This book is marketed as a twisted mystery about a bachelorette party gone wrong, but it reads more like women’s fiction with a murder as a backdrop to explore personal dramas. The story is bogged down with clunky info-dumping and unnecessary subplots, from cheating scandals to overbearing parents, that overshadow the murder investigation. The characters are unlikable, their reactions shallow, and the mystery barely gets any focus. While the drama might appeal to fans of relationship-driven stories with a hint of suspense, the imbalance between the personal issues and the murder investigation left me frustrated. Three stars.
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC

This was not for me I am afraid didn't gel with the story or characters

Thanks for the opportunity to review

Lots of twists in this book to keep the reader on their toes. I enjoyed it very much
Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC in return for my honest review

I really enjoyed this book. It keeps you guessing until the very end. Twists and turns that you don't expect. I couldn't put it down!

1 unenthusiastic star.

It’s Saturday, early morning, fourteen days until Maggie’s wedding. She wakes up the morning after her bachelorette party with a hangover and a stranger beside her in bed. So, perhaps she is not quite ready for commitment? We have no time to parse this because there’s a phone call. It’s Suzanne, Maggie’s best friend. Angie, another friend who was at the party is dead.

Sounds like quite the party.

So, I got suckered into reading this book with the listed publication date of December 2024. It was previously published in 2018 as THE LAST NIGHT OUT, I don’t think Inread it then, but it wasn’t good, so it’s possible I did and I’ve blocked the whole thing out. Just like Maggie “forgot” she was engaged, I guess.

The action here is set in 1988 and there may be some plot-driven reason for that, but if there is, I can’t recall it. This reads like a book Jackie Collins started then rejected; it’s not so bad it’s good, it’s just puerile.

Oh, and Angie’s mother’s name is Ida Lupino. Ida Lupino. Do you think it’s possible the author didn’t know there was a very famous actress named Ida Lupino? Because she makes no reference to her. I think she didn’t know. And that’s just shameful. Oh, and the end was super heavy handed and really judgy, too. Why I finished this is beyond me. Save yourselves!

[Previously published under title "The Last Night Out"]

This belongs on Bravo as a movie! Set before the era when everyone has a cell phone and is always connected, six childhood friends head out for Maggie's bachelorette party. And the morning after finds the bride to be, Maggie, in bed with a stranger. The phone wakes her and Suzanne breaks the news that their mutual friend Angie died last night.

After diving into each friend's life beyond high school and college shows how different goals take them all very different places. At the light of day, who is actually hiding what? Could one of the five remaining women be to blame?

This was a quick read with a surprise twist ending. I thought I had it nailed, but NOPE! Entertaining and great for a dreary day by the fire.

Thanks to NetGalley, Joffe Books and Catherine O'Connell for the eARC.
#TheBacheloretteParty #NetGalley
This book was previously published as The Last Night Out.

This book is incredibly well written and I enjoyed this book, I just found that the ending was written quickly and it could have been better.

This is a gripping, suspenseful and thrilling psychological murder mystery and I was caught up in the whole story right from the start. A bride to be, a night out with her closest friends and one of them ends up dead. Wow, what a start!

The story unfolding at a good pace, not too quickly but never slow and boring. It kept me enthralled and turning the pages. It is written with many a twist and turn and plenty of suspense to keep you on the edge of your seat. Well written, love the characters and never predictable. A great read and an intense, tension filled story.

Thank you NetGalley and Joffe Books for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

This book was crazy!! Imagine waking up in a bed next to a hot guy, except it’s your bachelorette party. Not the best move but hopefully no one finds out. Then you get a phone call that your friend was murdered, things start to get real. You realize the only alibi you have is this guy in the bed that you really don’t want to use.. since you’re the one supposed to be getting married. Absolute roller coaster of a book!

Loved it! The gradual unwinding of events, the exposure of friend’s natures and the sheer terror of not knowing what the main charstder has or has not done make for a gripping read. I loved the setting and the vibe of the whole,book.

The Bachelorette Party by Catherine O' Connell.
This was a really good read. I loved the cover and blurb of this book. I read it in two sittings. I couldn't put it down as I had to know what happened. I wasn't sure how I felt about the characters. I did like Maggie. She was the only one I liked. Twisty and gripping. I certainly didn't see that coming.

