Daisy Darker is an unusual book, telling of a series of murders and describing a seriously dysfunctional family. It has a fairytale type vibe to it as well as being a whodunnit. I found it to be a bit tiresome, especially in relation to the many rhymes included within the text. Nevertheless I wanted to continue to read to the end as I had no idea how it would turn out. The ending was as strange as the rest of the book. A poor choice for me.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review the book.

They haven’t seen each other for years but the Darker family are reuniting to celebrate Nana’s 80th birthday, each with a closely-guarded secret of their own. Gathered together at Seaglass, Nana’s strange Gothic mansion on a tiny Cornish island, a horrendous storm and the tides mean that the family are trapped together for a whole night. But at midnight, Nana is found dead at the bottom of the stairs and an hour later, another family member is dead. Someone is picking the Darkers off one by one and they won’t stop until the past has been dealt with. I am obsessed with isolated thrillers and despite having read many of them, they still manage to put the chills into me. Daisy Darker was such a deliciously riveting, pitch-black read. It’s very claustrophobic, very twisty and pays excellent homage to And Then There Were None, while still being its own story. It features plenty of toxic family relationships and some horrific secrets with some truly abhorrent characters. Alice Feeney is fast becoming one of my favourite thriller writers because I can never put her books down.

This author has done it again with another fantastic twisty thriller and I could not put this down., a very well written plot line and an engaging plot from start to finish

I liked the overall writing style of this one. The setting of the picturesque island and strong characters kept me interested. I enjoyed the way the sorry flipped between childhood memories and present. It felt a great way to gain some depth into the back stories.

I’m disappointed however that I guessed all 3 of the major twists of this story. I was hoping I’d be pleasantly surprised and had kept an open mind but I got every single one. Sometimes this doesn’t detract from the story for me, but on this occasion it really did. I don’t want to say too much about these in case I accidentally spoil anything!

Ended up giving this one a 3/5.

An interesting take on the novel by Agatha Christie.

A shocking twist . Interesting set of characters.

An enjoyable locked room whodunnit mystery that pays homage to Agatha Christie's "And Then There Were None". It's Halloween, Daisy and her family are invited to her Nana's remote island home for her 80th birthday. Then things turn deadly serious as they spend the night trying to outwit a killer. A twisty psychological thriller that's deliciously suspenseful.

This book was not what I have been reading recently and it was a lovely refreshing read weirdly!
With a messed up family birthday party turning to murder it had me guessing all the way through. I would say maybe a little predictable but it didn’t ruin the whole vibe of the book! I love the thrillers where its a family with secrets, kind of reminds me of The Christmas Murder Games. I was very grateful to have received a very popular read of 2022 would definitely recommend!

Daisy Darker was born with a broken heart...literally, and as a result her family has forced her to lead a sheltered life. The family seems to have drifted apart, but are reunited on the eve of Nana's 80th birthday....Then...bad things start happening....

This was really dark and atmospheric, I felt that Alice really did that well. I was on edge at night when I was reading this...checking the door, hearing sounds, etc....so I love how she did that.

I however did predict the plot twist and I felt like the flashbacks didn't add anything to the overall story, except the one flashback that counted.

Alice is great at doing stories with unreliable narrators and plot twists that make you gasp....I'm sure there are many people that absolutely loved this book!

What to say about Daisy Darker other than wow just wow? What a fantastic read. Keeps you on your toes with twists that you don't expect. An exciting and fast-paced read that packs many punches.

Colby Mills once felt destined for a musical career, but tragedy grounded his dreams. Now the dust has settled, he spontaneously takes a gig playing at a bar in Florida, seeking a rare break from his duties at home.

I enjoyed this locked room mystery from Alice Feeney! There's something about a family meeting in an isolated setting where you know there are tensions and issues but you can't quite put your finger on what is going on. I felt like I'd worked out one of the twists but I didn't fully have it right and I love that it shocked me in where it went. This is a great read for the cold, winter nights ahead!

Wow where do I begin with this one? I’ve read most of Feeney’s books but this is my favourite. I have no clue how any ramblings will do this book justice.

