Device Free Weekend

FEBRUARY 2023

Seven friends, one eccentric billionaire, an all-expenses paid reunion on a private island with one catch: no phones, tablets or laptops allowed. It’ll be a weekend to remember–for those who make it out alive.

Ryan Cloverhill, founder and CEO of the world’s most popular social media platform, invites his six best friends from college to his home on his private island near Puget Sound. For Stephen, Emma, Perry, Will, Beau, and Lainie, day one is just what the doctor ordered: amazing food, many drinks, lots of laughter, and a sunset cruise around the island aboard their host’s custom Van Dutch 55.

Day two, however, takes a bewildering turn when the six hungover guests wake up to find that their host has disappeared, along with all connection to the mainland. A touchscreen tablet of unknown make awaits them, blatantly defying the rules of the weekend with its on-screen challenge: Unlock Me! The passcode to the tablet is hidden somewhere in the group’s shared history. But what seems at first like just another silly game turns deadly serious when the group discovers what unlocking the tablet really means. Is it the key to their futures, a Pandora’s box none of them will ever be able to close, or both?

Only one thing is clear: their old friend Ryan has something unthinkable planned. Now it’s up to the six of them to stop him. And when this weekend is over, the world will never be the same.


Spectacular. Ominous from page one, tense all the way through, explosive at the end, Device Free Weekend does everything a great thriller should—and a lot more, too. It makes us think about how we live now, and the extra dangers we have created for ourselves.”

Lee Child, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Jack Reacher series

Brutally clever and action-packedDevice Free Weekend is also a wry, warped tale of the tech-heavy world we live in. And it’s truly impossible to put down. Pick this one up and you’ll wind up spending a weekend without devices … or sleep.”

Alison Gaylin, USA Today bestselling author of The Collective

“If Patricia Highsmith and Nelson DeMille and Alex Michaelides somehow united for a three-way collaboration, Device Free Weekend might be the explosive result. A breathtakingly clever, twist-filled thriller that feels exactly right for a weekend getaway. Sean Doolittle always writes the coolest characters. If it wasn’t so dangerous, I’d want to spend time on a private island with these people!”

Blake Crouch, New York Times bestselling author of Dark Matter and Upgrade

“Device Free Weekend is aptly titled. Once I met this rich cast of characters—college friends mysteriously reunited on a rich tech mogul’s private island—I immediately wanted to avoid all distractions and lose myself in this smart, propulsive thriller. Sean Doolittle continues to be one of the most clever and creative crime writers working today.”

Alafair Burke, New York Times bestselling author of Find Me

“Imagine a gritty, hyper-realistic version of The Glass Onion chock full of philosophical inquiries about the consequences of social media, and you’re getting close to what Sean Doolittle has pulled off in his latest novel, Device Free Weekend. Part techno thriller, part love letter to the 90s—Device Free Weekend is the book we’ve all been waiting for.”

Eli Cranor, author of Don’t Know Tough and Ozark Dogs

Reviews

“[A] wild and woolly thriller. . .dramatic, deadly, occasionally funny. . .high-octane action. . .a creatively madcap adventure. Fans of TV’s The White Lotus will find a lot to like.”

Publishers Weekly

“[U]nusual…outrageous…completely unique. Readers will love the fast pace, the wonderful integration of technology, the mad Ryan. . .and the development of the hostages.”

firstClue Reviews