7 1/2 Deaths Of Evelyn Hardcastle Explained

Novel by Stuart Turton

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle
U.k. 2018 comprehend
Writer	Stuart Turton
Publisher	Raven Books
Publication date	eight February 2018
Pages	528
ISBN	978-1408889565

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle (published in U.s. every bit The seven½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle ) is a novel by Stuart Turton which won the All-time Commencement Novel prize in the 2018 Costa Volume Awards and reached number one on The Sabbatum Times Bestseller list ^[one] ^[2] ^[3] and number five on The Sunday Times Bestseller list.^{[ citation needed ]}

It was published in the United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland by Raven Books on eight Feb 2018 (ISBN 978-1408889565) and in the US by Sourcebooks Landmark on 28 September 2018 (ISBN 978-1492657965) Information technology has been translated into 28 languages, sold over 200,000 copies in the UK,^{[ citation needed ]} and goggle box rights have been optioned.^[4] In December 2020, Netflix announced that a seven-episode serial was in production in the Uk.^[5]

Plot [edit]

At the get-go of the book, the novel'south protagonist awakes in a woods, suffering from memory loss, and calling for someone named Anna. He doesn't remember his ain proper name. He finds his way to a estate, where his friends tell him that he is a doctor chosen Sebastian Bell who is attending a party thrown by the Hardcastles, the family of Blackheath Manor. Afterward he falls comatose that night, nevertheless, he awakes to notice himself in the body of the butler, and it is the morn of the previous day.

He learns that he has eight days, and eight different incarnations, to solve the murder of Evelyn Hardcastle, which will accept place at 11pm at the political party that evening. He will only exist allowed to exit Blackheath once he finds the killer. If he is unable to solve the mystery in the eight allocated days, the process will start again and he will awake again in the body of Sebastian Bell with his memory wiped. He also learns that at that place are two other people competing to find out the murderer, and that only one person volition be permitted to leave Blackheath.

Characters [edit]

The post-obit characters are referenced in the book, in order of appearance.

Major characters:

Aidan Bishop: the main character that wakes upwards every mean solar day in the body of a unlike guest from Blackheath business firm
Sebastian Bell: medical physician
Anna: who has been presumably murdered
The Footman: an unnamed stalker of Aidan's bodies
Roger Collins: butler at Blackheath business firm, with a burnt face up
Daniel Coleridge: the 'Samaritan', a professional person gambler
Dr. Richard "Dickie" Acker: medical medico
Ted Stanwin: blackmailer in his fifties
Michael Hardcastle: brother to Evelyn and Thomas Hardcastle, friend of Sebastian
The Plague Doctor
Evelyn Hardcastle: sis to Thomas and Michael Hardcastle
Lord Cecil Ravencourt: fat banker
Gregory Golden: artist in residence
Donald Davies: brother to Grace Davies
Charles Cunningham: valet to Lord Ravencourt
Jonathan Derby: son to Millicent Derby
Edward Trip the light fantastic: solicitor
Jim Rashton: police officer (referred to as constable)

Minor characters:

Lucy Harper: starting time maid
Thomas Hardcastle: brother to Evelyn and Michael Hardcastle
Charlie Carver: groundskeeper
Helena Hardcastle: Peter Hardcastle's wife and mother of Evelyn, Thomas, and Michael Hardcastle
Madeline Aubert: Evelyn Hardcastle's French maid
Mrs. Drudge: long-time melt at Blackheath business firm
Millicent Derby: mother of Jonathan Derby
Clifford Herrington: naval officeholder (retired)
Peter Hardcastle: Helena's hubby
Phillip Sutcliffe: lawyer
Christopher Pettigrew: lawyer
Alf Miller: long-time stable master
Grace Davies: sis to Donald Davies

Novel's structure [edit]

The novel has similar characteristics to an Agatha Christie novel, with precise clues scattered in (almost) every chapter and a murderer to exist identified.^{[ commendation needed ]} The endpapers of the book show a detailed plan of the villa and the lands around it; there is too a listing of all the characters. It is structured in lx chapters.

