The Darker family secrets and truly a matter of life and death.

Review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alice Feeney did not disappoint with her new book, Daisy Darker (Publication Date: 08/30/22).

Other than loving Feeney's previous novels, I went into Daisy Darker completely blind.

The Darker family has been estranged from one another for years until coming together for their Nana's 80th birthday. The family is cut off from the world for 8 hours during which time Nana is found dead.

Secrets from the past come to light as the mystery of how Nana died, followed by another death an hour later, is revealed.

Daisy Darker was a slow build I the first half of the book. As the story began to pick up I could not get enough. All of the secrets long hidden were shocking and eerie. The final twist was not at all what I expected. It was exactly the darkness and thrill I wanted in the best and most awful way.

While reading Feeney's new work I could feel the passion she put into it. It was well thought out and presented. The writing was at a high level, but still easy to follow and enjoy.

Daisy Dark is a book I'll hold with for quite some time as well as one I will be reccomending to anyone willing to listen.

Thank you to @netgalley and @macmillian.audio for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I finished this book almost 24 hours ago and I'm still not sure what I thought. I did not find the first 2/3 of the book to be riveting. However, the last 1/3 made up for it. I liked the twists in the end but found the whole book to be unrealistic (maybe that's the appeal). I'll be thinking about this one for a long time!

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance audio version of this book. I like the way Feeney showed the past, not by memories, but by the characters watching old VHS tapes. The majority of the story was told in one house with all trapped inside due to a high tide. Typically when a book setting is all in one place, it makes for a story too boring for my liking, however the past of the characters being added in occasionally helped with that situation. The chapters being hours and minutes before the tide goes down (and all could escape the house) was an interesting idea. The reader was easy to understand and enjoyable to listen to. 3.49 stars rounded down to 3.

This was a really intriguing listen. I am torn between 4-5 stars. I listened to Daisy Darker in just about 24 hours because I couldn’t put it down. I had a lot of guesses about who was committing the murders, but none of my guesses were correct! I’ve heard it had And Then There Were None vibes and I can totally see that! This comes out at the end of summer, but would be a great spooky fall read!

I loved nearly everything about this fantastically creepy locked-room mystery! The narrator, Stephanie Racine, was absolutely amazing, bringing each character to life almost like a one-woman play. The story itself was moody and creepy and twisty and kept me on the edge of my seat the whole way through - even though I'd figured out two of the big twists, I second guessed myself all the way through and was more proud than annoyed that I was right in the end. The wrap-up at the end about the who and why, and the final twist, was a great way to wrap up the story. I look forward to recommending this book to everyone, inside and outside my library. Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the early listen of this amazing story..

This book was not what I expected, based on Alice Feeney’s other novels. And maybe my expectations tainted my enjoyment of this story, because I didn’t really like it at all!

Instead of a fast-paced, twisty thriller like His & Hers, this story was told mostly in flashbacks. It’s set in 2004, but gave me serious Victorian England murder-mystery vibes. I predicted part of the twist pretty much as soon as the story started, and the other part left me feeling flat and unsatisfied. So a miss for me, as far as thrillers go.

I think part of my dislike was due to the narration. While I think the narrator is competent and I enjoyed her voice, I was irritated by the constant volume fluctuations from beginning to end of sentence. It’s extremely hard to hear the whispered words so I would turn up the volume, only to be deafened when she returned to normal speaking volume. I truthfully may have missed half of the story because of this. Also, I think the bubbly British tone is a mismatch for the tense vibe of the novel.

In all, I’m disappointed in this one, but I’d say try it for yourself without having any expectations!

Thank you to Alice Feeney, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC!

I'm a big Alice Feeney fan. This has her characteristic drama with lots of unforeseen twists and turns. Daisy Darker comes from an incredibly dysfunctional family. They all come together for a reunion at her grandmother's house on a remote and off-the grid island. Reminiscent of Christie's And Then There Were None, family members are dying one by one and the survivors are in a state of chaos. Daisy must figure out who is causing the havoc and why before she faces demise herself.

The audio version of this was well done. There is an abundance of suspense and it definitely flew along at a quick pace. Clever twists and vivid descriptions of the remote and stormy gothic setting elevate the plot. The stormy, isolated conditions were well-represented in the audio version. I was completely surprised by the main twist and loved how Feeney tied everything up. The only negative for me was that it was slightly far-fetched. Still, an excellent overall read that will appeal to fans of Mary Kubica and Lisa Jewell.

