Reviews tagging 'Kidnapping'

House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland

176 reviews

tigger89's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This was really good! Not only was it a solid portal fantasy take on the dark fairy tale genre, but I loved the focus on sisterhood. I can't go too much into the reasons why I loved it because there be spoilers, but I really am a sucker for fiction that centers platonic connections, like friendship and sibling connections, and that can be rare to find in the sea of romance-focused YA that's out there. The connection and tension between the three sisters was the high point of this title, for sure.

That said, there is a slight romantic distraction which felt out of place, given how strong the focus was on finding Grey. The ending of the book seemed to be leaving room for a sequel, though one hasn't been announced, so I'm especially concerned that any continuation of the story would be completely overpowered by this focus. But this is very much a personal gripe, and maybe most readers would enjoy Iris exploring her attraction! I will say that there's some excellent LGBTQ rep here, with Iris being bisexual and Vivi being a lesbian.

As for the fantasy, I believe it would appeal to readers who enjoy things on the darker side. Little uncanny glimpses were dropped in to build tension, employing images of insects, decay, and invasive growth to unsettle the reader. I wouldn't go so far as to say this is a horror novel, at least not any more than a dark fairy tale retelling is horror, but I can see the imagery getting under some readers' skin. I know I was brushing imaginary bugs off my arms sometimes as I read. As much as it got under my skin with some of the imagery, I have to say that, if I'd come across this book when I was a teen, it would've been my absolute favorite.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Drug use, Blood, and Child death

florecita_lectora's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Body horror, Murder, Violence, Stalking, Sexual assault, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, and Death of parent

Moderate: Bullying, Grief, Child death, Drug use, and Suicide

Minor: Vomit

meemawreads's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

The first 2/3 of this book was pretty interesting and oddly enough it was when the plot was thickest and most dangerous for the characters when I found myself zoning out. I think this book could have been shorter and I guessed the plot twists. I think this is a great teen/YA read as it's got modern references, but that's also what I predict won't age well about it. I didn't find myself super attached to the characters but I was interested in figuring out the mystery. It was alright, three taters 🥔🥔🥔/🥔🥔🥔🥔🥔

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death of parent, and Gore

Moderate: Suicide and Sexual assault

Minor: Kidnapping

sea_sea's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Wow, this was an absolutely fascinating and spooky book. It’s full of twist and turns, that you can’t even beginn to predict. It is so hard to put down, the story completely encases you, pulling you further into it‘s dark and rotting depths. 

Alsoo there is sapphic rep!!!! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Blood, Bullying, Child death, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Murder, Rape, Sexual assault, Stalking, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Vomit

Moderate: Drug use, Alcoholism, Fire/Fire injury, Addiction, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Gun violence, and Pedophilia

etherealisnt's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I'm pretty speechless, it's just that this story is exceptionally messed up. The Hollow sisters turn from something you know to something you don't. The story is uncanny from the beginning and it gets crazier with every chapter.

I remember everything. You just wouldn't believe me if I told you.

Grey was right, nobody would believe such an insane story, but people dig the mysterious and occult. At some point even I thought that I'd be happier if I didn't know what exactly was going on, but I also know that I'm way too curious. By the end I had a difficult time accepting all the facts, like come on, that's just plain tragic what happened.

Your life would be happier if you didn’t know.
Knowledge is power.
And ignorance is bliss.

I was pretty hopeful at the beginning and I wasn't let down per se, but some parts felt overly repeated and explained while other (both unnecessary and necessary) questions were left unanswered. 
Sometimes the dialogue seemed like a part of the conversation was just cut out or the flow wasn't entirely natural, but it didn't bother me that much, I just noticed it a couple of times.

There are things in every family that are not talked about. Stories you know without really knowing how you know them, tales of terrible things that cast long shadows over generations.

Oh for sure, this shadow has been cast over these people for so long and there's a sense of knowing what is going on, but still doubting your gut feeling. I feel bad for everyone involved, all of you get therapy!
Seriously, this is one of the more shocking stories I've read. It crawls inside you and makes your skin itch. I did not want to believe until the last second - hope does cruel things to us!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Body horror, Death, Gore, Sexual assault, and Violence

Moderate: Blood, Vomit, Suicide, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Grief

Minor: Alcohol, Drug use, Kidnapping, Medical content, Bullying, and Murder

Um, human skin walking?

graceev's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child death, Death, Grief, Kidnapping, and Murder

pennywhizzle's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking and Gore

Moderate: Suicide, Sexual harassment, and Kidnapping

Minor: Sexual assault

unablelemon's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Death, and Suicide

Minor: Kidnapping

braveprincess11's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.0

Premise was solid enough, but it had far more potential as an adult novel. Publishing as YA limited how much Sutherland was able to explore her ideas, and as a result… it wasn’t very good. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death of parent, Violence, Eating disorder, Fire/Fire injury, Body horror, Vomit, and Stalking

Moderate: Sexual assault and Kidnapping

Minor: Suicide

ajraven's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence and Gore

Minor: Kidnapping, Rape, Stalking, and Alcohol