Inventive, compelling and so very readable, this book is an absolute gem. It's fast-paced and exciting but also takes the time to create richly detailed settings and a cast of unique characters, making for an all-round winner. One of the best books I've read this year.

5 fascinated stars.

I requested this on a whim, since I'm not really big on books with body hopping. And I'm so glad I did because this one is truly outstanding. Although it was a little hard to get into, once I got used to it, the pace picked up quickly enough.

Aiden Bishop lives the same day in a different body eight times and has the task of stopping a murder of Evelyn Hardcastle. It becomes evident that nothing is as it seems in the old mansion. That's all I can say without spoiling anything, the less you know the better it'll be.

In this intricate, eloquently written tale there is a breathtaking set of characters, each with their own distinctive voice and personality. Through their eyes the mystery unfolds, reaching a truly unique conclusion.

It's a slow and complex book, with a non linear way of storytelling, that made things seem slightly confusing at times but the explanation is always there somewhere in the next chapters. And trust me, it's worth it.

Turton is an incredibly talented writer with a powerful command over words, spinning a hauntingly dark and atmospheric story with his dense prose. I'm looking forward to read his next book.

* I received a free digital copy from Netgalley *

Kudos to Stuart Turton for a mystery that is totally different and more innovative than any I have read before. There is a masquerade at a country house for Evelyn Hardcastle who has been in Paris for a long time and the family is returning to the home where, as a child, her brother was murdered 19 years ago. In kind of a Ground-Hog Day scenario, the day is repeated over and over again and Evelyn dies every day and this will repeat until her killer is identified by one of a few people who have been staged at the party. Aiden Bishop is the only character who changes bodies and becomes a different person at the party each day (or up to 24 hours per body).

This is a complex mystery with a lot of unsavory characters who could have committed the murder. Even Evelyn's own mother and father are suspects. A very different mystery and I certainly couldn't solve it! I felt bad for Aiden though - it had to be very confusing for him jumping from body to body!

I was astounded with the premise and thoroughly enjoyed this book. Definitely worth reading this one.

Thanks to Stuart Turton and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark through Netgalley for an advance copy.

This was ok. I could not really get into it. The writing was ok. Did not keep my attention. Took be a while to read. Kept having to go back and fourth while reading it.

I could not put this book down! This smart mystery had everything that I wanted...interesting characters, dark atmosphere, and a heart pounding conclusion. This book will keep you interested until the last page.

Se você foi uma criança que nasceu nos anos 90, com certeza lembra do jogo Detetive. Se não conhece, Detetive é um jogo que devemos descobrir o assassino através de algumas pistas. Então, pegue esse jogo, junte o lance do loop temporal (aquele lance que você vive o mesmo dia todos os dias até descobrir a moral da história) e adicione o fato que você vai acordar durante oito dias em oito corpos diferentes (no melhor estilo Todo Dia). Assim nasceu The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle (traduzido para o bom português, As Sete Mortes e Meia de Evelyn Hardcastle).

Quando vi a sinopse da história, o que me chamou atenção foi justamente esse lance do loop temporal e descobrir o assassino de Evelyn Hardcastle. Além do fato que faz algum tempo que não leio um mistério policial (?). Escolhi a estreia do autor Stuart Turton e não arrependi.

Assim como Aiden Bishop, caímos de paraquedas em Blackheath no melhor estilo “que que ta com teseno???”. Não vou mentir; o começo é bastante confuso porque, assim como Aiden, não sabemos muita coisa. Ao longo da história, junto com o personagem e os seus hospedeiros que ele acorda durante os próximos oito dias, vamos desvendando o mistério e motivo da morte de Evelyn.

O livro é narrado em primeira pessoa por Aiden. Aqui, esse tipo de narrativa funcionou pelo fato que vamos acompanhar os acontecimentos de um dia pelos olhos de oito pessoas diferentes. E essas oito pessoas, de alguma forma, estão ligadas ao assassinato que irá acontecer pontualmente às onze horas da noite.

Um fato que achei legal na história são os hospedeiros de Aiden. São oito pessoas completamente diferente, seja no físico quanto na mentalidade. Alguns hospedeiros lutam contra Aiden para tomar seu corpo de volta e achei bem bacana Stuart mostrar essa dualidade. Também há o fato de Aiden perder sua personalidade no seu hospedeiro, como vemos em certos momentos.

