RATING: 4.5 out of 5 stars
TRIGGER WARNING: Detailed rape scene and physical abuse
Wow. What an intense read, and certainly a most gripping and engrossing one, having finished this one in a matter of days.
I definitely preferred it to "Our Fair Lily" with Daisy having been a far more relatable protagonist in that she wasn't a major Mary Sue, so I was really glad to see that, and was also not quite as unrealistic. You honestly feel like you are living this story with her as you feel you experience the unbearable adversity and trauma she suffers, as I felt so terrified and distressed for her when she'd gotten raped by her evil stepbrother and then shortly after gets tricked into going to an Irish mother and daughter home by said evil stepbrother where she has to endure the nuns cruel treatment while also witnessing their cruel treatment of other girls at the home. It was so dark and distressing and it was a really dark, sudden turn after seeing how happy life had been for her with just her and her father before he had married her wicked stepmother and was forced to live with her and her evil stepbrother.
You know it is a sign of a really powerful, strong story when you actually feel stress, worry and despair when reading, as even though I should have known it would follow the pattern of Rosie Goodwin's previous books that I read 'The Lost Girl' and 'Our Fairy Lily' of having a happy ending, I still couldn't help but worry what if Daisy would never be reunited with her father, grandparents and Lewis, and what if Gilbert/Victoria succeeded in their plans to kill her dad. I honestly just got so impatient just waiting and hoping that she would finally be reunited with her father, grandparents and Lewis and that there would be a happy ending. It was such a tense read and to have a story be that impactful on your emotions really is amazing. The stakes were definitely a lot higher than Our Fair Lily too with the protagonist going through a lot more suffering this time round (the protagonist of the previous book did go through trauma at one point but it was not as long-lasting/a long-haul and dark and was just kind of shoehorned in towards the end).
Honestly, I felt so tense reading this, finding myself in constant fear and dread about what would happen with Gilbert and Victoria being such evil scumbags and probably the most evil, threatening antagonists I have come across in a book. I felt distressed when Daisy was raped by her evil stepbrother, with it being a very detailed rape scene as well, hence the trigger warning. I felt further distressed when Daisy was incarcerated in the care of the cruel nuns. I felt enraged when seeing just how evil and scummy Gilbert and his mother actually were, having hated them even more and just kept longing and impatiently waiting for them to die, so you can imagine my joy when they finally did! I found them even more evil than the grandfather in her other book "Lost Girl", due to how much they actually went out of their way to harm and ruin the life of Daisy, scheming against both her and her dad who they'd been plotting to kill all this time. I felt encouraged when she made a good friend out of Niamh. I felt relieved but unsure when she was free from the mother daughter home but with nowhere to go, touched when seeing the strong friendship between her and Niamh as Niamh took her into her home and saved her. I felt worried when she ended up being slaved away by the horrible farmer and agreed to marry his invalid son Daniel (who was lovely but obviously marrying him would have been a big mistake for her!). I found myself cheering when that evil scumbag Gilbert and his equally evil mother died, with it having been the perfect catharsis. I felt my heart warm and tears of joy trying to force their way into my eyes when Daisy finally reunites with her grandparents, then her father and Lewis, and (kindly) breaks off her engagement to Daniel (who happily encourages her to go back home too), and incredibly touched at Niamh's true friendship to Daisy, having been the one responsible for her reuniting with her family and returning to her old life by telling her grandparents about her. It was then that she became without a doubt my favourite character in the book, and her friendship was Daisy was a truly strong and meaningful one, having found it to resonate far more than the inter-class friendships that were depicted in the previous Rosie Goodwin novels I ready (while the concept of inter-class friendships is an interesting one, it was just that this friendship was more relatable with them both having endured suffering together). I felt so happy at how things had turned out and that after all the trouble they went through, after all their time apart (I couldn't believe that Daisy had been separated from her father for almost 2 years!) it was very amazing and heartwarming to see them having reunited after all this time and gain their long-awaited, much deserved happy ending!
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