Three Hours was chosen by the Times as their thriller of the year. The Sunday Times called Three Hours 'a brilliant literary thriller...reminiscent of both Greek tragedy and Shakespeare’ It's emotional and raw in places leaving your heart breaking, but inspiring and courageous in others allowing our hearts to soar with hope and love.

Oh no! I’m still breathing heavy! It’s stunningly hooking, terrifyingly growing on you and even though the high tension story building gave you nightmares and so many times you want to scream and say; “enough is enough”(as like most Americans say right now!!), taking breaks to clear your mind, you cannot put it down because you have to… correction: You need to see what’s gonna happen next. It is early days, but this could be one of the thrillers of the decade. Intense, horrifying and brilliantly told... If you read only one thriller this year; make it this one: it is that good * Daily Mail *as she tries to come to terms with what she is experiencing, I really felt for her and what she was living through Lupton writes with sensibility and from a place of compassion. We witness the story from different viewpoints and experience the trauma from all possible angles: we meet the students that are trying to rehearse for their performance of Macbeth, we learn what it is like for the refugee brothers Rafi and Basi from Syria, we see the police trying to get on top of the situation while mother Beth just wants any information on her son she can get. Three Hoursis a brilliant novel - moving, relevant and honest. Rosamund Lupton takes us through the story of a siege in an English school, building on the tension and our emotions as the story speeds to its conclusion. She handles difficult subjects with sensitivity and intelligence, focusing on the heroism of the individual. An exceptional and heartbreaking read -- Jenny Quintana

Yes the story is ripped straight from a headline you hope never to see again. This has been done before you may say. No. Not like this. Not with this immersive level of quality in the prose, in the characters, in the overall impact of it. I cried for our society when I was done, I also believed in it. Rosamund Lupton writes bestselling, stylish thrillers and this, her fourth, is outstandingly suspenseful and fast-paced, though its denouement threatens to collapse under the weight of over-complicated plotting. You do feel sometimes that there’s a little too much going on: hate crime, white supremacy, encryption, Syria, radicalisation, though as in her previous books, Three Hours is centred around family relationships, as well as the redemptive power of teenage love. What I found really interesting was the job of DCI Rose Polstein and Dannisha Taylor the negotiator. It was fascinating to see their thought process, how they profiled the gunmen, gained the information needed to identify the suspect and dig deep into their life and psyche. Rosamund Lupton shows great understanding of this process, giving a real sense of tension, immediacy and reality to the book. The use of short, staccato sentences in parts also gives the impression the tension and fear of all those involved; students, teachers, parents, and police officers. Beautifully written, emotionally note-perfect and nail-bitingly tense. It's BRILLIANT -- Tammy Cohen Rosamund Lupton begins this superb novel that could have been ripped from our troubled world's recent news headlines, with the above quote, for in the midst of the nightmare that descends on a rural Somerset school on a cold, dark and snowy November morning, teachers and children's lives are to be changed forever. Their courage, love, fortitude and sense of community rises to the surface as their innocence is shattered in the face of the worst of people riddled with the cancer of an all consuming hatred. Lupton drops the reader right slap bang into the middle of the terror of the school taken over by well armed gunmen, shooting the kind and compassionate Head, Matthew Marr, who is dragged into the library by students. It is the brave Rafi Burkhani, suffering PTSD, a casualty of war torn Syria, who recognises a small explosion in the wood as a bomb, informing the Head, driven by his love of his younger, emotionally damaged brother, Basi, and his need to save him and others.There were so many brilliant things about the book but I did find it a bit slow in places. It seems so unlikely considering how tense some scenes were but I felt certain sections dragged on a bit. I predicted some of it which was a bit disappointing, although I admit there’s a lot more to the story than finding the culprit. Powerful, heavy topics are described; the fear, the tension, and suspense, but I was unable to engage with the characters, the emotions, and heroic acts of courage. After a promising beginning, this was a dramatic, topical story that plodded along and fell flat for me. Instead of feeling the drama, I became a detached observer. So many characters and perspectives were introduced that it was confusing to recall who everyone was and where they were located. I was not feeling connected with the characters in the way I wanted to be. I read about the actions of various teachers, the unbelievable calm of most of the school children, the helplessness of their parents, and the police proceedings. I've just finished reading this. Exceptional - so well planned and written. I'm also in awe of Rosamund Lupton Sarah Edghill Characters include the Headmaster and Deputy Head, Detective Inspector Rose Polstein, a parent waiting anxiously for news of her son, Hannah, who is doing her best to care for Mr Marr and her boyfriend, Syrian refugee, Rafi Bukhari and his younger brother, Basi. Rosamund Lupton has done it again in this thought provoking, tense and compelling book. With school shootings and sieges hitting the headlines, this book is the more frightening in that it could happen. The story is told from the perspective of those at the heart of the situation; the shot headmaster, Hannah whose in the library with the headmaster, Rafi, a Syrian Refugee who is searching for his brother and DI Rose Polstein, who is in charge of the situation and bringing the siege to an end. Through these characters the human story of the situation comes through. The stories of these characters, their lives, their thoughts and feelings give a personal feel to the book. Hannah worries about Rafi, searching for her brother, but shows strength and courage in caring for the headmaster. Rafi brought his brother to England from Syria, suffering from PTSD he faces many challenges but is determined to find his brother no matter what. His resilience, intelligence and bravery shine through and he is a real hero. Whilst all the action is taking place the students in the Theatre, the safest place in the school, continue with their rehearsals of Macbeth. This is an interesting plot running along side the siege situation. Like the gunmen, Macbeth can be seen to be someone who is willing to kill for a power, a psychopath.

The weather is almost a character itself within story line - as it's instrumental in obstructing police surveillance and causing severe delays when it comes to bringing the siege to an end. There was an ongoing theme of a ‘mystery’ gunman and after reading the ending 4 times I cant seem to figure out who it was or if we were ever actually told who it was, anyone who has read it and worked it out please let me know Devastatingly good, and announces the arrival of a truly original talent * Daily Mail on 'Sister' *

Customer reviews

Three Hours is Rosamund Lupton's best book yet, and that is high praise. A monster story for our fractious historical moment -- the age of the internet and of Columbine, of terror and mass migration -- when the monsters often look an awful lot like our own children. Chilling, suspenseful, humane, and brave William Landay