

I liked the premise of top level executives at a tech company all having their own issues/vices/secrets, without them being so ridiculously over the top and unbelievable. There were SO MANY CHARACTERS and it was a bit tough to keep them all straight at times. Jumping between story lines and cast did keep it interesting, though.

Perhaps the biggest let down for me was the oh-so-quick wrap up; listening wise, it seems to fly by so quickly with no real twists or turns to the events. I was hoping for a bombshell revelation that didn't come, so this likely won't be a story I remember.

Overall: 3 stars (I liked it)

I'll tell my students about: language, violence, alcohol. drugs, sex, trauma, LGBT+

**Thank you to NetGalley & Macmillan Audio for the free ALC. All opinions expressed are my own.**

After reading Rosenblum's "Bad Summer People" last year, I knew this would be a great read. This book follows the executives of tech giant Aurora as they take a retreat in Miami. Each character is seriously flawed and all of the secrets and flaws come out when one of their teammates dies at the beginning of the trip.

I loved the multiple perspectives and how they carried the plot forward while also fleshing out each character. I truly did not know what had happened until the end, but I was fully engaged in solving the mystery. This is the perfect beach read!

Thank you to netgalley, Emma Rosenblum, and Macmillan audio for the opportunity to listen to an ALC.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced audio arc of Very Bad Company! This is my second read by Emma Rosenblum, and it was every bit the train wreck that you can't get enough of! Her books are every bit what I imagine the "jet set" life would be like...
A gripping, darkly comic novel from the national bestselling author of Bad Summer People about a team of wealthy and powerful executives on retreat in Miami when one of them goes missing . . .

Every year, executives at the trendy tech startup Aurora gather the company’s top employees for an exclusive retreat in Miami and this year, Caitlin Levy–Aurora’s newest hire–is joining the team as Head of Events. The benefits are a seven-figure salary, stock shares, a discretionary bonus, limitless vacation days–what could possibly go wrong?

Very Bad Company indeed! I really enjoyed Emily Rosenblum’s Bad Summer People, and couldn’t wait to listen to her next release. I enjoyed delving inside the lives of some pretty horrible people and their work retreat. A little mystery, a little suspense, and a little comedy, I highly recommend Very Bad Company. Thank you to Net Galley and Macmillan Audio for the chance to have a preview and review this fun audiobook!

VERY BAD COMPANY
Emma Rosenblum

Secrets to keep, integrities to exploit, and budgets to balance before quarter end.

You know the story.

Bad people at the top, making all the decisions, bad ethics at the root, plus bad circumstances equals a VERY BAD COMPANY.

Caitlin just got a new job with an accompanying offer so big she couldn’t refuse. With her new position at Aurora, she will make three times as much as she did before, which was already a lot. There are other perks too like company travel, drinks, and dinners out, not to mention a hefty bonus, endless vacation days, and appealing company stock options.

She has no idea what her new job duties will entail but she’s Head of Events and she’s sure she’ll figure something out. We meet up with Caitlin when she’s on the way to her first company event. She’ll learn a lot on this trip and so will we.

The first night of the trip one of the employees of Aurora goes missing. And suddenly Caitlin's big salary doesn’t look big enough for all the drama she will have to go through.



VERY BAD COMPANY is not very good. It’s not very bad either. It’s somewhere in the middle which just feels like a waste of time. There are two characters too many and every character that made it to the pages was meagerly constructed and seemed to fill a stereotypical hole rather than contribute to the story in a meaningful way.

You know going in these are very bad people. So, it didn’t alarm me when I didn’t feel warm and fuzzy towards any of the characters. The problem is I won’t remember them either.

VERY BAD COMPANY is set to publish on May 14, 2024.

Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced copy!

VERY BAD COMPANY…⭐⭐⭐

Great potential, but ultimately just felt like a pastiche of stereotypes about the tech industry.

Review copy provided by publisher.

Ahhh...I love a good story filled with unlikable characters, a mystery to solve, and a retreat gone horribly awry. I listened to the audiobook and it was so fun to hear the different voices bring this novel to life. Caitlin is excited about her new job and all the perks that come with it, until someone dies and the show must go on, so to speak. As someone not involved in corporate culture I found the descriptions fascinating and the lifestyle a bit over-the-top, but that may be part of what makes this type of book so intriguing and exciting to read.

I am always down for some workplace drama. This one takes place at a workplace executive retreat where one of them goes missing. All the executives must continue on as normal as there are millions at stake with a potential.

All the characters are unlikeable with hidden agendas and secrets. The story was a bit slow for me with so many characters. I did enjoy the January LaVoy's narration. Overall, it was entertaining.


Thank you @flatiron_books @macmillan.audio @netgalley for a copy of this book.

This story about a tech company’s corporate retreat was both dark and funny. I enjoyed the introduction of all the characters and their ridiculous job titles. I also loved how the author made fun of corporate culture and language throughout. I felt like the audiobook elevated the experience for me. The narrator was excellent.

Unfortunately, I was looking for a little bit more with the plot. Some sort of twist or something to make the book standout more for me. That being said, I thoroughly enjoyed this mystery and would recommend it to anyone looking for something a little different. It was a fun read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Flatiron for the advanced audiobook.

While reading Bad Summer People by Rosenbaum, I remember thinking “Wow, rich people problems” But that statement is 100% for this book. The executives at the tech startup, Aurora, gather for a retreat every year and this year they are in Miami. Caitlin Levy, the newest hire who hasn’t even worked a day yet, attends and is immediately throw into the drama with her seven-figure salary and crazy benefits. One of the executives disappears one night and they are all now worried about the sale of Aurora that is about to happen. They all go along with the team building activities while they are there to help save their image but will they find their missing team member.

This book had all the drama from the get go. The characters are absolutely terrible people in the best way for the story. They are cheating on their spouses, care more about money than anything when they are all making millions to begin with, and they all gossip behind each others back. The CEO is the biggest jerk of them all and cares only about himself. Overall, this had plenty of workplace drama but with a vacation setting and made for a quick, easy listen.

A group of top executives of a tech company go on retreat to finalize the sale of the company when one of them goes missing — and secrets, many secrets .

All these characters are unlikable but in a way that makes you love to hate them.
The audiobook has excellent narration with many accents for the multiple POV by February LaVoy which brought life to the book and more enjoyment .
This fast-paced story and a fun read with a somewhat realistic ending is darkly comic in its own way and full of big personality characters.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for this ARC. This is my honest review .

I was so excited to start this audiobook when I saw that January LaVoy was the narrator. She did an amazing job, was very animated, and really made the story and characters come to life. I loved the vacation vibes and Miami setting. There are multiple POVs which the author separated by chapter. The characters were well developed (and you just can’t help but love and hate them at the same time. ) I enjoyed the dark humor, workplace drama, and bits of mystery mixed in.

Read if you like:
👩🏽‍💼Workplace drama
👩🏻‍💼Miami Beach setting
👩🏼‍💼Character driven book
👨🏻‍💼Whodunnit mystery

Very Bad Company by Emma Rosenblum was everything that I expected it to be . . . a character-driven, workplace drama with a bit of a mystery. The story starts out with Aurora’s CEO reflecting on the disappearance of an executive during his tech company’s retreat. We then are taken back to the beginning of the retreat and all that transpired until the mystery is solved. We get to know all the characters. Some likeable. Most not. It’s exactly the kind of juicy drama that makes for a fun, quick read.

If you have the opportunity to listen to the audiobook, do it! The narration is fantastic, and each character comes alive. I particularly enjoyed the narrator’s depiction of the CEO. It fits his character perfectly!