O mistério sobre o assassinato de Evelyn Hardcastle foi muito bem construído. Sinceramente, eu só pude bater palmas quando acabei de ler o livro. À medida que você vai acompanhando no dia-a-dia de Aiden no corpo de alguém, um pedacinho do quebra-cabeça vai sendo apresentado. De início, eu me questionei e fiquei “socorro, que farofa é essa, sociedade”, mas quando tudo se encaixou, eu fiquei SOCORR MUNDO PARA QUE EU QUERO DESCER! Só posso dizer que a morte de Evelyn é o topo do iceberg.

Não pense que você vai conhecer a fundo Aiden. Só conhecemos Aiden quando ele está no corpo das outras pessoas. Apesar dele ser o protagonista, não sabemos muito sobre quem ele é, sua personalidade em si; temos uns vislumbres de quem seria Aiden na realidade: um homem obstinado, destemido, leal e um pouco teimoso.

A escrita do autor é direta, sem muitos rodeios. Descrições na medida do possível para você se situar onde está (já que o dia se repete com várias pessoas em lugares diferentes), porém não é uma leitura que deva ser feita de modo rápida. Não no sentido de ser entediante, mas pelo fato da quantidade de informações que Aiden vai descobrindo. Elas não são todas jogadas na sua cara de uma vez, mas elas vão sendo mostradas aos pedaços e é sempre bom dar uma parada para analisar no que aquilo poderia repercutir no mistério.

O livro perdeu meia estrelinha pelo fato de não explicar muito bem o que seria Blackheath e onde Aiden estaria. Em certo momento da história, é sim explicado algumas coisas, no que dá a entender que o livro se passa num futuro muito distante e que Blackheath seria uma espécie de prisão mental. Loucura? Sim. Se amei? Teria amado mais se tivesse sido bem melhor abordado e explicado esse detalhe.

Outro ponto que me fez tirar meia estrela foi o começo confuso e cansativo. Não sei se é pela minha falta de costume de ler livros desse gênero, isso foi um empecilho no começo. Porém, quando me vi realmente envolvida e querendo saber quem raios matou a mulher, eu devorei a história.

The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle não tem previsão de chegada aqui no Brasil, mas torço e muito para que chegue porque é um livro perfeito para todos aqueles que curtem um grande mistério e, principalmente, para os fãs de Agatha Christie.

This is one of my favourite books of the year so far. Described as a mix between Agatha Christie, Quantum Leap, and Inception, this is a murder mystery set in a big old country house, but with a twist. There's lots of literary tropes you'll recognise here; the aforementioned country house for one, a murder victim with many potential culprits, old school clothes and weapons (it's set in the 1920's) but the author meshes that all together with some sci-fi thrown in, making it feel new and fresh.
Our narrator wakes up in a forest, in someone else's body, covered in blood. He makes it back to the house where he finds out that his name is Aiden Bishop, there's going to be a murder and he has 8 chances to solve it. 8 chances meaning 8 days, each day will be the same day (Groundhog Day thrown in for good measure too).
Each day he'll wake up in a new host's body; some are helpful to his cause; young and agile, while others deter him further; old and immobile, drugged, psychopathic etc.
Lots more obstacles are placed in his path as he slowly begins to unravel the mystery and find out why he's there in the first place. If he doesn't solve the case, he's stuck there forever, so the heat is very much on. Practically every page has some new twist so I did find it slightly confusing at times and it can be quite dark. Having said that, it's probably the most original story of this genre that I've ever read and it was a real treat for someone like me, who loves a good murder mystery.
I'd highly recommend this one.

Mystery layered upon mystery! This is a “whodunit” story on steroids. I feel like I have done this book a disservice by reading it during the time I was moving. I was so dead tired every night that I feel asleep while reading and took twice as long to get it finished.
This is not a book to be reading when you are off your game because it demands your attention.

The story begins with an unnamed man who awakens not knowing who he is. Readers will soon find out that every day this man awakens as someone else. This is like a Twilight Zone version of Groundhog Day. The man’s goal is to discover who kills Evelyn Hardcastle. As the story progresses, he becomes obsessed with not only discovering the killer, but preventing the murder.

The entire story is set in one location, a run-down estate called Blackheath. The estate was abandoned and left for ruin after the death of a child. Rumors abound about what actually happened and throughout the story readers learn the truth about the death along with the mystery surrounding Evelyn Hardcastle.

This was such an intricate mystery and at times it was a bit confusing. The characters are mostly unlikeable people and I found it a bit difficult to keep track of who was who, but again, I was a bit distracted when I was reading.

Readers who love a good gothic murder mystery with a few twists will love this book. I don’t often want to re-read a book, but this is one of the few that I will put into the re-read category. This is author Stuart Turton’s debut novel and I will absolutely be looking forward to reading more of his work.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebook Landmark for allowing me to read an advance copy and give my honest review.

Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC. This book is excellent. I think what keeps it from being a 5 star book is the ending. There was really not a lot of exposition and I was OK with that. When things needed explanation, we got them. We understood the motivation of the characters and then we were given extra layers and that was good. It is hard to say more without giving anything away. It is important not to give anything away because that will ruin the fun for anyone who sits to read it. I think the fact that I did not read it in one sitting actually helped me see a few of the minor flaws. Had I pushed through, as this book almost begs the reader to do, I would've spent too much time being blown away to think. I actually recommend this book as a slow read with a lot of stops because the reader needs time to think about what is going on and accepting or rejecting the "rules."
Bravo to Mr. Turton. Fans of Claire North (I am one), will love this.

I have been trying to write this review ever since I finished buddy reading The 7 Deaths Of Evelyn Hardcastle with Nicki @ Secret Library last weekend... But somehow I can't seem to get a word on paper without either sounding like a raving fangirl or a blubbering mess. But I can't NOT scream my love for this absolute masterpiece from the rooftops, so here is my attempt at writing a somewhat coherent review. Let's start with another metaphor: even days after reaching the final page of a new all-time-favorite, I'm still picking up the pieces of my mindblown brain. The 7 Deaths Of Evelyn Hardcastle is unlike anything I've ever read before, and I have read my share of mystery/thrillers during my time on this planet. The plot is highly intricate and extremely well constructed with plot twists within plot twists not unlike a Russian doll. Each time you think you start figuring out the truth a new layer is discovered, leaving you both flabbergasted and wondering how this new information fits in the general story. I think The 7 Death Of Evelyn Hardcastle is one of the few books where the repetition of the same day over and over again actually enhances the plot considerably. Repetition you say? Isn't that only supposed to slow don't the pace and make you less invested in the plot? Think again. It seems like complicated and powerful magic and I bow to the writing skills of Stuart Turton, but there is no doubt this book is hands down one of the best debuts I've read to this date. Never has the phrase 'had me guessing until the very last page' been more true! I won't be tiring of recommending this book to everyone I know. Brilliant. Mindblowing. Flabbergasting. Extremely well executed. And overall 200% worth your time.

This is one of those books that keeps growing and getting better as you read, some people mistakenly compared the storyline with Groundhog Day, yes the day repeats itself for Aiden Bishop but is the only similarity you’ll find.

Every day that repeats has a new perspective of the story, a new discovery. It's wonderful to see how the same scene can be experienced and viewed differently depending on where you where and what you stand for, and that’s how life works! Not two people live the same experience, even if both are present at the same time and moment. Every host is different, different lives, professions, bodies, intelligence and vices. Therefore, Aiden has to fight harder to not let himself lose on his host. He has one goal and that is to solve the murder of Evelyn Hardcastle and left Blackheath.

In this book you’ll find redemption and new beginnings, loyalty and betrayal. At the end the book surprises us with a more futuristic twist and I wonder if that’s where we are going? I wholeheartedly believe someone can change but only if his nature is not corrupted. Anyone can make a terrible mistake and repent, but only if the person understand that there is another option, a less evil option a different choice to be made. Unfortunately there are individuals whose nature is corrupted beyond redemption and this book brilliantly pose that question.

If you love a good mystery that is unpredictable and keeps you reading and wondering until the very end, don’t hesitate to read this book.

I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Many Thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark, Stuart Turton and Netgalley for the opportunity.

Title: The Seven 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle
Author: Stuart Turton
Pages: 512

Released: February 8 2018 in UK / 18 September 2018 in US
Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark
Format: Hardcover

Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Goodreads Rating: 4.14 (of 5,136 reviews)

Two things threw me off about this book right off the bat. First of all, Seven Deaths is over five hundred pages long, and I stared at that page number, thinking, “Does Stuart Turton really think he can sustain an interesting and well-plotted mystery for 512 pages?” I’ve read mysteries with three hundred pages and hit boring patches. Second of all, I opened the book to the first chapter and was thrown RIGHT into the action, where the main character didn’t even know what was happening. I was so confused, I put the book down and didn’t return for several days.

Then I picked the book back up. And didn’t. Put it. Down.

The Seven-and-a-Half Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is the most intricately plotted mystery/thrilled I have ever laid eyes on. The parts of me that weren’t hooked on the plot were hooked on the fascinating and diverse characters. As a reader, I was practically sobbing in thanks to Turton for putting out such a fascinating read — it worked on SO. MANY. LEVELS. Now be warned: only read on if you’re ready for some serious Seven Deaths love (and have a desire to fall in love yourself!).

