This is my fourth book by Alex Finlay and I was highly anticipating it. This was a fast paced thriller about a girl who is found dead and 5 college students who go missing during Parents weekend at a college in Northern California. We are following quite a few families in this book as well as FBI agent Sarah Keller. Apparently she was in past Finlay books, but I don’t remember her.
I liked how this book had short chapters, and was very fast to read. I think I liked the chapters with FBI Agent Keller the most. I thought the story wrapped up pretty quickly at the end, I would have liked a bit more building up to the ending. It was a good story but it was just missing some excitement and action. The parents had similar problems as well as the kids. Overall, I liked this story but it wasn’t my favorite Alex Finlay book, I will definitely continue reading his books.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[ Thank you to Alex Finlay and St. Martin's Press for the advanced electronic copy in exchange for honest review ]

3.75 stars!

I've been a fan of Alex Finlay since I read The Night Shift. I'm usually fairly pleased with his other novels and this is no exception.

On Parent's Weekend at college, the parents show up - but the kids don't. With short chapters in multiple POV (it takes a bit to remember who each character mentioned is), the read flies by. If you've read The Night Shift, you'll recognize Agent Keller's return and I really like her character as a strong female agent that's good at her job and confident. I read this in 2 sittings over 2 days because it's shorter (320 pages) and the short chapters, plus you want to know what happens.

My main issues for lowering the stars a bit are with characters and the ending. I don't mind that most of the parents are kind of unlikable (or straight up awful people in the case of Mark Wong's father), but I wish there had been more character development or description of the kids. With them being missing, it was hard to develop sympathy for them when we barely got to know them, whether through flashbacks or parents stories, etc. The ending felt a bit rushed but it was a fairly short book to fit all the people and events into.

Still an enjoyable read and worth checking out for a quick mystery!

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance review copy in return for an honest review. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. I feel like the end of this book really redeemed most of the rest of the book. I usually appreciate a book with short chapters but since it had so many characters and switched around so much it started to get confusing.

This book was good. The pacing was great. I think that the issue I had lies more with me than the story. I feel like I have read at least three arcs in the past year with the same premise. I would recommend overall.

This story is about 5 college students that disappear before a dinner with their parents during parents weekend. What made it more alarming was a student was found dead just shortly before.

I found that having so many characters made it difficult to follow at times. I would say the first half of the book I was confused most of the time. I did catch up and did enjoy the ending and how the author wrapped everything up.

This is the first book I have read by this author and am curious on reading more especially if FBI Special Agent Sarah Keller is in them. I really liked her character.

Thank you to Netgalley, Macmillan Audio, Minotaur Books, and Alex Finlay for the eArc.

A missing college girl is found dead shortly before Parents Weekend, putting everyone on edge.

Then, at the first dinner of the weekend, several students - both girls and boys - don’t make it to the dinner they planned to eat with their family’s.

As the story unfolds, secrets from each family are exposed. And it seems everyone has wronged someone who may seek revenge on their children.

Where are the college students? Who is responsible for taking them? And will they be found before it’s too late?

I’ve read all the books by Alex Finlay so far and always enjoy them. This was a three and a half star read for me, that I’m rounding up to four stars.

I felt the story was a little less suspenseful than other books; and I would have preferred more storylines from the college students.

But I would still absolutely recommend checking out either the book or audiobook. The audiobook was fantastically narrated by the very talented voice actress Brittany Pressley.

Thank you NetGalley, Alex Finlay, St. Martin’s Press, and Macmillan Audio for allowing me to listen and read the book ahead of its release date of May 6th in exchange for a review.

I’m mostly conflicted in how I feel about this book, if anything at all. The best word I can use to describe this book would be underwhelming. While the story held my attention, I feel as if I was waiting for something to happen but nothing exciting ever did. Most of the story seems predictable and there were no real twist or shocking moments.
The best part of the story where the secrets revealed throughout about each family of the missing children. The plot of the college kids going missing and actually discovering what happens to them just wasn’t thrilling.

