After a three year long estrangement from his only child, Frank Szatowski is overjoyed when his daughter, Maggie, calls him out of the blue. Not only that, Maggie is ready to forgive him for the past and to begin a new relationship.

Even more amazing? Maggie is engaged to be married and she wants her father to be there. Frank is surprised but overjoyed at the prospect of mending his relationship with Maggie and while he is more than taken aback by Maggie’s fiancé’s family wealth, he is willing to look past it and enjoy the wedding, set to take place at Maggie’s in-laws summer retreat. But once Frank arrives with his sister Tammy and her foster daughter, he begins to ask questions that aren’t welcomed and the more Frank learns about the Gardners, particularly Maggie’s fiancé, Aidan, the more he fears Maggie is in way over her head.

This was a very quick and fun read. You get into the story right away and become engrossed in Frank’s story while also wondering if he is a reliable narrator, a trope that I personally enjoy. And while this book is classified as a mystery/thriller, I found the biggest strength of the story was the characters and their dynamics with one another, particularly with Frank and Maggie’s relationship.

Their history, and the falling out they had a few years earlier, holds the story together and is the main driving force behind both characters’ actions. I found this dynamic to be very interesting and it was what kept me so invested in the story. In a sense, I would argue that The Last One at the Wedding is less murder mystery and more literary fiction.

Of course, there is a mystery/thriller aspect to this story but I found it to take a back seat to the characters and their relationships, a fact that didn’t really bother me. If you are going into this story expecting a good mystery, I would suggest this one as it is a fairly easy mystery to unravel. But, if you are open to this book being more than that, I would highly recommend it. It wasn’t what I was expecting but found it enjoyable all the same.

5 out of 5 stars