Reviews tagging 'Drug use'

Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney

13 reviews

cyndi1966's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death of parent, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Violence, Grief, and Child abuse

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Suicide, Alcoholism, Child death, Drug use, and Animal death

rose_reads03's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I think this is the first thriller I have ever read, and might I just say 🤯
I had guessed quite early on part of the twist but there was definitely some of it that really was shocking 😳

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Blood, Drug use, Grief, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Suicide, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Child abuse, Sexual harassment, and Alcohol

tylerrose15161's review

I love murder mystery books, but my god was this difficult to get into and couldn't hold my attention. The pace and the tone of the book/narration was so slow and dragged on. The thing I disliked the most was that the main character Daisy, whose POV you stay locked into throughout the book, she repeatedly states that "she has a secret" and other ominous claims that her family has holes in them, they're not what they appear to be, etcetera  etcetera. Which normally wouldn't be an issue, but when these statements get repeated 10 times within the first 4 chapters, it no longer builds suspense for the reader. Instead it gives off the same energy as someone who posts on social media that they've had a bad day and when someone reaches out to ask if they're okay, they respond saying they don't want to talk about it. So it's extremely annoying.

I ended up reading a summary breakdown of the book instead of actually reading it because of these reasons. And even going through the breakdown, I was still left uninterested.

Spoiler

As for the ending of the book, it did manage to surprise me by revealing a plot twist that I wasn't expecting. But at the same time, it wasn't enough to redeem the book itself. It left me with the feeling of "that's it?".

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Car accident, Death, Drug use, and Emotional abuse

uranaishi's review

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Child death, Car accident, Chronic illness, Murder, Child abuse, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cursing, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Gore, Ableism, Blood, Body shaming, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Sexual harassment, Suicide, Abandonment, and Gun violence

Minor: Fatphobia, Forced institutionalization, Abortion, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Dementia, Drug use, and Pregnancy

sunsetcity's review

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Addiction, Drug use, Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, Blood, Car accident, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Gun violence, Death of parent, Murder, Suicide, and Toxic relationship

toofondofbooks_'s review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Was this perfect? No. Did I have a lot of fun? Yes! 
I feel like I can't say anything about this without giving shit away so I'm going to leave it at that. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Sexual assault, Alcohol, Death, Child abuse, Child death, Bullying, Violence, Blood, Gun violence, Car accident, Gore, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Alcoholism, Infidelity, and Suicide

Moderate: Sexual content and Misogyny

Minor: Fatphobia, Animal death, and Pedophilia

riella_reads's review

challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

 This was good, but slightly underwhelming. I loved the premise but I also guessed a huge twist from the beginning, and another twist a significant amount of time before the reveal. I still enjoyed my time with it overall but I wish I didn't see the reveals coming so I could enjoy it more! I do think this is a perfect read for Halloween, as it takes place all on the night before halloween. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Medical content, Murder, Cancer, Car accident, Drug use, Bullying, Child death, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Alcohol, Blood, and Gun violence

blackcatkai's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

CW: death (adult and child), child abuse, alcohol and drug use, addiction, suicide, sexual assault, mental illness, chronic illness, blood, violence, ableism

a mystery suspense novel with a supernatural bend. some of my favourite things are here like rich people family drama, murder, and a sweet dog who does NOT come to harm! 🥳 so fret not, friends! if you like the Clue movie with a little halloween spooky vibe and secrets all over, then give this one a shot. I really enjoyed it!

some parts were a smidge repetitive and I'm not entirely sure I'm the biggest fan of the very end, but I had fun, and thats all that really matters, overall.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Ableism, Addiction, Child death, Child abuse, Alcohol, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Chronic illness, Suicide, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Drug use, and Alcohol

thatswhatshanread's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

It was a dark and stormy night… okay, but really—it was a dark and stormy night on an isolated island off the coast of Cornwall, where an estranged family has gathered for Nana Darker’s 80th birthday. Albeit awkward considering their weird family dynamic, a tense celebration of sorts ensues until Nana turns up dead at the stroke of midnight. One by one, the family members disappear accompanied by cryptic, poetic messages, but whodunit?? 

I can’t say too much without giving the whole story away, but this was a fun murder mystery! For sure a more modern take on Agatha Christie mysteries with a little “Knives Out” action. It also reminded me, at times, of “The Prestige” and “Shutter Island”. 

I will say that I guessed the final twists fairly early on, but still felt the satisfying shock when they were unveiled, as some pieces I definitely had not put together. 

The writing style was great, though I did find the book a little too long, and some of the flashbacks stunted the flow of the story a tad. Also, don’t go into this one expecting to like any of the characters—some I rather loathed, which was part of the point of course. 

Overall, a very on-brand read for Halloween season!!

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Suicide, Alcoholism, Car accident, Child abuse, Death of parent, Grief, Infidelity, Abandonment, Child death, Chronic illness, Gore, Alcohol, Violence, Addiction, Blood, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Terminal illness, Death, Medical content, and Murder

Moderate: Drug use, Vomit, Sexual content, Animal death, Body shaming, Suicidal thoughts, and Cursing

lovelymisanthrope's review

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

OH MY GOODNESS, I was not expecting this story! I read "Rock, Paper, Scissors" last year and loved it, so "Daisy Darker" has been on my radar, but I tried to not read too much about it before I could pick it up, and boy am I happy that I went into this story not knowing much of anything. 
"Daisy Darker" follows a woman named Daisy as she and her family return to her grandmother's house on the eve of her grandmother's 80th birthday. Her grandmother was told by a palm reader that she will not live past 80, and she has long believed this to be true. Before she passes away, she wants the family to be together one last time so she can share her will with the Darker clan. Daisy has always had a special relationship with her grandmother and has always felt like an outcast from the rest of her family. Daisy was born with a heart defect, and she was always kept safe inside, but she also felt like her family did not love her because of her heart, except for her grandmother. Her grandmother's home is on a remote peninsula that during high tide is inaccessible. Now, with the whole Darker family trapped, people start dying one by one, and no one knows who the killer might be. 
This book took me a little while to get into (about 70 pages), but once I was invested, I read the rest of the book in one sitting. Most of the Darker family is absolutely horrible and you are almost happy to see them die, but you are still so curious to uncover who the killer is. I did not see most of the twist coming, and I ended up screaming when the big and final twist was revealed. I was so heartbroken the entire time for Daisy because her family has always treated her so terribly. Her sisters were vicious to her, and her parents were absent. Daisy had both literally and figuratively a broken heart and it was devastating to see. 
I LovED this book and I hope everyone reads and loves it as much as I did!!! 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Violence, Alcohol, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Grief, Drug use, and Sexual harassment