Loved it! It was a real page turner. It was hard to establish if this was a private school or state school - it was a little ambiguous - I would have liked that to be clearer, as it would perhaps have made it more plausible. But it certainly tapped into a parent's fears - that our children are now having to practice these types of drills, something you expect and seems mainstream in the US, but certainly not here in the UK. This story explored what happens when it really is the worst case scenario. There was a little of the 'We need to talk about Kevin' plot line - where the mother is trying to establish where her son is, and then realises the truth. But a very very good read, keeps you hooked right to the end, with a lot of different stories going on.

A really thought provoking and brilliant fictional look at a potential school massacre. I did know how you could tell it from so many angles and make me care but I did. Gripping and outstanding writing. Read it now!

I had read a couple of books by this author some time ago so I was really looking forward to it, I was not disappointed it was a very good read.

Nowadays, all schools have an emergency plan. The teachers who write that plan or discuss protocol will also fervently hope that they will never have to see it in action. In ‘Three Hours’ at a 3 – 18 liberal independent school by the Somerset coast, headmaster Matthew Marr does not only sound the ‘red alarm’ early in the school day; he is also shot and badly wounded at the outset of the novel by one of the terrorists on site.
Rosumund Lupton skilfully and quickly introduces us to the central characters of the novel through the way in which they react to the terrifying situation. Hannah, sixteen-year-old girlfriend of Rumi, a Syrian refugee pupil, begins the stressful task of nursing the wounded Head whilst her boyfriend can only think of how he must rescue his little brother Basi who is a mile away through the woods in the school’s Junior department. Parents gather, the police are informed; specialist units appear and yet, for some time, no one is any the wiser as to who is wreaking such havoc.
Many of the children are evacuated but, still, around seventy pupils and staff remain on site trapped either in the Old School, the theatre or the pottery room in the woods whilst the two terrorists – or are there three? – seem unstoppable.
The author not only manages to make this story seem horribly possible but, through it, reminds us of the everyday terror suffered by journeying refugees, of the power of the press to incite extremism, and of the extraordinary bravery of people determined to challenge hatred. The perpetrators of the terror are as believable as those trapped in the school. Lupton reminds us of recent US high school massacres through the character of DI Rose Polstein, brought on board for her expertise in this field. This device prompts the reader to recognise that, whilst a work of fiction, ‘Three Hours’ has its roots in reality.
Throughout the novel, ‘Macbeth’ is referred to over and over as the pupils in the theatre are rehearsing for a school show. This allows Lupton to use quotations from a play which explores mankind’s motivation for power, for jealousy, for violence, for evil. Whilst school massacres are a relatively new phenomenon, the running references to Shakespeare’s play reminds us that these actions have long been recognised as the darker side of the human condition.
A powerful, timely and engrossing read.
My thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House UK for a copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review.

Really enjoyed this book finished it in two sittings. Not my usual genre but full of tension and suspense. Very atmospheric, Really good read.

A small school in the middle of a snow storm is under threat. Gunmen have arrived and shot the head teacher. Children are scattered about but why this school and why these children?

This was such a gripping read. Beautifully written and heartfelt. I was hooked from the start and paid no attention to anything else going on apart from this book.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.