This is the best book I’ve read this year (and I’ve read some really great books this year). Brilliantly written and uniquely spectacular, The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle will become a cult classic. After a few chapters I was heavily immersed into the story. Once I was hooked I couldn't wait to see what would happen next. This is a mystery for the ages with a roller coaster ride that will WOW you. Go into it with an open mind and let Turton blow you away! I wish I could read it again for the first time!

I received an advanced review copy (ARC) of this book from the publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Synopsis from Publisher/NetGalley.com
How do you stop a murder that’s already happened?
The Hardcastle family is hosting a masquerade at their home, and their daughter Evelyn Hardcastle will die. She will die everyday until Aiden Bishop is able identify her killer and break the cycle.
But every time the day begins again, Aiden wakes up each day in a different body as one of the guests.

Aiden’s only escape is to solve Evelyn Hardcastle’s murder and conquer the shadows of an enemy he struggles to even comprehend. But nothing and no one are quite what they seem.

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton had an intriguing and complex premise, but for this reader, it was difficult to keep track of all of the characters and their storylines. I am clearly in the minority here, and I wanted to like this book more than I did, but reading this book was work. Events are unfolding around the death of Evelyn Hardcastle from the perspectives of eight different characters, each providing additional details. I am thoroughly impressed with how this author was able to write this novel and keep track of all the storylines in such a unique way, but after awhile my brain was on overload, and where initially it was interesting and compelling, this 500 page book quickly became tiresome.

3.5 stars

By now I must admit that 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle was one of the most complex mysteries I ever read.

Time loops have always been fascinating to me. Ever since watching Groundhog Day, I loved the idea of having multiple days to get things right. But I never read a book that was plotted the way this novel was.

The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle felt like an intricate puzzle, a riddle that was solved little by little with each chapter. But instead of repeating each day in an identical way, the author decided to make his main character wake up in a different cast member's body each day. With each new morning a new main character was being introduced, each had an utterly distinctive voice, and some were more helpful than others.

I must admit it took me a LONG time to get into the book.

At the beginning fo the book the reader was literally thrust into a deadly chase through a dark forest without a second explanation. With each chapter tiny clues were being offered. At this point, the reader knew exactly the same as the main character did - zilch. But with each day, more puzzle pieces were unearthed and a bigger picture emerged.

Because it was such an original and complex story I would love to see it being made into  a movie. It would be just perfect on the big screen.

The book on its own was sometimes confusing, and like I mentioned it took me a long time to get into the story, but otherwise it was fantastically written and the plot was truly EXCEPTIONAL!!!!

I read 35% of this book and I just couldn’t get into it. I tried reading it and listening to the audiobook and it was a struggle to get through it. I kept hoping something exciting would happen since I had great reviews, but I just couldn’t keep reading it any longer.

I don’t know what to think about this book. It was super unique and original.. and props to the author for crafting such an intricate story.. but the weird sci fi aspects just had me thrown for a loop from the start and I couldn’t get my feet underneath me and get into the flow of things.. there were also a LOT of characters and I had trouble keeping them straight, especially since the POV kept changing.. I felt like I kept waiting for everything to make sense and it never really did. Wasn’t really my kind of story..

This book is different from anything I've read before! In a good way, of course.

First, imagine you wake up in a forest with no recollection of who or where you are. After the initial disorientation and confusion (and a few events), the main character learns that he must wake up in a stranger's body everyday until he solves the murder of Evelyn Hardcastle.

When I first read the premise I thought this is the type of book I enjoy. Although it has supernatural elements to it, the novel still has a very classic-feel to it. It reminded me of the TV show Quantum Leap and also of the movie Groundhog Day.

Overall, I enjoyed it and recommend it to readers of mysteries, thrillers, and contemporary fiction.

Received ARC from the publisher via Netgalley

I don't know where to start... That book is AMAZING. Even if Aiden has to relive the same day again and again and again, the story is original and I couldn't have predicted the many twists that come in the end. I LOVED IT!!!

Many thanks to the publisher for my e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This definitely exceeded my expectations. First I thought it was a rather long book, but as I got into it I was surprised at its fast-pace. The plot twists were amazing and totally unexpected. I wasn’t sure if Aiden would ever make it out of there or what he’d do when he learned the truth about Anna. It kept me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end. It read like an Agatha Christie novel, and it was phenomenally well written.

