“The Weekend” has all the elements you could possibly want: likeable characters, good looking women, handsome guys, lusty situations, raging hormones, jealousy, angst, a pleasant undercurrent of wit and humor—and a plot that will lure you in, surprise, and entertain.
Barbara Parker is a talented, petite, and very attractive college student. Within a few hours: She has a nightmare that she is nearly naked and being chased. She falls asleep studying and almost impales her throat on a very sharp pencil. The car she is in narrowly avoids a high-speed and potentially fatal accident. She and friends make plans to spend a weekend in a cabin—until they realize the cabin has been burnt down.
Though witty and comic events punctuate the story, Barbara remains jittery and leery. Barbara’s attitude contrasts sharply with her friends who are out for an amusing weekend. Against her wishes, the friends decide to camp in the woods.
The campers are a few hours from returning to their respective apartments when all the characters but Barbara become weird and vicious. Barbara runs away. Then she realizes she must return—the others may hurt or kill one another. Barbara must prevent the others from hurting her or themselves, and she must try to figure out what is going on.
One of the qualities that separate “The Weekend ”from other thrillers is the tone. During the first two thirds of the novel, very scary events blend into a story that often is light and funny.