Aren't books magical? In an instant, one might transport you somewhere you've never been before. Or maybe, somewhere you have been, but from a new perspective. For example, I've traveled to London, but never under threat of nuclear annihilation. 59 Minutes really takes you there!

The inhabitants of London get an alert that a nuke will make impact in one hour. We get a front row seat to the ensuing pandemonium through the eyes of three points of view: Carrie, Frankie, and Mrs. Dabb. Carrie just wants to make it home to her wife and kid. Frankie is hoping to hunker down with her boyfriend in their AirBnB. Mrs. Dabb's 13 year old daughter picked the wrong day to miss the school bus home. Each character has their work cut out for them, but they will find many obstacles in their path as society begins to break down.

Given this premise, I wasn't exactly expecting something lighthearted, but I was surprised—and frankly impressed—with how dark this book gets. 59 Minutes asks: what will humanity do when facing certain doom? On the whole, it's not pretty. But beyond this cloud of shadow is an exploration of generational trauma, sacrifice, and guilt. It's these themes that help to raise this book above your typical shallow thriller.

My biggest criticism is that the circumstances surrounding the broader conflict here did not seem believable to me. Towards the end of the book, I got the feeling that the author was reveling a bit too much in those details. It made suspension of disbelief a bit difficult, and it undermined some of that darkness I mentioned earlier. But for most of the book, this is not an issue.

Altogether, this was an enjoyable, fast-paced, and—at times—brutal thriller. I'd give this a read if the premise sounds like something you'd enjoy. It's well done.

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC.

Nuclear missile threat to South England. Fifty-nine minutes until impact. Seek immediate shelter. This is not a test.

That is the chilling premise behind 59 Minutes, a tense and emotional novel that follows three women during the hour that may be their last. Carrie is a young mother desperate to reach her daughter. Frankie, newly pregnant, is forced to abandon a romantic getaway turned nightmare. Mary Dabb is an older woman fiercely protective of her teenage daughter Bunny, even as her grip becomes suffocating. As panic spreads across the region, these women must face chaos, fear, and impossible decisions.

The concept is powerful and unsettling. The idea of knowing you may only have fifty-nine minutes left to live forces you to ask what truly matters and who you would fight to reach. I was drawn in by the urgency and emotional weight of the situation. The story builds tension through three different timelines and perspectives that show varying expressions of motherhood and love.

However, the execution fell a bit flat for me. The entire book is written in present tense, which made the twist feel forced rather than impactful. I found Mary Dabb’s chapters especially difficult to read. Her behavior toward Bunny often felt more paranoid than protective. The time jumps were occasionally disorienting and the pacing dragged a bit in the middle.

The twist is a divisive one. Some readers will appreciate the literary risk and find it clever. Others, like me, may feel frustrated. I suspected it early on and kept hoping the author would choose a different path. When it happened, it didn’t land the way it was intended.

That said, the novel does explore humanity in crisis in an interesting way. There are flashes of hope and connection in the face of disaster. While this book was not a favorite for me personally, fans of literary fiction and experimental storytelling might find more to love.

Fast paced and intense! A real thriller! Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this copy for read and review

59 Minutes was a page turner and I loved every minute of it! I would highly recommend reading it! Thank you to NetGalley!

wow, i loved this one! the suspense was sooo good and well executed. i was on the edge of my seat the whole book and never once felt bored. i also really liked the characters and the plot in general. any fans of suspense/thriller novels need to read this one!

thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this opportunity!

I flew through the first half of 59 minutes and then the story bogged down for me. The first half is made up of what are central characters are experiencing once they get the text that a nuclear missile will hit they're location in 59 minutes. The second half is made up of what happens after the 59 minutes is up. The character building was good and I liked the way everything came together in the end.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this digital ARC.

Wow, an intense, edge of your seat thriller that is not at all improbable in today's times. Imagine the emergency alert system goes off on your phone and it's not a drill! Incoming missiles have been detected and you have 1 hour to take shelter.

A horrifying thought but that's exactly what 3 strong women are up against in England as this warning goes out. Of course this situation brings out the bad in people as well as grifters take advantage of the panic and uncertainty. This is a fast read, with short chapters, and not only does the author do a great job with the suspense, but the character development is top notch.

Seeing the crisis from each woman's perspective, makes you think about how you would handle such a situation. The action goes back and forth from the present and the aftereffects of the event. The pacing and style reminded me of the airplane series books by T.J. Newman. Some of the twists were a bit expected and sad, but other than that I was glued to the page!

I really enjoyed this, it sucked me in right away and I liked the different perspectives. A very interesting concept and is scary that it isn’t too far off from being something that could actually happen in our society.

Thank you so much @netgalley & @atriabooks for this thriller.

This is a story about the end of the world as we know it?

This book absolutely stress tested my fight or flight instincts. What would you do if you had an hour? What choices would you make to try to get to your family, stay alive past the deadline etc. My only real complaint is the non linear structure- it felt somewhat unclear that we were reading 2 different time lines and I never love that mechanism.

Overall this was a solid, pulse pounding narrative!

All across England, phones simultaneously erupt with the same warning, a nuclear attack is imminent and will strike in 59 minutes. Three women trying to reconnect to the ones they love the most. Their journeys are anything but normal as they must navigate chaotic city scenes, strangers in need, and criminals on the loose.

“59 Minutes” is an incredibly fast-paced read and an excellent concept for a novel. Holly Seddon does an excellent job telling the story and never loosing steam throughout. Readers beware, and this is a tragic novel that will certainly give you the feels. 3/5 stars

This book was so interesting to me because I was so surprised on what happened in there. It’s so crazy. I can’t wait to recommend some people to read this thriller book.

