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blakehalsey's review against another edition
5.0
This book is gorgeous, wise, emotional, & messy. The voice is all at once authentically teenage girl & vulnerable & brave. It's not an easy book, but a beautiful one & that's even better. Put this on your TBRs, because this book shows us that answers are rarely simple, rarely easy, but love can exists in between all that, and that choices are powerful. And I think we all need that reminder from time to time.
megancrews's review against another edition
4.0
Rebecca Podos's debut novel The Mystery of Hollow Places is a combination coming of age story and atmospheric mystery. Imogene has always loved reading detective books, especially the ones written by her dad. When he disappears in the middle of the night, leaving behind only one cryptic clue, Imogene decides to start sleuthing herself. The clue points her toward her absent mother, a figure she only knows from fairy tales spun by her father at bedtime. In order to find him, Imogene is convinced she must find out the true story behind this woman who vanished from their lives so long ago.
As a mystery aficionado, Imogene draws on the skills she has picked up from novels over the years to try and solve her case. Her dad’s first best-seller becomes her how-to manual as she tries to figure out the fine art of private investigation. Along the way she references dozens of fictional detectives which fans of the genre will enjoy. The fast-paced plot is set against a chilly, snowy New England backdrop, perfect for a good mystery story.
In the hands of a lesser writer, it could become a fun, noir -flavored mystery, but Podos creates a novel with depth. Imogene is forced to start rethinking who she thought she was in the light of the truths she uncovers about her missing parents, both of whom battle mental illness.
Podos hooks readers with a suspenseful mystery, but what makes this book so memorable is her beautiful style and Imogene’s endearing first person narration. Aside from missing parents, Imogene still has to navigate awkward interactions with the boy she has secretly adored forever, fights with her best (only) friend, and procuring gas money for her illicit investigation. There is nothing trite or saccharine about Podos’s handling of love, loneliness, and the struggle towards self-discovery. Imogene is real, funny, and absolutely endearing.
This book works so well, I am already looking forward to whatever Podos does next.
As a mystery aficionado, Imogene draws on the skills she has picked up from novels over the years to try and solve her case. Her dad’s first best-seller becomes her how-to manual as she tries to figure out the fine art of private investigation. Along the way she references dozens of fictional detectives which fans of the genre will enjoy. The fast-paced plot is set against a chilly, snowy New England backdrop, perfect for a good mystery story.
In the hands of a lesser writer, it could become a fun, noir -flavored mystery, but Podos creates a novel with depth. Imogene is forced to start rethinking who she thought she was in the light of the truths she uncovers about her missing parents, both of whom battle mental illness.
Podos hooks readers with a suspenseful mystery, but what makes this book so memorable is her beautiful style and Imogene’s endearing first person narration. Aside from missing parents, Imogene still has to navigate awkward interactions with the boy she has secretly adored forever, fights with her best (only) friend, and procuring gas money for her illicit investigation. There is nothing trite or saccharine about Podos’s handling of love, loneliness, and the struggle towards self-discovery. Imogene is real, funny, and absolutely endearing.
This book works so well, I am already looking forward to whatever Podos does next.
narniaxisxhome's review against another edition
3.0
Full review to come but... I just glanced at the blurb on the back again and "Sharp plotting, unexpected twists..."?!?!?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME? There was literally NO twist and the plot was SO UNORIGINAL!! The writing was good but I'll be damned if I haven't read a million YA and JF books EXACTLY like this plot wise... Literally, I guess you could say there were "twists" but they were so small and insignificant and... Lame. I could not WAIT for this book to be over just because the whole plot was ENTIRELY OBVIOUS and certainly not my definition of "twisty"... Drama and finding out secrets or information are not what I consider good plot twists. Would've rated it less if the writing style wasn't good... Also, as someone who has been diagnosed with depression, a Psychology major, and someone who knows and has seen mental illness first-hand, I just didn't like the way depression and mental illness was represented... I feel like most of that was based on research, because, again, as a Psychology major but also someone who has seen mental illness up close I can tell the difference between someone who has just researched and read about it and someone who actually knows, you know?
tomhill's review against another edition
3.0
A solid mystery that isn't exactly what I expected, but worthwhile nonetheless.
burstnwithbooks's review against another edition
4.0
~4.5 stars
This was really quite fantastic! I really enjoyed the audiobook, and the story was absolutely riveting.
This was really quite fantastic! I really enjoyed the audiobook, and the story was absolutely riveting.
alexandriarosee_'s review against another edition
5.0
I quite enjoyed this book. Some of it was seriously relateable and some of it broke my heart a little bit. Overall it was a great easy read. Something I could have devoured on a summer weekend.
jang's review against another edition
3.0
The Mystery of Hollow Places is a good YA book that tackles depression. At first I thought I was in for a thriller or a mystery, but the storyline is actually deeper and more realized. This book is captivating and very fast-paced.
The reason I'm giving this book a 3-star rating is because I read this at the wrong time. This is the first book I touched (tried to touch, at least) after I read A Little Life, which was also the book that so widely devastated me I decided a bit of self-impose "book break" because the sentimentality and the story of Hanya Yanagihara's heartbreaker just wouldn't leave me.
I feel bad about that because I thought The Mystery of Hollow Places deserves a better rating. But anyway, maybe I'll give this book another read one day and really try to take it all in.
The reason I'm giving this book a 3-star rating is because I read this at the wrong time. This is the first book I touched (tried to touch, at least) after I read A Little Life, which was also the book that so widely devastated me I decided a bit of self-impose "book break" because the sentimentality and the story of Hanya Yanagihara's heartbreaker just wouldn't leave me.
