Reading this book was nothing short of comedy of errors! I assumed I had a book of a similar name on my kindle and started this one. Only to realise soon after that I have mistaken this one for something else. While this too was on my TBR, I continued reading this thriller and here is a quick take on it.
Cover page
The 7½ deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle or The seven deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle comes with a simple black background that is made to look really grand and aesthetically appealing with a simple line pattern of yellow and red. It is elegant and pleasant to look at, but doesn’t reveal anything about the book itself.
Characters
The Hardcastle family lost their son nineteen years ago on this day as a young boy who was gruesomely murdered. On this very day many years later they throw a grand party at their home- Blackheath. Evelyn and Michael are the surviving children of the Hardcastle couple. Apart from them, there is Aiden Bishop, Anna who is Aiden’s friend and a few other very significant characters who play a very important part in solving the murder of Evelyn. Apart from this, there are some other mysterious characters, named as the footman and plague doctor by Aiden who play an equally important role in the book.
Content
Aiden Bishop comes to Blackheath to solve the murder of Evelyn Hardcastle. He is given multiple chances to solve her death day after day, and yet every day he fails. He has been given hundreds of chances for saving her, but he is always too late. The only way that Bishop can escape the wrath of the cursed Blackheath and this strange mystery that makes it seem like he is stuck in time is by solving her murder. The book takes one through this gripping and strange tale full of secrets, deceit and conspiracies.
Language
The book is complex! The language is simple and really helps as the plot itself is very intricate. The book shifts between many characters and it is written from a second person’s perspective making it slightly simpler to understand.
Good points
The plot and the story are simply outstanding. It is essentially a murder and the journey to solve it. But it is a murder that repeats every day, the protagonist has been given hundreds of opportunities to solve it and yet he cannot. While the murder itself is brilliantly written, the plot around it- the idea of time travel, multiple characters and transformations really takes the book to another level. It shows that this book is a very ambitious debut by the Author- a huge risk and one that really played out well. The book had me hooked and left me constantly thinking about it. It played on my mind all the time even when I was not reading it- and this is the biggest positive about the book.
Bad points
Initially I was really irked by how messy the book appeared. There was too much happening and I had absolutely no clue what was happening and what I was supposed to expect.
Overall
I love thrillers! However, my reading preferences are limited and I keep coming back to them which means I do not read other genres like fantasy, time travel etc. However, this book has everything! While the central theme is a murder, the story is full of elements of magic and time travel. I loved how each character is so brilliantly woven into the book and how every character’s role is so neatly chalked out (though at certain points this may not seem to be the case, things do sort out eventually). Kudos to the Author for having so brilliantly written his debut! I really wish to elaborate more, but that would mean talking about the story itself and I do not wish to add spoilers of any sort! The book constantly played on my mind. I constantly kept thinking about it- about the murder, about the characters and most importantly about how it will all end! And that for me is a winner of a book- a book that constantly shadows my very existence!
Whom do I recommend this to
I would say everyone!!! It is so brilliantly written that I would suggest every bibliophile to read it ( if you are new to reading- you might either tumble right into reading like a maniac or be scared away by how complex it is!) If you are looking for something crazy, something that will keep you hooked- this is something that you might really enjoy.
Go ahead, grab yourself a copy of The Seven deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle and tell us what you think about the book! If you are a Kindle person, ensure to select the Kindle edition of the book.
The Seven deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle
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The frontlit, high-resolution Kindle Paperwhite seems to be the officially preferred Kindle at Meraki Post; Veena, Gazala and Ram have one each. And while Pooja may claim she is more of the “Love the new book smell” kind of person, she may be secretly deciding between the premium Kindle Oasis and the simple and efficient Good Ol’ Kindle.
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