With a title of Seven Days you know it is going to be fast paced and it was. However, it was not just a predictable race against time for a daughter to save her father from execution, it was far more intricately plotted and emotionally engaging. The characters were well drawn and it was easy to relate to them. The relationships moved this story to a different level. It was also intriguing and fast paced but never predictable.

Sounded like a great idea for a plot but never managed to pull off any sense of urgency. The main character failed to convince too

This was an interesting read, I liked the addictive short chapters and found the pacing worked well. It lived up to the blurb.

Will definitely be looking for more by this author as like the style and plot

Having less than a week to save your father from execution is a great premise. To add to the pressure, you've been estranged for years and first have to decide if you even want to take on the responsibility. In the end you decide to do it, if no other reasons than for your little sister and to satisfy your own curiosity. It was an interesting concept and I liked the international element but for some reason however, this book didn't quite land the way I hoped it would. It was almost as if the days just kept passing and the main character felt no sense of urgency - so I too lacked it as the reader.

What a fantastically engaging book. I really enjoyed the way the story was told and I really felt for Alice #SevenDays #Netgalley

Seven Days is a clever combination - a heart in mouth race against time thriller that counts down the seven days left to prove a prisoner’s innocence prior to a scheduled Death Row execution and some complicated family dynamics that add an added layer of emotion and intrigue to the story. Together it makes for a compelling read.

Alice is a solicitor living in the North of England who learns that her estranged father is on Death Row in Florida, due to die in seven days. Persuaded by her younger sister Fiona to get involved, Alice finds herself desperately trying to prove his innocence whilst at the same time dealing with her feelings of resentment toward a man who abandoned her, her mother and her sister. In a matter of days it takes her from the UK to Paris and then to the US as the truth proves to be far more complex than she could ever have imagined.

With short chapters and the limited time frame, this is a book where inevitably the tension builds as the day of reckoning approaches and as a reader you find yourself holding your breath as the days tick by and the case seems to get ever more complex. Add to that an interesting exploration of the nature of guilt and of justice, and some thought-provoking questions around familial bonds and if they are ever truly broken, and it all makes for an intriguing and page-turning read that I raced through.

A great premise that spans the UK and US. A daughter with a legal background finds out her father is on death row in the US and will be executed in 7 days. Although the idea is orginal, I found it just too fantastical and the fentanyl/midazolam doesn’t work as anyone with a medical background will know.

2.5/5

The first 2/3 of the book were super slow paced. It picked up around the final 3rd but the reveal wasn’t as thrilling/suspense as I’d have liked. I had to push reading and it didn’t grip me like I’d have hoped unfortunately.

I was really looking forward to reading this but, unfortunately, it didn't come up to the expectations I had from reading the synopsis.

It started out really well and it's a great concept but it soon became boring ... too much talking and descriptions and not enough action. I admit that I made it to about 50% and then skipped to the end to find out what happened which is never a good sign but it just didn't grip me in the way that I had hoped.

Sorry but not much more to say really except please read other reviews as other readers have loved it and it might just be for you.

Many thanks to the author, Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of Seven Days.

Seven Days is a captivating and suspenseful thriller that will leave you on the edge of your seat. The story follows Alice Logan, a lawyer who moves from America to North East England to care for her ailing mother. Her estranged father is on death row in Florida, and when her sister Fiona pleads with her to try and save his life one last time, Alice has just seven days to uncover the truth and clear his name.

The plot of the book is well-crafted and full of unexpected twists and turns that will keep you guessing until the very end. While the majority of the story moves at a breakneck pace, there are moments where the narrative slows down and delves into the background investigation, which can feel a bit sluggish.

The characters in Seven Days are complex and interesting, with well-developed backstories that add depth to the overall story. However, some of their actions and decisions can feel a bit far-fetched at times, which detracts from the believability of the story.

The book's ending is satisfying and ties up most of the loose ends, but there is a sense that something is missing or unresolved. Overall, Seven Days is an enjoyable read, full of suspense, mystery, and drama that will keep you engaged until the very end.

I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishers Hodder and Stoughton for my digital review copy (eARC). These are my honest and unbiased thoughts and I am sharing them voluntarily.

This book is engaging and fast paced. We meet Alice, a lawyer in England who learns her father is on death row in America and has only 7 days left before execution. We then follow her through her race to find out what happened to incarcerate her estranged father, through Paris to America. The characters are well drawn and the tension ratchets up until you think ‘just one more chapter’, which for me is always a sign of a good book.

'Seven Days' is a high octane adrenalin fuelled international race against time where every second counts.

