This is an entertaining fast-paced mystery about a group of missing college students. Their parents have just arrived on campus for a visit and the 5 freshmen fail to show up for dinner. Luckily, a likeable female FBI agent has also just arrived in town on a hardship transfer to be closer to an ailing family member and she is hot on the case along with the local law enforcement, and an intern she recruits for her cyber and social media sleuthing skills.

As a parent of a recent college graduate, I could relate to the stage of life these parents are in. Even though they all had much more drama in their lives than I do. I found it interesting that the Author shared at the end of the audiobook that he got the idea for the plot while visiting his own child for a college parents’ weekend.

I liked the narrator, and I was able to distinguish between the multitude of characters to keep up with pretty easily.

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!

At first, I didn't think I was going to love this (though I do really enjoy the author's other books). However, very quickly I was absorbed into the story. A group of college students go missing on parent's weekend. When they are all supposed to meet up with their parents for dinner none show up. The parents are mostly very wealthy prominent people, so they instantly realize that something is terribly wrong.
I won't tell you what happens because a whole lot does, and I could easily slip and spoil something. This book has some good twists and turns and an ending you'll never see coming.
I listened to this on audio and loved it. The narration is fantastic, and it really brings the story to life. If you are a fan of this type of media, I highly recommend giving this a listen but otherwise it's definitely worth the read!

The narrator has a pleasant voice and does a good job changing voices for all the different characters but there are so many, it is difficult to keep track without reading along with the print version. 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 was difficult to cheer for any characters but if you don't mind a quick, popcorn-like mystery/thriller than you may enjoy this one.

Parents Weekend
Alex Finlay
Pub: Macmillan Audio
Format: ARC audiobook
Expected Publication: May 6, 2025
#MacAudio2025
3.5/ 5 rounded to 4 for Good Reads

Many thanks to Macmillan Audio for this ARC audiobook!


Our favorite Special Agent Badass is back again in Finlay’s newest novel focused on the disappearance of five college freshmen on Parents Weekend at their college. Similar to his other novels, the story revolves around dumb young adults and the stupid decisions they decide to make, all while Keller is running against time to save them. Through many twists and turns, I felt it was a bit obvious what the truth was, but I feel like Finlay still made it very interesting and I had a difficult time putting the book down.
Read by my absolute fav narrator Brittany Pressley, this was a quick read and I finished this book in roughly a day, and at no time did it slow down or leave me in a rut. There were a lot of characters, and it did take me a while to make sure I had them sorted out (a pitfall of audiobooks is I can’t quickly flip back to when a character was introduced). Unfortunately because it was a quick read with many characters, I do feel like we did not get a full glimpse into each of the characters and their relationships to each other, leaving a few loose threads at the end of the book. While I clearly did not mind this overall, just want to let you know that it is more plot/twist driven rather than character.
All that being said, I highly, highly recommend Finlay’s books, especially those with
Agent Sarah Keller. I usually am not a fan of series about detectives for my own reasons, but I have actually enjoyed getting to know her as a character throughout all the books, and having that connection in each of his stories without making her the main plot. All of his books- this one included- can be read individually without feeling like you’re missing out on massive plot points because you didn’t read the fourth book in a 20+ book series.
While this book has not knocked down The Night Shift from its place as my favorite Finlay novel, I still enjoyed it and absolutely recommend it to anyone looking for a really interesting (and not annoying) detective thriller.

Thank you Netgalley & Macmillan Audio for an ALC 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.

Another gripping, well-constructed, and fast-paced thriller from Alex Finlay! A parents' weekend at college is interrupted by the disappearance of five students. Could the disappearance be linked to the accidental (or so we thought) drowning of another student the week prior? Or to some sinister and unexplained posts on social media? Or perhaps to the influence of the high-powered parents of some of the missing students? The plot moves quickly and the characters are interesting, particularly the parents, who include a tough federal agent and a judge of a recent high-profile celebrity trial. The twists and turns of the plot are never predictable and always ramp up the thrills until the inevitable and exciting conclusion. As is typical for Alex Finlay novels, there is action aplenty and great side plots involving interesting characters. The voice narration is expert and helps keep the suspense flowing. A great listen that you'll fly through in your excitement to get to the end 1 which doesn't disappoint.

First of all, Bob! I love him so much. Can there just be a spin off series where Sarah and Bob go on cute little rom com adventures together? Anyway, with a lot of the characters being flawed and sometimes unlikeable, it was really nice to be able to root for these two. Also, I didn't make the connection at first to The Night Shift until there was the Blockbuster reference. That was kind of fun to learn. Does this mean there's a Finlayverse? That this is effectively a series? It looks like Sarah is in other books as well, and she's so badass, that I'll need to check those out too.

