Three Hours: The Top Ten Sunday Times Bestseller

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Like a breath of icy air. . . Not since Smilla's Feeling for Snow have I shivered like this. Emma Donoghue on 'The Quality of Silence' In rural Somerset in the middle of a blizzard, the unthinkable happens: a school is under siege. Told from the point of view of the people at the heart of it, from the wounded headmaster in the library, unable to help his trapped pupils and staff, to teenage Hannah in love for the first time, to the parents gathering desperate for news, to the 16 year old Syrian refugee trying to rescue his little brother, to the police psychologist who must identify the gunmen, to the students taking refuge in the school theatre, all experience the most intense hours of their lives, where evil and terror are met by courage, love and redemption. Rosamund Lupton has done it again in this thought provoking, tense and compelling book. With school shootings and sieges hitting the headlines, this book is the more frightening in that it could happen. The story is told from the perspective of those at the heart of the situation; the shot headmaster, Hannah whose in the library with the headmaster, Rafi, a Syrian Refugee who is searching for his brother and DI Rose Polstein, who is in charge of the situation and bringing the siege to an end. Through these characters the human story of the situation comes through. The stories of these characters, their lives, their thoughts and feelings give a personal feel to the book. Hannah worries about Rafi, searching for her brother, but shows strength and courage in caring for the headmaster. Rafi brought his brother to England from Syria, suffering from PTSD he faces many challenges but is determined to find his brother no matter what. His resilience, intelligence and bravery shine through and he is a real hero. Whilst all the action is taking place the students in the Theatre, the safest place in the school, continue with their rehearsals of Macbeth. This is an interesting plot running along side the siege situation. Like the gunmen, Macbeth can be seen to be someone who is willing to kill for a power, a psychopath. Students mingled between Old School and New School; their various classes drew them toward the classrooms. The rehearsal of Macbeth was that morning; the children in the pottery class with their teacher; the library would have other students working. But it was the call from Rafi to the headmaster that started the amber alert. Then the gunshot which meant red alert; police assembled with helicopters and tactical response teams – all controlled by two gunmen. Three hours of terror, uncertainty, courage and bravery.

I read Three Hours in two days, in awe. It's breathtaking. A modern rumination on the issues that divide 21st century life, a celebration of refugees, of mental health, of love and hope and bravery. I loved it more than I can say' Gillian McAllister Old School – on the edge of the woods rests the original Victorian structure where the offices, library, and one English class are located. An enclosed glass walkway leads to a newer addition – the theater. A BEST BOOK OF 2020 IN THE SUNDAY TIMES, TIMES, GUARDIAN, MAIL, MIRROR, LITERARY REVIEW, STYLIST, RED AND GOOD HOUSEKEEPING On the whole I did enjoy it and hope I haven’t given too much away in my review! I am pretty sure anyone reading it will enjoy it The school is a campus of multiple buildings located in woodlands on the Somerset coast and includes a junior school, a senior school, pottery building and a theatre. It has continued to grow from the 1920s adding new to old and now provides education to 14 years of student needs. Several teachers and students occupy each of the buildings and their stories are told with compelling fascination when threat and fear hang over their every move. The novel explores how different people react, some stepping forward in moments of courage and those that don’t.

Too much trauma to take on board? Perhaps, but Three Hours is tightly and elegantly written, immensely gripping and carries us along with unstoppable verve.

Three Hours is both a gripping thriller and a beautiful meditation on the nature of family, friendship, courage and unintended - lethal - consequences. Superb. Kate Mosse Rosamund Lupton delivers a powerful & beautifully written novel about survival & bravery that kept me thinking if i had as much courage as these year 12 students had at a school in Somerset high school in England, the principal Mr Marr lies critically injured in the library two students know first aid as its compulsory for their year, the girl Hannah covers herself over him she takes off her hoody but silence is the best option as a gunman remains at large in the corridor.But as a thriller it is as said tense, nail bitingly so and the sense of mixed claustrophobia with terror that the hostages feel is very real and very raw and powerfully described It's beautifully, elegantly written, SO gripping, intelligent, timely, affecting and moving' Marian Keyes, Again, Rachel I've just finished reading this. Exceptional - so well planned and written. I'm also in awe of Rosamund Lupton Sarah Edghill Lupton is skilled at entering a child’s mind, as well as a parent’s, and at showing how crisis and danger can change you and allow you to discover aspects of yourself and your child that you didn’t know were there. In Three Hours, a mother who's desperate to know if her son is safe remembers feeling jealous of his potential girlfriends the day before: “She’d had no idea then of the love she had for Jamie, had assumed it was possessive, grasping, but the make-up of her love is not like that at all.”