So Stormi has made it one of her goals to read more thrillers this year so she is including me in on the ones I am interested in. So January started out with a bang in that I don't remember the last time I actively despised a book so bad. So read on for my thoughts and then hop over to Stormi's at Storm Reads to see her's.
TITLE: Daisy Darker
AUTHOR: ALice Feeney
PUBLISHER: Flatiron Books
PUBLISHING DATE: August 30, 2022
PAGES: 352
SOURCE: Library
FROM GOODREADS: After years of avoiding each other, Daisy Darker’s entire family is assembling for Nana’s 80th birthday party in Nana’s crumbling gothic house on a tiny tidal island. Finally back together one last time, when the tide comes in, they will be cut off from the rest of the world for eight hours.
The family arrives, each of them harboring secrets. Then at the stroke of midnight, as a storm rages, Nana is found dead. And an hour later, the next family member follows...
Trapped on an island where someone is killing them one by one, the Darkers must reckon with their present mystery as well as their past secrets, before the tide comes in and all is revealed.
MY THOUGHTS: I went into Daisy Darker expecting to enjoy myself. I read Rock, Paper, Scissors last year and loved it. Let's just say, now I'm gonna have to pick up a third by this author so I can figure out which read was the fluke.
This novel starts out as a very eclectic, very estranged and very odd family gathers on the island home of their Nana to celebrate her birthday. Years ago, Nana had been told she would not live past 80 so she believes this birthday may very well be her last. Early on we learn that most of the family is angry at Daisy for some reason, and as the book unfolds, we learn what happened years ago which led to this family being rather dysfunctional. Suddenly the family members begin to drop like flies and the remaining members are trying to determine who is out to get them.
I only found one likeable character in this whole novel, and it was the dog! While I don't have to like any of the characters in order to enjoy a book, in this case, it might have helped to have someone to connect to because as it was, they couldn't die fast enough for me. I get that Daisy had a rough childhood, but she was so depressing and self-deprecating that I really couldn't take much more. And the rest of her family and friends? They were just as bad. I did kind of like Nana but as the synopsis indicates, she isn't around for long. If I was her, I'd have been grateful to be the first to go as well. The reader gets the impression early on that she wasn't a big fan of her family members and Feeney does a good job to make the reader understand why.
And finally, the ending. I will not add any spoilers but if you have read this book, if you know, you know. I feel the ending was a complete copout and it had me so angry that I wanted to throw the book in the road and pray someone rolled over it repeatedly.
I believe this is a book you will read and either love or hate. I doubt there is much middle ground. While I cannot recommend it, I also won't discourage anyone to check it out for themselves. I'm giving this author one more chance but that's it.
RATING: 2 PAWS
