Reviews with content warning for Medical trauma - Daisy Darker

This book was a rollercoaster ride. There were times I couldn’t put it down and other times I couldn’t get myself to pick it up.
The last maybe third of the book flew by for me. I had a few predictions on what the twist would be and I didn’t fully figure it out, which is always nice.
It loses a few points for me just because I’m not a big fan of what the final twist was in books

(i.e. a character being a ghost but somehow one special person can see them)

but I thought that for the “trope” (if you can really call it that), it was well executed, well explained, and kept me on the edge of my seat towards the end.

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savvylit's review against another edition

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dark mysterious 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

3.0

Daisy Darker is a tough book to rate, honestly. As a thriller, it's quite entertaining and does a good job of maintaining suspense. The conclusion and reveal genuinely surprised me! I had guessed the murderer but not the circumstances. If you enjoy fast-paced mysteries, you'll probably enjoy this! The mystery itself is a four-star idea & execution.

Though I did appreciate the suspense and homages to Agatha Christie, the actual quality of writing in Daisy Darker is not great. To the point where it frequently bothered me as a reader. I rolled my eyes at many narrative decisions. When describing Daisy's family or her past, every paragraph is absolutely LOADED with similes and metaphors. This is not a direct quote but will give you an idea of what I mean: "if families are a tapestry, ours was frayed beyond repair." The first several chapters include sentences like that multiple times within single paragraphs. It's incredibly heavy-handed. We get it! The Darker family is deeply dysfunctional.

Furthermore, the chapters tend to conclude with sentences that serve as ridiculously transparent attempts at cliffhangers: "and that was a night I'll never forget" or "my sisters' relationship was never the same again." Almost every chapter ended that way and it was so unnecessary. The cliffhanger-esque details become obvious later anyway! Again with heavy-handed narration. Just tell the story.

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alireadss97's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

5.0

This book destroyed me.

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pinkpotayto's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This book used the back and forth past/present device that im not quite fond of but it was done really well in this scenario and slowly helped the mystery unfold and the questions answered themselves. Most of it you can see coming, or at least I could, but how you got there was the true mystery and it was one I was willing to be patient and wait for! I enjoyed this book! But like any murder mystery please check and be mindful of the tags!!!!!

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uranaishi's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.75

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emmehooks's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious sad fast-paced

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

4.0

Gooped, gagged, shocked (I’ve never read any Agatha Christie so I didn’t know the trope coming in). Every time I thought I had something figured out, I was wrong. Going back after I finished reading, there were so many clever hints, semantics, and clues spread in the book.

I enjoyed the blending of flashbacks and present, good pacing, and a plot I am very excited to talk about at book club!!!

The ending was quite full circle but I wish there was a little more to answer a few lingering questions. A huge build-up to such a short conclusion despite leaving so much room for more.

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