I absolutely loved Daisy Darker - I read it as a buddy read but had to keep reading on as I couldn't wait to see what happened next. Alice Feeney is such a talented writer, her way with words is sublime, I had to keep stopping to take note of phrases and descriptions that I wanted to savour. This is unlike anything of hers that Ive read before and I was on the edge of my seat throughout.

The story is a locked room mystery, with the Darker family - Nana, Dad, mum Nancy, three adult daughters Rose Lily and Daisy, plus Lily's teenage daughter Trixie - gathered together to celebrate Nana's 80th birthday. A fortune teller told Nana that she would die in her 80th year, so she is sure that this is the last time they will all be together.

They meet at Seaglass, Nana's house built on a rock in the middle of a Cornish bay, only reachable by a causeway. The descriptions of the house and the coastline are absolutely gorgeous and dreamy, there is a lot of love for Cornwall's landscapes and it felt like an Agatha Christie setting. There's even a map of the house at the front!

The story is told entirely from Daisy's point of view (apart from a foreword that ties everything up when you get to the end of the book). Daisy opens with the lines ' I was born with a broken heart. The day I arrived into this lonely little world was also the first time I died.' And bam - that's how you start a story!

Daisy has always felt like the outsider in her family, her sisters are so close, Lily in particular is their mother's favourite. But Daisy has always been secure in the knowledge that her grandma loves her best. She grew up in 'Seaglass' as her big sisters went to boarding school, being brought up by her grandma.

So as the story begins, the family arrive on the island, cut off from the mainland by the tide with no way of escaping until the tide turns. Nana takes the opportunity to tell everybody about the contents of her will, which stirs up some heady feelings before they all retreat to their rooms for the evening. And then, as the clocks chime midnight to begin Nana's 80th birthday, she is found dead on the floor with a mysterious poem about the whole family scrawled on the wall behind her. That's the beginning of a long night for the surviving Darker family, as family secrets and loyalties are unravelled at last

Honestly I could rave about this book for days, I semi-guessed one of the reveals but others were utterly mindblowing. Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read the ARC.

The description of this book is slightly deceiving: the blurb implies this is a thriller murder. Which, in fairness, it is…until it becomes a cross between Midsomer Murders, Agatha Christie and The Sixth Sense. At that latter point, I was less enthusiastic about it.

Feeny is not an author I'm familiar with; this is the first book I've read by her, and I was very impressed by her style. There is no doubt she can write very well, but this story crossed, without warning, to the paranormal.

Whilst the characters are interesting and well portrayed, none…not one (apart from Poppins the dog perhaps) is in the slightest bit likeable, not even the main character (and narrator) Daisy Darker. I want at least one character to hang my 'like' hat on in my books.

However, I did find myself compelled to read on, and I was certainly drawn into the story, but I felt a bit cheated by the slightly ridiculous twist. I was also rather frustrated by the author's and/or editor's ignorance of the differences between irony and sarcasm, 'lay' and 'lie' and…oh, woe is me…'less' and fewer'. New editor required.

Although I didn't gel a hundred per cent with the turn this story took, in all fairness, it was ninety-five-per-cent enjoyment and I'll definitely seek out more by this author.

Daisy Darker arrives at a remote Cornish Victorian home for a family gathering to celebrate her Nana's 80th birthday. Once they all arrive, the tide ensures they remain there and the dysfunctional family must face their secrets. It's a spooky read with 80 clocks adding to the suspense and many nods to Agatha Christie 'And then there were none', with an ending fit for the Queen of suspense herself.

There's murder, mystery and suspense and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Pan MacMillan for the opportunity to preview and congratulations to Alice Feeney on a spooky read that kept me guessing.

I’m not sure what it was about this book that I wasn’t a massive fan of, but it could have been the unexpected supernatural element to it. I didn’t expect the twist, but I tend to prefer more logical explanations to thrillers than the supernatural. I did fly through this book and I did enjoy it, but just didn’t feel like that part of it was for me.

Wow what a read! This was gripping, intense and completely shocking. I did not know who to trust and questioned everyone's motives on more than one occasion. Daisy's family were truly messed up and as we learnt more about their past the more I could understand Daisy's resentment towards them. Rose and Lily were particularly cruel to her and I couldn't imagine treating any of my sister's in that way.

When the big reveal happened I was utterly speechless! It was a twist I didn't see coming and could not believe what I had just learnt.

