The Unwedding

The Unwedding is a mystery novel by American author Ally Condie, who is best known for her young adult and middle-grade fiction. The novel follows recent divorcee Ellery Wainwright on what would have been her 20th wedding anniversary trip to the luxurious Resort at Broken Point in Big Sur, California. When a groom turns up dead and bad weather isolates the guests at The Resort, Ellery is drawn into a mystery that puts them all in jeopardy and reveals her own darkest secret. Major themes in the novel include The Trauma of Survivor’s Guilt, Class Tensions in Luxury Tourism, and The Importance of Maintaining Friendships.

This review is based on the 2024 Grand Central Press eBook edition.

Content Warning: The novel contains graphic depictions of death.

Plot Summary

In the prologue, Ellery Wainwright finds a dead body in the pool of The Resort at Broken Point. Two days earlier, recently divorced Ellery arrives at The Resort alone on what was supposed to be a 20th wedding anniversary trip. She repeatedly calls her friend Abby, a fellow teacher with whom she survived a fatal bus accident, for support. On the first night, two attractive guests named Ravi and Nina ask Ellery to eat dinner with them. Afterward, Ravi convinces Ellery to crash the welcome party of a wedding held on the property. Ellery feels out of place but is greeted warmly by the bride, Olivia, who confides that she and her fiancé Ben hoped for a smaller wedding but were pressured by her mother to host an extravagant wedding weekend in the luxury resort.

On a group hike the next morning, Ellery meets Andy, a groomsman in the wedding, and father-daughter duo Gary and Grace. Later, Catherine Haring, the mother of the bride, interrupts The Resort’s cocktail hour, announces that the wedding has been canceled, and invites hotel guests to help themselves to the reception food. Andy reveals that the groom, Ben, disappeared with only a brief text of apology. Ellery attempts to comfort Catherine, who rejects her cruelly. While walking back, Ellery spots Olivia but does not stop to talk to her.

Early Sunday morning, Ellery finds the groom, Ben Taylor, dead in the Resort pool. In addition, a mudslide has damaged large parts of the nearby Highway 1, trapping all guests and employees on the property. Ravi immediately jumps into the role of investigator and enlists Ellery’s help. At lunch, best man Matt suggests to Ellery that Olivia killed Ben after he called off the wedding. Andy takes Ellery to speak to Olivia, who is shocked to hear Ben was found in his tuxedo.

The next morning, Matt’s body is found below the broken cliff that gives The Resort its name. While investigating with Ravi and Nina, Ellery notices a clean break in the railing. On their way back, the trio encounters a bridesmaid, Rachel, who subtly criticizes their obvious attempts to investigate. Ravi suggests they use The Resort’s art collection as an excuse to explore the property. Ellery and Ravi attempt to ingratiate themselves with The Resort’s staff and learn that a piece of art has been stolen. The Resort announces the closure of all auxiliary spaces on the property and provides guests with emergency packs. When Ravi suggests the guests share their skills to pass the time, masseuse-turned-influencer Morgan offers massages. Ellery’s treatment brings her to tears. Ravi’s suspicions are raised when Catherine and Olivia show up for massages.

Ellery receives a note inviting her to Olivia and Andy’s memorial for Ben; when she arrives, Rachel questions her about her investigation. The next morning, Olivia goes missing and two staffers leave the property to find help. Former judge Gary agrees to review the facts with Catherine and her husband, Rick, but uncovers nothing.

When Resort staff announces strict safety measures, tensions and suspicion rise between workers and guests. Rachel asks Ellery to hike with her to a bar on the edge of the property where they find and collect Olivia’s bloody sweatshirt. Brook delivers a cake that Ellery should have received on Sunday: the card congratulates her on making it through her would-be anniversary. Ellery shares the cake at dinner. Catherine’s husband appears suddenly, causing Ellery to faint.

On Wednesday, Ellery wakes in the infirmary and learns that a metal face torn from a sculpture was found outside Catherine’s cottage. When she returns to the hotel, Ellery finds a note from Olivia asking her to meet at the ceremony site that evening. Shocked, she accepts Andy’s offer to try to hike off the property, but soon panics and runs, worrying that he might be the killer. At the ceremony site, she follows arrows to a clearing to find Olivia, Nina, Catherine, and Grace. Olivia announces that one of them is the killer. It is revealed that Grace’s father Gary is the anonymous artist of a sculpture on the property and tried to steal it back. Olivia accuses Nina of being Ben’s godmother, but she denies it. Olivia reveals Ellery’s involvement in the accident and suggests she may have also killed Ben while trying to help him.

Finally, Olivia accuses her mother Catherine, who admits that she accidentally killed Ben when he hit his head on a sculpture after she shoved him during an argument about abandoning Olivia at the altar. Olivia reveals that she secretly married Ben two months prior, stunning her mother. When Catherine denies killing Matt, Ellery realizes a second murderer is on the property. She follows Olivia, Nina, and Grace back to the Main House, but returns when she hears screaming. Ellery finds Jason holding Catherine at gunpoint. When Ellery tries to intervene, he shoots her, narrowly missing essential organs. As various people jostle for the gun, Ellery tells Olivia, who she believes to be pregnant, to run. Ellery faints.

It is revealed that Jason had been planning to kill Ben after Ben learned Jason stole from clients. Jason convinced Matt to move Ben’s body, then killed Matt when he panicked about their lies. Police detain Jason and Catherine. Cell service returns, and Ellery is overwhelmed by the messages sent by Abby and her children. As the other guests leave, Abby arrives and encourages Ellery to feel her grief fully.