I liked so much about this book - the setting, the characters, and the story development. The only thing I could say I didn't like was a very large set of characters that were too hard to keep track of.

The story centers around parents' weekend at Santa Clara University. Kids go missing, and the story for the most part revolves around the parents left wondering where their children are. There a few high profile parents, one with a security detail and one who is a judge, creating a potential revenge theory. A skilled FBI woman ("G woman" just like X-files) is able to quickly piece together clues to find out what happened and begin pursuit. The ending is a thrill of a ride and very well done.

While the premise of this book was really interesting, and many of the characters as well, it sometimes felt like there were too many storylines in play to get too invested in any of them. Each subplot was captivating, but felt a bit rushed. Definitely wouldn't have minded the book being a bit longer in order to dig a little deeper into each family.

No, just no. This was just terrible. It was big on style but short on substance. This is what I would call a popcorn thriller, but not in a good way. I did not enjoy it. It got bogged down with too many characters and not enough information. The ending felt rushed, and a lot of the plot felt unfinished. The book was only 235 pages on my tablet, and it showed. There were no reasons given for how these actions and crimes played out. 

Finlay has had a few misses for me recently. I loved The Night Shift, and we see the same character, FBI agent Keller, in this one, so I thought I'd give this one a chance. He failed miserably. There were too many potholes, and I didn't like any of the characters. I liked the short, punchy chapters from different points of view—that's my favourite format—but it meant not getting fully fleshed-out, well-rounded characters.

The writing was very basic and amateurish and there was no plot twist. I usually complain about it when the details are too many but Finlay doesn't give me enough. My mind is boggled at all the four and five-star reviews of this one. I was left feeling very disappointed and Finlay is selling out in my opinion. He’s cranking books out without any thought behind them. I am done with him now, I have given him plenty of chances after enjoying The Night Shift.

‘From the bestselling author of If Something Happens to Me, comes one of the year’s most anticipated thrillers.

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.’

Parents Weekend is told from several different perspectives. And while there’s a deluge of infidelity and a handful of characters who end up dead-dead, this read like a YA thriller. Especially with the smurf masks, college students and Scooby Doo van.

I think my 17 yo daughter would really enjoy this book. It was just a tad on the juvenile side for my tastes and I found character depth sorely lacking.

Still a huge Finlay fan though!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books for this arc in exchange for review.

Pub Date 5.6.2025.

This novel is captivating from the start to the finish!

A small private school in Northern California is stunned when parents arrive for Parents Weekend and five families are changed forever.
Known as "the five"; Libby, Blane, Mark, Felix and Stella are missing and no one seems to know where they are. This story is told from multiple POV's and (I admit I always make a note card when there are several) there is a family POV for each family, as well as the five. So pay attention because it can get tricky!

Each family has secrets and lies, the characters are intriguing ..Parents Weekend delivers a page turner that questions where loyalty ends & secrets begin. I don't want to giveaway too much but I really loved connected with the characters & their families.

I do feel like this was more of a detective style read vs thriller.

Alex Finlay does not disappoint!
Thank you to Net Galley & St. Martins Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Pub date: May 6, 2025

PS - I laughed so hard reading part of the acknowledgement where the author says to send the inaccuracies to David Ellis.

Thank you to NetGalley, author Alex Finley and St Martin’s press for the ARC and opportunity to review this book.

I’m a big fan of Alex Finley and Parent’s Weekend did not disappoint! It was a fast paced page turner. I didn’t see many of the twists coming and the ending twist was a complete surprise.

It kept my attention from the beginning right to the end. I really liked how the author wrapped up everyone’s storyline at the end. The character development was great.

It would have been a 5 star read but I felt it just needed a little more in terms of the missing kids. The author gave us snippets of them while they were missing, but I feel there could have been more to that aspect that would have put it in the 5 star category.

Overall a great read!

4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This would be a great beach or vacation rate! The introduction of this book introducing me to the various characters and families definitely pulled me in and made me very excited to read the book. I ended up reading the book in one sitting! However, I did become more disappointed as the book continued. While at no point was I ready to put the book down because the face pace did keep me engaged- I did become less interested in the content, and felt like specific plot points and issues along the way or not flushed out enough that there seem to be a lack of details and it felt rushed to get to the next plot point. Thank you to the author publisher and NetGalley for this opportunity to read this book and for a fun afternoon!

Well heeled parents, for the most part, descend on a high end college in California for a weekend with the kids. What could go wrong?, you say.
Everything! Murder, attempted murder, 5 missing teenager's, exes, famous people, all weave a story of hubris and mayhem. Fun read, hard to put down.

Parents Weekend
By: Alex Finlay
Pub Date:
Publisher: Minotaur Books
This novel is riveting and as a parent, my heart was pounding. You should be able to send your children off to college and know they are safe. Life does not always go as planned.
A small private school in Northern California is rocked when parents come for Parents Weekend and five families are changed forever.
The Five-Libby, Blane, mark, Felix and Stella are missing and no one seems to know where they are. You have to pay attention as there are multiple points of view as panic sets in.
Will the parents find their children? Are they kidnapped? I don’t want to spoil any of this but that ENDING had me SHOCKED!

