Published: August 18th, 2022
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Genre: Thriller, Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Gothic Fiction
Format: Hardcover, Kindle, Audiobook
Today I’m sharing my review for the atmospheric and consuming Daisy Darker. Thank you to BookBreak UK and Pan Macmillan for the gifted ARC and for organising the readalong.
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SYNOPSIS:
Daisy Darker is an all-consuming tale of psychological suspense with a spectacular twist from the internationally bestselling author Alice Feeney.
Daisy Darker’s family were as dark as dark can be, when one of them died all of them lied and pretended not to see . . .
Daisy Darker is arriving at her grandmother’s house for her eightieth birthday. It is Halloween, and Seaglass – the crumbling Cornish house perched upon its own tiny private island – is at one with the granite rocks it sits on. The Darker family haven’t all been in the same place for over a decade, and when the tide comes in they’ll be cut off from the rest of the world for eight hours. When the tide goes back out, nothing will ever be the same again, because one of them is a killer . . .
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MY REIVEW:
“Daisy Darker’s family were as dark as can be.
When one of them died, all of them lied and pretended not to see…”
Daisy Darker arrives at Seaglass, her grandmother’s house on a private island on the Cornish coast, to celebrate her eightieth birthday. They are soon joined by the rest of the Darker family and Daisy is feeling apprehensive about seeing her whole family for the first time in a decade. As the tide comes in and isolates them on the island for eight hours, one of them is found dead. With a killer in their midst and no means of escape, how many of them will survive the night…
What. A. Book! Sinister, spooky and utterly brilliant, this was not only one of my favourite reads of last month, but one of my favourite of all time. I love a claustrophobic and creepy novel and there is nothing better for those vibes than a dysfunctional family full of dark secrets that are trapped in an old house with no means of escape or contacting the outside world. It adds an air of mystery and foreboding that hovers over the story from the first pages and sets the scene for what is to come. As the bodies pile up the terror rises and you could cut the tension with a knife. A cloud of suspicion hangs over everyone, including Daisy, and you have no idea who to trust.
The Darker family are a cast of complex, unlikeable and unreliable characters. They are a minefield of toxicity and dysfunction, the extent of which is unravelled slowly through flashbacks. I could understand why Daisy hadn’t seen them in so long and was dreading spending time with them. But Nana was different; an ebullient and caring character who totally stole the show and was my favourite family member. I could understand why Daisy loved her and cherished their relationship. Narrator Daisy seems to be a quite timid character who doesn’t give us any obvious reasons not to trust her yet there was just something that felt off about her from the start. This gave the book a magnetic quality I couldn’t resist as I love when you have an unreliable narrator or a character who you have no idea if they are friend or foe.
Alice Feeney can always be relied upon to deliver a first-class psychological thriller. But this time she really outdid herself, expertly messing with our minds as she delivered twist after twist. A ticking time bomb of lies, misdirection and sheer dread, I was on the edge of my seat and it wreaked havoc on my blood pressure. But there was also an old-fashioned murder mystery feel to the story that I loved and made it easy to imagine this being adapted for the screen.
Atmospheric, unnerving and consuming, Daisy Darker is a jaw-dropping masterpiece of a thriller that will linger long after reading. Just make sure you have a block of free time available before picking it up, because once you start you won’t be putting it down until you’ve read the last page.
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✮
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Alice Feeney is a New York Times bestselling author and journalist. Her debut novel, Sometimes I Lie, was an international bestseller and has been translated into over twenty languages. His & Hers is being adapted for screen by Jessica Chastain’s Freckle Films. Rock Paper Scissors is her fourth novel and is also being made into a TV series for Netflix by the producer of The Crown.
Alice was a BBC Journalist for fifteen years, and now lives in the British countryside with her family.
Daisy Darker is her fifth novel.
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BUY THE BOOK:
Waterstones | Amazon | Bookshop.org
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Thanks for reading Bibliophiles 😊 Emma xxxx
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