If your city was suddenly warned about an incoming nuclear attack and given 59 minutes to seek shelter, how would you handle the news? For me, uh, not well. But for the women in this book, the news provides a raw and relatable look at humanity.

I love that the main characters are women (strong women at that!). The chapters are short, which makes it easy to read and entices you to keep turning the pages. "59 Minutes" is a quick-paced, relatively short read with a message that is bound to make you pause and consider your own life as well as the role you play in the lives of others.

I've never wanted to re-read a book, but this may be the exception! I'm new to this author and was truly captivated by the writing. Each character, setting, and event felt incredibly realistic and I felt like I, too, was caught in the frenzy. I look forward to more of Seddon's work!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

59 minutes! Wow! This was an edge of your seat, race-against-the-clock thriller. Holly Seddon delivered a terrifying realistic storyline that followed three women. When a nuclear missile alert had been issued warning of its impact within 59 minutes. This was an immersive and intense story that I didn’t want to put down.

I relished in this emotionally charged and tightly plotted novel. Seddon added much psychological depth by incorporating multiple perspectives and diving into the characters mentality and the interpersonal conflicts they had within their families and friends. Although there were a lot of moving pieces amongst and within each character’s lives, Seddon expertly divided up each character making it easier to follow their stories. Even more, she separated the timeline to reveal what happened to each character before and after the missile catastrophe. All the characters were flawed, authentic, and emotionally raw. Their personalities contributed to the authenticity of this story and therefore rooted in real world fears.

Not only did I love development of the characters, I also relished in the pacing of this story. The shifting perspectives built on the gradual suspense and revealed all the emotions and actions of the characters involved in such a horrific, yet believable, situation.

On top of that, Seddon did an excellent job of balancing her character work with external suspense. I couldn’t help but have empathy and fear for the characters. Seddon’s descriptive narrative made me feel as though I were right there with the characters, experiencing all they had experienced as well.

I am so grateful to have gotten an advance copy of Holly Seddon’s new book. I recommend “59 minutes” to readers who like emotionally driven survival stories with a high stakes psychological undertone, you will want to dive right into this one.

Thank you to Net Galley and Atria Books for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Wow this book moved at a fast pace and I couldn’t believe the twists. As the plot unfolds, the connection between the 3 women it follows was jarring. Told in present and then the future, this emotional novel left me stunned. There were also a lot of themes that are relevant to the state of the real world right now too. This was truly a masterpiece to read.

One of my most anticipated releases for 2025. This book had me gripped from the premise and the author more than delivered on it.

Three incredibly different POVs as these women embark on their own pulse-pounding races to reach their loved ones with the author oh-so-cleverly peppering the story with explosive twists along the way.

Ultimately I think, in the end, it all comes down to our humanity. We can see the indelible evil in this world. But most people, most people, are inherently good. Especially to those whom we love and there’s very little we wouldn’t do to spend our final moments with them.

I’m so grateful to Holly Seddon, NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC.

59 Minutes by Holly Seddon is an exciting read. It is a thriller that leaves you asking questions-like what would you do in the last 59 minutes of your life. It follows 3 women and how they react to this challenge. It was. a wild ride right up til the end

What begins as a quiet mystery erupts into a heart-pounding descent into chaos. Each revelation is a knife twist, expertly placed and impossible to ignore. By the end, you're left questioning everything—including your own instincts.

I think that you'll have two kinds of readers for this one.

You'll have the readers who are absolutely delighted at what they consider to be a clever twist.

You'll also have the readers who are absolutely irritated at this twist.

I'm in the latter category.

The problem for me is that the twist was what I'd expected (and feared) would happen. I kept hoping against hope that I was wrong and the author wasn't going to do that.

The author did that.

As for the book, pre-twist. I liked it well enough. I probably would have liked it better if I wasn't expecting the twist.

I hope you like this better than I did.

* ARC via Publisher

Just devoured Holly Seddon's '59 Minutes' and whew, what a ride! 🤯 This book is like a turbo-charged rollercoaster, and I'm giving it a solid ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars!

Quick Synopsis: If you knew you had 59 minutes until everything and everyone you love would be lost forever, what would you do with that time? When a shattering message announces missiles are set to destroy England in 59 minutes, everyone's world is turned upside down. We follow three women on their desperate journeys to get home and protect their families. But with a lost schoolchild seeking help, a teenage daughter suddenly going missing, and dangerous criminals on the prowl, there's peril at every corner.

My Thoughts: This book is an action-packed, unputdownable page-turner! Seriously, my heart was pounding the entire time. Seddon knows how to build suspense like nobody's business. 🎢

My only tiny niggle? A second timeline was introduced in the last 3/4 of the book and it felt a smidge disjointed. I was definitely left trying to get my bearings for a hot minute there! 🤔

If you love thrillers that keep you on the edge of your seat and make you forget to breathe, grab '59 Minutes' when it releases in November! You won't be disappointed!

Thank you Atria Books for granting me an ARC of this compelling book. This story was intense due to the nature of the short time interval and the obvious panic that occurs with an emergency alert. We see the best and the absolute worst in people during times of stress, and this book did a great job of reflecting this in the story. With a limited number of main characters, we primarily follow a few people as they struggle to get back home. We don't understand the way the people all connect until the end of the story. I admit to being lost in time following the people for a while, and I wished the timeline would have been a little more obvious to me prior to the end. Closer to the end, though, I had a big "got it!" moment, and everything clicked into place. I enjoyed the characters, appreciated their motivations, and was riveted to the story! A very fast-paced, non-stop action disaster story that holds you in your seat as the minutes count down!