diff --git a/pypolychord/polychord.py b/pypolychord/polychord.py
index d93e02e9..e8720137 100644
--- a/pypolychord/polychord.py
+++ b/pypolychord/polychord.py
@@ -258,16 +258,16 @@ def make_resume_file(settings, loglikelihood, prior):
         sendbuf = np.array(lives).flatten()
         sendcounts = np.array(comm.gather(len(sendbuf)))
         if rank == 0:
-            recvbuf = np.empty(sum(sendcounts), dtype=int)
+            recvbuf = np.empty(sum(sendcounts))
         else:
             recvbuf = None
         comm.Gatherv(sendbuf=sendbuf, recvbuf=(recvbuf, sendcounts), root=0)
 
-        lives = np.reshape(sendbuf, (len(settings.cube_samples), len(lives[0])))
-    else:
-        lives = np.array(lives)
-
     if rank == 0:
+        if MPI:
+            lives = np.reshape(recvbuf, (len(settings.cube_samples), len(lives[0])))
+        else:
+            lives = np.array(lives)
         with open(resume_filename,"w") as f:
             def write(var):
                 var = np.atleast_1d(var)