So there are five families in this story, along with other characters who didn't have a POV, and I was writing down notes for the first few chapters until I got the hang of it. They did all have unique personalities and situations, which helped. I really liked the character establishing early chapters, the mystery, and the pace of the reveals. Overall, a really satisfying mystery / police procedural.

Also Brittany Pressley narrated! I know she did The Night Shift too. She's one of my faves and did a great job doing the POVs of all these people and families.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ALC!

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 Macmillan Audio for my ALC in exchange for my honest feedback!

Thanks to #NetGalley and #MacMillanAudio for the book #ParentsWeekend by #AlexFinlay. This book encompasses the first year of 5 college students, Libby, Blaine, Mark, Felix and Stella. Its parent weekend and these five students along with their parents are supposed to go out to dinner, but the students never arrive. In fact, they are missing and nobody seems to know why. As the parents desperately search for their children, time is running out. Can they find them before it’s too late?

Enjoyable read! The premises is set during a parents weekend when the parents of 5 college students visit their campus for the weekend. While preparing for a dinner with the families and students, their kids do not show up for the pre scheduled dinner. Annoyed but not panicking, the parents decided to have a good night on their own assuming the kids were just being typical college aged students. When none of the families hear from them, they discover that something more sinister is lurking in the shadows. Emotions were already high as there was a death on campus earlier that week, that “appears” to be an unfortunate accident… Keller is new to the area, but she dives into this investigation head first and she is determined to bring these kids home and return them to their families.

Overall, an entertaining whodunnit thriller. The narration was amazing as always, as Brittany Presley is one of the best out there. She really brought life to these characters, the pitch, tone and emotion was perfect. Thank you Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for this advanced listening copy. All opinions are my own.

2.5 Stars – A Promising Premise That Lost Its Way

Parents Weekend kicks off with a compelling hook and an intriguing premise that pulled me in early. Told through multiple POVs and timelines, it had the makings of a solid popcorn thriller. But as the story progressed, it became increasingly convoluted—overcrowded with characters, tangled plotlines, and unresolved threads that left me more frustrated than satisfied. There was definite potential here, but ultimately, it didn’t quite deliver.

This is a fast paced and entertaining thriller that had me second guessing things every other chapter. Each family has so much drama going on behind the scenes and there so a lot of characters to keep track of I found it a bit difficult to keep a lot of it straight. I did enjoy the fact that the author wrote this in multiple POVs though (the parents, the students, and Detective Keller) Overall I found parts of the story predictive, but other parts were a shock. Overall I would recommend this one.

I have read and really enjoyed several of Alex Finlay’s books, they are always an enjoyable, fast paced ride full of twists and turns. His newest release, Parents Weekend, did not disappoint and kept me guessing and second guessing just like his others! It is set on the Santa Clara University’s college campus on Parents Weekend. It is told through multiple POVs and has short chapters, which I love.

The story follows five families whose children are college freshmen and friends, they’re known as The Five. The parents come in for the weekend and the plan is for them all to meet for dinner, but the students never showed up. Like most popcorn thrillers, it has a complex plot and there were so many characters, even some with aliases, to keep straight, but once I had them figured out it was a heart pounding, action packed, wild ride all the way to the very end, I had a hard time putting this one down. I even found myself holding my breath a couple of times.

I enjoyed the unique premise and setting of this story. I was more invested in the parents POVs than the students, maybe that’s just because I could relate more with them. I thought the references to Scooby Doo and The Mystery Van were fun nostalgic touches! There is a return of a character from his last two books, but this one can definitely be read without reading the others.

I am a huge fan of Brittany Pressley’s work. Her tone and pacing are spot on and helped create a mysterious, suspenseful atmospheric setting and plot. As always, she delivered a flawless and entertaining performance from start to finish, bringing the story and characters to life.

Thank you @minotaur_books, @macmillan.audio, @alexfinlayauthor, and @netgalley for the #gifted ARC & ALC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I love a book where the title actually tells you something about the novel! This is a quick, fun read about Parents weekend at a small California college. Five friends from disparate backgrounds, Libby, Stella, Mark, Felix and Blane are finishing their Freshman year, and all are supposed to attend a special dinner with their parents who have arrived for Parents weekend. The kids never show up. FBI Special Agent Sarah Keller returns in this fast-paced thriller, determined to find and save the kids from an uncertain fate. Unputdownable, with short chapters that will keep readers engaged.
The excellent audiobook edition was read by Brittany Pressley

I hope to never have a college visit like the one in Alex Finlay’s twisty new thriller Parents Weekend. I’m so grateful to @minotaurbooks for an e-arc and to @macmillan.audio for an ALC. Parents Weekend comes out May 6!

