Inventive is the perfect word to describe this book. I've never read anything even remotely like it. The way the story is laid out is unique and compelling, if a little confounding at the onset.

In the early chapters, I felt certain I was missing something because I really had no clue what was going on. I even went back to see if I'd somehow missed some pages or accidentally skimmed over critical information that would relieve my confusion (and growing sense that I wasn't nearly as smart as I'd thought!), but it was not to be. Fortunately, I persisted and as it all came together, I realized how brilliant the approach was. As the reader, I was put into the same state of confusion as the main character when he initially woke up! Probably the cleverest beginning to a book I've ever encountered. 

And that approach serves the story well throughout. We, the reader, learn new information right along with the MC. He knows nothing we don't! Of course, other characters in the story know a great deal more, and as this quasi-gothic Groundhog Day continues, the clues pile up until a conclusion is reached, as well as a very satisfying ending. 

It isn't very often that a reading experience is a tried and true adventure, but that is exactly how this book felt. Everything about it felt wholly original, the atmosphere was rather gothic (I love gothic, my friends!), and it was virtually impossible to guess what was around the next corner. 

This is a book I'll remember for years to come.

Structurally, this book is a triumph. I can't even imagine the writing process for something like this, not only to conceptualize such a unique story layout, but to also actually pull it off. Five stars, indisputably, for writing and plot building that's among the most complex and exceptional that I've encountered.

This was almost a five-star book in terms of the story as well, if not for some muddled content toward the end and the backstory of Anna, which really, really soured me on my previously held, extremely high opinion of the book. That perspective evaporated significantly when the nauseating "forgiveness" theme began to pervade.

Perhaps Aiden is just a nicer person than me, or a more forgiving one. Perhaps most people are. But I could not abide the idea that someone like Anna could be who she was before Blackheath and be rehabbed into what she is now, and especially that Aiden (considering how their pasts are linked) would see her as such.

Most criminal psychologists would tell you it's actually impossible. Perhaps Turton is asking us for suspension of disbelief on this particular point since much of what happens in the book can't happen in reality anyway. Still, it felt disingenuous and disappointed me greatly, resulting in my knocking a star off the rating and contemplating knocking off two.

That issue aside though (and I imagine it bothered me more than it would bother most people), this is a really unique story that was loads of fun to read. It does require a lot of concentration in a way that most novels don't, so fuel up on caffeine accordingly before diving in.

I definitely had to pay attention while reading this book, and I never saw the ending coming. Even though I was confused slightly throughout, I enjoyed the premise of the narrator switching bodies (hosts) throughout the novel to solve the murder.

⭐ 5 stars

✏ I loved the writing, fast-paced but never over the top.

📚 The story was a-ma-zing. It kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. With so many unreliable characters, it was impossible to guess all the plot twists. While at first I only focused on a few characters, I soon realized that you pretty much have to pay attention to everyone and everything. I don't often re-read books but I might give this one another read as it was soooo good.

🏠 The setting of the story was dark and, to me, the house was a real character in the story. It was easy to imagine this old, creepy house and I loved the nature that surrounds it.

🎬 The ending was great in my opinion. It wasn't what I had in mind and I was surprised by (nearly) everything.

This is a marvelous book that I would recommend to everyone!

What a wonderful mystery. The book drew me in instantly and didn't let go. I honestly couldn't predict how all the pieces would fall together. I thought this book was such a unique concept--solving a murder from various perspectives--and also the background story of the person solving the mystery. I can't even imagine what a beast it was to get this timeline right, but Mr Turton nailed it. It was a thrilling ride from start to finish and it was so hard to stop reading! I would highly recommend this book!

I could not get through this one. I made it to page 165 and had to stop. I couldn’t focus and kept falling asleep. I really had high hopes for this book but it did not connect with me.

Interesting premise and original, but I did not enjoy this novel. I felt it dragged on and on and it took me awhile to figure out what was going on.

WOW!!! This is such a wonderful mystery one definitely worth reading! It’s definitely a unique mystery that caught my attention from start to finish. I was trying to figure out who done it the whole time. Turton wrote an excellent cast of charecters with quite a few suspects with an extensive range of motives that really kept me turning the pages. This book needs to be made into a miniseries, it’s that good. Its like Turton wrote a mystery with a dash of Groundhog Day & Quantum Leap he definitely wrote a hit. I’m now a big fan of Stuart Turton after reading this one & look forward to reading more by him.

I first got wind of this book through Booktube. Emily Fox was absolutely raving about it. So much so that I not only requested it on NetGalley but purchased it through Book Depository as well. In this debut novel by Stuart Turton our main character, Aiden Bishop, is doomed to repeat the same day over and over again until he solves the murder of Evelyn Hardcastle. The caveat is that he must do this while assuming the personas of a host of different characters. These "hosts" range from different social standings and include a doctor, lawyer, butler, police officer and socialites. Each one of these characters holds different pieces of the puzzle. Each one also has their own weaknesses which puts Aiden at risk and makes it harder for him to get to the truth. His predicament is made more difficult in that he has competition in this sordid game and the other players are unknown to him. Therefore, in order to freed from this vicious "Groundhog's Day" cycle, Aiden must be the <b>first</b> to solve the murder. What makes the mystery all the more intriguing is that it is set at Blackheath House, the site of young Thomas Hardcastle's murder exactly 19 years earlier. Then a young hand was hanged but his accomplice got away. Tonight when Evelyn dies every person who was present when Thomas died will be in attendance. Is one of them his killer? Which guest has a secret big enough for murder?