This was my first book by the author and this review would not deteriorate me from trying another. Thank you for the opportunity to read this early,

This was a fast read and held my interest, but it didn’t quite deliver what I was hoping for. There were A LOT of characters, and it got pretty confusing trying to keep everyone straight. Most of the book focused on the parents’ drama rather than the actual mystery of the missing college students, which made the stakes feel low and kind of took the tension out of the story. I never really felt connected to the cast—there were so many of them, and none felt particularly relatable or fully developed. I think I would've liked this more if the focus had stayed on the mystery and the students, instead of getting lost in all the adult baggage.

Still, the pacing was solid and I didn’t struggle to get through it—just wish it had been more focused.

Five college freshmen friends were supposed to meet their parents for dinner but never showed up. I love that the story is told from each of the five families, the students, and the FBI agent trying to solve the case. All of the families have issues from marital issues to single parenthood to security that could impact the case. The characters and the story pulled me in from the beginning. I admire how FBI Special Agent Sarah Keller works to solve the case and also tries to balance her work life with her home life. I received a free copy of this ebook from the publisher through Netgalley. This is my honest and voluntarily given review.

Finlay’s newest book just didn’t deliver in his usual style. The story bogged down in several places and the parents all seemed to have the same secrets. The story was short, but if fleshed out it would have been a better read. Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

It’s Parents Weekend at Santa Clara University and for five freshman and their families, it is a weekend they didn’t anticipate. When five students from Campisi Hall fail to show up for dinner kicking off the annual family festivities, it sets off a race against the clock to find them and bring them back alive.

FBI Special Agent Sarah Keller returns from earlier Finlay books to head up the investigation into the disappearance of The Five, as they’ve come to be called. As she follows the clues, it’s clear that each family is hiding something.

PARENTS WEEKEND is a fast paced suspense that captures your attention from the opening pages. Finlay introduces many characters, but the well organized structure makes it easy to keep track of the action. There’s nothing ground breaking about this novel, but it is entertaining and a good way to lose yourself in the story. The audio is narrated by Brittany Pressley who brings the perfect amount of tension to the production.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Minotaur Books for the advance copies. All opinions are my own.

I want to thank Netgalley, Alex Finley, the author and the publishers for this ARC book. It held my attention from beginning to end. It’s about 5 college kids who had a bond that was thick. They kept secrets and protected each other til the end. An outsider created some havoc on a gossip feed and things fell about. Who are your friends really. Hmm. Hope you enjoy reading this book as much as I did.
I received this ARC book for free to give my honest opinion

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review-
It’s parents weekend at college but where are the kids? When another night passes and no children the police are called, search parties begin. Something has happened to the kids. Will they find them?

Five families – all with secrets – come together for Parents Weekend at Santa Clara University, where one college student was just found dead. At dinner to start the weekend, the five college students do not show, but the parents don’t start to worry – yet. However, with each family having something to hide, or something in their past that could put the students in danger, the stakes become high and campus police soon become involved. In this multiple point of view, multiple motive, how can five college students go missing thriller, we are left to examine if it’s the sin of their parents, or something one of them did, that may lead to their downfall.

Alex Finlay knows how to weave together so many different backgrounds, personalities, and perspectives with ease! While the cast of characters was rather large, I found myself immersed in every storyline.

I absolutely love FBI Special Agent Sarah Keller – her cool and calm demeanor, while still being a no BS, hardcore agent, was the grounding factor in this novel. I will read every book that she is the leading character in!

I need to say I usually write longer reviews, but I simply enjoyed just reading this novel. It consumed me and I just went along for the ride without worrying about quotes or what was done “right” or “wrong.” The story was fast paced, perfectly timed and kept my attention. So therefore, my review is this: Read this Book! Enjoy Finlay’s creative storytelling! Escape into a world of a college campus with dysfunctional families and be grateful this wasn’t how your parents weekend went when you were in college!

4.4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this gripping ARC! All opinions are my own. I am a Finlay fan!

I’m such a sucker for Finlay’s fast-paced twisty thrillers, and this was another hit for me!

A diverse group of families descend on a small California college campus for Parents Weekend, but at the first evening’s group dinner the parents realize all 5 of their kids are missing. ‘The Five’ become an instant crime sensation has TikTok sleuths and true crime aficionados try to solve their sudden disappearance. Due to the high profile status of some of the families (one is a federal judges and one is a high ranking government official) the FBI gets involved, and Finaly fans will be excited to see the return of Agent Keller!

I love Finlay for his short chapters, multiple POVs, and the way he slowly intertwines the variety of characters’ stories. A dead college girl, then missing students, and threats of all types made this a pulse-pounding page turner with a satisfying ending.

It’s Parent’s Weekend on the heels of a campus tragedy that involves the drowning death of a female student in a sea cave. Five sets of parents set out to attend the event, many of whom have dark pasts or are highly influential. Any of them could be targets for bad dealings. A search party convenes when their children fail to attend a scheduled dinner. Enter Special Agent Sarah Keller, who recently relocated to the area due to a family situation of her own. An investigation into the five’s disappearance ensues.

I had a hard time getting invested in this one.

The author spent so much time on the parents that I didn’t care about the missing college students. Stakes weren’t well-established. The cast was too big and unrelatable. The circumstances, too. I loved Alex Finlay’s If Something Happens to Me, but this one had none of that heart. No twists. It's a formulaic novel without the emotion or insight that sends good fiction to the top.  Unfortunately, I can only cautiously recommend this one for fans of police procedurals and large casts.

Thank you to Alex Finlay, NetGalley, and Minotaur Books for the ARC.

Way too many characters which made it pretty confusing. I felt like most of this book was family drama and less of their kids being missing which was kinda annoying. A fast read and held my interest enough though!

Another gem from Alex Finlay!
At first I was nervous that I would struggle to keep the extremely large cast of characters straight and how they are connected, but I'm here to tell you that it was not a problem at all! I loved how this mystery played out and how the 'side plots' were used as an effective tool to keep the reader guessing but not adding any unnecessary confusion or red herrings. None of these families were without any skeletons in their closets and I loved how all of them came slowly bubbling to the surface in a way that made us readers feel like these deep family secrets may have had something to do with the missing students....or maybe they don't! Very well crafted story with a great twist at the end. Loved the strong female FBI agent storyline and found hers to be the most compelling and interesting. Finlay definitely has a gift for creating thrillers that not only keep you guessing to the end but also have you feeling all the feels! I'd highly recommend for readers who enjoy multi-layer thrillers with huge casts of characters.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read in exchange for my honest review!

I don't think this thriller was for me. There were too many characters, and I spent most of my read trying to figure out who was who to be able to really follow the story. It also feel like it kept the author from going in depth enough with any of them for me to really care. My feeling, though? I've read that story many times before. Stupid teenagers making very poor decisions, families with secrets... I've enjoyed other books by this author, but this one was not it.
I received an advance review copy of this book for free and I am leaving this review volutarily.

I LOVED If Something Happens to Me by Alex Finlay so when I saw that he had a new book coming out in May I HOPPED on reading it. This is going to be a hit thriller this spring, my friends!! 🌼🙌🏻

For the families of five first year college students, Parents Weekend is going to begin with a dinner and cocktails. When the five students don't show at dinner, their parents don't panic immediately. But as the hours tick by, and we learn about the histories of these families, rumors and questions begin to arise as to where The Five have gone. This story is told through multiple points of view - past and present - of FBI Special Agent Sarah Keller and the families themselves. 👮🏻‍♀️

Once I was able to get the lay of the different characters, I was HOOKED. There is a lotttt going on as far as backgrounds and histories and present family dysfunction, so it did take me a minute to orient to my setting. But once I was in, I was INNNNNNN. 👌🏻

This was a quick binge, short chapters, tons of action, and the ending wrapped up perfectly. 🍿

I didn't realize until after that FBI Agent Keller is from his previous work, which makes me definitely want to go and explore those. I'm told nothing is ruined by knowing her through this book, so I'm excited to dive back to her past.
As ALWAYS, the acknowledgements/notes section was full of fun tidbits - including that Finlay got this idea while at his son's parents weekend!! Cool dad alert. 👏🏻

There was also a lot of interesting actual law at play here, which for a lawyer that was fun. The geofencing and search warrants portions were interesting for me, and Finlay definitely did his research! ⚖️👩🏼‍⚖️

He also puts in David Ellis' contact information for an complaints about the book - and it's extra fun to think about two awesome thriller authors being friends. Collab book, maybe?!?! 😜👀

Parents Weekend by Alex Finlay releases May 6, 2025! Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.