The Hollow Places

Skyril

Wow…. This book will bend your mind in ways you never thought possible until you’re on the edge of your seat, horrified, disgusted, terrified, and yet still wanting more. It’s nearly unputdownable from charmingly eccentric beginning to nerve-wracking end, and this is the first time in a LOOONG time I’ve been so invested I didn’t want to stop reading and yet didn’t want the story to end. This is partly achieved by the characters, from shatteringly relatable Kara (Carrot), to quirky and reliable Simon, to idiosyncratic Uncle Earl, who are so (I canNOT use the word “rooted” as much as I’m tempted to. Evil pun!! If you’d read this you’d understand) settled in reality you can’t help but connect to and adore them in equal measures. I was WITH them on their entire terrifying venture, caught up in the Willow World full of nightmares and every day that came before and after. It is so rare to find a book that grounds you in a story as deeply as this does with characters who feel things that make you feel things too, that I was immediately swept away by the story from page one, long before anything particularly strange occurred. The writing itself, from Carrot’s POV, was generally so thrillingly well-done, I highlighted paragraphs in the script several times just to leave a note that read, “I love this!!” As a fellow writer, I fangirled hard at most of the writing. Sure, occasionally the geography of the Willow World was difficult to picture, and towards the end, Carrot was doing something ordinary to prevent herself from screaming one-or-two-too-many times, but 90% of the book was written at an A+ level, which is a level very hard to find maintained so well that that in itself makes The Hollow Places a gem. On top of that was the humor. Now, I don’t laugh-out-loud in general very often with books, but I did smile and chuckle several times throughout this, and I am never not impressed by an author’s ability to create humor, especially in the middle of a terrifying landscape. The story itself never once stopped being interesting, whether Carrot and Simon were slogging through evil Narnia or discussing issues over coffee. Fast-paced but not rushed, and just… utterly enjoyable. Yes, occasionally Carrot made a less-than-wise move and there were one or two things I realized before the characters did - one, in particular, long before they did. Most of the twists and turns, however, were completely unpredictable and shocking, but I cared so much about the characters that it didn’t even matter to me if it took them longer than me to work something out - I just wanted to follow them through every second of their story. Overall, this was an *extremely* good book. Quality horror, characters - everything. Was it completely perfect? No, but it was excellent and entertaining beyond description. The unalloyed ENJOYMENT I had reading this ratchets The Hollow Place up to a 5-star-rated novel for me and will go down as one of my favorites! Will 100% be checking out Kingfisher’s other book and following the author for more. I recommend to anyone not overly squeamish who enjoys a good little dose of terror, ready to sink their teeth into a book reminiscent, at times, of The Call by Peadar Ó Guilín but yet unlike anything they’ve ever read. Content warnings include (but are not limited to): mention of possible suicides; gore; and the heebie jeebies. **I received this book courtesy of NetGalley/Simon & Schuster in exchange for an honest review which did not affect my opinion.