Another great book in the series
This is so action packed from the very first page
It is full of pain, heartache, and tears
It is written beautifully, and they are so many twists

I have been on a reading binge of this series and absolutely love all the team involved in this storyline. Following this book I really wasn't sure how I felt. A part of me wanted to give this 2 stars for what the author had chosen to do, and on the other hand gove it 5 stars because it was so intense. Instead I have settled on a solid 4 stars but have my reservations.

Matilda runs the Homicide and Major Enquiries and she is used to people making threats and ridiculous prank calls. When she receives a call one morning she puts it down to a prank call, sadly for Matilda that isn't the case and a lone gunman is about to start terrorising Sheffield. This particular book is difficult to talk about because inevitably to disuss it would spoil it for other people.

What I will say is that there is a lot of action, it's incredibly tense and things happen which I'm not entirely sure I am happy about with regards to certain characters. The other thing I was slightly concerned about was the fact the author chose to involve a School shooting. As much as I am all for fiction, I think for a UK based storyline it maybe moves too far into the unreal for my liking. This book is certainly a shake up for the whole series. In all honesty I am not entirely sure how I feel about it, but ultimately Michael Wood is a fantastic author who has again created another great book. The fact I may not like what he has chosen for characters shouldn't affect how I rate the book. I am very intrigued how this will all have a knock on effect with the team and can't wait to read the next book

I must firstly apologise for the amount of time it has taken me to provide a review of this book, my health was rather bad for quite some time, something that had me in hospital on numerous occasions and simply didnt leave me with the time I once had to do what I love most.

Unfortunately that does mean I have missed the archive date for many of these books, so It would feel unjust throwing any review together without being able to pay attention to each novel properly.

However, I am now back to reading as before and look forward to sharing my honest reviews as always going forward. I thank you f0r the patience and understanding throughout x

This book starts with a threat to everyone around out DCI Matilda Darke and quickly escalates into a race to save veryone she cares about. While this is a series, each book can be read as a stand alone but your reading experience will be much better when you learn the characters, the community and what they have survived so far. In the meantime.....this is a book full of "oh,no" moments! As long as Michael Wood keeps Matilda working, I'll keep reading the series.

Book 7 in the DCI Matilda Darke series WOW 😮 what a read !! A rollercoaster of a read that has you gripped from page 1 until the very end !! It was one of those books where you think 🤔’I can’t believe that happened!’ Events kept happening from page to page ! Fantastic! Highly recommend this author and this series , looking forward to book 8 !

Oh ... my ... word!!! One of the best books I have read this year without a doubt.

What an absolute cracker - totally riveting, a nail-biter and an emotional roller-coaster that had me well and truly hooked and taking flexi time off work so I could start reading earlier. I would say you don't have to have read any of the previous in the series to appreciate this but it does help to understand the main characters but it's not essential.

A mass murderer is on the loose and no one is safe and when I say no one, I mean it ... no one is spared. The pace is relentless, the plot scarily plausible and the characters are just fantastic.

It's chock full of action, violence and suspense from start to finish. I was on pins wondering who was next and went from feeling anger to dread to actual tears. I know, I know, they aren't real people but Michael Wood writes them so well that you really get attached so when something horrific happens to them and you feel the impact it has on those around them, you can't help but get drawn in so yes, I shed a few tears.

I had to close my kindle several times to catch my breath and take 5 minutes to compose myself several times whilst reading and would advise that you don't read this in a public place unless you're not bothered about showing a whole gamut of emotions to strangers!

Highly recommended but not to those who are of a nervous disposition or who don't like multiple scenes of peril and murder ... you have been warned!

Many, many thanks to HarperCollins UK / One More Chapter and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a great storyline with excellent characters. I would highly recommend this book as it was a great read.

.4.5

This is a book I feel very conflicted about. On one hand, I couldn't put it down, wanting to know what happened next, and on the other, it was a particularly violent and gruesome addition to this series.

I started this series in the middle -- and I'm still hoping to read the first few books at some point -- but I still feel like I know and am invested in these characters, especially DI Matilda Darke. This book started off very dark and very deadly, and it just didn't let up at all. I did feel that there was a bit less character development in this book -- at least in terms of the characters from earlier in the series -- but since I already knew the characters, this is okay.

