I adored Alice Feeney's last novel, Rock Paper Scissors as well as His & Hers. Both were creepy, twisted and kept me on the edge of my seat, officially making me an Alice Feeney fan. Therefore, I snatched up Daisy Darker without a second thought and went into it with high expectations. Unfortunately, this book was a case of "you can't win 'em all." I found it campy, predictable and was forced to suspend so much disbelief that I couldn't stop rolling my eyes. It wasn't for me, folks. You can't win 'em all!
Daisy Darker is a locked door mystery about a dysfunctional family, set on an island that is only accessible during low tide. Once high tide is in, anyone on the island is stuck for at least 8 hours. This plays into the Darker family saga, which occurs on the matriarch Darker's 80th birthday. (Which also happens to be Halloween...cue spooky vibes.)
Daisy Darker is her grandmother's favorite. And years ago, her grandmother met a psychic who told her she would not live past her 80th birthday. Therefore, grandma is expecting to die, and she has her last will and testament all set to go. Boo! She dies. But it looks suspicious, and everyone looks at each other as the culprit. Did Daisy kill grandma in the kitchen? Or maybe he wanna-be famous musician father or unloving mother. Or her oldest sister who seems too perfect, or her other sister who is far from it? Or could it be her sweet, innocent bookworm niece?
Do you get where I'm going with this? It's like a mix of the boardgame of Clue and Agatha Christie's Then There Were None.
One by one, they are all picked off while a storm brews on the island and high tide forces them to stay. This leaves plenty of time for the truth to come to light. As well as a twist that made me cringe a bit. There was just a tad too many pop culture references, and I couldn't get over how casual everyone seemed to act each time they found a dead body. They'd basically walk into a room, find one of their family members dead, and five minutes later move the body and move on. I can't with that....at least make it somewhat believable!
I will say, it was a page turner and very easy read. I wanted to find out what was going on, so I stuck it out, but I have learned that just because a book is easily bingeable, does not mean that it's a good book.
My thoughts? I suggest skipping Daisy Darker and checking out Feeney's other books, especially His & Hers and Rock Paper Scissors (that one was a five-star read for me.)
Can't win 'em all!
Other Books by Alice Feeney:
His & Hers
Sometimes I Lie
Rock Paper Scissors (click to read my full review)
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