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An eye-popping, jaw-dropping; humdinger of a read!

Abducted at the age of 15 and kept hidden in a basement, Maggie thinks she’ll never see daylight again! The story details the shocking abuse Maggie goes through over the years at the hands of her abductor. After 2 of her children are taken away from her on their 3rd birthdays she needs to think of a way to prevent this from happening to her 3rd son. But she only has 7 days to save him, is this enough time?

This book is mind-blowingly fantastic! I was gripped from the first page until the last. There was never a dull moment and the story is jam-packed with shocks and surprises, that will keep you turning the pages! It’s fast-paced and so well written, I highly recommend this book for any fan of psychological thrillers.

Thank you to Net Galley, Alex Lake and Harper Collins UK for my copy of this book.

Many thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins UK for an electronic copy of this ARC in exchange my honest review.
The first thing I would like to comment on in my review for this book is how invested I became in the supporting characters. The family of Maggie, the protagonist, I almost enjoyed reading about their plights and journeys more than Maggie's, I found myself reluctantly following her chapters just to get through them and back to the other characters. That isn't to say I didn't enjoy the other parts of the book, I just found the character of Maggie a little flat and lacking in some ways however I also think that this could have been deliberate on the part of the author to illustrate the developmental aspects that Maggie may have not experienced to fully grow her character.
The story was good, some parts felt a little too theatrical for me personally but still a great thriller and a real page turner.

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for this book.
This is the first book and I have ready Alex Lake and it certainly didn't take me seven days. I don't know what I can say without giving too much away but please keep writing.

An unusual and complex thriller,also very sad at times.A determined victim who had to grow up quickly but was strong enough to survive everything that was thrown at her.

Maggie Cooper , a 15 year old schoolgirl disappears on the way to a friends house . There are no sightings or clues as to who has done this , but DS Wynne in charge of the investigation suspects one man , Mr Best , but has no way of proving it despite searching his house and finding nothing , but she still believes it to be him . Maggie becomes pregnant after being raped by her captor but when the boy is 3 he takes him from Maggie . She becomes pregnant again with her second son and when he is 3 he takes him away too . She then has another son Max and as he approaches his 3rd Birthday she realises she has to do something to escape from the single room basement in which she is being held . By his 3rd Birthday she has hatched a plan using the limited resources she has available and attacks" The Man " but she is overpowered but has managed to grab his phone , dialled 999 and just managed to say her name to the despatcher , who links it back to her disappearance and contacts D.S. Wynne who sets out to find her . Maggie's brother James has by this stage began to spiral into drug addiction as he cannot get over losing his sister all those years ago . There is a lot more in this well written story but I do not want to spoil it for the reader so will leave it at that .

Wow wow wow! This book is fantastic! I could not put this book down for the last 1.5 hours, I had to keep going until I was finished (at 1.30am) My heart was in my mouth.
This book had me breathless from the start, and towards the end I got not turn the pages fast enough.
Out of 145 books read so far in 2019 this one is up there as one of my favourites!
Great story line, great page and well developed characters, I felt my eyes prick with tears at times.
Highly recommend this book!!

Wow!Difficult to read in parts but so well written .An unputdownable story of a young girls abduction.I don’t usually like this kind of thing-I find it too depressing,but this was different and I was sucked into her and her family’s lives,No spoilers about the ending but those last chapters were so tense and exciting.I will be looking out for this Author in the future.

Such a creepy and thrilling story that I could not put down. The chapters were nice and short and easy to get into the story. It does go back and fourth from past to future which can get confusing but it was a good read. The story line flowed well. Could not wait to get to the next chapter to see how it would turn out. When a girl is kidnapped and kept prisoner, how is she ever going to get out. Its not as straight forward as you would think and at times I was screaming at the book lol a brilliant read

Seven Days is about a teenage girl who is abducted and kept captive in a single room alongside her child. I'm always reluctant to compare books to others but we need to talk about the elephant in the room - Room. They're different books, but much like every shark movie that comes along will inevitably be compared to Jaws, you can't escape a degree of comparison here. So apart from the basic aspects of man, woman, child what's the same? Not that much actually.

Seven Days tells a different story in a different way. It jumps back and forth in time a lot, but more significantly, we follow multiple characters. The 12 years of Maggie's imprisonment obviously impact upon her family. Especially her dad and brother who deliver a powerful thread in their own right. The different perspectives do add a lot to the overall story, but they also dampen down some of the intensity - for better and worse. It makes it much easier to read for a start. But part of me felt there was an intensity lacking, in particular from Maggie's narrative and that of her brother, James - who offers perhaps the most interesting subplot.

