The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
Published in: 2018
Reviewed by: Book Worm
Rating: [★★★★]

Synopsis from Goodreads: How do you stop a murder that’s already happened?

At a gala party thrown by her parents, Evelyn Hardcastle will be killed–again. She’s been murdered hundreds of times, and each day, Aiden Bishop is too late to save her. Doomed to repeat the same day over and over, 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.

Deeply atmospheric and ingeniously plotted, The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is a highly original debut that will appeal to fans of Kate Atkinson and Agatha Christie.

Book Worm’s Thoughts: I am a fairly late comer to the world of Blackheath it finally got to the point where even my sister in law was raving about this book and I realised that I couldn’t leave it unread anymore.

I was hooked even before I started reading the actual story, the book opens with a map of Blackheath showing where the key characters are roomed, it then continues with your invite to the party which outlines who the other important guests are. At this point my mind was viewing the book as a game of chess mixed with Cluedo. From the blurb on the back my mind was on the film Groundhog Day and the theme tune I would set this book to…Hotel California by the Eagles. All this occurred in my mind before even reading the first page.

Five pages in and the reader is hit with this amazing line “How lost do you have to be to let the devil lead you home?”

What follows is an amazingly complex but compelling murder mystery which our narrator has eight days in eight different bodies to solve. Each new body brings new challenges as well as new insights and I thoroughly enjoyed watching Aiden solve the mystery not just of Evelyn’s Death but of what Blackheath itself actually is and what it stands for.

There is just one mystery that remains to be solved…Why does Evelyn get an extra 1/2 death in the US version of the book?

I can’t really say more without spoilers all I will say is if you haven’t read this you really should just for the unique experience and so you will know what everyone else is raving about.

We want to hear from you! Have you read this book? What did you think?