"Parents Weekend" by Alex Finlay is a captivating thriller that weaves together suspense and the complexities of family dynamics. Set against the backdrop of a picturesque Northern California college, the story begins with the excitement of Parents Weekend, where five families gather to celebrate their children’s first year at school. However, as the night unfolds, their children mysteriously go missing, and the initially festive atmosphere turns into a gripping race against time.

Told through multiple perspectives, Finlay gives readers insight into the lives of the parents and their children. The narrative skillfully juxtaposes the carefree college experience with the darker undercurrents of expectation and family dysfunction, making it relatable and thought-provoking.

Ultimately, "Parents Weekend" is a riveting exploration of friendship, family ties, and the haunting impact of past choices. With its clever plot twists and rich characterizations, this novel keeps you on the edge of your seat, making it a must-read for fans of psychological thrillers and anyone who appreciates a well-crafted story.

I flew through this book and finished it in 24 hours, so not a difficult read. Which is how I like my mystery thrillers - easy to consume and fast-paced. This book is about a bunch of parents coming together on their kid's college campus for their parent's weekend, and the kids go missing. What ensues are some twists and turns (one that I did not anticipate).

What did I enjoy about this book?
FBI Agent Sarah Keller is awesome. I loved her relationship with her husband and family, how resourceful she is, and that she is clearly willing to step outside of the box to solve a case. Her care for others shines in this book as she saves multiple lives. The culmination is also complex. There are a lot of loose ends that Finlay had to wrap up and I think that was done well.

What did I not enjoy as much?
Some of the parents are just horrible. This isn't surprising, but no wonder some of their kids hate them or don't have a good relationship. Other than that, some of the plot points I saw coming from a mile away - this didn't detract from my enjoyment of the book overall, but something to keep in mind.

I enjoyed this book way more than the last one I read by Finlay, so this encourages me to continue picking up books by this author.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the Minotaur Books for a chance to read an ARC of this book.

“Parents’ Weekend” is a mystery/thriller by Alex Finlay. This book follows five families over the course of a long weekend. The parents are to meet up with their kids - but the kids (adult college students) never appear … and it could be due to secrets the kids are hiding from their parents … or the parents from their children. I liked Agent Keller and the action “race against time” things she faced. I also liked the mentions of “we used to be able to do X” and “it’s not like police dramas” - nice little asides. Also on the positive - short chapters, quick engaging read, and most of this book took place in an area I knew. On the negative, it took me a while to keep the families separated and which kid was connected to whom. I found the conclusion to be a bit - well, a bit of a let-down. A few too many things seemed to work perfectly. However, I fully understood the grief aspects in this book. I had a laugh at some of the things in this book that were so minor, but fun if one knows the Bay Area. Overall, I found this a good fast engaging read and must admit to reading it in one evening.

Thank you so much NetGalley & St martin's Press for giving me access to this ebook in exchange for my honest opinion!
Parents Weekend is the new (and very anticipated!) Alex Finlay's book for 2025!
Five families gather for Parents Weekend at a college in Northern California, excited to celebrate their children’s first year. However, their five kids never show up, leading the parents to assume they’re off partying. As time passes with no contact, fear grows, and the campus police bring in additional support. Soon, the whole town is consumed by search parties, reporters, and rumors, with many asking if something from the parents' pasts or within the group has put The Five in danger.
I had a blast with this one! I loved the short chapters, the themes (college/disappearances/family drama) and reading again about the FBI Agent Sarah Keller!
I understood the twist quite early so it's not a 5 star reads but I recommend this one to anyone who love a good police TV show episode! It reads the same, Fast and so good!

Thank you to Netgalley and St Martins Press for allowing me to read and review this arc.

Alex Finlay is one of my favorite authors but i think this is the first arc i have ever received, it immediately hooked me in from the very first page and kept going. It started off by giving a brief description of each of the families involved, and how they were all coming to parents weekend at the college their kids attended.

Each of these families have some issues/secrets that no one wants to be known plus the kids have issues as well but seem to find their place when they go off to college. There is a mysterious death and that is where everything comes into play, there are lots of interwoven stories, secrets and drama that unfold throughout this book, and a temporary FBI agent just transferred to the area who gets handed the case (loved her relationship with her hubby), she develops some close relationships with other people while working this case and it carries through to the end of the story. So many twist and turns and secrets revealed in an explosive ending make this book one that definitely needs to be read..