I love a good psychological thriller so I was excited to get an early release copy of this book. The reviews were great, but I have to say I wasn’t in the majority. I did not find it intriguing in the least. About half way through the book is when the plot finally got interesting. By this point I had lost interest. Many of the twists were predictable and not well executed.
I will say, I loved the setting on the beautiful island and the Victorian house – Seaglass.
I know Feeney said this was her favorite book to date, sorry though I would have to disagree.
Thank you NetGallery for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest feedback.

Wow! This was a really enjoyable locked-room style mystery, where family members are haunted by a dark past and a lack of love that ultimatly put their lives in danger. Trust me, the less you know about the plot, the more you will enjoy it!

My sincere thanks to NetGalley for the audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review. If you get a chance to listen to this read, I would strongly encourage it, as the narrator was tremendously on-point, really giving thoughts, attitudes and the characters life. Amazing!

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced audiobook copy.

I really enjoyed this book and the audiobook. There was a great twist in the story.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I had the privilege of getting an early copy of this book from #NetGalley and my mind was blown with this story. This story follows Daisy Darker and her entire family. They gather for her grandmothers 80th birthday which is located on a tiny island that is unreachable at high tide. They all come baring their own secrets. That night when going to bed a storm starts which then results in finding Nana dead. They are stuck on the island until low tide comes in the morning. From that hour on they continue to find cryptic messages and videos left for them to see. Slowly the secrets get revealed and then before they know it Daisy is left with someone you wouldn’t believe at the end. The twist at the end of this had me reeling and talking out loud to myself 😳 Do yourself a favor and read #DaisyDarker when it’s released on August 30th, 2022… you will not regret it 📚#bookstagram #bookreview

I enjoyed listening to this audiobook so much!!! It was such a fun story and I had no idea where the next chapter would take us. Unfortunately, I did not love the ending and I got a little bit confused. Otherwise, definitely worth the read!!

“There was something magical about an island—the mere word suggested fantasy. You lost touch with the world—an island was a world of its own. A world, perhaps, from which you might never return.”
― Agatha Christie, And Then There Were None

What a wonderful way to be introduced to Alice Feeney! I have not had the pleasure of reading one of her books before and she completely wowed me!!!!

Daisy Darker's family has been invited to Nana's crumbling gothic house on a tidal island. What an absolutely perfect and chilling setting! Nan, who is an eccentric author and illustrator, has called her family together. When the tide comes in, they will be stuck together for eight hours. In attendance are Nan, Daisy and her sisters who have been named after flowers, their Mother Nancy (don't call her mom), their music-is-the-most-important-thing Father, family friend Connor and her Niece. Nana is turning 80 and the family who has not seen each other in years have all shown up. They are expecting to hear a reading of Nan's will. What there are not expecting is what follows.

When the clock strikes midnight, Nana is found dead! Who would want to harm her? Then an hour later, another family member is found dead. Trapped, isolated and not know who they can trust, the Darker family must take along hard look at themselves, their pasts, and their secrets.

Talk about intriguing. I was enamored by the plot and the rhyming sections about Daisy and her family. Speaking of Daisy, she is the narrator of this story. She is also Nan's favorite. What a story this is! Plus, that twist!!!!!! You will have to read to find out what that is. I was thoroughly enjoying the book the whole way through and then Feeney blew my mind!

I listened to the audiobook and thought the narrator did a wonderful job. Cleverly crafted, well thought out, and perfectly paced, Daisy Darker is an intelligent thriller which never disappointed.

I highly recommend this brilliant nod to Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None.


Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

An excellent story with an enjoyable narrator, however, the frequent volume changes with the dialogue make the audio a little difficult to enjoy. (I.e. whispered dialogue being whispered so softly it's inaudible)

I have so many words and yet none at all at the same time upon finishing listening to the audiobook for Daisy Darker. I have both read the book and then listened to the audio version and I'm here to tell you that this narrator is PHENOMENAL! And an added treat was being able to hear Alice Feeney read the acknowledgements herself! I may have cried in the book and then cried with goosebumps listening to the acknowledgements because like Feeney, Daisy Darker is also MY favorite out of all of her book children. This book is so incredibly unique in a sea of books that are so alike in so many ways. From the very intriguing prologue right up until the very last page, I was absolutely enthralled! Even knowing what would happen next, I was able to catch clues hidden throughout the book. I honestly want to sit down and read it again and then listen to it again. I preordered it last year when it went up but now I'm going back to preorder several more copies to give as gifts. What a FABULOUS story! I want to hang out with Daisy and Nana for a summer at Seaglass! The first line in the book grabbed me and then right in the first page, I learned that Daisy was born the same year as me so I was right there with her as she took a trip through her childhood memories!

