Mystery

Daisy Darker

Author: Alice Feeney

Average Rating: 3.38 / 5

Trigger Warnings:

Birthday parties can often lead to fights and tension, especially when a family is already estranged. Murder, however, is less common. 

No one can deny Nana’s request that the whole Darker family descend on Seaglass for her 80th birthday party. Seaglass, a drafty old manor, is located on a small tidal island and everyone is set to arrive before the tide cuts them off from the mainland for eight hours.

More than one secret has made the trip. Everyone has something to hide from the others, and Nana has been saying for years that she won’t live past eighty. When she chooses tonight to reveal her will, no one is happy. But they never expected to find her dead in the kitchen at midnight. Which family member was upset enough to resort to homicide? But when the next family member follows her to the grave, it’s hard to deny that something bigger is at play. 

Trapped on an island, being killed off one by one, the Darkers will be forced to face a final reckoning where long buried secrets will be revealed as the tide goes out. 

Corinna : 3.5/5 

My first reaction was I enjoyed the book, it kept me entertained and wanting to keep reading to reveal the mystery. But once the story was completed, I looked back and could find a few holes that lessened my initial impression. Nana’s house (Seaglass) on an English beachside that was cut-off from the world with the coming and going of the tide was a fun, interesting setting and an integral part of the story. I loved the layout of the story, going back and forth between Daisy’s childhood and the present. It was an effective way of discovering the information at the right pace. The reveal about Daisy was definitely a surprise and the details of it I did not see coming, but the final unveiling of the whodunnit was a little unbelievable. There were a lot of logistical things that were just too implausible. But I would still recommend Daisy Darker to friends, as it gave me the creeps – in a good way – numerous times and kept me wanting to know more. 

Lydia : 3/5 

Daisy Darker was one of the dullest mystery novels I have ever read. Daisy was boring as a character and I couldn’t understand why – even after reading the entire book, I still thought she was bland. For a book with a title like “Daisy Darker” I just expected more from the ‘star’ of the show. 

This book is written in past and present timelines which I thought enhanced the story as we were given some good background information about the motivations of the characters. Surprisingly there were no redeeming characters, which is rare. Usually an author will decide to put at least one in to keep the reader engrossed – this is one of the reasons why I gave it a three star rating because I just wasn’t invested. 

It took far too long to get to the actual meat of the story and the reasonings for why certain events were unfolding. I did enjoy the ultimate twist at the end as I didn’t find it to be predictable and was pleasantly surprised at how it all was revealed. 

Overall it was meh. Feeney is amazing at writing twists but her character development needs work. I won’t read this book again but I do think it is worth reading if you like suspense and mystery. 

Megan : 3.5/5 

I picked this book because it was different than most of our usual book club suggestions. For a murder mystery, there were way more twists and turns than I expected. And my word, things got spooky! Flashbacks via old VHS tapes left in abandoned rooms added to the creepiness and was a great way to reveal what had happened to the family in the past. Feeney did a good job on the more chilling aspects of the story. She kept me guessing as to who was behind the murders, but it was the motive as to why this was happening that really shocked me. 

I kept waiting for some redeemable quality to present itself in any of the Darker family members, but none came. There was only satisfaction in knowing that each family member got what they deserved in the end. I did enjoy this novel, and the discussion about the story was engaging. I may not pick this one up again, but I would wholeheartedly pick up another book by Alice Feeney in the future.

Sharaya : 3.5/5 

This murder mystery kept me guessing with a side of delicious spine tingles. The ending had an unexpected twist despite one of my guesses being dead on (see what I did there?) Daisy Darker definitely feels like a British mystery that happens on a craggy hill in an old manor house and the tidal barricade was a nice element. There was lots of unease and dread that built steadily. Flashbacks throughout the novel were well done and served to provide context for this very dysfunctional family.

There were some issues, however, with the way the mystery was crafted. I’m dubious that it would work, logistically speaking. It almost makes me want to go back for a reread, now that I know the answers, but I don’t think that this book would stand up well to a second go-round. One other aspect that I struggled with is that I didn’t find any of the characters particularly appealing. I did like Nana, but she’s not exactly around for long. Most of the other family members are very disagreeable and I found Daisy to be bland for a main character. 

Overall, I’d say that this was an intriguing read that kept me guessing. I definitely want to try another of Feeney’s books, as she has an interesting writing style. 

To access a printable list of 10 book club questions, please click here.