I have really enjoyed Alice Feeneys books in the past so was excited to get started on this one… unfortunately for me this didn’t match up... I didn’t feel connection to any character and it just didn’t reel me in at all.. yes there were times when I was thinking “who done it!.” & just wanted to rush to the end to find out.

A few shocking elements regarding the events of Halloween 1988 and what followed plus a couple of twists however by this point I was 3/4 of the way through so the author had lost me.

It just all felt a little silly to be honest, no one seemed to be overly upset by the ‘horrific’ crimes

That being said I have added an extra star as I really didn’t guess the truth about Daisy and how she was present at Seaglass.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital arc of this book in return for an honest review… would I recommend to friends, probably not… would I read Alice Feeneys next book, definitely.

You just can’t go wrong with an Alice Feeney book! I was HOOKED. Constantly on the edge of my seat and didn’t guess what was going on. Loved the poem style and everything about this book. A true page turner that I would definitely recommend 100 times over! Thank you for the chance to read this book!

This is a tricky one to review. I loved most of it. The intrigue, tension, and danger were perfectly plotted and written. Having a family and its secrets exposed through murders was most effective.

The ending. It's going to divide readers, as is shown in the reviews here. I understand what the author wanted to do. Some will love it. The abrupt genre change and plot twist felt somewhat contrived. I find the motives hard to believe too, considering what the characters have been portrayed as previously.

I'm giving this four stars for the majority of the book which was excellent. The ending was too much like a certain Bruce Willis film for my taste.

Daisy and her family reunite for Nana’s 80th birthday party at Seagrass, a house cut off from Cornwall by the tide. As the night drags on a series of events seem to correspond with poetry that appears on the wall and flashbacks contained on a succession of VHS tapes.

I’m afraid I found it all faintly ludicrous and contrived. Though the descriptions of family relationships and reasons for the tension are intriguing I prefer a stronger sense of reality so struggled through to an ending that I didn’t find wholly satisfactory. Sorry to be less enthusiastic than others this time round.

I have read a few of Alice Feeney's novels and I can't help but think there is a really great author in there just struggling to get out. I know I am in the minority here and her books always rate and sell well but I just sometimes feel somewhat underwhelmed by her books.

I think, in addition to this, the market is getting saturated with these type of 5 men and a dog stuck on an island or in a locked hotel where people die one by one. Seen it all before and seen it done a lot better.

If my family ever invite me to a rundown house on an almost secluded island.. I ain't going!!!

Alice Feeney you are an absolute legend!! This book was proper atmospheric and God damn eerie.. I had chills through every chapter and my mind was working overtime trying to figure it out.

I was chatting to my friend who was listening to the audio version and around chapter 5 we kinda had theories.. but I definitely didn't see that one at the end!

A dark, twisty one hell of a book you really don't want to miss out on!!

Excellent story. Love the whodunnitit aspect of it all. Who is Daisy Darker? Keeps you engaged throughout. Really enjoyed the family interactions and back story. Alice Feeney books are great, each one so different in their own way.

Amazing, twisty and dark like others of this authors work. If you liked her previous books - you will also like this! Had me gripped!!

It’s Halloween and Daisy has arrived to Seaglass, an old and crumbling house located on a remote island owned by her beloved grandmother, to celebrate her Nana’s 80th birthday. The Darker family haven’t been together for over 10 years. A storm is brewing and the house is cut off from the rest of the world with the coming tide. When the tide goes back out, nothing will ever be the same again, because one of them is a killer.

Inspired by a classic Christie story (And Then There Were None), Feeney writes a riveting story full of twists and red herrings that will keep you glued to each and every page!

The opening line tells the reader that Daisy is born with a broken heart. Daisy’s heart condition and the way in which her family appear to wrap her up in cotton wool and isolate her from being a “normal” child really hit home for me. My son has a rare heart condition so when I read the opening lines of the story, I felt my stomach drop. I was hesitant to keep reading but I am glad that I did.

Feeney is able to construct such well-developed and well-written characters- many of whom are very flawed and unlikeable. That’s certainly the case with the Darker family. It’s hard to feel sorry for them especially when secrets are revealed about their past actions. This book focuses on one of the most dysfunctional families I’ve ever read about and Feeney weaves the various threads of the story together in an effortless way. The story moves between the past and present, Daisy’s recollections of her childhood are integral to the reader’s understanding of just how messed up her family is!

