Suspenseful: parents kept on tenterhooks😧

College freshman friends go missing and their parents are wringing their hands wondering how to retrieve them safe and sound. The short chapters and the constant switching between each student's parents kept the tension going. The parents, including a plastic surgeon, a judge, a high State Department official and an employee at the university, have amongst them almost as much drama and as many secrets as their kids. Occasionally the story provides a brief slice with the kids to slowly reveal their status and the events that led up to their disappearance. Personally, I would have liked more about the missing students and less about the parents.

The easy writing style kept the pace fast, the pages turning, but I don't think it's the author's best. I felt the story did not devote much time to character development, especially for the kids.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for sharing a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest opinion.

Review shared on 5/2/25 on Goodreads, and with Barnes & Noble and BAM. To be shared with kobo and Google Play upon publication.

This is one of those popcorn thrillers that reads quickly and will keep you guessing until the end! 🍿

We follow four different families in town for Santa Clara University’s Parents Weekend, and between the kids and their parents, there are a ton of characters to keep up with. We also get a perspective from Special Agent Sarah Keller, who has appeared in some of Finlay’s other thrillers! This was my first of his books though, and I didn’t feel like I needed to have read the others to enjoy this one as a standalone.

Keller, her family and the university police were really the only characters I ended up liking. But to be fair, they were the ones we got to know the most. Keller’s character really kept me invested in the story as she investigated leads, followed her gut and made split-second, life-saving decisions.

With that said, I do think there were opportunities for further character and plot development. We just scratched the surface on each of the parents, and got very little depth or added context for their kids. This created a disconnect for me where I didn’t find myself caring about them as much as I would've liked.

It’s also a short book, which makes for a good beach read, but I felt like more could have been explored at a slower pace to take it up a level and build greater suspense. And although the ending was a mad dash for Keller to solve the case, it felt too rushed and chaotic for me.

Overall, I liked it, but I wouldn’t say it’s a must-read. I would also recommend the physical vs. the audio if you’re interested in this one because it could be easy to get lost in all the perspective changes when you’re listening 🎧

Parents Weekend centers around 5 students who go missing during parents weekend. This is told through the POVs of the students, the parents and an FBI agent which allows us to get a glimpse of the dynamics of very different families. I did have a bit of issue at the beginning keeping track of whose parents were whose, but I think that could have been a me issue.
The overall story was pretty solid and by combining the drama of all the families, it was hard to predict how everything was going to play out. However, there was something about it that felt safe, like I had read it before. I still enjoyed it and was engaged, but my jaw didn't drop at the end.
Thank you Minotaur Books for the copy through NetGalley.

A solid mystery! I really had no idea what was going to happen. I was worried about all the POVs at the beginning, but it was easy to follow once it got going.

Parents Weekend by Alex Finlay was an average read for me. While I enjoyed the overall storyline, I found the narrative more of a relationship drama than a thriller. Finlay's writing is straightforward and accessible and I look forward to reading more from this talented author. Many thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Alex Finlay for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Five families get caught up in a
But who has more secrets, the kids or the parents? There’s a lot of characters in this book, it can occasionally get bogged down. A lot of their secrets really didn’t amount to much for me. They’re mostly there to create confusion. The most interesting person by far is Agent Keller, a character that Finlay has written about in previous books but this is my first time reading one. I liked her & her family & based on that would read the other books. However this mystery is pretty paint by numbers. It’s not bad but nothing really blew me away. It’s a decent but predictable thriller. I will try the author again, especially where the character of Keller is concerned. But overall this book was just ok for me.
🔥

Read if you like:
* The Sorority Murder by Allison Brennan
* The Hitchcock Hotel by Stephanie Wrobel

I had high hopes for Parents Weekend, and it didn’t disappoint! It was binge-worthy, entertaining and suspenseful.

The story was primarily told through the POV of the college students parents. Nearly all of the families had a ton of drama going on behind the scenes, which kept things interesting.

I was obsessed with FBI Special Agent Sarah Keller! Honestly, I think she’s my favorite character I’ve encountered in a good while. She was like-able, smart, compassionate and humble. You could just tell that she knew how to get things done and do them well.

The only reason this wasn’t a five star read for me was the ending. I’m not really the type of reader who tries to guess how a book ends, and I didn’t do that here either. However, I will say that it wasn’t all that surprising and didn’t pack as much punch as I had expected. [4.5 stars rounded down to 4 stars].

Thank you so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read this e-ARC.

Read if you like:

✨ Academic settings
✨ Legal thrillers
✨ Multi-POV’s
✨ Family drama

My favorite Alex Finlay book yet!

Talk about master of cliff hangers! Every time I sat down to read, I read no less than 20-30 chapters at a time, because each chapter leaves you with a cliff hanger than has you chasing the pages for answers!

Six college students go missing over their college’s Parents Weekend and it is up to the parents, school police, and one FBI agent to figure out what is going on. As emotions get higher, crazy secrets from each family get revealed and will keep you on your toes the entire novel.

I throughly loved this fast pace thriller! The only thing that brought it down for me was it was a little predictable (in my opinion) but it was still a wonderful read! There are a lot of characters, so that can be little confusing to keep straight, especially in the first quarter of the book. A character chart in the beginning would have been extremely helpful!

Thank you Alex Finlay, Net Galley, St. Martin’s Press and Minotaur Books for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of Parent’s Weekend in exchange for an honest review, it was an honor!

This book was a great mystery of students who all go missing on parents weekend. It shares the story from each family’s point of view. I was kept on my toes and wanting more throughout the story. I was so enthralled that I read it in one sitting!