I feel bad about that because I thought The Mystery of Hollow Places deserves a better rating. But anyway, maybe I'll give this book another read one day and really try to take it all in.
melissapalmer404's review against another edition
4.0
Book #115 Read in 2016
The Mystery of Hollow Places by Rebecca Podos
This was a decent young adult mystery book. Imogene's mother left Im and her father when Im was just a baby. Then one day her father has disappeared. Imogene feels that his disappearance is linked to her mother's and begins her own investigation. Will she find answers about many things? Will this reveal some insight into herself? This was a good read. I borrowed the book from the public library.
The Mystery of Hollow Places by Rebecca Podos
This was a decent young adult mystery book. Imogene's mother left Im and her father when Im was just a baby. Then one day her father has disappeared. Imogene feels that his disappearance is linked to her mother's and begins her own investigation. Will she find answers about many things? Will this reveal some insight into herself? This was a good read. I borrowed the book from the public library.
lynnietakalele's review against another edition
4.0
This was a nice well-rounded read, no holes in the plot, no loose strings at the end. It focused on a resourceful teen with parents with mental illness, so a little dark, but managed to be light because of the typical teen drama as they worked to find the missing father. I liked a lot of the dialogue which was mostly realistic and honest.
missprint_'s review against another edition
4.0
The only details seventeen-year-old Imogene Scott has about her mother are ones gleaned from the bedtime story her father told every night.
Before he became a best-selling novelist, Joshua Zhi Scott was a forensic pathologist who met Imogene's mother when she came to identify a body. He would then tell Imogene that her mother was always lonely. He'd even say that she was troubled waters. They would never talk about why her mother left, especially not since her father remarried and Lindy is now part of their family.
When Imogene's father disappears in the middle of the night, Imogene thinks he might want her to follow the clues he left behind; he might want Imogene to find him and maybe find her mother as well.
With unlikely help from her best friend and all of the skills learned from reading her father's mysteries, Imogene hopes to find her father and unravel the secrets surrounding her own past. But, as Imogene knows too well, things aren't always perfect at the end of a mystery in The Mystery of Hollow Places (2016) by Rebecca Podos.
The Mystery of Hollow Places is Podos' first novel.
Podos delivers an eerie mystery in this surprising tale. The Mystery of Hollow Places is also a solid homage to mysteries and Gothic novels alike as interpreted by a heroine whose favorite novel is Rebecca.
Imogene's first-person narration is pragmatic and often insightful as she makes sense of her mother's absence and her father's struggle with bipolar disorder. Unlike many teen detective stories, this book also remains decidedly in the realm of possibility as Imogene works with what she has and within the limitations inherent to a teenager trying to investigate some very adult problems.
Although the plot focuses on the mystery of finding her father, Imogene's story is just as much about acceptance and the strength found in friendships and choosing who to call family. Elements of magic realism and a stark Massachusetts backdrop add atmosphere to this sometimes choppy mystery with a diverse cast of characters.
The Mystery of Hollow Places is a strong debut and an unexpected mystery. Recommended for fans of traditional mysteries, suspenseful stories filled with twists, as well as readers looking for an atmospheric novel to keep them company on a cold winter night (or to evoke one anyway!).
Possible Pairings: Don't Ever Change by M. Beth Bloom, Finding Mr. Brightside by Jay Clark, Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, The Truth Commission by Susan Juby, Blue Plate Special by Michelle D. Kwasney, The Devil and Winnie Flynn by Micol and David Ostow, Tonight the Streets Are Ours by Leila Sales
*A more condensed version of this review appeared in an issue of School Library Journal from which it can be seen on various sites online*
Before he became a best-selling novelist, Joshua Zhi Scott was a forensic pathologist who met Imogene's mother when she came to identify a body. He would then tell Imogene that her mother was always lonely. He'd even say that she was troubled waters. They would never talk about why her mother left, especially not since her father remarried and Lindy is now part of their family.
When Imogene's father disappears in the middle of the night, Imogene thinks he might want her to follow the clues he left behind; he might want Imogene to find him and maybe find her mother as well.
With unlikely help from her best friend and all of the skills learned from reading her father's mysteries, Imogene hopes to find her father and unravel the secrets surrounding her own past. But, as Imogene knows too well, things aren't always perfect at the end of a mystery in The Mystery of Hollow Places (2016) by Rebecca Podos.
The Mystery of Hollow Places is Podos' first novel.
Podos delivers an eerie mystery in this surprising tale. The Mystery of Hollow Places is also a solid homage to mysteries and Gothic novels alike as interpreted by a heroine whose favorite novel is Rebecca.
Imogene's first-person narration is pragmatic and often insightful as she makes sense of her mother's absence and her father's struggle with bipolar disorder. Unlike many teen detective stories, this book also remains decidedly in the realm of possibility as Imogene works with what she has and within the limitations inherent to a teenager trying to investigate some very adult problems.
Although the plot focuses on the mystery of finding her father, Imogene's story is just as much about acceptance and the strength found in friendships and choosing who to call family. Elements of magic realism and a stark Massachusetts backdrop add atmosphere to this sometimes choppy mystery with a diverse cast of characters.
The Mystery of Hollow Places is a strong debut and an unexpected mystery. Recommended for fans of traditional mysteries, suspenseful stories filled with twists, as well as readers looking for an atmospheric novel to keep them company on a cold winter night (or to evoke one anyway!).
Possible Pairings: Don't Ever Change by M. Beth Bloom, Finding Mr. Brightside by Jay Clark, Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, The Truth Commission by Susan Juby, Blue Plate Special by Michelle D. Kwasney, The Devil and Winnie Flynn by Micol and David Ostow, Tonight the Streets Are Ours by Leila Sales
*A more condensed version of this review appeared in an issue of School Library Journal from which it can be seen on various sites online*