Wow - I’m a bit late to this party, but I have got to say what an absolutely incredible book 24 Hours by Claire Seeber is. It's one of the finest psychological thriller books that I’ve ever read that quite literally had me hooked from the very beginning. I really couldn’t turn the pages quickly enough through this wonderfully fast-paced novel that was full of some massively unpredictable twists and turns.
In 24 Hours we meet Laurie who has just escaped from a hotel fire in which her best friend, Emily, died. Laurie is convinced that this fire was not an accident, that it was planned and that whoever started the fire was out to kill her and not Emily. Waiting to have the injuries she sustained whilst escaping from the fire seen to in A&E, she grows fearful and worried about the safety of her daughter and mother who are returning from a trip to Paris. Acting on her fears, she flees the hospital and hitch-hikes her way to London, making an unlikely friend along the way and also crossing paths with people she’d rather not meet. Can she reach her mother and daughter before any harm comes to them?
24 Hours is a novel which alternates between then and now chapters. The then chapters were absolutely superb at setting the scene and serve the purpose of allowing the reader to understand Laurie’s history up until the moment of the fire and see how she is connected to all of the characters that we meet during the book. The now chapters span the incredibly dramatic 24 hours that immediately follow the fire and were the chapters I loved best as I was absolutely desperate to find out who started the fire. They were action-packed to the point I don't know how Laurie was keeping her eyes open and were full of surprises - my theory that I had throughout the entire novel as to who done it was proved entirely wrong.
Claire’s writing style throughout 24 Hours never faltered once and there was absolutely nothing that I didn’t like about it. With some relatively short sentences, the tension is steadily built as the novel progresses and it was extremely compelling reading, to the point where you always have to read one more chapter until before you know it you’ve turned that final page. What also makes this novel so successful, is the lead character who Claire has cleverly crafted, a character who’s desperation is tangible and who you can’t help but root for as she sets out on her mission.
This was the first book of Claire’s that I’ve ever read but before reaching even half way through 24 Hours, I knew that I would most definitely be reading anything and everything that Claire writes in the future and would also be seeking out her previous novels. Everything about 24 Hours was brilliant, even the epilogue which rounded the whole story off superbly and was successful at providing an insight as to where each of the characters we met throughout the novel are now at. If you’ve got this book on your bookshelves or on your kindle and are yet to read it I have one word of advice - do so now as I deeply regret leaving this book neglected for so long!
This is undoubtedly a very worthy five star thriller!