When the identity of the protagonist changes, the day on which it takes place is recorded at the get-go of the chapter. The incarnations are:

day 1: Sebastian Bell
day 2: Roger Collins
day 3: Donald Davies
solar day four: Lord Cecil Ravencourt
day 5: Jonathan Derby
day half dozen: Edward Dance
day vii: Jim Rashton
24-hour interval eight: Gregory Gold

Although the novel refers to different days (first, 2nd, etc), the day in which the plot takes identify is e'er the aforementioned: only the protagonist, irresolute identity, has the feeling of dissimilar days, so he has the opportunity to remember what he did in the shoes of his previous incarnations and to make different choices, changing the course of events. Information technology is not explained how the protagonist tin laissez passer from one incarnation to another: it is said that the reconstruction of the mansion and of the Hardcastle crimes are a sort of virtual prison where the perpetrators of very serious crimes are imprisoned, just that the protagonist ended up in that location of his own free volition for a precise reason (which he will take to observe, since his memory becomes weaker every fourth dimension it overlaps with that of the characters whose personalities he takes possession of). The Plague Doctor, who is plainly part of the "staff" of the virtual prison, explains to him that there are thousands of other similar prisons, with different "scripts" only always focused on solving puzzles. The person who solves the riddle of his or her prison volition be granted freedom; the other two competitors will have their memories erased and repeat the same day in a loop. It is also mentioned that the wheel has been repeating for decades and that the order of Bishop's incarnations has been changed several times. It is up to the reader to imagine an caption, from the purely dreamlike/fantastic to the dystopian/fantasy-scientific.

Title [edit]

Co-ordinate to Turton, the novel's title was changed in America since it was similar to the previously published The Vii Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. ^[6]

Reception [edit]

The Vii Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle reached number 1 on The Sabbatum Times Bestseller list and number v on The Sunday Times Bestseller list, earning critical acclaim.^[7]

The Guardian'south review said "With fourth dimension loops, body swaps and a psychopathic footman, this is a dazzling have on the murder mystery",^[2] while The Times said "The plot of this complex, fascinating and bewildering murder-mystery is impossible to summarise" and called it "an astonishingly polished debut".^[3]

Awards [edit]

The 7 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle won the Best First Novel prize in the 2018 Costa Volume Awards^[8] and Best Novel in the 2018 Books Are My Bag Readers' Awards,^[9] as voted for by booksellers. In the same twelvemonth, it was shortlisted for a New Writers' Award at the Specsavers National Book Awards,^[ten] Debut of the Year at The British Book Awards,^[eleven] and longlisted for a New Claret Dagger and Gilt Dagger at the CWA Awards.^[12] Val McDermid selected Stuart Turton, author of The 7 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, to appear on her prestigious New Blood console at the Theakstons Old Peculiar Crime Writing Festival.^[13] In 2019, it was shortlisted for Best Debut Novel at the Strand Magazine Critics Awards^[14] and longlisted for The Glass Bell Honour.^[fifteen]

Adaptation [edit]

In December 2020 it was announced that Netflix had bought the rights to a vii-part series adaptation of the novel produced past House Productions, who had acquired the television rights in 2018, to exist written by Sophie Petzal.^[16]

References [edit]

^ "Costa Volume Awards". Costa Book Awards. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
^ ^a ^b O'Grady, Carrie (3 March 2018). "The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton review – Quantum Leap meets Agatha Christie". The Guardian . Retrieved 23 May 2019.
^ ^a ^b Berlins, Marcel (17 February 2018). "Review: The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle past Stuart Turton — Groundhog Twenty-four hour period gets grisly". The Times . Retrieved 23 May 2019.
^ Onwuemezi, Natasha (xxx August 2017). "TV rights optioned for Turton's high concept murder mystery". Bookseller . Retrieved 23 May 2019.
^ Ravindran, Manori (13 December 2020). "Netflix Unveils New U.K. Projects With Sam Mendes, Rowan Atkinson, Andy Serkis". Multifariousness . Retrieved 15 Dec 2020.
^ "Always been curious since I love both... — The 7... Q&A". world wide web.goodreads.com . Retrieved 20 Oct 2020.
^ Bloomsbury.com. "The Vii Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle". Bloomsbury Publishing . Retrieved 26 August 2019.
^ "Costa Book Awards | Behind the beans | Costa Coffee". www.costa.co.uk . Retrieved 23 July 2019.
^ "Win £100/€120 of National Book Tokens by voting in the Books Are My Bag Readers Awards 2018". National Volume Tokens . Retrieved 23 July 2019.
^ "Shortlists". National Book Awards . Retrieved 23 July 2019.
^ "2019 Fiction Debut Book of the Year | British Volume Awards | The Bookseller". world wide web.thebookseller.com . Retrieved 23 July 2019.
^ "The Criminal offense Writers' Clan". thecwa.co.great britain . Retrieved 23 July 2019.
^ "New Blood". Harrogate International Festivals . Retrieved 23 July 2019.
^ "And the Nominees Are... The Nominees for the 2019 Strand Critics Awards | Strand Magazine". Strand Mag. 13 May 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
^ Books, Goldsboro (23 July 2019). "The Dwelling of Signed First Editions". Goldsboro Books . Retrieved 23 July 2019.
^ Hackett, Tasmin (16 December 2020). "Netflix UK picks up Turton'due south Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle". The Bookseller . Retrieved xxx Dec 2020.