“Seven Days” is a cracking debut crime thriller featuring a daughter tasked with finding out if her estranged father is actually guilty of the crime he is accused of and currently awaiting execution in seven days time. I liked how she felt morally obliged to investigate due to her respect for the law but her personal emotions regarding her relationship with her father clouded her desire to do so. But will her actions also have consequences down the line regarding other criminals?

I really couldn’t put this book down and I’m pleased it didn’t take seven days to read or my patience would have been broken. Being so addictive and gripping I could clearly picture every scene as if it was playing out on the big screen, which incidentally would make a fabulous movie, as the twists and turns would keep a theatre audience enthralled. Very cleverly plotted and executed, this fast paced novel raced through North East England to France and ending in America and kept me guessing and on my toes to an explosive finish, that also tugged on my heartstrings. 

I have some excellent favourite local authors on my bookshelves;  Mari Hannah, Trevor Wood, Howard Linskey and Ann Cleeves, and now I’m adding Robert Rutherford to that list. I do hope he has further ideas in the pipeline as I’d be the first in line to read. 

“Seven Days” is an unmissable read for crime readers who like a moral dilemma within a story and this was an easy five star review for this high octane thriller.