Over the last few years I’ve become quite a fan of Alex Finlay — as I’m sure most thriller obsessives can attest, his books are just plain fun. The bestselling author’s pulse-pounding mystery novels The Night Shift, Every Last Fear, and If Something Happens To Me are complex whodunnits full of shocking murders, memorable characters, and satisfying twists, all revolving around an emotional core. While I’m happy to report that all of those elements are indeed present in Finlay’s latest, Parents Weekend, it feels like they’ve been watered down. The twists and the colorful assortment of characters are all where they should be, all technically hitting their marks, but they . . . just don’t come together in the way I’d hoped, I guess.

Fan-favorite character FBI Special Agent Sarah Keller returns in Parents Weekend, which makes for a nice surprise. Keller’s dynamic with her husband, Bob, reminds me of the relationship between police chief Marge Gunderson and her doting husband Norm in Fargo. I always enjoy their scenes together, and their bond helps to ground the story. They’re also a nice contrast for all of the other failed (or failing) couples in this book, of which there are many — the large (extremely large!) cast of students, parents, and university faculty are individually interesting in their own ways, but all drawn a little thin.

If you’re not someone who enjoys keeping track of multiple characters and endless switch-ups in POV, this book will send you running for the hills. Personally I don’t mind that structure, but I think this novel could’ve done with losing two or three characters so the story had more of a chance to breathe. (For example, one core character’s death happens entirely off-page while we’re following someone else, which seems strange for such a pivotal moment in the story.) It reminded me of early episodes of Game of Thrones, when scenes constantly switch to different locations and people, halting the story when things start to pick up speed; just when I really began to feel invested in someone and their story, the next chapter yanked me over to a new perspective.

Aside from that issue, I don’t think the writing is as smooth as in Finlay’s previous novels. Don’t get me wrong: it’s still captivating throughout. But there are some pretty clunky attempts at teenage/college lingo that made my eye twitch, and clichés abound. (Side-note: the most unbelievable thing in this book? That kidnapped college student Blane’s stereotypical, bro-y fraternity “respects women” and excommunicates racists. Mhmm, yeah. Suuuure they do.)

TL;DR — If you’re in search of a fast-paced thriller to zip through on the beach this summer, Parents Weekend isn’t a bad choice by any means. It just might not measure up to Finlay’s earlier work, that’s all.

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Good thriller with twisty family dynamics and drama. The story follows five students from at University who mysteriously disappear during Parents Weekend, leaving their parents frantic. This was a quick read, I loved FBI Agent Sarah Keller and loved the multiple POV. I found it interesting and easy to go through in one day.

Title: Parents Weekend
By: Alex Finlay
Pub. Day: May 6, 2025

Genre:
Fiction, Mystery, Suspense

Trigger Warnings:
Abuse, Suicide, Missing Person’s, Infidelity, Profanity

Summary/Review:
Agent Keller has relocated to California when she’s called in to the local private school where a group of five students have gone missing. At first, the parents think nothing of it, as they recall how college life goes, until Stella, Libby, Blane, Felix, and Mark can’t be reached or located. The parents start to suspect the kids might be playing a prank, but as the story unravels the truth comes out. Will the students be found? And if so, will they be found alive?

I was engrossed in my last read by Alex Finlay, however, Parents Weekend fell short for me. The author started the novel off strong and I was quickly engaged in the plotline. However, as the novel progressed I became confused as additional characters were introduced. I felt the story had too many characters to follow. Since the story was told from multiple points of view, following the characters created a bigger issue with my comprehending of the content. Too many characters made the transitions of the storyline between characters hard to follow as well. For this reason, I rated this novel three stars.

Thank you to Alex Finlay, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the opportunity of an Advanced Readers Copy. I am voluntarily leaving my review.

#ParentsWeekend
#reluctantreaderreads
#advancedreadercopies
#NetGalley

Agent Sarah Keller is back!

This new case involves five university students—Stella, Libby, Blane, Felix, and Mark—who all go missing during the Parents’ Weekend dinner at Santa Clara University. Campus police and the FBI are called in, as one of the missing students is the child of a Federal State Department official, and another is the child of a famous judge.

Sarah, temporarily working in California, is assigned to assist with the case. She senses something serious is afoot, not just kids fooling around. She must determine if the incident is payback for something one of the parents has done or if one of the students triggered it.

