The premise is compelling: five college students vanish during their university's Parents Weekend, leaving their families in a state of panic and triggering a full-blown media frenzy.

Finlay is a master of suspense, and this book is a perfect example. The reason for my 4-rating instead of 5 is that with so many different characters and perspectives, it took a little while to settle into the narrative and keep everyone straight. However, once I was fully invested, the payoff was absolutely worth it.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an advanced reader copy of Parents Weekend by Alex Finlay in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars

Parents Weekend is a new thriller by Alex Finlay that will have you reading late into the night.

Synopisis: In the glow of their children’s exciting first year of college at a small private school in Northern California, five families plan on a night of dinner and cocktails for the opening festivities of Parents Weekend. As the parents stay out way past their bedtimes, their kids—five residents of Campisi Hall—never show up at dinner. At first, everyone thinks that they’re just being college students, irresponsibly forgetting about the gathering or skipping out to go to a party. But as the hours click by and another night falls with not so much as a text from the students, panic ensues. Soon, the campus police call in reinforcements. Search parties are formed. Reporters swarm the small enclave. Rumors swirl and questions arise. Libby, Blane, Mark, Felix, and Stella—The Five, as the podcasters, bloggers, and TikTok sleuths call them—come from five very different families. What led them out on that fateful night? Could it be the sins of their mothers and fathers come to cause them peril or a threat to the friend group from within?

My Thoughts: I really like Special Agent Sarah Keller and was so excited to see that she is back in Parents Weekend. It's no wonder she's called Agent Badass - this woman is fierce and doesn't give up or back down. This book had a ton of characters and I found myself a bit confused at the beginning trying to keep things sorted. But once I got into the story it was easier for me to remember who was who. There isn't much character development of any of the characters and much of the story is centered around the parents and their transgressions/secrets. If you're paying attention it's easy to pick out who the perp is, but that didn't take away from the story for me and I enjoyed seeing things wrap up. This one is a short popcorn type thriller that doesn't really get into anything too deep, but it's good for a quick read. I hope to see Agent Keller back again soon!

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

A group of parents attending Parents Weekend at a California college are surprised, and then alarmed, when none of their children show up for a scheduled dinner. FBI agent Sarah Keller is called in on the case to investigate.
Each chapter focuses on a different family and the agent as they grapple with solving the mystery. The chapters reveal back stories on family dynamics and occurrences that lead up to the weekend. A large cast of characters was confusing in the beginning but if you stick with the book characters become more familiar. In my opinion the story focuses on back stories rather that the mystery of the disappearances and the student characters were undeveloped. This made it difficult to invest in the outcome. The pace of the book picked up midway making me glad I stuck with it

2.5
Five families are excited for Parents Weekend at their children's college campus. Dinners have been planned, but the five students never show up. Thinking that they are just being typical college students and must be out having fun, the families aren't too worried at first. As the hours go by and another night comes without the students turning up, things become more panicked. What happened to these five students from very different backgrounds? Is it their own fault or the fault of their parents that led to the disappearance?

Wow, what a mess this quickly turned into. The story is told in past and present timelines with SIX POV... Within those 6 POV, there are so many other characters that the story quickly was losing me. It was exhausting to read so I switched over to audiobook, which didn't help much. The narration is all done in the same voice so you don't have any direction to who's POV it is from the narration. I enjoyed Night Shift by the author, but could have passed on this one.

Thank you to the publishers for this book.

I wish I enjoyed it, but I really struggled with it. I picked it up on and off for months and just couldn't get really into it.There are so many characters and it's just not really detailed for having that many characters.

Five students go missing during parents weekend. The book traces the lead up to this and all the family secrets.

I was expecting more suspense or something here, but found it just to be ok.

Honestly felt a little confused by all the characters and POV shifts. However it’s an easy fast paced read which I think a handful of people will enjoy. Interesting concept of a storyline but didn’t have the wow factor I hoped for

An enjoyable read with interesting characters & storyline. I will be looking for more from this author! Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC.

This one was fine. Nothing made me want to put it down. It just wasn’t greatly memorable and there were a large cast of characters, none of whom were very deep or lovable.

Alex Finlay’s Parents Weekend is a fast-paced, emotionally charged thriller that plunges readers straight into every parent’s worst nightmare—a college parents’ gathering derailed when five students mysteriously vanish. Told through multiple points of view and featuring the return of FBI Special Agent Sarah Keller, the novel knits together family drama, campus tension, and the terror of uncertainty with expert precision. Finlay keeps the suspense taut with short, propulsive chapters and red herrings aplenty, crafting a true weekend-devourer that’s both page-turning and pulse-raising. His exploration of family dysfunction and elite expectations lends real emotional weight to the mystery, grounding the thriller in relatable human stakes. With twists that land unexpectedly and a shocking conclusion that pays off every seeded clue, Parents Weekend is a must-read for fans of high-energy domestic suspense.