Special Agent Sarah Keller is on special assignment in Northern California when she snags a case of 5 college students who have gone missing before a parents weekend dinner with their parents. This propulsive thriller reveals the complex family dynamics and the ties of the students in short chapters from different perspectives. Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin’s press for an advanced copy for an honest review.

After having read another book by Alex Finlay and enjoying it, I was excited to read his new release. This one was not my favorite. There were alot of characters to keep track of and none to root for. If you want a book about everyone behaving badly then you will like this one with lots of drinking, drugs, infidelity, coarse language, anxiety, etc. It is a quick popcorn like mystery/ thriller so if you are looking for that and don't need a hopeful, happy story, you may enjoy this one!

Parents Weekend by Alex Finlay is mystery thriller that keeps you turning the pages. I've read Alex Finlay's books before so I know this will be a good one. The writing is easy to read and keeps you interested from the start.

It's Parents Weekend at a college and five students goes missing. The FBI is called in to aid the investigation once it's determined something more sinister might be going on, especially after a death of a student earlier in the week. The plot alternates POV amongst each family and shifts from past and present. While the search is on, secrets and lessons amongst each family also comes to light.

I really enjoyed reading this book and was able to finish it within a few days.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and author Alex Finlay for providing me with an ARC, in exchange for an honest, unbiased review. Look forward to reading more from Finlay.

Thank you Netgalley & St. Martin’s Press for an eARC of Parents Weekend by Alex Finlay! With all of Finlay’s book I feel like I need to create a separate note on my phone with who each character is, and this book is no exception (especially while listening). Great narration, but I was confused for a bit of the book at the beginning just trying to remember each person’s storyline. This was a quick, fast-paced suspenseful read, but not my #1 favorite if Finlay’s. As always, I can’t wait to see what he comes out with next.

Thank you Netgalley & Minotaur Books for an eARC ❤️❤️❤️

Alex Finlay’s latest is the kind of book that starts with parents sipping chardonnay and ends with you questioning every friendship you’ve ever had. *Parents Weekend* takes the classic "kids go missing" trope and cranks it up to eleven, weaving in family secrets, campus paranoia, and the kind of twists that make you audibly gasp on public transit.

Picture this: five families arrive at a picturesque Northern California college for Parents Weekend, ready to pretend they’re not checking their kids’ grades on the portal. But when their kids—affectionately dubbed "The Five" by true-crime TikTok—never show up for dinner, the night spirals from *"They’re probably just hungover"* to *"Call the FBI"* in record time.
What makes this thriller so addictive isn’t just the central mystery (though *where are they?* will haunt you), but the way Finlay peels back the layers of each family like a true-crime exposé. There’s the overachiever with the controlling dad, the scholarship kid with something to prove, the golden child hiding a rebellion—and every parent’s past sins lurking in the background. FBI Agent Sarah Keller (a fan favorite from Finlay’s earlier books) arrives like a chaos referee, sorting through lies, alibis, and the kind of small-town rumors that spread faster than a dorm flu.
The book taps into that universal college experience where your friends become your family—until suddenly, you’re not sure you ever really knew them. Add in relentless pacing, social media’s obsession with turning tragedy into content, and an ending that’ll leave your jaw on the floor, and you’ve got Finlay’s best work yet.
Read this if you love thrillers that are *almost* too stressful to finish—but too good to put down. And maybe hug your parents afterward. (Or side-eye them. Depends on your family dynamics ) 🫣

Guess I should have read the entire summary before reading the book? Then I wouldn't have wondered throughout the first half why FBI Agent Sarah Keller's previous cases sounded so familiar! I like that she has become a recurring character. This time, the set up is a maze! Is it the kids who are hiding all the secrets that might be causing the trouble? Or is it their parents' secrets coming back to hurt them? Parents' weekend is a great premise to bring a multitude of otherwise unrelated people together to see how things play out and it was used to great effect here! I love when there are several very plausible ways stories can go. Can't wait for the next one from Finlay and hope it includes Special Agent Keller!

This is his best book yet! I hated putting this down to work or eat, and for the life of me could not see the ending coming. I really appreciated the complexity of the characters and how the plot developed while still making you wonder most of the way through.

Finlay is an auto read author, and he rarely disappoints! I loved the setting and the premise, tho I did figure out part of the plot fairly early on. Lots of characters, lots of red herrings to try to deter, and a whole lot of intrigue trying to keep you guessing! My favorite part of the whole novel was that Agent Sarah Kellar was back! She’s such a well written character and I’ll follow her into any investigation!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martins Press for my ARC in exchange for my honest feedback!

This was a super quick read. Nothing too involved or too detailed. however, there were a lot of families to keep up with. But I did think once everyone was established, this was pretty easy to follow.

There were a few twists and turns in this book, but I didn't think the ending was super surprising.

This is a multiple POV book, with the total of 4 different families and a 5th POV related to the FBI agent and her family. Overall, a decent book, but I also wanted more to make it feel a little more rounded. If you're in the mood for a quick, easy read definitely pick this one up.


Thank you to Minotaur books and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to Minotaur Books and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest feedback. And honestly? I need to stop trying to read Finlay books. I just don’t like his writing. I haven’t liked a single one I’ve read. Luckily I realized this before finishing this one and wasting my time.

Alex Finlay is a go-to for an easy thriller read. The Parents Weekend was a quick read, chocked full of red herrings and fun little twists. While it was not a literary masterpiece, and definitely a little predictable (hello rich people always behaving badly trope), Parents Weekend was a delightful break from my piles of high-brow literature and in-depth fantasy.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.