Four families plan a joint dinner over parents’ weekend at Bay Area hidden gem Santa Clara University for their kids (plus one without parents in town) in the same residence hall, and, at first, when none of the kids show up, they write it off. Maybe they lost track of time with friends. Maybe they got stuck at a party. But as the hours pass, and none of the kids so much as text their parents, campus security is alerted and soon the area is swarming with reporters trying to get the scoop on what happened to “The Five.”

This story is told from multiple points of view. We get representation from all the—very different—families and the students in both past and present timelines. And everyone seems to have something to hide. This was a fun, quick read that I have no doubt Alex Finlay fans will enjoy. Even though some of my guesses about the main plot threads turned out to be right or right adjacent, there were so many reveals throughout that kept me glued to the book. And FBI Special Agent Sarah Keller from his first two books is back to help solve this one. I really love her character and her relationship with her husband, which has some great moments in this book.

Brittany Pressley narrates, and she does a great job. She kept me immersed in the story and did a lot to differentiate the multiple POVs. I will say that it was a little hard to track all the characters at the beginning, but it didn’t take long for me to be grounded enough in the story to keep them straight. But this was the first Alex Finlay book that doesn’t have multiple narrators, and I think I might have preferred that. But maybe there were just too many POV characters to keep it cohesive.

I listened to the audio version of this as well as read the e-book. The audio version was narrated to Brittany Pressley. She did a great job with this story. I'll have to admit it helped me to have the digital version because I find it easier to go back and make sure I know who the characters are with that form. There were lots of characters to keep track of.

This mystery revolves around the disappearance of five college students. Their parents have arrived for Parents Weekend, only to not have any of the kids show up for a scheduled dinner. It's a mystery that the FBI is brought in to help solve because several of the parents are public figures. Agent Keller is a main character in the book who is brought in off of her vacation with her husband and twins. I loved her!

I devoured this book in two days. It is very fast paced and gives you no chance of being bored.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press/Mnotaor Books, Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the copies. All thoughts are my own.

Fast paced mystery thriller.

The story centers on 5 students who go missing on Parents Weekend at Santa Clara University in California. Their parents wait for them at the restaurant but none of them show up. At first they aren’t too worried, but then tidbits and details start emerging. The parents of Libby, Blane, Mark, Felix, and Stella have reason to be concerned.

This book marks the return of a character from previous books by this author: Special Agent Sarah Keller who has been transferred to the Bay Area while her husband, Bob, takes care of his ailing father. Sarah is immediately brought into the case by the local police. She takes point rather quickly and off goes the investigation.

Told from several different viewpoints, the reader learns about the issues in the families of the missing students. Eventually the pool of suspects dwindles. And this is where the book fell from a 4 + suspense thriller to a barely 3. I hated the ending and the explanation. How banal and predictable. All along I was hoping it wouldn’t go there but it did so I was very disappointed. No spoilers.

I was able to listen to the audio book while also following along in the e-book ARC, both provided by the publishers. The narrator, Brittany Pressley, did an OK job with the story but definitely struggled with the voices of so many characters trying to give them unique accents etc. This is definitely a book that would have benefitted from a much larger production cast, especially even at least one male voice.

3.5 stars – If you're in the mood for a fast-paced, binge-worthy whodunit you can knock out in a day, this one fits the bill. The story kicks off with the disappearance of five college students during Parents Weekend at their prestigious private school—a setup that immediately drew me in. The mystery is layered with secrets, shifting perspectives, and enough twists to keep you guessing throughout. I really enjoyed the premise and the urgency of the storyline.

That said, I struggled a bit with the character development. With such a large cast—students, parents, teachers—it felt like there just wasn’t enough time to really get to know anyone. Because of that, it was hard to fully invest in their motivations or feel emotionally connected to the story. Still, I really appreciated the research the author put into the procedural aspects and the setting, which added authenticity to the narrative.

Overall, it was a solid read with a compelling mystery—just wish there had been more depth to the characters. Big thanks to NetGalley for the audiobook!

I really enjoyed this book. It is suspenseful and entertaining. There are many twists and turns to keep you guessing until the end. This is a great thriller.