Breathless and terrifying and cleverly twisty. Feels all the more relevant given the last few days. A definite ‘read in one sitting’.

Absolutely and 100% wow!

This is one of the best books I've read in a long time! It had me so hooked, that I started reading really slowly towards the end as I didn't want it to finish!

As I write this review (4 March 2025), you will all realize with what is currently going on in the world just how much a lot of this story resonated and of a possibility that this could actually happen. (None of us pre-covid could have imagined a world on lock down of course due to a virus!)

But anyway I've been telling everyone I know that they MUST read this book on publication! And it will stay with me for a long time!

Completely recommended!

59 Minutes by Holly Seddon is a fast paced thriller where time is running out and survival is the only thing that matter. If you had less than an hour until everything you love was lost forever, what would you do?

There is an imminent nuclear disaster and the story follows three women who are each facing a race against time to reunite with and protect their families. There is a lost schoolchild, a missing teenager and criminals taking advantage of the utter disorder which all add to the tension that features constantly in this story.

The story is fast paced and as the clock ticks the tension builds in this thought provoking read.

I would like to thank both Netgalley and Orion Publishing Group for supplying this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This book had a great plot with intriguing characters. I’ll definitely be looking out for more from this author.

This is the first time I have read a book by this author but after reading this, it certainly won't be the last. Right from the first page I was hooked, finding my heart racing the further I read. Terrifying, heartbreaking, thought provoking, it had it all, and unfortunately, could be all too real in the future.

Highly recommend.

My thanks to Netgalley and Orion Publishing group for giving me the opportunity to read an advanced digital copy in return for an honest review.

What would you do if you only had 59 minutes to live??

Well that’s what this book had me asking myself.

This book follows three perspectives as they comprehend and make sense of a government text message informing them of an imminent nuclear attack giving them just 59 minutes before impact.

It follows them as try and manouver through the physical and mental strain whilst fighting their way back to their families while around them not only is a city crumbling, but humanity. Drawing out the failings of us as human beings in times of crisis. I makes you question humanity and how fragile it actually is

I would highly recommend this book !!!

A thought-provoking and brilliantly gripping novel that presents the question of what you would do if you only had 59 minutes before the 'end of the world'. It felt very emotional and fully realized, and thriller with an emotional heartbeat and core.

Loved this! I kept thinking what if this happened in real life and freaking myself out. Once I got into this I could not put this down. I loved that it was unique and made you think. Definitely made me paranoid though lol

A book of 2 parts. The first starts with introducing 3 characters, and a scenario which gives them 59 minutes to live. What would you do in your last 59 minutes? This book explores the lives of the characters who are counting every minute.

It's a page turner, and I kept reading and reading.... the first part anyway. which runs up until the catastrophic event time occurs. After that, I felt the book went downhill, the story became laboured. I would have preferred the first story - the build up - to be 90% of the book; and the aftermath story the final 10%. It went from a page turner to a book that I frankly didn't care whether I finished or not.

If you knew you had fifty-nine minutes until everything and everyone you love would be lost forever, what would you do with that time?
One evening, as people are going about their ordinary lives in London, an alert appears. In 59 minutes missiles will destroy England. Seek immediate shelter. And the chaos begins. The story follows the journeys of three women trying to make it home to their families and the obstacles they encounter.

This one was raw, emotive and terrifying, as you'd expect and highlighted the ways different people would react to such news and the terror and chaos that may erupt. It was thought provoking and another great novel by the author.

In the gripping novel "59 Minutes", Holly Seddon masterfully weaves a thrilling narrative infused with a poignant love story. As the clock ticks down to a catastrophic event threatening humanity's very existence, Seddon's vivid characters leap off the page, their lives imbued with urgency and emotional depth. With unflinching honesty, Seddon portrays the frenzied desperation of reconnecting with loved ones before time runs out, and the haunting yet resilient aftermath that follows.

I really enjoyed this. I thought the premise sounded good so was looking forward to reading it and I wasn’t disappointed. The story follows three women: Carrie, Frankie and Mrs Dabb. The three narratives are all intriguing and while I thought the characters would be interlinked somehow, I couldn’t quite work it out. Red herrings threw me off the scent and then twists I certainly didn’t see coming! I liked how the chapters all gave a countdown to attack so I was holding my breath quite a bit.
Loved it and I hope it does well when released.
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC
5⭐️

Amazing. However as someone that constantly catastrophises about things I am now more worried than I was before!

The characters are lovely and the way it is written between three and at different times was a shock! So much depth, I really couldn’t put it down!

Carrie is such a lovely lady and it’s sad what she has to go through and the torment of protecting your child is so prevalent from all the mums in the story.

I really enjoyed this book, having payout off reading it because of the subject matter. Was I ready to read such a realistic story. Once I started it, I was really hooked on the parallel stories. I did find it a bit confusing near the end but this didn’t spoil my enjoyment.

This book is absolutely amazing. It’s so thought provoking with an amazing cast of characters. Highly recommended.

Wow! Everybody should read this book!!
59 Minutes may be a fictional tale but this story really made me re-think life and it's priorities.
I was completely absorbed in the character's tales, especially Carrie's, whose race through London had my own heart racing.
The triple timelines towards the end of the book were a little confusing at first but once I worked it out, they were very relevant.
A fantastic book that I will tell everybody about and I will never forget.

A thought-provoking, fast-paced, and emotionally charged story that challenges the perspective on humanity, family, and the value of time.

This book absolutely hooked me from the very first page, it was tense, thought provoking and frighteningly real.

I really liked the premise of this book. I grew up with lots of talk of nuclear war and it was a source of anxiety, so this appealed. Interesting character choices and I liked the exploration of motivations and emotions. The book had a fast pace and was propulsive to read. It was an affecting read.
I hadn't read anything by this author before. It was easy to read but I felt like the writing relied on clichés on some occasions and the metaphors used weren't especially fresh or elevated.

OMG! This book is absolutely amazing. So cleverly done, full of tense moments and panic. And a twist that completely confused me at first but was bloody brilliant. This could easily be my book of the year and we’re only just into February. Just fantastic. This book is going to be huge and I can already see a film or series on the horizon.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in return for my honest and unbiased opinion.

An utterly brilliant thriller from Holly Seddon!
This was an edge of your seat read that was impossible to put down, I devoured this in not quite 59 minutes, but 24 hours!
Highly recommend!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for my ARC