7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton: A Book Review
Genre: Mystery Thriller
Reading this book was a rush. The beginning started out wobbly as just like the narrator, you as a reader have no idea what is going on leading to all sorts of confusion, but as the story moves forward, it sweeps everything up off and away.
The story follows the narrator as he works to figure out who murders Evelyn Hardcastle, the daughter of the Lord and lady Hardcastle whom are holding a party on the anniversary of their late son’s death. Forced to relive the same day in the minds of different people related to the future murder, the narrator struggles to find his answer in the right days he is allotted. Only the answer will allow him to leave the premise.
Quite a feat, Turton creates a unique ending that makes sense while still being completely unbelievable. Honestly, I am still trying to overcome my shock at such an ingenious ending. It is something neither expected, foreshadowed, or confusing. Just for the ending, the book is worth rereading to figure out if there are clues throughout the story for who really kills Evelyn Hardcastle.
Earlier this year I posted a boom review on a book called No Good Deed. If you have had a chance to read this book, I definitely recommend including this book on your to-read pile. If you are a fan of mysteries, this also is a book for you. If you are looking for more of a thriller, you still might enjoy the story, but be warned most of the “thriller” aspect comes from the suspense driven by the narrator’s plight as well as the rapidly moving mind the narrator is caught in at that time.
For the post reviewing No Good Deed please follow this link here.
Plot: 10/10
Characters: 10/10
Writing: 12/10
Editor: 10/10
Total: 42/40
Title: The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle
Author: Stuart Turton
Edition: Reprint (Paperback)
Published: May 7, 2019
Publisher: Sourcebooks
ISBN: 9781492670124
If you want to get it: Amazon; Barnes&Noble
Please note that the title of this blog post is based and inspired off of Kirsty Logan’s first sentence of review regarding Turton’s novel.
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