That ultimately encapsulates where the book doesn't quite hit the heights I had hoped for - it teases an intensity that it never quite delivers. That's probably a harsh criticism, but it's one that I can't escape given the aforementioned Room. Lane is clearly aware of that risk and makes multiple references to John Fowles The Collector as if to remind the reader that Emma Donoghue doesn't hold the monopoly on writing about kidnapped women (and presumably discourage mentions of such in reviews...). It feels just a little too defensive. Seven Days does stand alone enough that anyone reading beyond the first few chapters won't need that help. And anyone who gives up in those first few chapters won't stick around long enough to receive it.

Stick around you should though. Seven Days is a good book with a creepy story. There are twists which are stomach-churning. A dark tone that makes this book somewhat disturbing. It is twisted and unpleasant... in a good way. Lane deserves a lot of respect for even attempting this book, it's an audacious move that could easily have backfired, but instead, Lane produced something well worth reading. It's a good book by itself, which is an even more impressive feat given what it sets out to do. Steel yourself for discomfort and read - it's a good book..

Wow Wow Wow

What a book

I cannot rave enough about this book. I was absolutely hooked from the first chapters.

I just wanted Maggie to be safe and wanted justice for her and her little boys.

There were times in this book that I felt a little bit sick, but the author did this topic so much justice!

This was one of the best books of 2019 in my opinion!

A good read based on room but still quite a distinct read and full of twists and turns. I would recommend.

The story starts slowly, makes you question whether the plot will get any better but the last 100/150 pages make impossible to stop reading. My heart rarely raced because of a book or a movie. This book did it!

This book is very much an addictive page turner. The story of Maggie and her struggle to escape is incredibly harrowing and at times difficult to read. I became completely invested in the characters and all their individual struggles.
An amazing thriller and definitely worth a read!

What a read. The book is based around Maggie, a fifteen year old who is kidnapped and held captive in a basement for twelve years. She gives birth to three boys Seb, Leo and Max. Seb and Leo are taken from her by her abductor when they turned three and Maggie knows that the same will happen with Max. With only seven days left until his third birthday Maggie has to try to figure out how she can save him.
You get really drawn in with how her parents and brother cope after the devastating news that their daughter is missing. The characters are all totally believable, especially Maggie's captor who I can only describe as vile.
Once picked up this book is hard to put down until the end Another brilliant piece of fiction by Alex Lake. Highly recommended.

An amazing story. With realistically and sympathetically drawn characters, you are drawn in to the horrors they go through and marvel - and cry -at the strength they find to endure them. The tension rises as the countdown begins and the final, rapid ending will leave you gasping for breath.

Wow!

What a read! It's rare that I really enjoy a thriller as I do feel that many of them follow the same format. This book, the first I have read by the author, was excellent though.

I felt connected to Maggie and to her parents. I also thought it was extremely interesting that we find out who the kidnapper is not far into the story, but not what he has (if anything) to do with Maggie or what his motives may have been .

I particularly like the 'easy to read' style of writing, which I found very relaxing - it's not one of those books which you struggle to get into, I was hooked from page one.

After this book, I went on to buy another book from the author which I also really enjoyed. Highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. As a preliminary warning, Seven Days contains heavy trigger warnings for rape.

What a ride: a very strong four star rating for me. This one is equal parts shocking and heartwarming, exploring some difficult topics in as sensitive a manner as it can. The characters are likeable and the themes of motherhood, isolation, and grief tangible. Every piece plays its part in the story and while there’s no great twist to speak of, the ending is satisfactory and closure is gained. An easy, quick read which packs a punch.

Wow....what a book. At times a really uncomfortable read, but one which had you compulsively wanting to read more.
Maggie, a 15 year old girl, is abducted on her way home from school. She leaves behind a family who are devasted by her disappearance.
Maggie is repeatedly subjected to vicious attacks by her abductors, leading to the birth of 3 son's over the years. As her first 2 son's reach their third birthday they are taken away by her perpetrator, never to he seen again.
Maggie cannot let this happen a third time and works on a plan to escape.
Her family are befriended, unknowingly, by the abductors. We see how there lives change over the years as they struggle to carry on without Maggie.
Absolutly fab read....thoroughly recommend

I liked this book but, I didn’t love it. It reminded me too much of the book Room, which I’ve have read and seen the film and enjoyed both. This book however, just reminded me too much of the other one with just a few changes. So, unfortunately I got bored because I kept on comparing it with the other one.
I am sure if this had been read or written first I would have enjoyed it more.
My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers Penguin books for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

I loved this book from the first page I was hooked.

I liked the way it jumped from the present situation of the family and compared it to twelve years before.

It was extremely realistic as this type of kidnapping has happened and has been reported on in the press.