The Wedding Party

A Thriller

By: L. R. Jones

Narrated by: Madeleine Maby, Lauren Ezzo

Length: 9 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

For a bride-to-be and her fiancé, secrets and lies make this a killer celebration in this psychological suspense.

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.

©2024 by Julie Patra Publishing, Inc. (P)2024 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“A tense and twisty whodunit featuring a joint bachelor/bachelorette party, an FBI agent, a murder, and a hotel on lockdown. The Wedding Party is highly engrossing and wickedly fun! Jones delivers an entertaining thriller that readers will surely devour.”—Jeneva Rose, New York Times bestselling author

“Riveting and pulse-pounding from the very first page. Impossible to put down.”—Lucinda Berry, bestselling author of Keep Your Friends Close

“An instantly compelling mystery that's IMPOSSIBLE to put down!”—Shalini Boland, USA Today bestselling author

good story, annoying narrator

one of the narrators had a very annoying lisp that was distracting to the story

Surprise

Didn’t see that ending…that took me back .. like really…I didn’t like the ending

Interesting Storyline

This held my attention once I got into it because I didn’t really know where it would be heading next. Although the wrap up was all done rather quickly, I did feel like it answered most of my questions.

The characters were very good.

I enjoyed the story. It was just different enough to be interesting hold my attention.

bad ass Castle

great story 👏 good ending love the father daughter dynamic I was surprised with the twist of events

enjoyed

I like the book. it was good. trying read more, listen whatever you call it escape. this book was good for that.

Kept me guessing!

Told from perspectives of Carrie & Andi, I was left with my guesses of who the bad guy was with these two voices on different sides.

I was guessing who the murderer was, who had the most secrets. I was on the edge of my seat right until the very end & the heartbreaking conclusion.

Narration was perfection!

Great performances by Madeline Maby & Lauren Ezzo!

A book with pink writing on it and named The Wedding Party is usually the kind of book I take a pass on. The word THRILLER in the title convinced me to at least take a look. I admit I got hooked soon after reading the first few pages. I usually read several books at a time, depending on my mood and location, but this storyline was not one of them. The main character is a female FBI agent known as 'Andi' Castle. Her father, Eddie Castle, is well-known, somewhat infamous in law enforcement circles. Their relationship is complicated. I liked him.
I really like the style author, L. R. Jones used to tell the story and build suspense. Without giving too much away, obviously, the catalyst for what is to come is the wedding party. I highly recommend this book if you like investigative thrillers and strong characters. I will be looking for more books by this author. I also recommend the available audible performances by Madeleine Maby & Lauren Ezzo. -Mr.Bill

Wasted my time

I really wish I would have read the reviews on this book before I wasted my time. The narration was fine.

It was so obvious. The killer is who you expect, literally planted for you on the first page. No twists, no surprises. It had so much potential for a great suspense novel, but it lacked the storyline.

The only good thing about this book was the cops were hilarious, the father/daughter relationship was so sweet.

Horrendous Narrators

This seems like the pilot episode of a new tv show, where characters are established in a way that makes it obvious a series is in development. The FBI agent, her boss/lover, and her bounty hunter father are all caricatures with one or two identifying quirks that feel forced or just overly-used stereotypes.

The beginning is compelling but is left dangling way too long to the point of not knowing who the character is by the time the first chapter is referenced again. The telegraphing of the guilty party was way too obvious, and the plot holes were jarring.

Narration was terribly disappointing. One over-enunciated so much that it drew attention to the unnatural, stilted dialogue instead of covering some of those plodding exchanges. The other narrator voiced her character as though playing to the cheap seats. She only lacked a fainting couch and smelling salts.

Neither narrator did a masculine voice particularly well. This would, perhaps, have benefited from a third (and male) voice to do the heavy lifting, as there are many men with speaking lines.

I did finish, but I’d like that time back.