The Bridal Party by Maria Frankland

3rd May 2024 Books

Spread the love

AD | book tour – with a hen do coming up in June, I read the blurb for The Bridal Party by Maria Frankland and knew that I wanted a spot on the book tour. Murder, mystery and drama all set in a Dublin backdrop and I knew I was in for a treat. Here’s what I thought….

Table of Contents

THE BLURB

The moment she sees Caitlyn, wearing her ‘bride-to-be’ sash and brimming with excitement, it hits her. She hates Caitlyn. She knows who Little Miss Perfect really is – what she’s really hiding. And the temptation to do something about it is too strong to resist…

When the first bottle of prosecco pops open I breathe a sigh of relief. As maid-of-honour, I’ve worked so hard to organise my best friend Caitlyn’s big celebration before her wedding. Even though her schoolfriends are jealous they aren’t bridesmaids like me, and her sisters won’t make eye contact, I plaster a fake smile on my face and top up everyone’s glasses. Nothing will spoil this special weekend.

But as we begin the cute husband-and-wife games, Caitlyn’s sister-in-law reveals something shockingly cruel. In the silence that follows, the little question cards I’d made drop, forgotten, to the floor. We’re supposed to be celebrating her upcoming wedding but Caitlyn’s lied to me for years. Her relationship is far from the magical dream she’d made it out to be.

Suddenly, everyone in the room is arguing. All of our secrets and lies are exposed. It’s clear that none of us really know each other – or Caitlyn.

The next morning I find Caitlyn, beautiful, pale and unmoving in her bed. The bride is dead. One of us killed her. But which devastating truth was dangerous enough to kill for? And with us all stuck here until the murderer is found, how long will it be until someone else gets hurt…?

WHAT I THOUGHT ABOUT THE BRIDAL PARTY

I actually found the blurb on this one to be incredibly misleading and it doesn’t do The Bridal Party justice. The synopsis gives the impression that someone hates Caitlyn so much that when the wine starts flowing and the secrets start spilling, there is a murder rampage where no one knows who will be next.

In reality, poor Caitlyn is off to Dublin on the hen party of nightmares. Most women have been on that awkward hen do where you only know the bride but in Caitlyn’s, most of the people who came not only don’t know each other but most seem to dislike her. People get drunk, get angry and argue. With dramatic results. Almost all seem to have motive for smothering her in her sleep so when the guarda are called in, the question is….who dunnit (do you see what I did there?)

I really enjoyed the different perspectives in The Bridal Party as we get a look behind the curtain into the minds of all 9 women who were in the apartment when Caitlyn was killed as they are interviewed by the police. A quick and easy read that is well written and by the end of the book, you can’t help but feel sorry for Caitlyn and the way she was treated by the people that were supposed to love her.