Caroline Hulse has found favour with readers through her first four books, but – writing under the C.E. Hulse moniker – ‘Vivian Dies Again’ is her first crime novel. The titular, mid-30s protagonist, is something of a black sheep, certainly to her family, because she still lives like a student. Vivian shares a house with a friend (a friend who is increasingly annoyed by her slovenly behaviour), she drinks too much, she pops all manner of drugs, and she’s not adverse to shagging in disabled toilets when the opportunity presents itself. She’s also having an affair with Mark, a married man, which proves awkward as Mark is going to be with his wife, Jess, at a gathering that Vivian is due to attend. The gathering is a celebration of the lives of Harry (Vivian’s uncle) and his wife Alison, who both died in a car crash one year earlier. At the do – which is being held on the top floor of a science museum – Vivian tries to keep it together by plying herself with booze, but when she’s pushed off a balcony, by someone unseen, it looks like curtains. However, she’s roused by a waiter who tells her that this is the 84th time this has happened. Turns out Vivian is stuck in a time loop. She keeps dying, but then wakes and the party resets itself. Vivian and the waiter must then stick their Groundhog Day hats on in order to stop her murder. It’s a high concept conceit, but it works because the narrative engages right from the get-go and everything is laced with humour throughout. RM

Published by Viper