Parent’s Weekend by Alex Finlay hosts a large number of characters including the return of FBI agent, Sarah Keller. It was great getting to catch up with her and her family. At first, I was a bit confused by the relationships and who belonged to who but once I got a hold of that, I whipped through this book. Finlay always knows how to set a scene and create the most chaotic disruptions to these poor character’s worlds. This is a plot driven novel and a very fun one.

Thank you to Net Galley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fun read. It read more like a detective novel than a true thriller, since you're not seeing most of the actual action.
I enjoyed the shifting perspectives, and thought that the characters and plot were well developed.

Alex Finlay does not dissapoint!

This is a very entertaining thriller with a huge host of characters. I wondered if it would be hard to keep track of the characters, but Finlay did a great job describing them and I felt I'd met each family and had a distinct impression of them. Parents Weekend will be familiar to any reader who has or had a child in college. It's a time for unexpected connections and a chance to see your child in a new habitat. That makes for a perfect setting for a mystery.
I found some of the twists and turns to be defying reality and I wished it felt more "real." But as an escape from one's own life, it is very successful.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book and for transporting me out of my own reality.

Parents Weekend is a nail-biting thriller that turns a seemingly picturesque college town into a scene of mounting dread. The story kicks off with five families enjoying the buzz of their children’s first college year, blissfully unaware of the dark turn their night will take. When Libby, Blane, Mark, Felix, and Stella—the students known as “The Five”—fail to show up to the much-anticipated Parents Weekend dinner, the initial disappointment quickly spirals into terror.

Told from alternating perspectives, the novel plunges readers into the minds of each family member and the complex web of secrets each parent harbours. As days pass without a single word from the students, panic morphs into chaos, and the campus becomes a cauldron of speculation, hounded by social media detectives, reporters, and the arrival of FBI Special Agent Sarah Keller. The question on everyone’s mind: what drove The Five to disappear? Are their families’ past mistakes finally catching up to them, or is the danger closer than anyone could imagine?

With razor-sharp twists and an unsettling look at family pressures, Parents Weekend delivers a relentless page-turner that keeps you questioning where loyalty ends and secrets begin.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books for the opportunity to read and review Parents Weekend prior to publication.

Another exciting thriller by one of my favorites! I really enjoyed this story and the setting was really cool! I was so excited to finally be granted access to a Finlay thriller early for once! I LOVED the throwback nuggets to previous stories and possibly ones I missed because I haven’t finished his backlog yet! But this was a fun story and I really liked all the unique characters with the vastly different backgrounds because that is TOTALLY college you meet so many people so different from yourself and it is one of the best parts!!! Absolutely recommend!

Parents' Weekend is a quick, fun, can't-put-down read. The description hooked me -- four sets of parents with all different circumstances show up to their kids freshman year Parents' Weekend dinner, but the kids never arrive. What would cause the students to all not show up? How do the parents with their different backgrounds interact while this is going on? In addition to that, we also follow the FBI agent who happened to be moving to the area and was assigned to this case.

Engaging story, really enjoyed it and would recommend.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing a copy in exchange for my honest review.

As a parent, what would you do if your child goes missing? What would you do if you found out not only is your child missing but 4 others are as well?

Parents Weekend is based on a college campus where parents are visiting their children but 5 of them go missing. Alex Finlay brings out the suspense where not only do the college students have secrets, but the parents do too. Follow along as Special Agent Keller races to find the students before it's too late. Parents' Weekend will draw you in and keep you awake flipping pages wondering what happens next. I give it 4 stars. I really enjoyed it!

I received an advance copy of this book through NetGalley and was thrilled to dive into it as soon as I was approved. Throughout my reading, I kept thinking about how to rate it and found myself torn between a 3 and a 4.

The story takes place in Northern California during a university's parent weekend, setting up an interesting and complex backdrop. I found the beginning a bit challenging to follow due to the sheer number of characters and the backstories of both students and their parents. It was somewhat hard to keep track of everyone, which made the start a little disorienting.

However, by the time the detective enters in the second part, the story becomes much more focused and easier to follow. I really enjoyed the plot and how everything came together by the end. This is a unique, well-thought-out book that I’d recommend to others—though I’d also suggest keeping a notebook handy to jot down the characters and their connections, as it helps in truly understanding them."

Thanks NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I have some mixed thoughts on this book. It definitely kept my attention and was a binge-worthy read, as I wanted to see what happened. I loved the multiple points of view, but you did have to keep track of everyone. I’m still not sure what I think of the ending. I feel as though there needed to be more clues to lead to one of these conclusions. Still a great, fast-paced book to read. Just not my favourite Finlay one. Check this book out for yourself in May 2025.

This was such a strong thriller novel and had that storyline that I was looking for when reading the description. The feel was suspenseful and was engaged with what was happening. Alex Finlay wrote this in a way that hooks the reader from the first page. I enjoyed everything overall and left wanting more.

3.75/5⭐️
“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.”

Parents Weekend follows five families who arrive at a college for Parents Weekend, only to find that their children are missing. This book had suspense and twist and turns. It did get confusing with having so many families/characters and it was slow at times, but overall a decent thriller.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!