Thanks again to Netgalley and St Martins Press! This is one fast paced easy book to read.

“Parents Weekend” is my favourite Alex Finlay book to date!!

The plot follows 5 teens who go missing on the evening of Parents Weekend. The mysterious disappearance rings alarm bells as it is closely following the tragic accidental death announcement of another student.

The chapters are split in POV between the parents, the students and a FBI agent on the case. The split POV was definitely my favourite aspect of this book, getting to see the behind the scenes of each dysfunctional family, the secrets they are hiding, the drama, the betrayals the affairs.

I also enjoyed seeing how the parents dramas bled into their children’s school lives. The effect it had on their personalities, confidences and behaviours. From a psychological perspective I think the author nailed the personalities of the students and I loved seeing the growth and changes to the dynamics in the families, particularly a three year follow up in the epilogue.

I loved the first chapter nailing the high stakes danger from the first page and then following it with fast paced short spaced chapters throughout. The pacing and the timeline was done perfectly.

I can’t wait to read more from this author!

Thank you to Alex Finlay, St Martin’s Press & Minotaur books for the EARC!

Publish date; May 6th 2025

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Four sets of parents head to Northern California for their freshman childrens' parents weekend at their private college. They are all supposed to meet for dinner but none of the kids show up and they can't be reached on their phones.

3.5 stars.

I was so excited to get this arc as I was leaving on vacation because I love this author. This was a very straight forward quick read. There weren't the twists and turns that I really like. There were a lot of characters to keep straight which I eventually had under control. There honestly just wasn't much to this book. It was a lot of backstory that didn't necessarily add anything to the mystery. I felt the mystery was pretty light too. It wasn't his best but it was a decent one day beach read. I have loved other books by this author, so I will still eagerly await his next novel.

I have loved Alex Finlay since reading The Night Shift a few years ago. My expectations were very high going in and I was not disappointed with Parents Weekend. I really enjoyed it! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC!

This was such a fun read! Full of action, secrets and lies, I was immediately drawn in. Alex Finlay never disappoints.

The premise of the story circles around a group of families gathered together for a parents' weekend. As they gather for a special dinner, the kids are all no shows. At first it's assumed it's just typical teen behavior, but soon becomes clear something is seriously wrong. This comes shortly after the death of another student and has the parents frantic and demanding answers.

Told with the same finesse as his other books, Finlay gives just enough detail to keep us guessing. Told through the multiple POV'S of the families, kids and FBI agent, the chapters are short and flow seamlessly. Though there are many characters, it's easy to keep everyone straight. I tore through this in record time.

Thanks to Netgalley and St Martin's Press/Minotaur Books for the advanced copy

Wow, clear your weekend, you won’t put this down!

I’m not sure how I haven’t discovered the author before, but I will certainly pick up his other works. Parents Weekend is a fast paced suspense thriller that had me hooked from the first page to the last. Told from multiple point of views, we meet and follow along several families visiting their college kids during - you guessed it - parents weekend. There is a large cast of characters, but it’s easy to follow along and the author does a wonderful job of introducing them on their own and telling their story. The characters were relatable in their individual family dramas. I loved every minute of the emotional rollercoaster!

When a group of students fails to meet their parents for a planned dinner, the hunt is on to find them. Did the group of friends take off for a last minute weekend getaway? Are they playing a prank on their parents? Or, are the students involved in something far more sinister?

Another winner! 5 students go missing and 1 is found dead. How is it all connected? A FBI agent races to figure that out and save the missing students.

Each chapter is action packed. The book takes place during parents weekend, so we learn all about the parents lives too and they are MESSY. A lot is going on and it makes you wonder what is the real reason they are missing and how it all ties together.

At first I thought I might not enjoy this, because there are a lot of characters involved and I thought it would be hard to connect to it or follow. But it all tied together well & at the beginning of each chapter it named who the chapter was about.

The ending was really good. This is a fast paced read.

Thank you to netgalley for this free advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars

Alex Finlay never ever disappoints. This is just another in a run of great books by him. Never a dull moment, great characters, and a story that keeps you guessing and flows perfectly.

