Five freshmen are missing. It's Parent's Weekend at the small California private college, and five students from the same small group project fail to meet their families for a group dinner. They all met their families a few hours before the dinner, but then were not seen again. Sarah Keller is an FBI agent on temporary loan to the Bay Area FBI office and is sent to investigate. She teams up with the campus police and a student intern, and chase down every lead. But there is dead end after dead end.

Each chapter focuses on a different family in rotation. We get to learn the background story of the families and the missing students, in turn. I could see why the FBI kept finding dead ends, as each story had something that seemed like it could link to the disappearances. The story was fast paced, and compelling, and the characters sympathetic. I wish that the resolution to the disappearances hadn't felt as rushed, but I really liked the three years later wrap up. Definitely recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this one! It was really fast paced and I loved having the different POV's to build the drama and the secrets. I was locked in through all of it in typical Alex Finlay fashion and I was just along for the ride. I did figure out the whodunnit portion of it but it really didn't bother me since I enjoyed the story so much!

3.5/5

If you’re someone that is new to the mystery/thriller genre I feel like this would be a great place to start. It’s super fast paced, there’s a decent mystery and there’s plenty of characters giving you lots of options as to whodunnit. For me personally it wasn’t surprising enough for me, I found the reveals predictable, but this wasn’t a bad read for me at all. ​It kept my attention and although there were a lot of characters to keep track of, I didn’t have trouble keeping them straight. I really liked some of them, especially Keller and would love to see her character again in the future. If you like fast paced mysteries with an ensemble cast and lots of drama, this may be for you.

3.75 stars rounded up. This was a fun and fast read -- I finished it within 24 hours. Loved the short chapters and the pacing of the book. There were so many characters and it took me awhile to figure out who was who. Overall, I enjoyed this and will continue to read books by Finlay.

Alex Finlay is one of my favorite mystery writers but this book fell kind of flat for me. There were so many characters which meant we didn’t get a whole lot of depth from any of them. I never felt emotionally invested enough to care about the outcome. I did enjoy the mystery but it wasn’t as complex as Findlay’s other books. I might recommend this book to a friend but I wouldn’t rave about it.

I am a big fan of Alex Finlay and his newest novel is another hit for me! I absolutely LOVED the references to previous books. It took me a little bit to keep all the kids straight and which kids belonged to which parents. Having chapters alternate between the kids and parents kept the story moving along quickly, offered different POV's and kept you guessing about what was going on and who was responsible; everyone seemed to have secrets and possible motive. A quick read and fans of Finlay need to add Parents Weekend to their TBR and get their copy on pub day!
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Thank you NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review,

A twisty thriller about a parents weekend at a college where one student has already died and 5 more go missing. I loved all of the different families. We followed in this book from the families of the student who went missing to the law enforcement who were put in charge of figuring out what happened. This is one of those books you just wanna curl up on the couch and devour

Alex Finlay is reliable - his books are never bad or boring, and occasionally they are really interesting and propulsive. I was excited by Agent Keller being brought back in for this one, but unfortunately this was very average. Nothing stuck out for me on the writing or characters (besides Keller). The plot could have been fun but felt poorly developed. I liked the perspectives from all the different parents, but felt that we were just finally starting to understand who these couples were when the action intensified and the end came crashing through.

I received an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Another great book by Alex Finlay! This one had lots of characters but the way the chapters were divided by family made it easy to follow. Most of the parents were horrible people but they were fun to read about. Their backgrounds and side stories were interesting. I loved the character Keller and would like more books about her. I didn't realize she was a character in 2 of his previous books (though the blurb said so!) The story was engaging and had some surprises for me. I also liked the updates for the families after the ending. Definitely a recommended read.

In a book sure to make you rethink ever sending your kids to college, Alex Finlay’s newest features not one, but FIVE missing students!

Speaking of five, this is my fifth book by this author, and although this was my least favorite of them so far, he still knows how to keep me flipping those pages with rapt attention!

Private college Santa Clara University is hosting a Parents Weekend. In attendance are a colorful set of parents that include a federal State Department official with her ever-present security detail, a well-known judge and his wife, a philandering plastic surgeon and his wife, and a single mom working for the university dean. When their kids fail to show up for the opening night dinner on the heels of another student tragedy, the police are notified and a search begins.

Who else is notified? The FBI and one familiar face from Finlay’s past books: Special Agent Sarah Keller, who’s temporarily relocated to San Jose with her wonderful hubby Bob and twins Heather and Michael to help care for Bob’s ill father. It was great to see her again!

So, this was a little bit of a mixed bag for me. Overall, I really did enjoy it, despite some aspects that kept it from rising to the level of his past books I’ve read.

What I liked:

🖤 Special Agent Sarah Keller. Bob calls her Agent Badass for good reason. She is, and I love her for it! (Shout out to Bob, too. He’s a special treasure … for real.)

🖤 Side Characters. SCU Campus Police Chief Jay McCray and their student intern Annie Hafeez were great new characters. I’m hoping to see where Annie’s future takes her in future books!

