Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney was one of the first books I read this year and I feel confident in saying that it’s been a kick in the right direction for my reading as both a reader searching for new genres to enjoy and a writer wanting to learn new techniques and storytelling methods. I got hooked on the first page and felt myself hanging onto every word. Now it’s time to convince you to read it if you haven’t yet and get you head over heels for Daisy Darker.

Let’s start with the tone and language. Feeney has done a magnificent job of keeping the tone consistent from cover to cover through the use of emotive description and texture in her words. An ominous mood and dark themes feature in every chapter, hiding around corners waiting to jump out at us.

The tone and acute language choices also keep the tension and pacing in step with each other. This is very important for thriller books like Daisy Darker because when these elements get out of sync it can feel like a misstep or as though your train of thought has stalled. That can be extremely distracting, or worse, offputting for readers and an author never wants their readers to be put off while reading (there are exceptions to this, of course, so I will amend this by saying no author wants their readers to be unintentionally put off).

The tension and pacing rise together, first pulling us along gently as we get a feel for the atmosphere, the characters, the stakes and so on. Then we are dragged along towards a high-energy climax that feels much like riding a rollercoaster in the dark – the twists and turns shock us, our questions are answered all at once, and the ending leaves you wanting to go again.

The characters are very interesting; we have layers to every person, conflicts with far deeper scars than what we first realise, personas clashing at every encounter and a very authentic, convoluted family dynamic. Daisy feels so real – it must be the third-child aspect of her character that I can relate to that feels so palpable. No character feels left out by the author. They are all developed, multi-faceted and able to hold their own in the story.

Daisy Darker itched a part of my brain I didn’t know needed scratching and uncovered a new interest in the dark thriller sub-genre that I had yet to truly delve into. Since I have read many of Alice Feeney’s other books and I have been pleasantly surprised by what I have found. It is evident that Daisy Darker is newer than works such as Sometimes I Lie and His and Hers as the way in which she writes has shifted across the years and the critiques and public reception have helped her fine-tune her narrative voice. I thoroughly recommend reading Daisy Darker as it certainly feels like a book many will love.