“The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle” - Stuart Turton

⏳Intricate is the word I’d use to describe this novel. I listened to it as an audiobook which I recommend due to the large cast of characters.

⏳ The premise is mind bendy and oh so fun! Think Agatha Christie meets “Quantum Leap”. Like the protagonist (of whose identity we are never quite sure), the reader is in a constant state of befuddlement. I was never sure-footed as to what was going on and the rules of this strange game that Turton has concocted.

⏳ The end was rather heavy handed with the protagonist’s musings on life, and yet more taciturn than I would have hoped in the answers department. Turton is a gifted storyteller, but I’ll confess that for the constant adrenaline rush, I felt let down by the final moments of the novel. For such a grand narrative - multiple stories within stories, motives, and murders, it all ends rather abruptly. No spoilers here, but what was Evelyn’s killer’s motive? Turton explains the rest of the deaths, and the unusual circumstances at Blackheath, but we are left to guess at the future awaiting the protagonist. It seems it will be anything but smooth sailing.