As I said, the beginning of the novel literally throws the reader into the action. A man (our main character) is running in the woods. He’s yelling a name, he’s terrified of something bad happening … but he doesn’t know why, he doesn’t know where he is, he doesn’t know his very name. You don’t have a second to contemplate what is going on before the next scene happens, and then the next, and the next. At first, this made me put the book down because I was not in the mood to be confused. When I picked the book up again, I let Turton take me on his journey, and realized bit by bit everything made sense.

Don’t let the page count fool you (as I did, at first). Unlike many mystery novels, Seven Deaths drops big reveals throughout the book. You don’t have to wait until the before last page to find out everything at once! I loved this, because my excitement only mounted as the book went on. Also, I don’t think it’s far-fetched to compare this book to a giant game of Clue: because Aidan is repeating the same day over and over, as a reader you’re gathering clues with him — seeing who is where and when, and what they are doing. (It’s the maid with the knife in the kitchen!) Turton gives the reader a chance to collect clues as the book progresses, so you can guess at the many mysteries … because you should not be followed by the summary, there is more than just Evelyn Hardcastle’s death to solve!

This book is packed with deceitful characters, plot twists, big reveals and secrets. So many secrets! Turton packs it all up in the most eloquent writing, too. He evokes this sense of intrigue and mystery with his words, so that I’m plunged into Hardcastle the moment I start reading.

Five stars for this book. If I didn’t have such a long TBR at the moment, I would be re-reading this book on the spot. This is the kind of book you can re-read over and over, because there are so many hidden clues and easter eggs. Turton’s a genius. A literal genius. I don’t know how he did it, but please do it over and over again. And do not miss this book!

Review to be posted on blog on September 11 2018 (https://bookprincessreviews.wordpress.com/)
Review to be posted on Goodreads on September 11 2018 (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2487389859)

I really liked the premise of this novel and couldn’t help but get a nostalgic feel from it, it reminded me of playing a game of Cluedo whilst reading anything by Agatha Christie on a dark winter night and I loved it. This was a truly mid blowing and boggling read that I had to really pay attention to in order to keep all of the twists and turns straight in my head.

It is actually very hard to review this book without worrying about giving away any spoilers…. You would think that there would be a time when reading this that it starts to get a bit boring as the novel goes through the same day again and again but that is far from the reality, instead, I ended up on the edge of my seat for the entire ride!

The concept is so well thought out and planned that I can’t help but be amazed that anyone’s mind can put together such an elaborate story and pull it off. Just WOW – this writer is wonderful and I am so excited to see what he comes out with next.

I also loved the cover of this book, when I was reading through it I kept thinking back to it and it is strange that the cover actually managed to convey the feeling and setting of the novel and as a bonus it is beautiful. I will definitely be purchasing this in hard copy for my bookshelf because it is so pretty to look at.

This book is so original it's a little hard to describe - basically, the book starts with a character waking up with no memory - only to eventually discover that every day for 8 days he will wake up in the same crumbling English manor on the same day (the anniversary of a different murder from 19 years before) as a different person, trying to figure out who is going to murder Evelyn Hardcastle that night - and the only way to escape from this loop is to figure out who the murderer is. So, it's a little bit Agatha Christie, a little bit Groundhog Day, a little bit Quantum Leap, a little bit the movie "Clue," with a bunch of original elements as well. It definitely is confusing at times, both figuring out what is going on at the beginning of the book, and then keeping track of all the characters and elements as the book goes forward. But it's also a really enjoyable puzzle, both seeing how all the different actions of the various iterations of the main character come together, and the even more complex set of mysteries that surround the murders.

Review: THE 7 1/2 DEATH'S OF EVELYN HARDCASTLE by Stuart Turton. Ground hog day meets CLUE. A good storyline but somewhat confusing to keep up with all of the characters. ⭐⭐⭐Three stars.

I had high hopes for this book but was unable to finish. I had a difficult time connecting with any of the characters and following the story. It does have a Groundhog’s day quality to it as the same day is being relived over and over again but being experienced from different perspectives each time.

I don’t know how the author managed to write such a maze-of-a-novel. I don’t believe I’ve ever read anything like this before!

I knew this novel was being hugely praised and it made me even more determined and ready to solve this whodunnit on my own. If you already read this novel you’ll know how ridiculous my assumption was because there is no way that you can anticipate and solve this on your own, as I figured out quite soon as well ;-). There’s so much cause and effect in this novel, so much detail that went into this grand scheme of things that it just wasn’t possible to get a clear picture of the whole puzzle. It didn’t spoil any of the fun though, there was so much to be discovered in this novel, there were new insights and revelations with every character change.

Although I loved the start of the novel I was a bit worried how the story was going to develop and if I’d be able to keep up. I felt quite confused with what was going at first… was it just me I wondered? Should I start making notes of timelines and characters? Bell seemed awfully focused on someone called Anna but I thought it was all about a woman called Evelyn Hardcastle.. and then there was quite a large cast of characters in the novel that were kept an eye on. As the story progressed everything became clear though so not to worry, if you keep going it’ll all make sense eventually, you just have to go with the flow and let the main character lead you on, it’ll all become clear as water.

I had a hunch that the present mystery and a past event were in some way connected but I didn’t know how. I also had no clue who was chasing him, trying to get him killed or who this masked man is called The Plague Doctor. He’s the one who doesn’t let him leave unless he solves the murder but also provides him with info. Is he to be trusted and who is he? Lots and lots of intriguing questions *big smiles*. The main character (Aiden) will have to use each character’s strong points to his advantage and learn as much as he can about the others in order to solve this one. I was satisfied with all the answers in the end though and it exceeded my expectations entirely.

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is not an easy relaxed read, one where you’re able to have one eye on your cooking, child or husband, but you will want to keep with it when reading anyway, in the end it’s really insanely twisted!

This novel takes you on a mind-boggling trip with many many twists, secrets, and even a little sprinkle of futuristic sci-fi in it. The details of that last part were not developed but it’s not something I wished for either, the idea was enough to make it work. Even the sci-fi part was great for me, go figure!

I’m going to stop here because I could keep going on forever. I think you’ll have realised by now that this is a must-read! Don’t give up in the beginning, it’s totally worth it. The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is the most complex novel I’ve probably ever read. It’s incredibly clever and utterly addictive. I don’t say this often but I most definitely would love to reread this in the future even when I know – and won’t forget any time soon – how it ends and who killed Evelyn Hardcastle. It’s that good!

This was such an interesting concept- murder mystery mixed with a time travel paradox! I really enjoyed the beginning but the plot was slow and obviously repetitive. I found that I didn't really feel like continuing the book so I ended up not finishing it.

I received an early copy of this book for my independent honest review.
Well I really don't know where to start, I cannot decide whether I loved it or hated it.
It is certainly very compelling and the writing style is easy to get into.There were times when I thought I couldn't continue, however it is just too compelling to do so even though I often felt frustrated with it!
The premise is that Aiden Bishop has arrived at a country manor for a party to honour the return of Evelyn Hardcastle from overseas. In order to escape, he 're lives the same day in the bodies of eight different hosts to solve the murder of Evelyn Hardcastle. The premise is easy to understand and more clues are revealed as each day progresses. It has all the vibes of' And then there were None 'by Agatha Christie crossed with a Poirot episode featuring the great reveal at the end.
Most of the time I hadn't a clue what was really happening, however it became more enjoyable once I stopped trying to understand it and simply immersed myself into the characters and growing story. Often books that have elements of magical realism in are like this though.
At times the book felt a little too slow for me and perhaps a little long winded at times, however it was so compelling so annoying and so confusing that I have to give it 4* for evoking so many emotions in me good and bad whilst not allowing me to DNF it.
I think it is definitely a book you need to read for yourself and the more you 're read it, the more you get from it. Would I 're read it? To be honest I really don't know.

Sebastian awakes to find that he has no memory.of who he is or where he is. In fact he isn’t even Sebastian at all. As he comes round he finds himself shouting “Anna”. Who Anna is he has no idea but she is running through the woods and then there is the sound of a gunshot. The next day he awakes as the butler and sees “himself” arrive at the door exactly as he did the day before. Think period drama groundhog day. On day three, in yet another guise, he sees the plagues doctor whom he briefly saw beforehand. He tells him that a murder is to be committed and that the guises will keep happening a total of eight times. He will spend 24 hours in each however if they fall asleep or die he will then either move back to one he hasn’t completed or onto a new one. He has to find whom the murderer is to escape the scenario within the time frame. There are also two others whom this is happening to. Only one can escape from Blackheath. This is not as complicated as it sounds. Each chapter gives which day (and part in some cases). A very different way of telling a crime story and a very interesting one at that. Characters pick up various clues and Aiden (the person whose mind is in all of the bodies/guises) can remember these clues.In the questions and answers with the author at the back, Stuart mentions the TV programme Quantum Leap- if you are of the age to remember this- then this will all make sense. One of the most imaginative, and creative books I have read for a long time One to keep the grey matter active.
For more reviews please see my blog http://nickibookblog.blogspot.co.uk/
or follow me on Twitter @nickijmurphy1
(rest of links when blog post live)