Frank Szatowski is shocked when his daughter, Maggie, calls him for the first time in three years. He was convinced that their estrangement would become permanent. He’s even more surprised when she invites him to her upcoming wedding in New Hampshire. Frank is ecstatic, and determined to finally make things right.

He arrives to find that the wedding is at a private estate—very secluded, very luxurious, very much out of his league. It seems that Maggie failed to mention that she’s marrying Aidan Gardner, the son of a famous tech billionaire. Feeling desperately out of place, Frank focuses on reconnecting with Maggie and getting to know her new family. But it’s difficult: Aidan is withdrawn and evasive; Maggie doesn’t seem to have time for him; and he finds that the locals are disturbingly hostile to the Gardners. Frank needs to know more about this family his daughter is marrying into, but if he pushes too hard, he could lose Maggie forever.

This book contains scenes that depict suicide.

When I was a kid, I definitely believed my dad could star in a thriller. Reading The Last One at the Wedding feels like watching that childhood dream come to life. With an endearingly grouchy protagonist and a bold, self-assured damsel in distress, this book reworks the traditional dad-rescues-daughter plotline into a far darker and more fascinating read.

Frank Szatowski is typical dad material. He likes canoeing. He buys extra fire extinguishers just because they’re on sale. And predictably, he’s a bit suspicious of his daughter Maggie’s wealthy, handsome, too-good-to-be-true fiancé. But that’s just fatherly paranoia—isn’t it?

When Maggie reaches out to invite him to her wedding after a three-year estrangement, Frank is determined to make the most of the chance to reconnect. But from the moment he arrives at Maggie’s new in-laws’ luxurious summer estate, he can’t shake the sense that there’s something off. The groom, Aidan, is nervous and evasive; his technocrat parents have secrets to hide under their shiny exterior. And no one will talk about Aidan’s connection to another young woman who disappeared several months earlier…

Every dad wants to think he can protect his child, but this isn’t Taken. Frank is a UPS driver, not an action hero. Maggie is a sharp-witted adult, not an innocent ingénue. As their shared family stubbornness collides and the date of the wedding looms closer, The Last One at the Wedding is one gripping daddy-daughter dance you won’t want to miss.