I would say this might not be the book to start the series with, but once you've ready at least one or two of the earlier ones, then definitely jump right in. Just know that if you have a weak stomach, you might not want to read it while eating.

I'll be very interested to see where the author can go from where this book ended to the next one in the series.

Thank you to HarperCollins UK and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. It has not influenced my opinion.

You’re a survivor, aren’t you, Matilda? But what’s the point in surviving when everyone around you is dead?

How chilling is that line!?!?! I've been a fan of the Matilda Darke series from the beginning, I've built up a relationship with the characters and care for what happens to them. I am an author's favourite victim because they will then go and write a book where some of these characters will die, and in Time is Running Out it's more than one or two!! No spoilers but you may need some chocolate and a stiff drink after finishing this book!

Time is Running out features a lone gunman on a rampage so obviously there are some horrific scenes but the author has written them really well. The scariest thing is how close it is to reality.

I look forward to more in the series but PLEASE let some of your darlings live Mr Wood!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishing house and the author for the opportunity to read an advance reader copy of this book in return for a review based upon my honest opinion.

I don’t know what to say about this book?! Holy crap, Mr. Wood, You certainly know how to make a suspenseful novel, I read this whole book in a very short period of time I had to keep reading I was terrified for my favourite characters would they make it out of this book alive?! I was sleep deprived but I had to know, is Matilda going to make it; what about the rest of their team and who would leak info to that smarmy reporter, Danny Hansen?

When DI Matilda Darke gets a phone call first thing in the morning and a mysterious Boyce says ‘what’s the point of surviving when everyone around you is dead ‘ you know this book is going to take no prisoners. Jake Harrison feels like he has nothing to lose and he is on a mission, a mission to cause as much mayhem and havoc as he can. He starts his day with the murder of his parents, and it only gets more terrifying from there. As our shooter runs around causing terror everywhere he goes, I held my breath as the casualties amassed. Not all of my favourites made it out of this book alive but I cannot wait for the next book, that ending was heart stopping.

Such a great series! One of my favourites to read; Matilda Darke is a great character.

This was a hard hitting raw police procedural with a raised body count and increased violence with a gunman shooting everyone.

DI Matilda Darke and team were at the center of it. Having not read the earlier books, I was quite lost. The story moved at a swift pace. A gripping thriller, no doubt.

This is an outstanding and brave direction in the DCI Darke series.
I cannot recommend this book enough and cannot wait to read the next in the series.

Gritty police procedural,not for the faint hearted..Characters we have met before become more prominent. Very sad,lots of twists.

I normally love this series. It’s probably my favourite crime fighting team and there are so many great characters. This book changes all of that. It was just too much. It was gut wrenching heartbreak from start to finish with so much violence. At one point I questioned whether it was a coma dream. A book has never made me cry this much. The sheer amount of deaths just seemed unnecessary. The author was obviously going for the shock value but I think the sheer amount of violence actually took away from the story. I also found how the case was run was just so unrealistic. I thought it was maybe the author's way of ending the series but from the last chapter, there is more coming. I’m just not sure if I will be reading any additions.

I received a copy of the ebook via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Goodness me. I’m not entirely sure how to feel after reading this seventh instalment in the DCI Matilda Darke series. I’ve been with this series from the very beginning but I think maybe our time hasn’t just run out, it has come to an abrupt end.

I won’t be telling you anything about the plot. There is a certain amount of shock value that will have the most impact if you go in blind. This deadly rampage the lone gunman is on is brutal. There is a lot, A LOT, of violence. In fact, at times I felt there was too much of it and I doubted its necessity. Some of it felt remarkably senseless and the shock value was diminished along the way. The gunman’s motivations never really managed to convince me either. Nor did the intervention from law and order, or lack thereof, seem plausible.

There is tension a-plenty throughout. By the end, I was in serious need of a stiff drink and possibly an oxygen tank. Michael Wood seems to have left little space for the reader to actually catch their breath. Most of this comes from not knowing which step the unpredictable gunman will be taking next and the realisation that there will be many more victims before he’s done. Nobody is safe. Seriously. N-o-b-o-d-y.

