Between 3−4 stars rating, 11 June 2019 Classic English Mystery with Complex Twist
By: Dion Muflia
"Anna" was the only name our protagonist remembered when he woke up in the middle of a forest. What followed after is a mad dash to save a girl, a whole day full of fear and confusion, meeting new people, and a new task ahead of him. Our timid main character wasn't really someone we would choose to solve a murder, but that is what he had to do in order to get out from Blackheath and its time... See More loop, a place so terrible it could drive its inhabitants mad. Every night, Evelyn Hardcastle will die, and it's his duty to find the killer and bring something to proof it. But, as if it wasn't hard enough, after meeting Evelyn, he decided that it was his responsibility to solve the case while keep Evelyn alive. Stuart Turton is a big fan of Agatha Christie, and it showed in his familiar choice of a setting--an old English manor full of rich yet unhappy people, servants, and everyone in between. Everyone had a motive to kill, whether it's for money, love, or revenge. Turton realized that Christie already wrote every plot twist he can think of, so he added some elements of his own: time loop and body switch. That being said, I don't usually take a book with sci-fi elements as a plot device if I can help it, so that part doesn't impress me much. I do like the story conclusion and character development. The plot are so complex and delicate, it must be hard to draft this book and keep it neat. The mystery is gripping and the antagonists are scary. "The Footman" had that boogeyman feeling and he's really hard to beat. This book is a new experience on its own.
