I recently took the kids to Barnes and Noble to get a book. While I was there, I looked around at the new books. I always like to see what’s out and what I might want to add to my list.
They had a “Staff Recommends” shelf. There were a few on the shelf that I had already read, a few that were on my “to read” list, and some that were completely new to me. One of the new ones was by an author I had never heard of, but the title was enough for me to pick it up and see what it was about. It was called The Man Who Died Seven Times, and it peaked my interest so much, I bought it.
Over the holiday weekend, I took advantage of quiet moments and read. Most of the books I read are audio books in the car, so it was nice to sit with a physical book. From the moment I started reading it, I was hooked. I was able to read it over a three day span. Here is the Goodreads synopsis:
Hisataro, a young member of the wealthy Fuchigami family, has a mysterious ability. Every now and then, against his will, he falls into a time-loop in which he is obliged to re-live the same day nine times. Little does he know how useful this ability will be, until one day, his grandfather mysteriously dies…
As he returns to the day of the murder time and again, Hisataro begins to unravel its secrets. With a sizeable inheritance up for grabs, motives abound, and everyone is a suspect. Can Hisataro solve the mystery of his grandfather’s death, and prevent it, before his time-loop ends?
The hardest part about the book was keeping the various Japanese names strait. Thankfully, there is a helpful chart in the front of the book that keeps the family members organized and names the secondary characters. Every once in a while, I’d have to flip there to make sure I knew who I was reading about.
The story has sort of a Groundhog Day feel to it. It reminded me of Stuart Turton’s “The Seven and a Half Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle.” In that book the main character relives each day as a different character in the story. This one has the same character reliving each day.
I was surprised to learn that this book was written back in 1995 by Yasuhiko Nishizawa and recently translated to English for a 2025 release. Outside of the character names and a few Japanese references, it reads just like a good mystery.
Each day Hisataro learns something new about his grandfather’s death. Each day also presents in a way that shines the spotlight on someone who may be the murderer. I was guessing all the way through the book.
Admittedly, the ending had a nice twist to it, but I expected something a bit different. Because of the twist, it ended the way it had to I’m guessing. Don’t let my opinion keep you from reading this. It is a great book that makes you want to read “just one more chapter” before putting it down.
I should go back to Barnes and Noble and thank the staff member who recommended this one. I enjoyed it!
4.5 out of 5 stars
Various Ramblings of a Nostalgic Italian 