🖤 Short, snappy chapters. My favorite things. I have a short attention span at times and they kept the story and intrigue moving nicely.

🖤 Likeable unlikeable parents. What? I’ll explain. These were deeply flawed characters with an array of dysfunctional qualities that I still felt sympathy for on some level. I don’t respect some of them, but I can at least see them as humans who care about their kids.

What didn’t work as well for me:

⊘ The students. I didn’t feel a whole lot for them, because the story didn’t dive too deeply into any of their lives. Because I only had a shallow understanding of them, I didn’t feel very attached to the outcome. As the title suggests, the story really is more about the parents.

⊘ The plot. I enjoyed it - it just wasn’t as enthralling as his past books.

⊘ The baddie reveal. It makes sense, but again I didn’t feel much. Considering the circumstances, I wanted to feel that adrenaline surge and excitement, but the “jazz” just wasn’t there.

Overall, it’s a well-written book and a solid mystery that’s given me yet another reason to keep requesting Finlay’s books! If I had to sum up my biggest problem in a nutshell: I just wanted a little more emotional investment in the story.

I received a complimentary copy of this book "Parents Weekend" and all opinions expressed are my own. Overall okay, a quick read. Lots of characters to keep track of though.

I love a good thriller, especially one that has switching points of view and a wide cast of characters. This one definitely checked those boxes, as the story follows several parents of students at an elite college who arrive for a parent's weekend. Their visit begins to unravel when their children go missing and are now faced with finding them before it's too late. Overall it was a decent story, but I felt like it was very quick and lacked a punch that I so enjoy at the tail end of a thriller. A good quick read. Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this arc!

Finlay’s books are always a great palate cleanser. They move fast and draw you in quickly. However, I will say this book was a little harder because there were so many characters. It took about a third of the book to remember who was who. It moved quickly and kept me interested but it didn’t work for me like some of his others.

Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

❗️❗️❗️BANGER ALERT ❗️❗️❗️

Holy Batman was this one a BANGER!!! Alex Finlay knocked it outta the park! He brought this all the way home! Bravo Mr. Finlay 🙌

Our story starts with it being Parents Weekend for first year students at Santa Clara University in California. It’s the big weekend and it’s supposed to start with a nice dinner. The only kicker…. the students never show.

Five students are missing. Why would they not show? Are their parents involved somehow?

Alex Finlay is a master at cliffhanger chapters! Every single chapter leaves you ripping through the pages well into the night. Unputdownable, suspenseful and a thoroughly entertaining read with a satisfying finish! A twisty must read thriller!

Massive thanks to Minotaur Books, Alex Finlay and NetGalley for the opportunity!
Pub date - 5/6/25

5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alex Finlay has become sort of an auto-request because I've enjoyed eveything I've read of his.

This story has a good amount of characters and POVs. The one constant is Sarah Keller and I loved getting to be back with her navigating.

Plot wise, it's a bit of a slow meandering. It wasn't nearly ad tension filled as I was expecting, yet the way it unfolded was quite satisfying. (Yes, I'm being vague on purpose.)

Overall, it was another great read and I'm eager to see what comes next.

**Huge thanks to the publisher for providing the arc free of charge**

Starts off a little slow but then it really picks up. The short chapters and overall premise make this book impossible to put down, I just HAD to know what happened next. Told from alternating POVS of family members and the detective on the case, you’ll never guess why these kids went missing…
If you’re a fan of Alex Finlays other books you’ll like this one too, publishing in May.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my thoughts.

Super fast read. Parent's weekend at college and the group of 5 kids go missing. Told mainly through the point of view of parents and an FBI Agent. The book kept me guessing which made me want to keep reading. I loved the female FBI Agent, Sarah Keller. I am excited to see that she is featured in other of Finlay's books, and look forward to checking them out. Thank you to Netgalley for this advanced copy.

The premise of the book was engaging from the start: 5 students from a university in California disappear at the same time without a trace before meeting their parents for dinner. It was intriguing to understand all of the background stories in order to determine the cause of the disappearance. Agent Keller from Finlay's previous books returned, which added a fun element.
I gave this book 3 stars due to almost 20 characters to keep track of, predictability, and rushed ending. I still look forward to Finlay's future books with more twists and complex mystery.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a solid 3+ star popcorn thriller. It's very fast paced with short chapters from shifting perspectives so it's a quick read. This is my first book from the author, but apparently the featured FBI agent appears in other novels as well. And for a quick beach read, I'd go find them.

My only complaint is that the first 25% is a little slow, by design, as all of the characters and backstories are introduced. It picks up from there. But as happens in thrillers, the conclusion feels rushed and wrapped up a little abruptly.

This super didn't work for me. I found the number of characters was a lot - and I did see where we were eventually going but it still didn't work for me. I feel like each time the plot just goes so ridiculous that I don't end up feeling like I had a good time getting there - because nothing feels satisfying or like it nicely came together. Ultimately I found the explanation just didn't land.
The other note I will make is that I don't appreciate the racist or maybe culturally insensitive perspective this book took. I don't know if it was intentional or unintentional - but I don't like it and makes me feel uncomfortable.