If you liked
Books like The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle
by Stuart Turton
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is Stuart Turton's ingenious puzzle box, a man forced to relive the day of a murder in a different guest's body each time until he solves it. Part Agatha Christie, part Groundhog Day. If you want more clever, intricate mysteries, these are the reads.
The shortlist
What to read next
The Silent Patientby Alex Michaelides
“The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides 2019 review. A forensic psychotherapist works with an artist who has not spoken since the night she shot her husband. The thriller debut that topped the New York Times bestseller list for over a year and became the most-discussed contemporary psychological thriller of its decade.”
The Thursday Murder Clubby Richard Osman
“The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman 2020 review. Four Kent retirees who discuss cold cases weekly land an actual murder in their retirement village. Canonical contemporary British cozy mystery.”
In the Woodsby Tana French
“In the Woods by Tana French 2007 review. Dublin Murder Squad detective Rob Ryan is assigned to a child murder in the same woods where his two best friends disappeared twenty years earlier. The Edgar winner that launched the strongest contemporary literary-crime series.”
Big Little Liesby Liane Moriarty
“Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty 2014 review. Three mothers at an Australian elementary school converge on a kindergarten Trivia Night where someone will die. The contemporary domestic-suspense novel that defined the late-2010s book-club shelf.”
The Maidby Nita Prose
“The Maid by Nita Prose 2022 review. A neurodivergent hotel maid finds a guest dead in his suite and becomes the primary suspect. New York Times bestseller and the basis for the Florence Pugh film.”
Verityby Colleen Hoover
“Verity by Colleen Hoover 2018 review. A struggling writer hired to finish an injured bestseller's series finds an autobiographical manuscript in the family home. The Hoover thriller that broke out years after publication on BookTok and remains the most-discussed contemporary domestic thriller of the decade.”
FAQ
Common questions about The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle read-alikes
- I want another twisty, high-concept mystery.
- The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides is built around a single buried reveal that reorganizes the whole book, the same engineered-gotcha pleasure as Evelyn Hardcastle. Verity by Colleen Hoover pulls a lurid, un-put-downable version of the same trick.
- I want the clever mystery with more warmth.
- The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman and The Maid by Nita Prose are cozy whodunits with real heart and genuinely satisfying puzzles. Lighter than Turton, but just as fun to solve.
- I want a smarter, more literary mystery.
- In the Woods by Tana French trades some of the puzzle machinery for psychology and prose, writing crime as literature. A good pick if you want the case to haunt you as much as it puzzles you.
- I want a mystery inside a community of secrets.
- Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty opens with a death and rewinds through a town's worth of lies. Different structure from Turton's time loop, same pleasure of watching the truth assemble piece by piece.
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