Parents Weekend

The novel opens with five college students running in terror along a beach, pursued by unknown threats. Their trivial college worries are replaced by primal fear as they hide in a sea cave , wondering if the police will find clues to what happened—or just their bodies. This sets the tone: a story of young people thrust into mortal danger, secrets, and the consequences of a single night gone wrong. As Parents Weekend begins at Santa Clara University, we meet the families: Blane Roosevelt's high-powered, security-obsessed mother; Stella Maldonado's bickering, dysfunctional parents; Libby Akana's

Theme 1: Prologue: Running Toward Terror

This thread running through Parents Weekend gives the story its emotional weight. Alex Finlay weaves it into the narrative with skill, ensuring that the reader feels the stakes as deeply as the characters do.

Theme 2: Parents Arrive, Secrets Simmer

This thread running through Parents Weekend gives the story its emotional weight. Alex Finlay weaves it into the narrative with skill, ensuring that the reader feels the stakes as deeply as the characters do.

Theme 3: The Missing Student

This thread running through Parents Weekend gives the story its emotional weight. Alex Finlay weaves it into the narrative with skill, ensuring that the reader feels the stakes as deeply as the characters do.

What Readers Say About Parents Weekend

Parents Weekend has resonated with readers for its emotional honesty and vivid storytelling. Many describe finishing it in a single sitting — drawn forward by Alex Finlay's prose and an almost desperate need to know how it ends.

A Passage Worth Sitting With

"Prologue: Running Toward Terror" — Alex Finlay, Parents Weekend

About the Author

Alex Finlay is the author of Parents Weekend. Known for emotionally resonant storytelling, their work has found devoted readers across the globe.