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ClareR (6230 KP) rated The Double Life of Daisy Hemmings in Books

Jan 24, 2023

The Double Life of Daisy Hemmings

Joanna Nadin | 2022 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry, Mystery

8.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

I loved this twisty tale about identity and ambition.
The Double Life of Daisy Hemmings by Joanna Nadin begins in a small Cornish seaside town. Jason longs for more than working in his manipulative fathers pub, and wants to escape his life. When a group of wealthy young people arrive in the town, including the twins Daisy and Bea, he is drawn into their circle.

He spends more and more time with them, until the night that both Jason and Bea drown in an accident.

30 years later, writer James Tate is asked by Daisy Hemmings to ghost write her autobiography. James is a master of reinvention: he knew Daisy 30 years ago when she, her twin and their friends spent a summer together in a small Cornish village.

It’s made clear from the start that James is in fact Jason (so I’m giving nothing away), but the really interesting thing is how exactly he did it, how he managed to convince everyone that he’s someone completely different.

The characters in this are all really interesting and so well written: the twins and how completely different they are from one another; how their wealthy friends contrast starkly against Jason and his life. Whether they’re likeable or not, I really wanted to find out more about them.

I enjoyed the alternating timelines - how happenings in 1988 impacted on the present - I particularly liked how we’re introduced to the Jason/ James character right at the beginning. Their lives couldn’t be more different.

I’ve relished both of Joanna Nadin’s previous adult books (The Queen of Bloody Everything and The Talk of Pram Town), and after reading Daisy Hemmings, I’m looking forward to whatever comes next.

Kudos

Sue (5 KP) rated Murder at the Makeover in Books

Aug 13, 2018

Kaye twins Georgie and Aleta are invited to what they believe is an impromptu reunion with classmates from high school, but it turns out to be what Georgie calls a makeup Ponzi scheme. She doesn’t want to take part in a makeover using unusual ingredients and wants to high tail it out of there. Unfortunately, an old classmate is found dead in the ladies room and the girls find themselves on the case.

Georgia and Aleta are 60+-year-olds, full of spunk, and can’t resist tasty pastries. They often find themselves in the middle of murder investigations and often find themselves in trouble with Georgie’s ex-husband Stan. Did I mention that he is a homicide detective?

If you like humor, hijinks, cozy mysteries, and fun-loving characters then this book has what you are looking for.