When parents’ weekend at a prestigious university turns deadly, secrets unravel fast and no one is safe. With old connections resurfacing, the investigation takes more than a few surprising turns.


Parents Weekend was a quick, addictive read, I flew through it in a single day. While the mystery itself was a bit predictable, it was still interesting to follow, especially with all the red herrings woven in. I really enjoyed the addition of Sarah Keller and the clever Easter eggs referencing Finlay’s previous books. My only downside was that the “villain” felt a bit stereotypical, but overall, this was an engaging thriller that kept me hooked until the end.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the e-ARC

Loved the different POVs of characters throughout the story. Enjoyed the timeline switches as well. Felt like the stories could've been explained a little clearer for each plotline. Felt a little chunky before the stories connected.

I truly enjoy Alex Finlay's work and Parents Weekend was no different with multiple plots, various character points of view, and a clever connection to tie it all together. In Parents Weekend we meet five missing college students, their parents, and the secondary characters involved in finding out just what happened to those five missing students. We also have the pleasure of watching FBI Agent Sarah Keller back in action, though it's not necessary to read the previous work she can be found in, The Night Shift. There's drama happening in the students' lives plus drama in the parents' lives, and weeding through both makes for one puzzle piece of a mystery. Who's taken the students? Is it a hoax? Are the parents' personal lives part of the problem?

There's cheating, lying, politics, and then some as the five families, all from very different worlds, dig into the secrets that just might lead to what happened. I really enjoyed the dynamics of the characters in this story, it's fascinating the sociopolitical background of each family and how that plays out in their hunt for the truth. Is it the fault of the mom who is in politics, the couple that has cheating issues, the single mom? Is it the drama of the students seeking acceptance into a fraternity, the girl who's secretly in love with a boy who's in love with another girl, or is something else entirely? Parents Weekend is fast enough paced that the number of storylines to follow isn't overly difficult and they tie together well. It's fun to read and while some of the storylines are predictable, the overall outcome of the story was a twist for me that I quite enjoyed. This was an engaging, quick read. It also has me asking Finlay to please give us more Keller.

Full review to come (maybe—I’m juggling a lot right now!).

Not bad at all—I really liked the premise and thought it was fun. However, the large number of characters and frequent timeline shifts made it a little tricky to follow along at times.

Alex Finlay started the tension from the beginning and impressively kept it taught throughout the entire story. I enjoyed the different viewpoints and the interconnectedness between characters.

This was an excellent, fast-paced read that had me sneaking chapters at my desk! The characters were well developed and though there were a lot of them, they were easy to follow in the story. Sometimes it's hard to connect with characters in a story but Alex Finlay writes them in a way where it is easy. I truly found myself caring about these characters throughout the story. This was my first Finlay read but definitely not my last!

Finlay delivers a gripping, emotion-charged thriller that had me glued from the first scene. When five college students don’t show up during Parents Weekend, the suspense kicks off—layered with smart pacing, multiple POVs, and a deeply human core that’s impossible to ignore. Agent Sarah Keller’s return brings welcome continuity and calm amid the chaos. While the large cast introduces complexity, each character’s secrets and family dynamics only heighten the intrigue. A fast-paced, twist-packed ride that blends parental fears with college drama in a way that’s both smart and deeply felt. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the early copy!

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review this arc honestly.

The story was ok. I was compelled to finish it but I believe this authors other works were much better. This one felt like, too many characters and too many things going on right from the jump making it hard to keep straight as reading through the story. The ending felt a little rushed but it was complete. I’m definitely still read more from this author but this one wasn’t their best work.

3.5🌟

This was a fun popcorn thriller - an easy and fast read, with a lot of threads to pull on.

Out of the gate, I was sucked in because the opening was humorous and hinted at some serious intrigue. I liked it being set during Parents Weekend at the university as a way to get all the players together. Each student seems to have some sort of connection and also maybe something to hide, and so do their parents... so when 'the five' go missing it's anyone's guess as to why. As the story unfolded we see what is happening from various perspectives which kept it moving fast.

I enjoyed the pacing, setting, and overall plot... trying to figure out what these kids had in common and who the culprit was proved to be a fun ride. The ending was a bit "meh" for me, with the twist being a little "duh you missed that red flag" but it was still tied up nicely. Overall, a solid popcorn thriller to binge read!

Big thanks to St. Martin's Press / Minotaur Books, Alex Finlay, and Netgalley for the eARC of this book! 💖

This one had me guessing until the end, in true Alex Finlay fashion. I loved the complexity of not just the characters, but their relationships with their parents