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Bad Tourists by Cato Carver Analysis + Spoilers

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Bad Tourists by Cato Carver Analysis + Spoilers! When a Friend Group Suspense book gets crossed with a Vacation Thriller, I am always interested. Darcy invites three friends on a lavish Maldives vacation to celebrate her divorce. But hidden secrets start to emerge and nothing is as it seems. Let’s discuss the book!

Jen’s Quick Take: Bad Tourists by Caro Carver

Original photo of a copy of Bad Tourists by Caro Carver on a bookcase next to a pink mug
  • I have done an extensive analysis on what I like to call Friend Group Suspense books and there are two main variations: the “friends return to the scene of the crime” ones, like A Step Past Darkness , The Darling Girls or Listen for the Lie and the “friends getaway trip goes very wrong” like The Guilt Trip, One by One (the Freida McFadden version) or The Fury. Bad Tourists is in category two
  • Set at a lavish and isolated resort in the Maldives, Bad Tourists is also a Vacation Thriller and uses that isolation effectively
  • Based on White Lotus Season Three, I also put this on my list of Books to Read if You Love HBO’s White Lotus.
  • Yes, this one got a bit out-there at the end, but I didn’t mind it because the clues were there and it wasn’t an out-of-nowhere kind of surprise
  • Published on July 9 by Avid Reader/ Simon & Schuster
  • 336 pages
  • Thanks to the publisher for the advance review copy.

Bad Tourists by Caro Carver: Analysis + Spoilers

A copy of Bad Tourists on a boardwalk over the sand

I love a book that seems to be going in a predictable direction and then suddenly takes a TURN. Or two.

Better yet if at least one of those turns happen before the end of the book.

The first twist (not a spoiler) in Bad Tourists is how the women knew one another: a very interesting reveal which seemed to take the book in a certain direction. Then the book took another major turn.

The Maldives setting in Bad Tourists was also fun and effectively-used

Though the books are quite different, Bad Tourists did have some similarities to One Perfect Couple. Both have remote Indian Ocean setting and a feminist slant.

But there were differences too. One Perfect Couple has one narrator, while Bad Tourists has multiple narrators:

  • recently divorced mom Darcy
  • anxious Welsh ghostwriter Kate
  • glamorous single mom and influencer Camilla
  • newly wed honeymooner Jade
  • Kate’s ex-husband Jacob

Spoilers for Bad Tourist and the Ending Explained

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  • The connection between Kate, Camilla and Darcy is a 2001 multiple murder that took place in Dover. The victims included Darcy’s boyfriend Elijah, Camilla’s twin brother Cameron, and Kate, who miraculously survived the massacre and still has terrible PTSD.
  • A pedophile, Hugh Fraser, was convicted of the murders and died in prison.
  • For 22 years, someone has been sending Kate roses on the anniversary of the murders.
  • This trip to the Maldives also spans the anniversary of the murders

In the present:

  • Darcy’s husband starts messaging Camilla about Adrian Clifton, a former detective hired by Darcy to investigate the murders. Jacob is also trying to get custody of his children with Darcy.
  • The three friends befriend Jade, a honeymooner with a controlling (and older) new husband, Rob
  • Adrian Clifton tells the women that he thinks Hugh didn’t act alone, and that Rob Marlowe was involved in the 2001 massacre. Camilla and Darcy convince Kate and Jade that they have to kill Rob, and Darcy stabs him.
  • Kate’s butler says that Darcy sent the anniversary roses
  • Jacob tells Kate and Camilla that Adrian Clifton is Darcy
  • Darcy had a relationship with Hugh in 2001, when she was 19 and he was 58. Darcy was the one who killed all the people in Dover. Hugh sends Darcy away and takes the fall as he has terminal cancer.
  • In the present, the group confronts Darcy. Rob arrives and Darcy kills him and then attacks Kate. Jade and then Kate strangles Darcy with the cord for the window shade and there’s a huge struggle.
  • Darcy planned the Maldives trip since Camilla and Kate seemed to think Hugh had an accomplice. She knew Rob as one of Hugh’s victims and decided to plan the trip to frame Rob as the accomplice.

My Thoughts and Questions about Bad Tourists

  • Did you find the twists and ending plausible? It was pretty out there, but there were clues provided by Darcy’s son Charlie.
  • Is Darcy a victim or a villain? She was nineteen when she was involved with Hugh, so not a minor. The book suggests she has behaviors consistent with psychopathy.

About Jen Ryland

Over 12 years of book blogging and reviewing, I have read over 1500 books. A fair and honest reviewer who loves book discussions, I'm here to help you find a book you'll love to read AND give you a place to talk about it and ask questions.
Find me on Instagram and Pinterest as @jenryland!

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