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ttimbrook's review against another edition
3.0
“Everyone’s life has uncharted waters - the places and people you didn’t quite manage to find - but when you feel as though you never will, it’s a special kind of sorrow.”
This was okay. I loved RPS so much and I was convinced I would love this too. Sadly, the characters were all cartoonish and silly, the writing lacked its usual cleverness, I called the final twist on page 78.
This was okay. I loved RPS so much and I was convinced I would love this too. Sadly, the characters were all cartoonish and silly, the writing lacked its usual cleverness, I called the final twist on page 78.
mia_lm's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
abias94's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
wandaka's review against another edition
4.0
4.5⭐️
This one was so good. Didn’t see the plot twists coming!!
This one was so good. Didn’t see the plot twists coming!!
libaleh_reads's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
jilliankateee's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
tiwen's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
justinkhchen's review against another edition
3.0
3 stars
Solid, with a twist (as expected). Daisy Darker is across the board extremely polished and drenched in atmosphere and style. Even though my personal reading experience was a slight letdown comparing to my initial excitement (it doesn't come near Rock Paper Scissors as my favorite Alice Feeney novel), I can still see this being an easy crowd-pleaser, and offers something a bit off-kilter to the large pool of novels directly inspired by And Then There Were None.
I'm a sucker for murder mystery involving a group of people at an isolated location, which was why I was very hyped about Alice Feeney tackling a story with such premise. However, as the story developed, I came to this realization — rivalry between teenagers and (young) siblings is not something I consider exciting in my thrillers. Daisy Darker is very much about family secrets, especially the challenging relationship between the young Darker sisters. As a reader in his mid-30s, scenes of children pretending to be sick, telling lies, and cutting up someone's dress out of jealousy just don't pack the punch I'm seeking (even if they led to dire consequences), and this novel is packed with lengthy flashbacks of such childhood moments. This is by no way a fault of the novel, and simply a personal preference; but if you picked this up because it's an Alice Feeney novel, and expecting the same adult characters focused, head-spinning, twisty plot, just know this one is a little different — more introspective and passively told.
As for the big twist, while I do like its concept and overall execution, it features an element that seems to be particularly popular among this season's thriller releases — so at about the halfway point I picked up on the clues and figured it out. Even though it did spoil the fun and make the buildup a bit dragged out and the reveal anticlimactic — I can also confidently say Daisy Darker 'cheats' very little, and if you were surprised by the ending the first time, upon re-read you'll notice the clues are plainly obvious.
The lack of my complete enthusiasm for Daisy Darker is mostly circumstantial: I wouldn't be clued in on its reveal preemptively, if I didn't just read another thriller going down the same route, and it just so happens to tell a story with an emphasis on conflicts between children — which is a subject I'm lukewarm about at most. Still, Alice Feeney's storytelling carries me through, and I can see this working as intended for a lot of readers.
Solid, with a twist (as expected). Daisy Darker is across the board extremely polished and drenched in atmosphere and style. Even though my personal reading experience was a slight letdown comparing to my initial excitement (it doesn't come near Rock Paper Scissors as my favorite Alice Feeney novel), I can still see this being an easy crowd-pleaser, and offers something a bit off-kilter to the large pool of novels directly inspired by And Then There Were None.
I'm a sucker for murder mystery involving a group of people at an isolated location, which was why I was very hyped about Alice Feeney tackling a story with such premise. However, as the story developed, I came to this realization — rivalry between teenagers and (young) siblings is not something I consider exciting in my thrillers. Daisy Darker is very much about family secrets, especially the challenging relationship between the young Darker sisters. As a reader in his mid-30s, scenes of children pretending to be sick, telling lies, and cutting up someone's dress out of jealousy just don't pack the punch I'm seeking (even if they led to dire consequences), and this novel is packed with lengthy flashbacks of such childhood moments. This is by no way a fault of the novel, and simply a personal preference; but if you picked this up because it's an Alice Feeney novel, and expecting the same adult characters focused, head-spinning, twisty plot, just know this one is a little different — more introspective and passively told.
As for the big twist, while I do like its concept and overall execution, it features an element that seems to be particularly popular among this season's thriller releases — so at about the halfway point I picked up on the clues and figured it out. Even though it did spoil the fun and make the buildup a bit dragged out and the reveal anticlimactic — I can also confidently say Daisy Darker 'cheats' very little, and if you were surprised by the ending the first time, upon re-read you'll notice the clues are plainly obvious.
The lack of my complete enthusiasm for Daisy Darker is mostly circumstantial: I wouldn't be clued in on its reveal preemptively, if I didn't just read another thriller going down the same route, and it just so happens to tell a story with an emphasis on conflicts between children — which is a subject I'm lukewarm about at most. Still, Alice Feeney's storytelling carries me through, and I can see this working as intended for a lot of readers.