Review: The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle

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Title: The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle
Author: Stuart Turton
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Release Date: September 18, 2018
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

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 is 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.

Review:

This is a unique mystery. It’s Groundhog Day meets Freaky Friday in an Agatha Christie novel.

I couldn’t put this book down for hours. There were loads of twists at the beginning so I had no idea where the story was heading.

I liked how the story ended. However, I didn’t like the explanation for how the main character entered the loop of living the day over and over to solve Evelyn Hardcastle’s murder. I wish that background was either explored more in the story or simplified. It seemed like the start of a side story but it wasn’t detailed enough.

The title is confusing I’m not sure why sometimes it is the 7 deaths and other times it’s the 7 1/2 deaths. I understand what the deaths are, but not why there are two different numbers in the titles. If anyone knows, I’d love to hear it.

I loved this book! If you like a suspenseful thriller in the style of Agatha Christie, you’ll love this book.

What to read next:

  • And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

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  • The End of Temperance Dare by Wendy Webb

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Have you read The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle? What did you think of it?

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Author: jilljemmett

Jill lives in Toronto, Canada. She has studied English, Creative Writing, and Publishing. Jill is the creator and content producer of Jill’s Book Blog, where she has published a blog post every day for the last four years, including 5-7 book reviews a week. She can usually be found with her nose in a book.

15 thoughts on “Review: The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle”

  1. They had to change the title for the US release. It’s 7 Deaths in the UK and 7 1/2 Deaths in the US, because they said the title was too similar to The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and there was a copyright issue or something.

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  4. The original title in the UK was 7 1/2. But there were some legal issues in the US, so for us in Canada & US our copies say 7. I do agree that Aiden’s back story was quite brief..but sufficient enough to answer why he was there in the first place. 🙂 glad you enjoyed it, cause I did too! Great review!

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  5. Pingback: Jill’s Weekly Wrap-Up – September 9 – Jill's Book Blog

  7. I read on Goodreads (in a question the author answered) that the UK title was The Seven Deaths… but in the US, there was a potential conflict with a book with a similar title, so they made it Seven and 1/2. I was reading this book earlier this week and got as far as 40%. I’m really conflicted about whether to continue. At the point I’m at, it all feels kind of pointless — and if there isn’t a good solid explanation for him waking up in different bodies, I’ll be really mad. Part of me is ready to quit, and part of me isn’t sure…

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