Decent story, but the end was rushed and disjointed, and left this rather dissatisfied. More like 2.5 stars.

*I received an advanced reader copy of this book from NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The Bachelorette Party by Catherine O’Connell was a very twisty book that was full of brilliant twists and turns that will have you sitting on the edge of your seat and then turning your pages to your kindle to find out what happens next.

Maggie Trueheart is destined to marry the perfect man in two weeks time. and she is desperate for a last wild night on the town before her big day. So, she gathers six of her favourite friends and takes them out for a night to remember.

After drinking too much at her bachelorette party, Maggie wakes to find a stranger in her bed, she has no clue who he is and what his name is! Confused and then, her phone rings and it brings the devastating news that her friend Angie was murdered some time after they parted ways the night before. WoW!

Kelly Delaney, left Maggie's party early, and she is the first of Maggie's friends to face questions from Chicago homicide detective Ron O'Reilly. After taking a closer look at the other women who attended the party, O'Reilly concludes that at least some of them are lying.

But, what are some of Maggie's friends hiding?

Now, the clock is ticking down to Maggie's wedding day. With, so, many secrets they are all hiding from each other and they are all about to come to the surface. . . . . . . . .

Tick Tock, Tick Tock. . . . . . . . . . .

Can the killer be stopped before there is another victim?

This book was an excellent read and a great read for the colder months snuggled under a blanket by the fire.

I highly recommend The Bachelorette Party.









As the clock ticks down to the wedding day and more shocking secrets are revealed, the murderer zeros in on another one of the girls. Can the killer be stopped before there is another victim?

An enjoyable read about a group of women on a batchelorette party. With Maggie, the bride to be, waking up with a stranger in her bed. A psychological thriller which is full of twists this is one to be recommended.

The plot of this book drew me in immediately with not knowing who to trust, very twisty and thrilling read overall.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The Bachelorette Party - Catherine O’Connell

One lie leads to more, before a chain reactions leads the whole deceitful web to be broken down.

This was an entertaining read - uncovering the secrets and lies surrounding the lives of this central group of women.

And an ending that I certainly didn’t see coming….no spoilers here - but add it to your Christmas wish list!

Catherine O’Connell’s The Bachelorette Party is a twisty, suspenseful read. It takes place in the days leading up to Maggie’s wedding, in particular the bachelorette party that ends in tragic events, including murder. If you are a fan of women’s fiction, toxic friendships and tension filled mystery then this book is for you.

Read this if you like:
-multiple POVs and dual timelines
-the 1980s setting complete with the party scene and its excesses
-unlikeable and unreliable characters with secrets to hide some deadly
-toxic friendships
-twists and turns
-satisfying ending that surprises

My rating: 3.75 out of 5

Thanks to NetGalley and Joffe Books for this eARC that will be released Dec 9 2024.

Secrets, Lies..
Six friends, a party to die for. What really happened at the hen party that was meant to be so much fun and a frivolous start to a new life ? A tale of secrets, lies and murder in this sizzling suspense relayed across a dual timeline. With a well drawn cast of characters, a pacy narrative and twists aplenty, secrets will out in this edgy tale of suspense,

The Bachelorette Party by Catherine O’Connell is a historical thriller - choices made at a bachelorette party create several ripple effects. It was interesting to go back in time to the eighties - the culture, music, etc. The suspense and twists were also great. The end was quite interesting - I didn't see it coming. I felt that one of the characters seemed to have been unduly punished though. A good read overall. I got the ARC from Netgalley and Joffe Books. All opinions expressed are mine

3.5 🌟
It’s June 1988 and Maggie wakes up the morning after her bachelorette party with a strange man in her bed she has no memory of, and if she thought that was bad she then receives a call to say the body of one of her friends Angie has been found. As the story unfolds and the friends try to find out what happened, they choose to hide certain things from the police as they don’t want to find theirselves under scrutiny. They all have secrets to keep, but why?

The story counts us down 14 days to the day of the wedding from the day after the bachelorette, I found it quite slow for at least the first half of the book. But things soon picked up and there were plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing. I didn’t guess the ending too which is good for me when I read so many of these types of books.

Thanks to NetGalley, publisher & author for me eARC.