I honestly could not get interested in this story. The beginning is very intense and kind of jumbled around, you have to dig deep into the story to understand what is happening and I lost interest very fast. I could not connect with any of the characters and was disappointed that this was not one that I liked. I have seen that other readers have enjoyed it, so this book might be a good one to borrow or check at the library if you are not very sure at first.

This was an awesome read. The plot draws you in, making you not want to put the book down – resulting in a few late nights. The story is full of mystery and intrigued, you never quite know which of the characters to trust until you reach the end. Each character is unique, as the story flows you get a feel for each one.
The ending was delightfully twisty, one that I was not expecting at all.
I just loved everything about this E-ARC; when the novel came up on one of the book buying lists at the library I work at, I pounced at the chance to add it to the library's stock collection.
I would definitely recommend this to those who love mystery and detective novels, especially those that are set in a historical setting.

I found this book to be clever, Perhaps a bit too clever, Too many layers, like the author might have been having problems trying to get all the timelines to add up, so he kept adding more and more layers of rules, characters, and motives. I would only recommend this to people with patience and time. Others will just become frustrated if they started the book and couldn't finish it.

Additional thoughts: Those who enjoyed this style of mystery, would probably also enjoy "The Manual of Detection" by Jedediah Berry. I listened to audiobook of this story, and it has a similar style. I wondered if it was written by the same author under a different pen-name.

Wow, what a wild ride. This book was longer than I was expecting and it was also way more intricate than I was expecting as well. Not that that is a bad thing, but there were a few things that I didn't enjoy about this, hence the 3 star rating. Probably closer to 3.5 really.
Without giving away too much of the plot, think Groundhog Day, but with murder. I think the less you know going into this, the more you will enjoy it.
The most difficult part of this for me was the timeline and keeping all the characters straight. I feel like this is a book that you have to keep notes on, because there were several points where I found myself confused and had to back track. The timeline was also really strange.
I will also say that the way the book ended I didn't *love* and that's what took off the majority of the stars for me. I just found that bit a little too unrealistic in a lot of ways. But that's all I can really say without giving things away. If you love murder mysteries and you don't mind long and complicated books, I would definitely recommend picking this one up. There was a feeling of tension throughout, but nothing scary. A decent thriller. I would probably never reread this, but it wasn't a bad book, I enjoyed it for the most part, I just felt like it was a little too much.

This was definitely the most unique of all the books I’ve read recently, if not the most unique I’ve ever read! I feel like it’s hard to explain but as the publisher puts it, it’s kind of like Agatha Christie meets Quantam Leap – a manor house murder mystery with a sort of sci-fi aspect that structures the story. For me, for most of the book, it was that Agatha Christie aspect that was most in the forefront and that made me absolutely love the book. Actually, this is completely random and I’d be shocked and delighted if anyone knew what I was talking about, but it reminded me of a computer game I used to play when I was a kid called Laura Bow: The Colonel’s Bequest. I could go off on a real digression about how much I loved that game (which was/is so antiquated you had to type in commands), but I won’t bore you with that…suffice it to say it’s kind of like the game Clue, which is also similar to this book in a way. Anyway I totally recommend it – very gripping and I’ve never read anything like it. I don’t want to give anything away which is why I’m being a little vague but I’ll say too that if you’re a fan of Black Mirror I think you’ll like this!

Ambitious. Original. Complex. Entertaining. These words all describe this puzzle within a puzzle of a book. I had zero expectation of the book nor had I read any summaries or blurbs so all the twists really caught me off guard - in a good way. It starts out with a very Agatha Christie vibe...which remains, but then add in Memento, Inception, a little Matrix Revolution (in a very small way), and a whole lot of characters to keep track of. At times the story gets confusing simply because the author is doing SO much and there are so many characters. I also felt the ending, or more accurately, the big reveal regarding the narrator, didn't have quite enough detail. The murder mystery was so convoluted it bordered on the ridiculous. BUT, that all said, this is a unique mix of ideas and genres that makes for a satisfying and entertaining read.

