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turrean's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
A marvel! This was a tightly plotted, tense, thrilling puzzle.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Child death, and Death
Moderate: Torture, Suicide attempt, Confinement, Fatphobia, Gore, and Suicide
nikimorr's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
What a wild ride! This book hooked me from the start with a man waking up without a single memory except one name. That very first character is by far my favorite as it becomes immediately apparent how creative this book’s concept is and you really have no idea what’s to come. After that, the same “person” lives in 8 different characters reliving the same day from different bodies/perspectives to solve the murder of Evelyn Hardcastle, and we don’t know why until the very end.
The setting is just as creative and incredible as the character concept - Blackheath House, a mansion crumbling to the ground. A party with the exact same guests as those 19 years prior - when the hosts’ son was murdered during the party. We never quite know when or where in the world this party all takes place, leaving it all up to the imagination. Totally original and unique!
By the end, admittedly, it can feel difficult to keep all the details straight; however, the author is kind enough to add extra reminders throughout about who someone is or a detail I’d forgotten. With the last few perspectives, it is almost impossible to completely keep up with every detail, but you realize it does not matter - it’ll all come together, and the author is intentionally keeping you, the reader, in the dark for the big finale.
I was definitely cheering for our main character to solve it all by the end. One thing remains clear - he is a good person. But was he always a good person?
SPOILERS AHEAD - My favorite part about the ending is not learning exactly what happened to Evelyn Hardcastle as it is learning why Aiden and Anna are there. What a concept for a PRISON! And for Aiden, it really is a prison, and you feel it with him throughout the book. Learning that Anna, who Aiden comes to love and trust is truly his enemy, is a true thinking moment for the reader. Can people change? Are some people worth saving even after committing horrible crimes? What really is our true nature? One thing that stuck with me is that Aiden finally succeeded in solving the mystery when he truly was a kind and good person throughout - maybe the good guys do win in the end.
The setting is just as creative and incredible as the character concept - Blackheath House, a mansion crumbling to the ground. A party with the exact same guests as those 19 years prior - when the hosts’ son was murdered during the party. We never quite know when or where in the world this party all takes place, leaving it all up to the imagination. Totally original and unique!
By the end, admittedly, it can feel difficult to keep all the details straight; however, the author is kind enough to add extra reminders throughout about who someone is or a detail I’d forgotten. With the last few perspectives, it is almost impossible to completely keep up with every detail, but you realize it does not matter - it’ll all come together, and the author is intentionally keeping you, the reader, in the dark for the big finale.
I was definitely cheering for our main character to solve it all by the end. One thing remains clear - he is a good person. But was he always a good person?
SPOILERS AHEAD - My favorite part about the ending is not learning exactly what happened to Evelyn Hardcastle as it is learning why Aiden and Anna are there. What a concept for a PRISON! And for Aiden, it really is a prison, and you feel it with him throughout the book. Learning that Anna, who Aiden comes to love and trust is truly his enemy, is a true thinking moment for the reader. Can people change? Are some people worth saving even after committing horrible crimes? What really is our true nature? One thing that stuck with me is that Aiden finally succeeded in solving the mystery when he truly was a kind and good person throughout - maybe the good guys do win in the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Classism, Death, Murder, and Confinement
Moderate: Blood, Violence, Alcohol, Stalking, and Animal death
breadbummer's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
On the whole, it's an interesting premise. What if someone took your run-of-the-mill Victorian murder mystery but twisted it a little to make it so the same person was living the same day over and over again in other people's bodies? In my case, as someone who's always found sleuth stories about rich people getting murdered at fancy parties to be cheesy and repetitive, I found this story to be...well, cheesy and repetitive. Not repetitive in itself, but it uses the types of characters and themes typically found in this genre.
As far as content goes, whenever a cis man writes a book like this with not a few female characters in it, I expect a "she breasted boobily down the stairs" moment to show itself before too terribly long or at least for pretty much all the women to fall for the central male character (no matter how strongly they're written) but, to my pleasant surprise, I don't ever actually remember this happening. HOWEVER!!! If you're particularly sensitive to fatphobia, don't bother even touching this book, much less opening it up. The rather long section in which the main character goes through the day as Ravencourt is punctuated pretty much every sentence or two with disgust of the host's body. It got to be so uncomfortable that I almost dropped the book entirely if it weren't for the fact that I was behind on my reading goal.
I just finished it like half an hour ago, so my take on the ending might still need some time to cook, but I think I enjoyed it. I certainly got got about who the culprit ended up being (which took me some time to appreciate more), and I thought the idea of this whole scenario of Blackheath being kind of likethe episode "White Christmas" from Black Mirror absolutely fascinating to say the least (still wondering if the events at the mansion actually happened earlier on in the timeline and that the plague doctors gained control of it or if absolutely everything was conjured up by them). I was originally gonna go with a rating of 3.25, but these final twists bumped it up a bit.