Daisy Darker is a book that is addictive, captivating and completely unputdownable. I have been completely enthralled and unable to put this down. I have devoured this book in just one sitting.

The Darker family are not at al what they seem. Feeney really does show us that appearances can be deceptive in this one. I have been completely unable to predict where this was going and have been left speechless.

This centres on a very dysfunctional family and one with many unlikeable characters. Despite that, I have felt as though I have been there with the characters.

Daisy Darker is definitely screen worthy. This is a book that will pull you in, grip your attention and be completely captivating until you read the very last page.

Feeney has written a real gem with this book. This is completely unpredictable, unique and definitely the best book by this author yet.

I have nothing negative I can say about this book. I have loved everything about it. I will be recommending this book to everyone. A book truly worthy of all the praise.

I had tons of fun reading Daisy Darker, and I ended up inhaling it in full the actual day before Halloween -- the same day the events in the book start -- making for a fun coincidence.

I'd recommend this to anyone who's looking for a fresh take on the classic whodunit, as there's always something with Alice Feeney (iykyk). I also enjoyed learning that this book is the author's personal favourite of her books, because it is definitely now mine as well.

This is Alice Feeney’s fifth standalone psychological thriller and I have read and loved them all. I had said in my previous reviews that Alice should be renamed Queen of Unreliable Narrators as no-one does this better, in my humble opinion.

If you think you know what a dysfunctional family is, then you haven’t met the Darker’s yet. Estranged from each other for years, The Darker family have all reunited to celebrate Nana’s 80th birthday on Halloween at her home, Seaglass, situated on a tiny tidal island which is cut off from the rest of world every night when the tide comes in.

Our narrator, Daisy Darker, is the youngest of 3 sisters, born “broken” with a heart condition, her entire childhood was spent isolated from everyone except her mother Nancy and devoted grandma Nana and rather nasty older sisters Rose and Lily.

Eccentric Nana (Beatrice Darker) is a very successful and famous children’s author and illustrator, her best selling book Daisy Darker’s Little Secret has ensured financial security and enabled her to help support her family, although once you meet the rest of this motley crew you might ask why she would want to!

With a cast of 8 characters who are mostly unlikeable, Daisy Darker is an absolute page-turner. Once the entire, insufferable Darker family have arrived at Seaglass to celebrate Nana’s special birthday, the shenanigan’s begin. Firstly, Nana has changed her Will to the horror of her offspring and then at the stroke of midnight, one of the Darker family is found lying in a pool of blood in the kitchen and a strange and ominous poem has been left on the wall.

From that moment on, the book takes a creepy and sinister turn, as the bodies start to pile up, clues are being left to be found and the Darker Family are forced to face up to their past.

Our narrator, Daisy, takes the reader back to her childhood and we learn more about why this family is so dysfunctional and why they haven’t seen each other for years. Each chapter leaves you on a cliff-hanger and I found myself reading “just one more chapter” until 2am last night when I finished the book.

Daisy Darker is simply SUPERB. However, I must also mention Alice Feeney’s beautiful prose. Her writing is absolutely wonderful and I wish I had highlighted some of the hundreds of fabulous quotes from this book so I can share them with you, but alas I was too busy turning the pages devouring Daisy Darker.

Lots of reviewers have used the word “clever” to describe this book. I would agree but also add “sublime”. This really is a masterclass in suspense and a book that I highly recommended to fans of thrillers.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.

“Families are like fingerprints; no two are the same, and they tend to leave their mark.”

PS. I went back to the book and found some examples of these wonderful quotes

“If you spend your present focusing on your past you will never change your future.”

“Everyone you know is both good and bad, it’s part of being human.”

“Childhood is a race to find out who you really are, before you become the person you are going to be. Not everybody wins.”

“The reason why someone is lying is almost always more interesting than the lie itself.”

“When Lily loses her temper, she’s the only one who can find it again”

Absolutely loved this book! What a brilliant read. I loved the way this story was plotted and alternates between present and past as the story comes together. As for the ending, it really was a surprise. This is one of those books that it is hard to say too much about whiteout giving too much away, but what I can say is it a cleverly written, and fast paced thriller.

Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney
I was not expecting much from this book, but I definitely was not disappointed. Feeney creates the perfect atmosphere a private, isolated island on Halloween in the middle of a storm. This book was perfectly written with the intricate plot and prose which kept me gripped at every moment.
"Don't spend all of your ambition on other peoples dreams."
Daisy was diagnosed with a heart condition when she was little and since then she has not been allowed to do anything a normal child could do growing up. When the family is brought together on Halloween night for Nana’s birthday only for her eighty clocks to strike midnight and a scream to echo round the house. A creepy message on the wall and Nana dead on the floor with secrets about the family written in the poem.
The atmosphere in this book was perfect with the mysterious island and the storm. It gave a cozy atmosphere that you could just sit and read for hours. It makes it the perfect book for this autumn on a rainy day. Seaglass house is also beautiful with its unique design, the eighty clocks on the wall and the crazy colour pallets.
“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…”
This was definitely a mystery that gave the impression of a locked room mystery. The metaphors and the lyrical writing were beautiful but what really gripped me was the small poems about the family at the endings of the chapters. Each one was so interesting to read and only added to the mystery of the story. The atmosphere is perfectly written and the vintage elements such as the VHS tapes and the clocks on the walls makes this feel extremely homely.
This followed a dual timeline with half taking part in Daisy’s childhood and the other half taking part in the present. I preferred the childhood perspective which captured my attention a lot more and the twist really took me by surprise. At some points the present storyline seemed to follow the same plotline and became a little repetitive but otherwise was really interesting to see the family dynamics throughout.
Daisy Darker was definitely filled with twists and turns some of which were unfortunately predictable however, a lot of them I did not see coming. The ending was definitely a shock and whilst it could have been explained a little bit less, I did enjoy how the entire story was brought together, both the past and the present narrative.
The characters in this are flawed and imperfect bit fascinating to read about. They are really dysfunctional and unlikable, but they captivate you. This is a very character driven book which really explored the characters backgrounds extensively which made me feel as though I personally knew the characters. Especially the Nan who was amazing with her palm reading and her pink and purple clothing which I loved so much.
Alice Feeney is an author that I have not read before, but I will definitely be checking her backlog of books because I loved this one so much. I ended up giving it four stars simply for the fact that the childhood point of view kept my attention so much more than the present. It was so much fun and so perfect for the autumn time.
Thank you for NetGalley for providing me with this copy in return for a review.

I read this novel whilst in Cornwall in October and this definitely added to my enjoyment of this twisty and atmospheric read!
Daisy Darker arrives at Seaglass, her grandmother's home on a private island off the Cornish coast. She is soon joined by other members of the dysfunctional Darker family- her sisters, niece and divorced parents and one by one the family members are murdered.
There is an Agatha Christie feel to the novel with both the plot and setting and I found it to be a genuinely scary and compelling read. It does start off slowly but picks up pace as we are introduced to the Darker family and their relationships with each other. I loved the combination of a family saga, a coastal setting and a crime novel and would highly recommend this.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.

A perfect spooky season read!!

I’m so glad I waited until October to read this because it really got me in the mood for Halloween. Daisy Darker is a locked-room murder mystery with lots of charm but with a definite sinister edge. I initially found all the flash blacks a little annoying because I was so invested in the present (2004) day plot, but the more I read the more the mystery unraveled and I was hookedI loved how it slowly started to come together but also really shocked me too. It also actually scared me in some places and I found myself looking over my shoulder a bit, which doesn’t often happen to me with books.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have thoroughly enjoyed this book. Really enjoyable, a thriller with philosophical insights, Very well written and with a serious claustrophobic atmosphere.
The feeling of being trapped on an island was very well described.
It shows the tensions that can exist between even close families.
I loved it and would recommend to readers who want to enjoy a good thriller.

I normally love Alice Feeney books but for some reason I could not get into this book so unfortunately I have not finished reading it yet.