Thank you NetGalley for the copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

*Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me this eARC in exchange for an honest review*

Holy. Long. Book. This was a MONSTER to get through, and a bit confusing. I love the concept that there’s a person who has to keep reliving a night Groundhog Day style until he figures out who the killer in the crowd is but the way the story is told caused major confusion and slight disinterest about 3 rounds through. However, after that, things picked up and I was hooked!

I absolutely loved this book. I read through it in a matter of two days, and it only took that long because I had to go to work both days. I enjoyed getting to know all of the characters and see the way they changed and grew and influenced Aiden. I liked going along with him and try to decide who was going to betray him and who was his true friend. The ending shocked me, as every time I thought I had figured out the secrets of the house, something new came along to surprise me. Each of Aiden's hosts contributed something new to him and it was good to see how once each of them came together, they were able to do great things. If it were possible, I'd give this book 6 stars, that's how much I enjoyed reading it.

I have only one thing to say about this book.... WOW!!!! Reading this book took me a bit longer that I had anticipated but it was well worth it. Stuart Turton has created a book that really is a huge puzzle where the reader tries to put all the pieces into place. I loved the time loops and how Aiden traveled from host to host. It was sad watching him struggle to keep his own personality as he became more and more like his hosts. Every time I thought I had a grasp on what was going on, I had to regroup and organize the details in my head. This is definitely a book that I will re-read in order to find hints that I missed the first time through.

This review is based on an ARC of The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle which I received courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher (Sourcebooks Landmark).


How delightfully murderous! The 7 1/2 Deaths is the best modern mystery (i.e. not Agatha Christie or Sir Arthur Conan Doyle) I've yet read. Not only do I LOVE the plot and the changes of characters/POVs, I love the complexity of the mystery. Layers upon layers upon layers--this is an onion of a book!

I was ultimately too occupied to take notes for my review, but I can assure readers that this novel is a whirlwind of intrigue, deep characters, and oh yeah! murder! All tied together with wrappings of elegant prose.

The only down side to The 7 1/2 Deaths was that, in being complex, sometimes I got lost in the layers. This is time travel after all, not an easy storyline to follow along. There area also a lot of characters to remember, along with this being a biggish book. Although these things made the book confusing at times, I nonetheless enjoyed every page of this story! I am definitely a Stuart Turton fan from here on out.

I'm between a 3 and a 4 here; I'm giving the book a 4 for the plot structure.

There are books I remember because they did something special, more than the usual reader's pleasure. "The Night Circus" is one, as it is a masterclass in setting and description. "The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle" is in this category, because it delivers on an ingenious plot structure. The best I can sum it up is that it is a Who Done It? in a circle hall of mirrors, a plot that is shaped as more box and levels than forward motion to a narrative end. (That's why a large portion of the reviews will say "mind blown" or some variation of the same.)

The book is very transparent in its premise, so there's no spoiler here--we're on an estate which is set up for a party and every night, Evelyn Hardcastle is murdered. It is our narrator, who enters the story with no memories, who must solve the riddle of her death. When I first started the book, I mentioned to my mom that it felt like Clue-meets-Agatha-Christie, and I was delighted to see the author acknowledged that (along with another reference I didn't get at first, but in hindsight is obvious) at the conclusion.

What's good: That plot structure, which takes us through the same day through a cycle of different perspectives, feels very novel to me. Maybe others have done something similar, but I have never read it. The amount of thought put into this by the author--I know this is a book that would be a great re-read and re-re-read, because I suspect there are all sorts of clues I walked right by.

What's iffier: The ending and explanation came a bit out of the blue. It felt as if we were teetering on the edge of breaking the assumed internal rules of the story--something felt off in the author's ultimate explanation. I suspect that will be grounds for debate. Also, the characters--some tended to melt together, although I can tell the author or editor attempted to stop that with the cast of characters at the front of the book (for easy reference).

Overall, bravo to the author for a fun, interesting, original story--this is one I'll remember.

Although an entirely unique premise, this book just wasn’t for me at the this time. I have a very difficult time suspending disbelief and it was honestly too much work for me to keep track of what was going on. I will give it another go at some point.

Many thanks to Netgalley, Sourcebooks Landmark and Stuart Turton for my complimentary e-copy ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.