I love Alex Finaly books, and was so excited to get this one early. And I was not disappointed!
I loved the characters in this book. There’s a lot of them, but it never felt confusing or like it was too many. The story centers around a group of 5 freshmen that go missing as they are supposed to meet their parents for dinner. The book is then broken up primarily from the parents pov’s and the students every once in a while. There are also chapters told by the FBI agent working the case.
The story sucked me in from the very beginning. It was fast paced and I finished it in a day. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and will be recommending it when it is released.

It’s a parent’s weekend at a small college and while a group of parents show up, their children don’t. When it becomes obvious that there’s something sinister at play, the parents of the Five, as they come to be known, are viewed with increasing suspicion by the police, press, public, and each other

3.75 ⭐️

This felt like a Law & Order show and it was fun!! Super fast paced and complex enough that I wasn’t bored midway through. Keller was an awesome and super relatable protagonist and kept the story moving in my opinion. I usually figure out the entire plot before the end but I didn’t get everything right this time and that was refreshing.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Parents Weekend by Alex Finlay
Publishing date - 05/06/25
Rating (5/5) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you Netgalley , St. Martin’s Press , & Alex Finlay for this e-ARC. Alex Finlay is one of my favorite authors ; this is his BEST one yet! It centers on a group of families who gather for dinner at a college parents’ weekend, but none of the kids show up. Now the police are involved to find out what happened. The story is told in short chapters, alternating POVs between the families, the kids, and the FBI agent, Keller (to whom we were introduced to in previous books!).

I finished the book in less than 1 days. The characters are beautifully written and the pace is fast with so many twist and turns. It’s a great read! Highly recommend this one when it releases next May.

Well hello again Special Agent Keller! I love the way we get another look at a recurring character. She adds to the story without taking away from it. Jay and Annie were such delights and I'm really hoping to see them again in the future.
As for The Five. At first I had no idea who took them and why. The little peeps into each family and their dynamics was a nice curveball into my theories. That secret file and Alice really had me going in one direction for awhile. Even with a famed judge and high government person with their own issues. The infidelities. But before the reveal, I'd already figured the connections and who was behind it. The standoff though, now that was surprising. And the graduation was so so so very sweet.

Alex Finlay is one of my favorite authors and I devoured this book over the course of a few hours. It centers on a group of families who gather for dinner at a college parents’ weekend, but none of the kids show up. What is initially chalked up to irresponsible teenager behavior soon escalates into the sense that something is very wrong. The story is told in short chapters, alternating POVs between the families, the kids, and the FBI agent, Keller (to whom we were introduced in previous books!).

I thought the author did a great job at differentiating the various families so it was easy for me to know who was who without having to remind myself at each new chapter. This is impressive in itself but especially so in short chapters. Some characters were more likable than others but all of them were believable. The mystery in the book was pretty good, though I didn’t necessarily feel shocked about any of the twists. Finlay tends to kill off people that I didn’t expect, so there was tension the whole way through about who may or may not make it to the end of the book. I thought the end of the story tied things up nicely, though it did leave me thinking (as all of his books do) how sad it is that things that seem like small decisions at the time end up having disastrous consequences. I hope that the introduction of a couple great characters means that we might see some more reoccurring characters in future books.

Overall, this is another winner from Finlay that made me neglect everything else in my house (including sleep) until I could finish it. Would recommend to those who enjoy mysteries. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Wow! First, thanks to MacMillan Publishing and Net Galley for allowing me to read an early copy of Parents Weekend. Alex Finlay you’ve done it again. I could not put this book down. I keep telling myself just one more chapter. I finished the book in 2 days. The characters are beautifully written and the pace is fast with twist and turns. It’s a great read for a weekend snuggled by the fire or something to put in your carryon for the next vacation.

3.5

***Trigger Warning: mention of cancer and mention of suicide***

Parents Weekend follows five families who plan on a night of dinner and cocktails before the open festivities of parents weekend. All the parents show up to dinner but the kids don’t. At first they think the kids are just joking around. But then serval hours go by and no one shows up. Now the police are involved to find out what happened.

I thought this was a solid thriller but I did think it had a few flaws. There were a lot of characters and different perspectives to keep up with. That got confusing for me at times. I also didn’t really feel like we got a clear explanation for the motives behind what happened. I just wish things were wrapped up better. But this was a fast paced thriller that will keep your attention. This is fourth book I have read by this author and I will keep reading books by him.

Thank you Alex Finlay, St. Martins Press, and NetGalley for the ARC of this book.