Darling

I knew she was trouble from the moment I saw her. I felt it as she stood in the doorway that day: disaster.

Not just because she was so different, that skin and that hair, as different from me as it's possible to be. There was something wrong about her. Wrong for us. It was never going to work. Now she is dead and only I am left to love him. She is dead, and it's all my fault.

Rachel, herself, was so kind to send me a copy of her debut novel, Darling, to review for you all and it is definitely a read that I will never forget.

Lola doesn’t particularly want a new stepmother. Especially not one who has come out of nowhere and only been with her dad for three months. And – she’s not racist or anything – but since when did her dad fancy black women anyway? Darling didn’t particularly want a new stepdaughter. Especially not one as spiteful and spoilt as Lola. She does want Lola’s dad though. And he wants her, so that’s that: Darling and Lola will just have to get used to each other. Unless Lola can find a way to get rid of Darling.

Darling, the main character is a nurse who cares for her five year old son that is living with a rare disease. She marries a man named Thomas after a whirlwind romance of three months and Thomas' teenage daughter, Lola isn't a big fan of the marriage. This causes a lot of conflict between the two.

I SPED through this book. Once I started, I could not put it down. I read it on my way to work, at work, and on my home from work and actually finished it in about a week. It was so quick-paced and easy to read. It really kept me on the edge of my seat all the way through until the end. These books are always the best kind because you get such a thrill when so much happens at once. I loved this.

I also really enjoyed the family dynamic that it had. We don't often see thrillers written in perspective of a family and a household. I thought this was really unique and really added the element of suprise and thrill. Knowing that people could be so close but know so little about each other really makes us all think and question everything we think we know about those around us.

The concept of race and ethnicity was uniquely used in the novel as well. The novel is set following the EU Referendum in the UK, and a rising amount of racism and xenophobia. Darling, our main character struggles to get along with her step-daughter Lola, who hates her for various reasons, one of which is the fact that Darling is black. Race is something that really drives Lola's hatred for Darling, and ultimately, the colour of her skin ends up causing the majority of the conflict between the two of them. Edwards perfectly intertwines elements of politics, romance, and thrill all the way through to the shocking and twisted ending.

I really enjoyed my time reading this, and felt as though it was really unique. It was unlike anything i've read in the past. Edwards did a wonderful job writing the characters and making them so we can easily relate to them.

Well done Rachel, and thank you again for sending me this copy of Darling. I loved it, and my fellow bookworms, I know you will love it too.