You are constantly left in a state of suspense and tension, right up until the last page. The setting of the story within an old creaky house isolated from the rest of the world during a storm really adds to the claustrophobic and tense atmosphere of the story. The ticking of the eighty clocks in the house creates such an eerie feeling when reading the story and emphasises the danger that is faced by the characters with each second passing by.

Like Rock Paper Scissors, Feeney delivers some powerful twists that spins the story and our thinking of who the culprit is on its head. Rock Paper Scissors remains my favourite book by Feeney but Daisy Darker is an enjoyable murder mystery read with just the right amount of shock and suspense.

The perfect book for a stormy night! Daisy Darker is out 18th August. Thanks to NetGalley and publishers for the arc!

Thanks NetGalley, Pan MacMillan and Alice Feeney for an ARC to review.
A chilling interesting setting and a gripping intro.
A family gathering in a stranded old house where it seems nobody is getting out alive!
I absolutely loved it.

I've loved reading Alice Feeney's previous books and was slightly disappointed. Storyline was original but found the pace of the story very slow. I persevered and though there were twists and surprises nearer the end It was too slow a start to ve enjoyable reading.

1) I loved loved loved the creepy atmosphere, a setting reminiscent of Agatha Christie's marvellous vibes aka my absolute favourite;
2) The writing was also quite remarkable;
3) The twists were rather predictable but still kind of satisfying;
4) You will need to suspend disbelief to completely immerse yourself in this story and enjoy the ride;
5) This book could’ve been better with a dash of suspense and a couple of unpredictable twists but I would still recommend it!

The Darker family have all come to visit their Grandmother for her birthday.
There is no love lost between quite a few members of this family and tensions are high.
When a terrible situation occurs, they have no way of getting help.
A story with some interesting characters.
Thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

Who needs enemies when you have a family like Daisy

The last part of the book was definitely the icing on the cake for me the build up was tense, dysfunctional just gripping.

My favourite character has got to be Nana we all need a Nana in our corner that's for sure and the setting and the props just added to the drama and excitement.

This was a twisted family multi-facet complex drama that was cleverly written and executed.

I never understood why Joey Tribiani in Friends found The Shining so frightening he had to shut it in the freezer. But after reading this, I funny understand it. This is creepy and tense and terrifying and a real mystery.

As any good murder mystery does, the real culprit is so well concealed I could not work it out at all. I had my suspicions but I could never have guessed the real outcome, it was magnificent and shows how amazing Alice Feeney’s brain must be to figure this story out.

If I had to be picky, I would say that the first 10% or so was a little slow, but I do appreciate that you need to set the scene and introduce everyone and everything so you can invest in them, otherwise you won’t care when they start dying. But I tell you, once s**t starts hitting the fan, it goes everywhere.

It made me feel claustrophobic, my heart in my mouth, listening for every floorboard creak in my house, second guessing everyone else in the room - even the dog.

I am normally and early-to-bed woman (we’re talking 8-9pm) and an early riser, so I rather how good a book is by whether I put it down to go to bed, but no matter how much this was getting under my skin, I couldn’t, I wouldn’t put it down until I finished it, which meant a late night for me.

The true outcome is so well hidden that I defy anyone to work it out prior to the reveal, it’s so shocking and surprising it knocked my socks off.

There’s a big cast of characters: Daisy, Ross, Lily, Trixie, Nancy, Frank, the Nana, Conor, Conor’s Dad, and the dog. That’s a lot of people to give enough time to but they’re all handled perfectly. You really quickly get an idea of who they are and gives you something to really get you teeth into. Even the house and it’s little island becomes a character of its own it is so well crafted.

Whilst not necessarily critical to the overall plot, I really loved the little quirks the Nan has, they just show her in a more intimate way, which makes her death even more shocking.

There’s a good balance of present day and flashbacks. It’s not jarring to follow, and it gives the reader a clear picture of each of our characters’ backgrounds and motives.

Even after writing this, I don’t think I’ve quite got the right words to really show how thrilling this book is, it’s definitely one you need to read for yourself. It reminds me of the mysteries of old, like Agatha Christie’s, which proves you can do thriller and horror and mystery without throwing explicit violence and gore into everyone’s face; it’s more of a quiet, careful evil.

A first-class thriller.