As far as content goes, whenever a cis man writes a book like this with not a few female characters in it, I expect a "she breasted boobily down the stairs" moment to show itself before too terribly long or at least for pretty much all the women to fall for the central male character (no matter how strongly they're written) but, to my pleasant surprise, I don't ever actually remember this happening. HOWEVER!!! If you're particularly sensitive to fatphobia, don't bother even touching this book, much less opening it up. The rather long section in which the main character goes through the day as Ravencourt is punctuated pretty much every sentence or two with disgust of the host's body. It got to be so uncomfortable that I almost dropped the book entirely if it weren't for the fact that I was behind on my reading goal.
I just finished it like half an hour ago, so my take on the ending might still need some time to cook, but I think I enjoyed it. I certainly got got about who the culprit ended up being (which took me some time to appreciate more), and I thought the idea of this whole scenario of Blackheath being kind of like
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Fatphobia, Murder, Child death, Suicide, Body shaming, Stalking, and Classism
Moderate: Self harm, Gun violence, Confinement, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual assault, Drug use, Animal death, Rape, Car accident, Blood, and Body horror
guessgreenleaf's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Suicide attempt, Fatphobia, Death, Classism, Child death, Blood, Dysphoria, Sexual assault, Gun violence, Drug abuse, Alcohol, Violence, and Grief
Moderate: Torture and Confinement
lizziaha's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
3.25
I have to give it to the author for the sheer complexity of the story, as well as making each of the 8 hosts distinctly different characters, but after that, this book is just average. I didn’t feel like the characters really had motivations behind their actions, more like they were just playing the parts. And despite the fact that the men far outnumbered the women, not a single woman came across as complex or multi dimensional. As for the plot twists, I either guessed them or didn’t really care about them, so I didn’t really feel the need to keep turning the page.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Body shaming, Fatphobia, Ableism, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Rape, Child death, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicide, and Violence
Minor: Confinement, Drug use, Death of parent, and Addiction
throwback682's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This was a really surprising and fascinating concept.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Gaslighting, Drug abuse, Blood, Death of parent, Suicide, Body shaming, Murder, Child death, Confinement, Death, and Fatphobia
Oh my God the fatphobia about Ravenscourt was BEYOND EGREGIOUS. I almost DNF’d over it. I wish the author would put out a revised edition without all that garbage. He explained the experience of suddenlytrippalli's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This starts out is a Sherlock Holmes style " who done it" but evolves into a philosophical reflection on life, evil, and forgiveness...a race to escape a bizarre philosophical prison, more like Sartre's "No Exit".
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Suicide attempt, Confinement, Murder, Suicide, Torture, and Stalking
Moderate: Child death, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Alcohol
strawberrytheauthor's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Honestly the beginning of the book is kind of slow and frustrating because you know nothing just as Aiden Bishop (the main character) knows nothing. He doesn’t even know his name. It picks up though and then it is a crazy ride.
I tried making multiple guesses about the things that were going to happen in the book but I was often wrong. There were a lot of twists and turns and I definitely did not see the final twist coming.
When I started reading I thought it would be a four star book at most but it really delivered. When I got to the final day I was worried that all the plot holes would remain holes, but Turton made sure that everything got wrapped up in a neat, tidy bow.
I loved this book and would read it again.
I tried making multiple guesses about the things that were going to happen in the book but I was often wrong. There were a lot of twists and turns and I definitely did not see the final twist coming.
When I started reading I thought it would be a four star book at most but it really delivered. When I got to the final day I was worried that all the plot holes would remain holes, but Turton made sure that everything got wrapped up in a neat, tidy bow.
I loved this book and would read it again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Infidelity, Animal death, Blood, Classism, Death, Murder, Alcohol, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Gun violence, Child death, Suicide attempt, and Violence
Moderate: Drug use, Self harm, Bullying, and Torture
Minor: Medical content, Rape, and Sexual content
calicat42's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Every time I finished a chapter I had no idea what to expect in the next one… and I GASPED at the ending. What a rollercoaster it was to get through the book!
Most excitingly was that I constantly felt like I was the main character living each day as each new “host.” Since you only learn what the characters know, you have no choice but to get into the characters’ minds, experience what they’re each experiencing, and hope that the days aren’t wasted.
Incredibly immersive.
My only complaint is that the ending didn’t really feel connected to the rest of the book. Maybe if I went back to read it now I could see the signs and clues better, but sooo much information came out in the last few pages that I got a bit lost in how everything connected.
Most excitingly was that I constantly felt like I was the main character living each day as each new “host.” Since you only learn what the characters know, you have no choice but to get into the characters’ minds, experience what they’re each experiencing, and hope that the days aren’t wasted.
Incredibly immersive.
My only complaint is that the ending didn’t really feel connected to the rest of the book. Maybe if I went back to read it now I could see the signs and clues better, but sooo much information came out in the last few pages that I got a bit lost in how everything connected.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Bullying, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Stalking, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Classism, Blood, Confinement, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Toxic friendship, Drug use, Kidnapping, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Death of parent
ktdakotareads's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Addiction, Blood, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gaslighting, Bullying, Drug use, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Toxic relationship