A review by itzbrianna
The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

adventurous mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle had a great idea behind this book. Having to solve a murder that reoccurs the same day while the protagonist is in the body of a different host is a great and interesting idea for a book. The plot sounded fun which is why I jumped at the chance to read this. However, despite wanting to like this book, the very first chapter just didn’t hook me. 

It was hard to care about any of the characters and especially the protagonist. I was only interested in the main mystery so anything that ventured off of it seemed pointless. And this book was way longer than it needed to be.

I enjoy long books that have strong character development and interesting storylines to keep you hooked. But this novel wasn’t that. The writing made it hard for me to stay engaged. Not to mention the blatant ableism and fatphobic commentary throughout the book. 

The concept as a whole would’ve been great had it not been for those things. It’s an ok novel and if you enjoy drawn out mysteries with this kind of writing style you’d enjoy this. I, however, did not. 
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