The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

Synopsis

It is meant to be a celebration but it ends in tragedy. As fireworks explode overhead, Evelyn Hardcastle, the young and beautiful daughter of the house, is killed. But Evelyn will not die just once. Until Aiden – one of the guests summoned to Blackheath for the party – can solve her murder, the day will repeat itself, over and over again. Every time ending with the fateful pistol shot. The only way to break this cycle is to identify the killer. But each time the day begins again, Aiden wakes in the body of a different guest. And someone is determined to prevent him ever escaping Blackheath…

This book was recommended to be quite a few times by various people. All of these people had read and liked a few of the same things as I did so I gave it a chance. I’m so glad I did! It is very much Agatha Christie meets Groundhog Day, although someone described it to me as Agatha Christie meets Quantum Leap and I think that’s an even better description. Aiden Bishop wakes up everyday in a different body to try and solve Evelyn Hardcastles murder. He must use each guests personality and abilities to try and navigate a day he has already lived.

While this book may start of slow with just the basics of what is happening that only adds to the building of the story. As it goes on you find out more about each guest and their interactions and connections with each other. It can seem a little confusing at times and I found myself turning back a couple of times to make sure I was remembering things and people correctly but I enjoyed that. I honestly didn’t really know what was going on until the very end and I loved that! I do want to reread it now that I know what happens to see if I pick up on anything different.

If you like a mystery with a twist you will really enjoy this and while it may seem slow and confusing I urge you to keep going with it. It is such a clever story and I’ve not read one like it before.