Reminiscent of Agatha Christie, <b>The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle</b> is a fiendishly delicious maze of a tale.

<i>Special Thanks to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmark publishers and Stuart Turton for access to this galley in exchange for an honest review.</i>

I’m torn on how to review this. I just didn’t like the book. It wasn’t for me. The description made it sound like it was my type of book, but it wasn’t. The plot just wasn’t something I enjoyed.

That being said, the writing itself was really well done and the book itself is super creative and something I haven’t seen before (and that’s saying something, because I read A LOT). So, I’m just going to leave it with three stars.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC

Complicated and interesting. There is a great gothic flair to this mystery, and like all the good ones, it takes quite a bit of unraveling to get to the reveal. I loved the Groundhog Day element – reliving the day over and over, but from many different perspectives. (And the subplot mystery of WHY this was happening was my favorite part…) It can be confusing at times. Like a game of Clue, there’s a cast of characters, an endless variety of weapons, and plenty of places to wander along the estate – sometimes I had trouble keeping everything straight. Part of the confusion seems to be on purpose – keeping the reader constantly in a state of perplexed bewilderment. The writing is good, and the puzzle all winds together.

This. Was. SO. COOL! I loved the concept of this story where the main character wakes up in a different body each day and has to try to solve a murder. Like, sign me up this is right up my alley. The writing was fantastic and the atmosphere really added to the suspense and almost creepy feeling that I had throughout the story. This is a book that I would definitely read again and highly recommend to anyone looking for a unique reading experience!

I absolutely loved this book, pretty much right from the start. Extremely well-written and so very different from anything else I've read in a long time! For reasons we don't understand, Aiden Bishop will inhabit 8 different people who witness Evelyn Hardcastle's death. It's his responsibility to find the killer before he is "released" back into is true life. Although the book was a little difficult for me to follow in the beginning, I soon caught on---to the point where I was even trying to catch mistakes in the author's timelines (I didn't find any, which made me even happier about this book!). I highly recommend if you're looking for a non-standard suspense story, with some odd characters and humor mixed right in!

This is a very detailed and intricate story surrounding the death of Evelyn Hardcastle. I completely agree with many of the reviews on this one…if you love Agatha Christie with a Groundhog Day/Caraval kind of twist, you’ll love this book. If you try to map out the evens in the story in order to solve this murder mystery, you’ll only make yourself crazy. You won’t do it. Many have tried. All have failed.
This is a classic case of “nobody is who they seem” but Stuart Turton keeps you so involved in the story, you can’t wait to find out who is who! This was a good audio book for me because I feel like if I read it in paperback I would have given up. I had to rewind a lot and listen to certain parts several times but it was one of those books I was determined to finish as it has been on my list since release day! It was a very unique read and a change of pace. I’m very happy to be able to check it off my list!
This was Stuart Turton’s debut novel. His writing style is extremely unique and it’s obvious he is very talented. Even though at times it was challenging, that’s what made it fun to read! Sometimes not being able to figure it out is very exciting. I have no idea how he was able to weave together the events in this story as the characters kept going back and forth between bodies! I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a challenge and has time to sit down uninterrupted

Downton Abbey meets Agatha Christie in this London house party mystery. The novel opens with an unreliable narrator, who wakes up in the woods with no memory. Believing he has witnessed a murder, he must unravel the mystery and discover who he really is.

“Stuffed inside is a dead rabbit with a carving knife stabbed through its body. Blood has congealed at the bottom, staining its fur and almost obscuring the note pinned to its ear.” I gave up here. Is this book a parody, a joke, an exercise in obfuscation? I don’t care who killed Anna or Evelyn or whoever the hell winds up dead in this book. I’ll leave it to other people to try to figure out what’s going on here but I’m not wasting any more of my time on it. Body hopping is definitely not my thing. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

My book club read this for our December book pick. I really loved it all the way until the resolution, and even then I liked it a good deal. I love love love the twisty plot. I loved seeing how all the different hosts came together and knew about each other. I can't even fathom how the author was able to conceptualize this, let alone write it. My only complaint is that the pace slows down quite a bit at the resolution and I wished that the steam had continued. My book club much enjoyed it as well.

I really appreciated how original the concept of this book was. I liked how it dived right into the story, and yet still had an element of slow-burn mystery to it. Turton is a talented writer and conveyed the story well. I enjoyed it.

I know this is a book that has gotten great reviews, unfortunately I did not like it. My main issue was that I found the whole book boring. I didn't care for the plot or the characters. The reason why I haven't written the review until now was because I did not want to think about this book anymore. If it weren't for netgalley, I would have DNF'ed it.

I'm gonna start with the positive aspect. The writing. I really enjoyed some of the quotes in this book. I will not write them as I read an advance copy and do not know if some of them has changed.

Now let's move to the negatives. We follow a person who wakes up in a different body every day and in order to make the cycle stop, he has to figure out who killed Evelyn Hardcastle. The premise sounds very promising, but the characters were so unlikable that I did not care about who the murderer was. I was hoping to enjoy the ending, but unfortunately I could see it coming, and therefor it was not that enjoyable. I might have watched to many black mirror episodes before this, because it felt like an episode to me. If the plot twist had been more surprising, I think I would have given it a 3 star rating. Unfortunately this gets 2 stars from me.

This is a cross between Clue, Downton Abbey, and Quantum Leap. I really enjoyed the mystery though it required me paying attention as it can get confusing. Still thinking about the reveal days later