There are some books when you start reading them, you know you are going to fall in love. Daisy Darker was one of them.
The tone of this book is much more gothic than thriller. Daisy has been summoned to her grandmother's house for her 80th birthday. Her grandmother was told she was destined to die at the age of 80, and so she has gathered the entire Darker family for a reading of her will. Her grandmother lives on a remote island which gets cut off by the tide periodically, so once the family arrive they are immediately trapped there. After the will reading goes badly, terror strikes when one of the family members is found dead. And it doesn't end there...
This book has incredible atmosphere. It really reminds of What Remains of Edith Finch, both in tone and plot. I was completely sucked into the sleepy, subtly creepy story being woven. From the offset it is very clear there is something deeply wrong with the family, but there is also this fantastic unwillingness to address the abnormality. There are hints of Agatha Christie with the huge, isolated house and the unhappy family residing inside.
I don't want to say too much about this book, but it does have a certain plot element which I think makes it a bit like Marmite. It's actually the kind of thing I usually hate, but I think it is executed well here and I personally enjoyed it a lot. I think it did knock it down from a 5 star read and I understand why people aren't a fan, but for me personally it wasn't enough to spoil the book.
Overall, I strongly recommend this book if you enjoy creepy, gothic horror/murder mystery vibes. It absolutely delivers on that front and manages to have a unique identity of its own whilst evoking other work in a welcome way. I know I will remember this book for a long time and it has definitely become one of my favourites
Overall Rating:
.5
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