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A review by saltygalreads
Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney
3.0
"I was born with a broken heart." What an opening line!
Daisy Darker is only a child and yet she has died several times in her young life. She suffers from a congenital heart valve disorder and has been brought back from the brink of death on more than one occasion. The youngest of three girls, Daisy struggles to find her place in the world and even in her own family. Treated badly by her two self-absorbed and selfish older sisters and dealing with the fallout of her parents' divorce and difficult relationship, Daisy finds comfort and beauty at Seaglass, her Nana's cottage by the sea. For Nana's 80th birthday, there is a very special celebration at Seaglass and they all gather; but then someone leaves a sinister rhyme about the family members dying. One by one they begin to die as the rhyme comes true - can Daisy figure out what is happening before it is too late?
This novel has a haunting, plaintive atmosphere, set at Seaglass with its rolling waves and creaking timbers. Daisy is a very memorable and likeable character, not because she is perfect but rather because she is not. She is as engaging as the other characters are mostly repulsive. The novel has many twists and turns, while the action is practically nonstop, keeping the reader speculating throughout. There were some unsatisfactory gaps which left me with questions, but I will not elaborate at the risk of spoilers. And the ending leaves you sitting like an idiot, with your mouth gaping.
All in all - a very entertaining story which most mystery/thriller readers will love.
Daisy Darker is only a child and yet she has died several times in her young life. She suffers from a congenital heart valve disorder and has been brought back from the brink of death on more than one occasion. The youngest of three girls, Daisy struggles to find her place in the world and even in her own family. Treated badly by her two self-absorbed and selfish older sisters and dealing with the fallout of her parents' divorce and difficult relationship, Daisy finds comfort and beauty at Seaglass, her Nana's cottage by the sea. For Nana's 80th birthday, there is a very special celebration at Seaglass and they all gather; but then someone leaves a sinister rhyme about the family members dying. One by one they begin to die as the rhyme comes true - can Daisy figure out what is happening before it is too late?
This novel has a haunting, plaintive atmosphere, set at Seaglass with its rolling waves and creaking timbers. Daisy is a very memorable and likeable character, not because she is perfect but rather because she is not. She is as engaging as the other characters are mostly repulsive. The novel has many twists and turns, while the action is practically nonstop, keeping the reader speculating throughout. There were some unsatisfactory gaps which left me with questions, but I will not elaborate at the risk of spoilers. And the ending leaves you sitting like an idiot, with your mouth gaping.
All in all - a very entertaining story which most mystery/thriller readers will love.