The following edition of the text was used in the creation of this study guide: Condie, Ally. The Unwedding. Hodder & Stoughton, 2024. Kindle AZW file.

The novel is set over seven days at Broken Point, a luxury resort in Big Sur. On Sunday at 5 a.m., Ellery Wainwright swam in the rain and found a fully dressed, unconscious man floating face down in the pool. She pulled him out, saw a head injury, and called for help, thinking, “Not again” (2).

The story then flashed back to Friday. Ellery arrived alone on what was meant to be her 20th anniversary trip with her estranged husband, Luke. At dinner, overwhelmed by grief, she called her best friend Abby, who reminded her why she came—mainly to prevent Luke from bringing his new girlfriend, Imogen. Abby also hinted that their divorce wasn’t the worst thing they had faced. Ravi, a fellow guest, approached Ellery. Along with his friend Nina, he enjoyed meeting strangers while traveling. Ravi invited Ellery to crash a wedding party at the art gallery, and she surprisingly agreed. While waiting outside the party, she met the bride, Olivia, who confessed she hadn’t wanted such a big wedding but went along with it for her mother, Catherine.

On Saturday, Ellery joined a guided hike and met Grace, a wilderness first responder, her father Gary, a retired judge, and Andy, a member of the wedding party. Andy startled Ellery at first, but she soon enjoyed his company. He explained that while he was close to the groom, Ben, someone else was the best man. Calling himself the second-best man, he left to make it back for the wedding. Ellery had unsettling flashbacks to a past accident involving her school’s track team, but details remained unclear. At cocktail hour, she met influencers Maddox and Morgan and heard that a resort artwork was missing. Catherine, the bride’s mother, announced that the wedding had been called off and invited the other resort guests to the reception so the food wouldn’t go to waste.

At the party, Ellery learned that Ben had canceled the wedding via text. She tried to comfort Catherine but was coldly dismissed. A severe storm hit overnight. On Sunday, Ellery found Ben’s body in the pool. The storm had cut off communication and blocked the road, delaying police arrival. Fearing they would be trapped for days, Ellery was distressed about being apart from her children. Ravi, Ellery, and Nina warmed up in the sauna, debating whether Ben’s death was an accident or murder. Ravi suggested investigating; Nina was hesitant. Ravi predicted there would be more deaths.

Andy took Ellery to speak with Olivia, who questioned her about finding the body. Ellery wondered if Ben had already been dead when the wedding was called off. Later, Nina arrived with shocking news—someone else had died. On Monday, Ellery, Nina, and Ravi learned that the best man, Matt, had fallen from a cliff. Investigating, they found that the guardrails had been deliberately removed. The manager warned guests not to leave the grounds, insisting the deaths could have been accidents. Ravi suggested sharing skills for entertainment, and Morgan, an influencer, offered free massages. During a massage, Ellery recalled comforting an injured student after a bus crash. The resort lost power.

Ellery received an invitation to a memorial, attended only by Olivia, Andy, and Rachel. They gave her a sweatshirt with a childhood photo of Ben. Groomsman Trevor arrived and shared that Ben, an investment banker, had secretly helped struggling people, which may have led to trouble. He revealed that Ben hadn’t wanted a big wedding—it had been mainly for Catherine. The group discussed how generous Ben had been, even covering one of the groomsmen, Jason’s, room costs. They recalled Ben’s last text canceling the wedding: I can’t do it. I’m sorry. Trevor confirmed Ben had attended brunch that morning, seeming normal. Ellery learned Ben had gifted his groomsmen cufflinks engraved with HYB—Have Your Back.

On Tuesday, Ellery woke to Catherine hysterical over Olivia’s disappearance. Rachel revealed that Nat, the manager, was also missing. Former judge Gary helped gather information, noting that Olivia had been appropriately dressed and that no struggle was evident. Rachel took Ellery to a bar in the woods, where they found Olivia’s blood-stained hoodie.

A note on Ellery’s door summoned her to the altar at 5 p.m., signed “O.” Andy visited, revealing plans to hike out of the resort and inviting Ellery along. While hiking, Ellery accused him of sending Ben’s breakup text because he loved Olivia, but Andy confessed he had been in love with Ben. When she suggested he had killed Ben, Andy pleaded with her to let him explain, but she panicked and ran.

At the altar at 5 p.m., Olivia accused Grace, Nina, Ellery, and Catherine of murdering Ben. Catherine admitted to pushing Ben, causing him to hit his head, but denied moving his body to the pool. Jason arrived, accusing Catherine of also killing Matt. Olivia revealed that she and Ben had already been married. As they returned to the Main House, a tree fell after a lightning strike, and Catherine screamed. Jason pulled a gun on her, accusing her of Matt’s murder. Ellery had a sudden revelation that Jason was the murderer. He shot Ellery but was overpowered by the others.

Later, Ravi explained that Jason had manipulated Matt into moving Ben’s body, then killed him to cover his tracks. Jason had been stealing from vulnerable clients and blackmailing Maddox and Morgan over their past in a cult. He had sent the wedding cancellation text to create more suspects. Nina was actually Jason’s godmother. On Thursday, the guests said goodbye. Ravi left Ellery a note saying “You’re not finished yet” (335). Ellery reflected on both the bad and good from the trip. She looked forward to returning home to her children.