I always enjoy Alex Finlay’s books. This one features short chapters from multiple POVs. The audio, narrated by Brittany Pressley, helps me keep everyone straight. I wasn’t thrilled with the denouement, but overall, it was an entertaining novel.

It’s worth mentioning the addition of an interesting character, Annie Hafeez. I wonder if she and Sarah will team up again.

Cliffhanger: No

3.5/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Macmillan Audio via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

It’s parent’s weekend at a fancy shmancy Santa Clara University. Five different dysfunctional families decend on the campus to spend time with their definitely NOT up to no good children. These lovely cherubs, thrown together in a freshman cohort, an unlikely group of friends (friends?), go missing on the first night of parent’s weekend. What could have possibly happened?? Good thing FBI Agent Sarah Keller is in town to help solve the case!
Any other details of the book are deeply unimportant, I read it a few weeks ago and have forgotten almost everything about it. It’s giving scooby doo, it’s giving bargain bin paper back but it’s also giving…..compelling?? Once I started reading I absolutely could not stop! The brief multiple POV chapters made this so readable I stayed up late to finish it.
I didn’t realize that Special Agent Keller and her family are recurring characters but she was great and I would definitely pick up another book just for her.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books and NetGalley for this delicious snack (deeply consumable, highly forgettable, no regrets).

I finished this book like 4 days ago and already forgot everything that happened. I remember mostly enjoying it but it clearly did not leave much of an impression on me.

I love when a thriller has a compact timeline and this one takes place over one weekend. It was good having Agent Keller back from Finley’s other novels - I really do love a competent FBI agent! It took me a second to get into it with all the characters because there are many but once I did it was easy to keep track of who everyone was and how they were connected. The ending was neatly tied up, if not a bit predictable.

Don’t you remember sleeping in bed and your mobile phone goes off, and its your daughter supposedly calling screaming out have another. Another Butt call, but I couldn’t stand it. Finlay has captured the realities of college life today. We unfortunately can track our children’s every move driving us crazy, but in this case that ability might have saved four lives.
Using a technique of dissecting each character and their family in a different chapter and then through the time line for the rest of the book sometimes proves overwhelming for following the plot. These chapters are interspersed with chapters of the present to solve the mystery.
Finlay’s other books had a little better story line, but this is a quick read, basically good story and outcomes that were quite interesting. Basically, a group of five friends from very varied back grounds are at a somewhat elite college getting ready for Parents Weekends when they ghost their parents. To the rescue is Finlay's FBI par excellance, Sarah Keller.
Thanks to St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books, NetGalley and author Alex Finlay for this digital ARC.

Parents Weekend is the definition of a read-in-one-sitting kind of book! The story begins with five college students prepping for parents' weekend and failing to show up for dinner with their parents on the very first night. Some are unfazed, some know something is wrong. The twists and turns of this novel will have you turning pages late into the night to find out what happened.

I really enjoy books set on a school campus and revolving around a set of friends so I was hooked on this book from the start. There are quite a few characters involved in the plot and each point of view is explored. Although it was a lot to keep track of, the author does a great job keeping you invested. The plot of fast-paced and I read it quickly because I needed to know how the mystery would wrap up. The twists and ending were well done and I really enjoyed the storyline. I almost wish I had read this in the fall just for the creepy feelings it evoked and the dark academia theme but I could never have waited that long. I definitely recommend this book to mystery/thriller readers, they will not be disappointed! Thanks to Alex Finlay, St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

First, I absolutely love the cover of this book! The beach setting with a bonfire is perfection. Parents Weekend was a fast paced twisty thriller that kept my attention from the beginning to the end. There is a LARGE complicated cast of characters, each have their own secrets or traumas going on. I actually had to compile a list of characters and their connections. And the book is told from everyone’s perspectives. I was surprised by the depth of the characters since there are so many of them! We even get the perspective of the FBI Special Agent. I did not realize the Special Agent was a recurring character in Finlay’s books, but I plan to read Every Last Fear and The Night Shift soon to get more of Sarah’s story.

It’s parents weekend at a small college in California. The parents of 5 college kids are excited to see their children at college. They meet up and make plans to go out to dinner, except the kids never show up. The parents go about their business thinking the kids blew them off or are out partying. Soon no one can get in touch and it is determined that the 5 college students are missing. There is a race to find the missing students with so many leads that all come up empty.

