Reviews tagging 'Terminal illness'

Daisy Darker : A Novel by Alice Feeney, Alice Feeney

48 reviews

_savannahreads_'s review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Grief, Murder, Body horror, Death of parent, and Terminal illness

Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Gun violence, and Medical trauma

thatswhatshanread's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

It was a dark and stormy night… okay, but really—it was a dark and stormy night on an isolated island off the coast of Cornwall, where an estranged family has gathered for Nana Darker’s 80th birthday. Albeit awkward considering their weird family dynamic, a tense celebration of sorts ensues until Nana turns up dead at the stroke of midnight. One by one, the family members disappear accompanied by cryptic, poetic messages, but whodunit?? 

I can’t say too much without giving the whole story away, but this was a fun murder mystery! For sure a more modern take on Agatha Christie mysteries with a little “Knives Out” action. It also reminded me, at times, of “The Prestige” and “Shutter Island”. 

I will say that I guessed the final twists fairly early on, but still felt the satisfying shock when they were unveiled, as some pieces I definitely had not put together. 

The writing style was great, though I did find the book a little too long, and some of the flashbacks stunted the flow of the story a tad. Also, don’t go into this one expecting to like any of the characters—some I rather loathed, which was part of the point of course. 

Overall, a very on-brand read for Halloween season!!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Suicide, Alcoholism, Car accident, Child abuse, Death of parent, Grief, Infidelity, Abandonment, Child death, Chronic illness, Gore, Alcohol, Violence, Addiction, Blood, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Terminal illness, Death, Medical content, and Murder

Moderate: Drug use, Vomit, Sexual content, Animal death, Body shaming, Suicidal thoughts, and Cursing

dalmavatai's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I really, really don't understand why people seem to be enjoying this one so much. Instead of atmospheric, this book was unbelievably boring almost from beginning to end. The twist was good though so that's why it's not a 1🌟.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Murder, Alcoholism, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Child abuse

Minor: Suicide

amandaglowgetter's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Murder, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, and Bullying

Minor: Fatphobia and Body shaming

sampetsdogs's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Y'all, she did it again. Alice Feeney is the QUEEN of plot twists and Daisy Darker left my jaw on the floor. She kept me guessing the entire time! This book is so disturbing and intriguing and, honestly, mind-blowing. 100% recommend!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Bullying

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Abandonment, Addiction, Child death, Death, Grief, and Terminal illness

Minor: Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Death of parent

evieolive's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-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

3.0

Wasn't a fan of the writing style, but a fun, easy to read book, and I liked the twist well enough.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Murder, Terminal illness, Adult/minor relationship, Child death, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Physical abuse, Blood, Child abuse, Bullying, Death of parent, Car accident, and Alcoholism

Minor: Suicide, Fatphobia, Violence, Gore, Drug use, and Grief

addysongilmore's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

When I first started reading this book I didn't love it because I didn't feel connected to the characters. When I got to about 100 pages left aka the plot twists I fell in love with this book. And because I don't want to give anything away I'll just let you know from the beginning of the book the writing was an A++ along with the details and overall plot.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Gaslighting, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Torture, Sexual harassment, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gore, Alcohol, Animal death, Car accident, Child death, and Confinement

taleofabibliophile's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Alcohol, Terminal illness, Death, Suicide, Murder, Bullying, Death of parent, Alcoholism, Animal death, and Grief

Moderate: Blood, Suicide attempt, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Car accident, Gun violence, Medical content, and Cursing

Minor: Fatphobia, Sexual content, and Ableism