Reviews tagging 'Suicidal thoughts'

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

22 reviews

priscillarobock's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail

bookhoarder2022's review against another edition

3.25

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Decent mystery & interesting premise, but the way the narrator speaks with such disgust about his hosts was a huge turn-off

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Death, Fatphobia, Violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Gun violence, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Blood, Kidnapping, Stalking

Minor: Drug abuse, Infidelity, Grief

thecriticalreader's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous challenging hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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Why I Read It: The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton first came onto my radar when I was looking for books involving time loops, since I love time loops. Months later, I saw it in the bookstore and decided to pick it up.

 

Review:

Turton should get a standing ovation for the brilliance of this book’s concept. It’s incredibly original, and no lazy author would have even come close to touching it. The execution of the concept is also laudable, as Turton’s beautiful writing and detailed thought made this book a joy to read. I never felt impatient about figuring out the mystery; I was content to let the story unfold and follow the main character step by step as he painfully learns more and more about his situation. Despite the undeniably convoluted plot, I was able to follow along, and I appreciated the moral questions Turton poses throughout the story. More importantly, the characters’ motivations and actions felt well-thought-out and realistic. It would have been far too easy for everything to feel contrived, but for most of the book, this is not the case.

 

I knew that no matter how amazing most of the book was, my ultimate measure of the book would rest heavily on the conclusion. While the conclusion is not the disaster it could have been—no plot holes are introduced, and it remains well-thought-out—unfortunately, it did not quite live up to my hopes. It fell into the trap mysteries so often fall into, in which the author springs a twist so out of left field that it feels contrived and requires a lengthy explanation to understand. The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle did not need such a twist for me to feel impressed by the mystery and the book’s intelligence. I felt that the ending somewhat betrayed the main character’s arc.

My main problem with the ending was Anna’s character. How am I supposed to believe that one of the world’s most evil people somehow becomes a good person by endlessly cycling through time loops in a setting that is described as “poisonous” in its immorality and corruption?

One other thing that bothered me considerably was the fatphobic language. The language Turton uses to describe a fat character is unnecessarily cruel. 

 

The Run-Down: 

You will probably like The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle if:

·      You are intrigued by unique, original premises

 

You might not like The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle if:

·      You dislike intricate plots

·      You go into the book wedded to your expectations

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Medical content, Murder, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Classism

Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Rape, Torture, Blood, Alcohol

Minor: Cursing, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War

laurajordensharris's review against another edition

4.0

dark funny mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Body shaming, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Classism

joyolivia's review against another edition

4.25

mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Death, Murder

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide

laguerrelewis's review against another edition

4.75

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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This was a marvelously creative and captivating murder mystery. A creative twist in the premise helps shake things up, but it is far from the only trick this book has up its sleeves. A fun workout for the brain with a great narrative voice and complex mystery that will appeal to all fans of the genre, with a surprisingly poignant message at the center of it all. Would be a 5 star if only it fleshed out its message just a bit more, and the occasional moment that raised my eyebrow (but didn’t quite offend).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Classism

Moderate: Rape, Suicidal thoughts

nellkristen's review against another edition

3.5

dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia, Suicide, Violence, Suicide attempt

Moderate: Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Classism

Minor: Alcohol

spookily's review against another edition

2.75

dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Death, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death, Gore, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Alcohol, Sexual harassment

Minor: Infidelity, Misogyny, Rape, Torture, Medical content, Grief, Fire/Fire injury

lydiakach75's review against another edition

5.0

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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If I could give this a 6 out of 5 I would. It was amazing. You know that quote by Lady Gaga that goes "amazing, incredible, never done before, etc" it's like that. Also be aware that this takes place probably around the early 1900s and because of that the use of queer is used to mean weird but not as an insult. There is something else one has to be aware of as a content warning because mention of rape but never telling of the rape.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt

Moderate: Child death, Death, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder

Minor: Rape

davidrb's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous challenging dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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I waffed on what to give this, but I decided that despite my reservations, this thing slaps beyond belief. It completely shifted my perspective on what a good mystery can be, and what a good book can be in general. It was engaging, and I have a feeling I'll get even more out of rereads, but it also has a solid heart: more than I thought it would. Do yourself a favor and pick this up! It's fun.

Points deducted for being kinda slow to start (took me a few tries before I got into it) and a weird, prolonged section of fatphobia.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol