Reviews

Hollow Fires by Samira Ahmed

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gibbygibson_'s review against another edition

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mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

bibliobrandie's review against another edition

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5.0

This book was really hard to read at times but I am so glad that I did. Set in Chicago and amidst escalating white supremacy activity and hate crimes, high-school journalist and Indian American Safiya is determined to find the killer of an Iraqi refugee classmate who was murdered. There are some brutal scenes but Ahmed does an excellent job of keeping it from being graphic or sensational. Told in alternating perspectives, you have Safiya's voice as well as the ghost of the murdered boy, Jawad. The story is also interspersed with multimedia clippings, some taken from real-world sources. This supernatural thriller is a page-turner that educates as much as it captivates. There is a lot going on in these pages and Ahmed handles it all beautifully.
Note: There is a new book by Candace Fleming about the real life killers that this story is loosely based on. a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58492091-murder-among-friends?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=6V1KnaMbIj&rank=18"

chipottleworker's review against another edition

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5.0

Made the mistake of reading this in public where I almost cried multiple times

easyvisionary's review against another edition

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5.0

The dual perspectives, the school articles, the interview transcripts, news stories, the academic articles! What a well researched, well written and clever book!

sallenreads's review against another edition

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challenging hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

nmfolkman's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Lincoln 25

amieeaya's review

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4.5

A full story. Twists and turns, both for characters and for plotline. Some will say it's heavy handed, leaning to the left. I say it does what good storytelling is supposed to do, to humanize issues and deconstruct the political dialog that has made this country so hateful and fearful. This book is a lot, but in a very compelling way.