7 Days

By: Deon Meyer

Narrated by: Saul Reichlin

Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

I'll shoot a policeman every day until you arrest the murderer of Hanneke Sloet.

Shortly after the South African Police Services receive this threatening email, a policeman is shot by a sniper and recovering alcoholic Benny Griessel is ordered to reopen the Sloet case.

Hanneke Sloet was a sensual and ambitious lawyer. At the time of her murder she was working on one of the biggest Black Empowerment deals in South African history. She was found dead in her luxury Cape Town apartment, a single stab wound to her chest.

After 40 days, the trail has gone cold. The first investigation could find no motive and no leads, only a set of nude photographs, an ex-boyfriend with a rock-solid alibi, conniving attorneys and financial double-dealing.

Benny has to deal with immense pressure from his superiors, the media and the unfathomable sniper, whose emails keep coming and who won't stop shooting. And then there's Benny's love interest, former pop sensation Alexa Barnard, who is also trying to rebuild her life after the ravages of alcohol, and Benny has to make sure she stays sober for her comeback.

At the same time, Benny's feisty colleague, Captain Mbali Kaleni, is hunting the shooter, trying desperately to find what connects him to Hanneke Sloet.

Both Benny and Mbali are about to endure seven days of hell.

©2012 Deon Meyer (P)2012 Hodder & Stoughton

Critic reviews

“Meyer is the leading chronicler of South Africa, and his latest novel shows off his technical skill . . . a dazzling performance.” ( Sunday Times Books of the Year 2011)

A good listen

The obsession with alcoholic melancholy notwithstanding, we very much enjoyed this book - a gripping and intricate story, very well read.

Deon Meyer Perfection

Where does 7 Days rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

One of my top favourites.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Griessel - so human, so good a policeman, so typically lost between work and family.

Which character – as performed by Saul Reichlin – was your favorite?

Mbali, the policewoman, with the typical South African (Zulu) accent.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The final phone call by the girl's father from the USA.

Any additional comments?

I loved the fast-moving pace of the book and the suspense. Could not stop listening. I am looking forward to the next Griessel book - and also more of the Deon Meyer-Reichlin combination on Audible.

Deon Meyer you are a brilliant writer

7 days are age restricted, but a wonderful listen. Meyer has a fantastic writing style which keeps you guessing until the end.

Pleasantly Surprised

What did you love best about 7 Days?

I'm a Deon Meyer fan so I knew I would enjoy the story. It was the first time I tried the audible format and I was sceptical. I'm very critical of narrators and I'll rather not listen to a book if I don't like the narrator for fear of ruining the story. I'm Afrikaans but enjoy reading in English. I thought I'd take a chance on this one. I was so impressed with Saul Reichlin. What a pleasure! You are a true artist Sir. How wonderful that I could listen to a fantastic story narrated by someone as good as you. Thank You for making a great story even more fun! You've got the accents down to a tee!

What was one of the most memorable moments of 7 Days?

Deon Meyer makes a character so "relatable". The effort to stop swearing, the inner demons you try to overcome daily, the insecurities you try to hide from the world, the way you wanted to write something down but forgot, the woollies meals, the challenges and joys dealt with daily in a very mixed culture environment in South Africa.... You feel like you can completely relate.

Which scene was your favorite?

The one where Mr Griesel met the artists he admired and the moment overwhelmed his carefully planned responses completely. LOL...

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes! I couldn't wait to get back to it!

Any additional comments?

More Misters Meyer and Reichlin... We want more! :-)

Amazing story, would have preferred it in afrikaans

Amazing story, would have preferred it in Afrikaans as it was originally written in. Would recommend to any Griesel fans

Deon Meyer at his best

What made the experience of listening to 7 Days the most enjoyable?

Another winner from Deon Meyer.
Good narration, and a great cast of characters make this an enjoyable read.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Fast paced story.

What does Saul Reichlin bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Great convincing narration, he is able to deliver the various accents of South Africa.

Any additional comments?

Hope the next book is not too far away from completion!

Such fun

I so enjoyed the story. It was so true to life . The narrator had the accents down to a "t"
Mr Meyer knowledge of Cape Town was impressive.

I was sorry when the book came to an end.

Another good story from Deon Meyer

Another good story from Deon Meyer and who better then Saul Reichlin to narrate? Plenty of twists and turns to keep me interested without getting side tracked by too much irrelevent personl dramas about the main characters. Happy to get the next in the series. Easily in the bottom half of the top tier.

Excellent !!

If you could sum up 7 Days in three words, what would they be?

suspense emotions relationships

What did you like best about this story?

storyline that connects all the dots

Which character – as performed by Saul Reichlin – was your favorite?

hennie griesel

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

solving the impossible murder

Any additional comments?

Great book overall - glad to see the excelllent South African writers getting their books onto audible

I did not get past the first 15 minutes.

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Nothing. The writing was amateurish, slow with unnecessary detail.

Would you ever listen to anything by Deon Meyer again?

No

What didn’t you like about Saul Reichlin’s performance?

Was done in a local English South African accent too slowly

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from 7 Days?

Did not last long enough to do this.

Any additional comments?

I had to return it.