Seven Days by Alex Lake @Alexlakeauthor @HarperCollinsUK

Book Description:

An incredible psychological crime thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat from the Top Ten Sunday Times bestselling author

‘This is creepy storytelling of the highest order: spine-chilling and difficult to put down’ Daily Mail

A race against time to save her child…

In seven days, Maggie’s son, Max, turns three. But she’s not planning a party or buying presents or updating his baby book. She’s dreading it. Because in her world, third birthdays are the days on which the unthinkable happens… she loses her child.

For the last twelve years Maggie has been imprisoned in a basement. Abducted aged fifteen, she gave birth to two sons before Max, and on their third birthdays her captor came and took them from her.

She cannot let it happen again. But she has no idea how to stop it. And the clock is ticking…

My Thoughts:

I don’t think a story has ever had me so on edge as this one did. The sickening dread in the pit of my stomach was almost unbearable and I literally flew through the pages to find out if there was any chance of some sort of happy outcome to this story.

The story alternates between Maggie and mainly her dad and brother James. They also swap between present and when Maggie was abducted and her earlier years in captivity. Seeing not only what life is like for Maggie but also seeing how her family were coping with not knowing what happened to her over the years adds to the despair and heartbreak that these characters are feeling. I honestly feel like my emotions have been put through the mill whilst reading this novel. The sickening dread I felt wouldn’t leave me and the last part of the story, I don’t know how my heart withstood it as the tension was incredibly fraught.

Seven Days is one of the most gut wrenching and utterly compelling psychological thrillers I think I’ve ever read. My stomach still feels like it’s on the floor and the adrenaline that is coursing through me just thinking about this story shows just how much it got under my skin. I felt all the emotions that Maggie and her family were feeling and the notable deadline of Max’s upcoming birthday had me racing through this novel and the climax, WOW! Every bit as good as the rest of the book. Brilliant!