Whether you read "Daisy Darker" or listen to the audiobook, be prepared for an adventure with more twists than an English country lane. I had the option for both, and I chose the audiobook. The narrator's voice and tone fit with my mental picture of Daisy Darker and her dysfunctional family. When they're all called to Sea Glass, a secluded seaside family estate, they thought they were called to celebrate the grandmother's birthday. Boy, were they wrong!
The grandmother had become famous and wealthy from a series of children's books with her granddaughter's name. But Daisy is so much more than a little girl in a book series. She now sees herself as a sibling who has been disrespected, unnoticed, and unheard for way too many years. Her parents were aloof and her sisters were too busy for her. The neighborhood boy, now a grown man, never noticed her crush on him.
As members of her family start dying during their Sea Glass gathering, a poem mysteriously appears on a wall with references to each family member. Both the living and the dead are stranded in the old home until low tide comes in and gives access to the mainland.
Who will live and who will die? And why? Novelist Alice Feeney parcels out clues, then takes them back. Nothing is as it seems. Not even Daisy Darker, the keeper of secrets, is prepared for what comes next. Can't wait to read more from this imaginative writer with a passion for the macabre.

"But then, I have always found fiction more attractive than real life" - Alice Feeney

I'm always a sucker for a book that tricks me. And this was that. Hauntingly atmospheric and with beautiful writing, I was immediately immersed in Daisy Darker's world as her family members are murdered one by one. Tragically, are trapped by the tide and cannot connect to the outside world (dreadful for them, but fun for the reader). The exceptional plotting throws you back in time via the world of VHS tapes from the 80s as remaining family watch old tapes and try to figure out who the killer is.

I loved the audiobook. It's extremely well done with creepy and suspenseful storytelling that leaves you feeling a bit sad and unhinged at the same time. I can't wait for my book group to talk about this one!

Wow, what a twist! I had no idea where this story was going and it ends with a bang!

A family gets together with their Nana for her 80th birthday. Daisy and her family have not spoken in years. As each of the family members turn up dead, suspicion rises in Daisy. She is adored by her Nana.

When Nana lets her relatives know what they will get in her will, everyone is flabbergasted as they are not what is expected. She definitely has a sense of humor.

A node to Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, is notable.

This book is available August 30, 2022. Thank you NetGalley, MacMillion Audio and author Alice Feeney for this amazing audio.

Being a big fan of Alice Feeney, I've been waiting a LONG time to read this book. I never read the Agatha Christie novel this was compared to, so the story in itself was completely novel to me!

When the Darker family gathers to celebrate Nana's 80th birthday, their reunion turns into a big game of "whodunit" when Nana is found dead and within the next hour, another family member follows. Trapped on the island, counting down the hours until low tide, the family is left with mysterious clues that spark childhood memories for Daisy and reveal secrets from the past.

What I loved:
-This story felt like a game of Clue
-It is set on a British island during Halloween, which gave off spooky vibes
-The story alternates between the nerve-wracking present and the tension filled past
-The complex, flawed and unlikeable characters
-I thought the author's use of old family footage and nursery rhymes to drive the plot was a great way to build suspense
-The reveal at the end was one I did not see coming
-The narration for the audiobook was excellent

What I didn't love:
-I feel like some questions were still left unanswered at the end

Thank you NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. Pub date: 8/30

WOW, WOW WOW...I stopped at about 90% because I was trying to get my head around what was going on and to see if I could work it all out...I didn't, help and I was not even remotely correct...Knowing how it ends, makes me what to go back and do it all over again to see how that makes the story different. I enjoyed this book, immensely. I was on the edge of my seat for the entire ride. The characters, the relationships, even the setting created an exceptional story of family and betrayal. Would highly recommend!! .