As it says in the book description, these events will change the lives of Matilda and her team forever. And therein lies the issue I had with Time is Running Out. I’ve loved this series from the start and I love this team and their extended families. I understand the need to shake things up. In fact, I’m all for it. A long-running series must never grow stale and I will always appreciate an author who has no qualms about putting their main characters in harm’s way. But … well, let’s just say I think there is a line and that line may have been crossed.

You can’t help but wonder where the author will go next. If anywhere. Because it definitely feels as if he’s backed himself into a corner here. Time is Running Out is extremely shocking and upsetting, in more ways than one. Personally, I feel it went off the rails and the changes do not sit well with me. So for the first time in this series I’m saying that if there is more, I’m not sure I’ll be back for it.

Another great book in the D.C.I Matilda Drake series.
Matilda receives a phone call but as they seem to great pranks calls she doesn’t think anything of it but what happens next has devastating consequences for everyone involved.
A lone gunman is on the rampage round Sheffield
I’ve seen quite a few negative reviews for this book but I thought it was as good as the other books.
Great read
Thanks NetGalley

WHAT A THRILL!

This is what I call gripping! I was engulfed straight from the off (which is no wonder when from the first chapters you have got a police team decimated!) and couldn't put it down.

I really enjoyed the twists and turns, really well rounded characters and plots, I can only recommend you pick this one up if you get a chance.

Thank you NetGalley and One More Chapter for the widget to access and read in advance.

This addition to Michael Wood's brilliant Sheffield based crime series, featuring DCI Matilda Darke and her Homicide and Major Enquiry Team (HMET), was a magnificent read. Time Is Running Out is the seventh instalment and my fourth in the series so far, having previously only read book one, For Reasons Unknown and books five and six, The Murder House and Stolen Children. Having missed the books in between I'm sure to have lost out on some back story, though I didn't feel it detracted from my enjoyment of this book, as for me, it worked well as an individual read.

In Time Is Running Out, Matilda makes the mistake of dismissing a threatening phone call, believing it to be a hoax caller or a prankster. Jake Harrison is the thirty-four-year-old troubled and broken son of Vivian and Malcolm Harrison who decides that on his last day alive he will take as many people as possible with him. Matilda is not in a position to lead this time so DI Christian Brady finds himself in charge, as HMET race to locate the serial killer, contemplate their next move, and identify the motive.

Matilda makes a great fictional detective and I love that she’s feisty and determined and has a strong sense of justice, yet she has an air of vulnerability. A major highlight of this crime series has been the focus on the HMET police team, their relationships, and their support for each other, although they bring along their fair share of problems too. The plot in In Time Is Running Out is horrifying and disturbing with a massive shock factor and vast amounts of high octane action. With twists, turns and red herrings in abundance this tale certainly held my devoted attention from the first page to the finish and didn't disappoint.

I thoroughly relished Time Is Running Out and I'm counting down the days until the next book in the series is released, though it is difficult at this point to envisage where Michael Wood will take the remaining characters. In the meantime, I have books two to four to look forward to! A truly terrific read.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel from One More Chapter via NetGalley at my request and this review is my own unbiased opinion.

A gripping police procedural.

A little high on the gore and violence but overall this is definitely a gripping and mind-blowing story. The suspense and tension are well-maintained throughout and the character development is excellent.

Well what a rollercoaster ride this book was, so much happening and keeping you on the edge of your seat throughout and not letting you put the book down.

This is book 7 in the DCI Matilda Darke series, in which Matilda receives a threat, which she all but ignores. From that point on we have a day of action which will change Matilda and her team’s lives beyond all recognition, and before the day is out there will be many murderers along the way.

This really was a non-stop action book that truly grips from the very beginning of the book and just won’t let you go. I’ve only read one other book in the series and whilst reading more would have added to the read it was still a great standalone read. After this book I think I need to lie down in a darkened room for 24 hours and let the Adrenalin leave my system and my heart rate come down. Can’t wait to see how the series is taken forward from this point, and it did leave on a cliffhanger.

I strongly recommend this book and will be searching out the earlier books in the series as this was a great, if not always comfortable, read. However this book will not be for everybody, as it is quite dark and gruesome at times. Definitely 5 stars for me. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for providing a copy of this book for me, for an an open and honest review.