Lawyer Alice is completely shocked to find that her estranged father Jim is on death row in America for murdering a drug dealer. He will be dead in seven days time. Alice and her sister Fiona haven't heard from him for years; Alice was happy never to hear from him again after discovering his marital affair when she was a child. Alice, Fiona and their mother stayed in the UK after the break up, whilst Jim moved back to his native America, never to be heard from again until now. Alice has remained angry at him for his actions and for the life-changing impact it had on their lives, not least how badly it affected their mother. She's hugely loyal to her family, but has had to cut Jim out.

Jim is adamant that's he's innocent of the crime, but the evidence against him seems clear cut, finger prints, blood samples, video footage - the prosecution had it all. Fiona begs Alice to see if there's anything that she can do to stall their father's death or commute it to a life sentence instead. Alice eventually offers to use her contacts across the world and her extensive legal knowledge to see if there's anything that was missed by his previous lawyers. She's deeply sceptical that they'll find anything, given the weight of evidence against her father, but the thought of letting her sister down is more than she can bear.

Alice's contacts quickly find some evidence of a similar case in France. Coincidentally, the police officer from her father's case Luc Boudreux is now working on an international team in Paris. He's been unwilling to talk before but agrees to speak to Alice this time. He is stand-offish and defensive, sure that his original case was rock-solid but Alice convinces him to look again. As the two of them delve deeper into Jim's case and the other that she's found, there are more and more coincidences that can't be explained away. Their investigations take them across the world, chasing clues and evidence as quickly as possible, all the time being very aware that there is a very limited time to help Jim before its too late. The tension rachets up to an almost unbearable level as the hours and days pass, you could feel the suspense in the air.

Robert Rutherford clearly knows how to tell a gripping story; the plot was well considered and captivating reading. I usually read more psychological drama so it was a refreshing change to read something so physical and visceral as well as mentally challenging.

Read if you like;
-Lawyers quest
-Dark Thriller
-Race Against time
-Hope and forgiveness

I’ve never read anything by this author, however when I read the blurb I knew I had to give it a go. The premise is original and I don’t think that I’ve read anything like it. I enjoyed the travelling setting from England - France - US, I feel like that made even more interesting and tense!

Initially the start of the booked hooked me, however towards the middle the pacing slowed and things become a little repetitive. Although towards the end the pacing picked back up and proceed to surprise me with that twist!

I liked Alice’s tenacity, despite her doubts about her dad and him as a father, for the sake of her sister she did everything she could to prove one way or another whether he is lying.

One thing I will say is the layout of the chapters seemed to drag, I would have preferred if the title chapters included a time countdown as well. I feel like that would have added more suspense.

This race against time novel is about hope, forgiveness. I found myself asking the question, whether innocent people are truly innocent?

I loved the premise for this one.
The first half was interesting & engaging. The hit and run twist 😱

Sadly after that it was all down hill. By the end I I wasn't all that fussed. I thought the pacing was off too.

I was gutted after such a promising start.

This was a decent read following a woman who discovers her dad is on death row and has seven days left till he dies. Reluctantly she meets him and finds herself using her lawyer skills to find out the truth and exonerate her father.
This was an okay read. It was more plot driven than character driven for my taste with a few convenient coincidences.

A decent read from a new author for me.

The idea is interesting and carried out well if a little bit one paced. Probably felt the book could have had 50 pages shaved off but nevertheless the story plays out well with an ok protagonist, a Tom cruise cop and some annoying backing cast.

There aren’t really any red herrings, it’s an a-b-c thriller that does what it sets out to do. It nails the brief, it will sell well and gain some fans. It’s got Netflix series slapped all over it.

Thank you NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for this eCopy to review

Seven Days is a fast paced legal thriller following Alice as she tries to save her father from being executed for a murder he did not commit in 7 days time.

Great characters and settings, with plenty of twists I did not see coming. Seven Days had me hooked from start to finish, the count down through out the book to the end of the 7 days really created a sense of tension and urgency. Alice only has a week to save her father should she try or let him go? (They did not have the best relationship and she's not spoken to him for years).

A very pacey thriller that was different and held my attention
Based on a premise of 7 days to save her Father from execution you know the book has to fit a lot in and it does
I enjoyed the characters and the twists and the writing,all in all a very good enticing read

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this book in return for an honest review. Wow! An absolutely fantastic edge of your seat thriller. I could not turn the pages fast enough. A complex, well thought out story that had so many different elements but all came together brilliantly at the end. The story deals with the topic of families, grief and most certainly forgiveness. I feel this story would be an amazing film or tv series. The ending was perfect in my opinion. Highly recommended. 5 stars.

Sadly this one is not for me. It started out interesting but soon I became bored by the fact that the pace was way too slow. So many words, not enough action. Usually I like courtroom drama but this one couldn't hold my attention.

Thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for this review copy.