I'm in danger of running out of superlatives to describe this book. I was in a reading slump prior to this and I absolutely demolished this book in a couple of sittings. I'm a fan of Holly Seddon's writing and this was my favourite. I was watching the countdown and couldn't imagine where this book was going to go - it absolutely delivered on every page. Carrie completely had my heart, and there were too many beautiful observations to count. Utterly compelling, heartbreaking - just a huge, huge concept of a book, beautifully executed. Books like this don't come around very often - I'm so thrilled I got a chance to read this one here. Thank you Holly and publishers.

Oh my goodness drop everything and read this. Holly Seddon’s new thriller ‘59 Minutes’ makes us face what we would do if the nuclear alarm went off and we had 59 minutes left before everything changed.

It’s the story of three women -Carrie in London who is trying to get back to her wife and young daughter, Frankie who is away from home on a romantic weekend in Devon with her partner and Ms Dabb whose 13-year-old daughter appears to have run away. From the moment the alert is sounded, tensions are high and all of the women battle to get to their loved ones and make sure everybody is safe and protected.

It was utterly tense reading, I was willing on the women to beat the clock and reach their destination. It’s an unbelievably horrific situation and all around, people are experiencing every type of emotion and feeling.

And then there is the most brilliant moment in a book. I don’t want to say anything but it made me stop in my tracks and double check everything.

As a child of the 1980s grew up reading fictional accounts of nuclear war, and reading Holly‘s book brought back the absolute dread that I remember from then.

This was completely unlike anything I’ve read before - and I read it entirely in two sittings (it was getting late and super difficult to put down the first time but I had to!)
This was so intriguing and such a high possibility for reality unfortunately which added such a massive boost to the tension Holly creates throughout.
I think following all the characters point of views and watching how they weave and intertwine was brilliant and the sort of twist over half way through was phenomenal..
Overall, I really enjoyed it I just think the ending was slightly too quick and needed a little more to it. But definitely worth a read and you won’t be able to put it down! Highly recommend!

Wow... I usually wait until I reach the end of a novel to start writing my review, but 59 Minutes by Holly Seddon was so roundly, thoroughly amazing right from the start that I started writing this review before I'd even reached the end. Because I knew it would be good until the last word, and boy I wasn't wrong! 

For a very long time, I've been looking for books which hit certain touchpoints for me. Books like Jurassic Park, Twister, Apollo 13, and Taylor Jenkins Reid's upcoming Atmosphere (which is also excellent, by the way). What Holly Seddon's new novel has made me realise is that I've been looking for a disaster movie in book form. But it's not that simple: the examples I gave above are rare. Most disaster movies/books don't work for me: they're overly action-based, or violent, or just missing something. (I am not their target audience). But 59 Minutes has everything I want - with this book I do feel like the target audience - and it's also made me realise why 59 Minutes and those other examples work so well for me where many others don't: this book has heart. 

The characters are incredibly well-written and we're pulled into their stories right from the start. The events of the book are heart-wrenching and thrilling from the opening pages, yet there's a lightness and humanity there, too. And then there's the twist(s), which are incredibly well done and about which I will say no more because I don't want to spoil anything. But wow, I can't wait to talk about this with someone else who has read it!
Anyway, I'd wholeheartedly and enthusiastically recommend this book. It's gritty and tough, but engaging and loving all at the same time.

Publishing in September, when I'll post on social media too.

It’s not often that I’ll read a book so far ahead of release, but there was something about this that drew me in. The ultimate disaster scenario happens when a nuclear alert threatens life as we know it, with 59 minutes until it strikes. A multi character narrative runs throughout, and all elements of humanity are explored, the good, the bad and the downright ugly.
Brilliantly executed, this is a story that will haunt you as you ask yourself what you would do if you only had 59 minutes left….. ?

Scary, but it certainly makes you think. What a great read, following three women through various time periods. Great twists that you really don’t see coming. Thoroughly recommend it.

Okay, so, imagine a book that's like, "What if you only had an hour left?" That's this book. It's about normal folks stuck in a crazy situation, and you get to see how they handle it. It makes you think, "Wow, what would I do?"

The writer does a really good job making you feel like you're right there. I've liked all the books this person wrote, and this one's another winner. It's super emotional, keeps you on the edge of your seat, and you just can't put it down. I read it super fast. You should totally read it!

What would you do with your last 59 minutes?

Cell phone alerts are going off everywhere, nuclear missiles are due to hit Southern England and everyone has to seek shelter immediately.

We follow three women trying to make their way home, Carrie who needs to get back to her girlfriend and their child. A missing schoolgirl whose mum is desperately trying to locate her and pregnant Frankie who is on route with her boyfriend for a break away. We follow these women through pandemonium and terror at every corner while doing their best to ‘make it’.

I found this to be written well and very thought provoking.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this ebook for my honest review.

59 Minutes is an excellent example of placing ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances and seeing where it goes. What would you do if you had 59 minutes left to live? It is a very thought-provoking premise and the book is executed brilliantly. I’ve yet to read a Holly Seddon book I didn’t enjoy, and this one is definitely a great read. Emotional, tense and gripping, I read it in just a couple of sittings. Recommended for sure!

59 Minutes" presents a chilling scenario: an ordinary evening is shattered by an emergency alert announcing that missiles are set to destroy England in fifty-nine minutes, urging everyone to seek immediate shelter. The narrative follows three women—Carrie, a young mother desperate to reunite with her daughter; Frankie, newly pregnant and facing a romantic vacation turned terrifying; and an enigmatic older woman determined to protect her teenage daughter, Bunny—as they navigate the ensuing chaos, each facing unpredictable challenges in their quest for survival.
The characters are well-developed and feel authentic, adding depth to the story. Each of them responds to the crisis in their own way, making it easy to wonder, "what would I do in their place?"  And there's a twist that hit me so hard I audibly gasped. 😯
While the book delivers plenty of suspense and intrigue, I felt there were a few parts where the pacing could have been faster. But overall it is a thought-provoking thriller that lingers in your mind long after you’ve turned the last page.

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.