This book is a lot! I mean a lot! So many clues, so many characters, so many directions. You really have to pay attention to understand the full extent of the story. I loved the way the author tied in the media and how they can really alter a case like this. There were some twists I figured out but some surprised me. Overall, I really enjoyed this book.

I just finished Parents Weekend by Alex Finlay and these are my thoughts.

It’s parents weekend at a small private college in North Cali… 5 families get together for the first night dinner, only to find their kids don’t show up. They assume they just ditched out but when they don’t show up the next day… Things begin to heat up. Five seemingly very different kids all go missing at the same time… Will they be found alive?


Full disclosure… I love Alex Finlay.. This means I have very high expectations.

Let’s start with the fact it's set on a college campus… I love campus thrillers. I love the ominous feel of the storyline. I love the writing style and the short chapters that flicks between different POVs, meaning each family and it was gripping.

I couldn’t figure out what was going on, it totally kept me on my toes! There is a beautiful complexity to the characters which just shows the calibre of the writing because we have many many characters to follow along with.

It was fast paced and very engaging. I am so glad I read this one.

4.5 stars

Thank you to @netgalley @minotarur_books for my gifted copy!

Out now

From the first page of Parents Weekend, I was hooked—and Alex Finlay never let go. This is everything I love in a thriller: an ominous setting, complex characters, and secrets that unravel at just the right pace. The college campus backdrop layered with the emotional stakes of missing students and panicked parents adds an intense and relatable urgency.

The alternating points of view kept me on my toes, and just when I thought I had it figured out… plot twist! Finlay knows how to weave suspense and emotion masterfully, giving us characters we care about while pulling us deeper into the mystery.

It’s chilling, timely, and impossible to put down. Highly recommend for fans of smart, character-driven thrillers that make your heart race and your mind spin.

Thank you to NetGalley for the Arc

It’s Parents Weekend, so everyone better be on their best behavior!

It’s the weekend both the kids and parents dread! Maybe that’s why a group of five college friends didn’t show up at the first dinner event? Why aren’t they answering their phones? It’s not like them to go silent like this!

This was yet another addictive and entertaining read by Alex Finlay. Featuring our favorite FBI special agent Sarah Keller, once again in the spotlight.

I enjoyed how the chapters each highlighted a family group. It helped immensely since the cast of characters was large and I needed the occasional reminder of which college student belonged to which parent. Short chapters keep the book rolling along at a quick pace, keeping me up late with the “just one more chapter” scenario. Which never fails to turn into a good 5-10 chapters!😅

I’ve enjoyed all the books I’ve read from this author and this one was no different! Another great read to add to the collection.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press

I really enjoyed this one! It was fast paced, relatable, and engaging. I love dark academia, so I was immediately intrigued when I found out the setting was a college campus and it pulled me in from the start. The multiple POVs and short chapters also made it more addictive.
I loved how each chapter was set on a different family and we really got a deep understanding of each family’s scenario.
I think I would have enjoyed this even more if I read it because I’ll admit it was difficult to keep track of all the characters and which student belonged to which family when listening.
But even with the rewinding and piecing characters together, I thought it was very well done, had a good twist, and kept me guessing! Definitely recommend!

This is my first Alex Finlay novel and it won’t be the last. Such a thrilling story that is complex but when it comes together at the end is so good. You will not be disappointed.

Parents arrive on campus for Parents Weekend at a prestigious private college in California. Five families are meeting for dinner, but none of the students arrive. At first they assume they must have gotten sidetracked together, but it soon becomes clear that there's a lot more to the story. All of the families are hiding secrets and the only way to find their kids is to finally tell their truths.

This was a fun thriller with a lot of twists and turns. The plot focuses a lot on the parents and I wish we got to know some of the students a little bit better. Overall it's a good quick read that keeps you guessing.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of Parents Weekend.

This was such an engaging book! I love how Finley takes you in, builds the suspense, and makes you want to know what was going to happen.

There were a lot of characters, so at times, that was hard to stay in to who was who.

Regardless, this was a quick and engaging read, and I really liked it.

What a great premise, parents weekend. Brought back memories of my own college times. Good mystery with a lot of red herrings.

This was impossible to put down. I was addicted to the way that Alex Findlay told the story. Each chapter pulled me in deeper.

This story is about parents visiting their kids at college but the weekend goes awry when a student goes missing and then is found dead. Lots of motives. Lots of secrets.

This brought me back to my college days in the best way possible.

Definitely recommend ◡̈