Reviews tagging 'Confinement'

House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland

4 reviews

bloomingrose92's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

While horror isn't really my thing, this book was incredibly well written. I particularly liked the descriptions that Sutherland gave. They provided a strong sense of rotting darkness throughout the book with novel phrases I'd never heard before.

And the twist of them not be chased by something that hides in the dark, but being the thing that hides in the dark was excellent. That they killed the three little Hollow girls, stole their bodies, then left them, unburied, as they took over the Hollow sisters' lives. I especially liked the line that Grey called out to the Hollow sisters for help, and they listened, because Grey was a little girl too. And the masked killer haunting them is actually the Hollow's father, coerced by their unholy magic to suicide, and refusing to pass on so that he can finally bring down his children's killers? Chef's kiss. I loved the detail of him finding his children's discarded bodies in the Halfway place, and making graves for them to finally rest. I have a particular fondness for protagonists putting everything they have into fighting a big bad, just to find out that they were the bad they were fighting. And the characterization of our protagonist in this book as a mousy bookworm who just wants to escape the weirdness of her past adds to the twist.

A well-written book, with unlikeable characters that only adds to the ultimate payoff.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Torture, Biphobia, Blood, Body horror, Grief, Infidelity, Medical content, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Murder, Self harm, Stalking, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Cursing, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Addiction, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual assault

jhaneveauguste's review

dark mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death of parent, Drug use, Gore, Stalking, Suicide, Gaslighting, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, and Death

chichisode's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gore, Vomit, Suicide, Stalking, Sexual assault, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Murder, and Blood

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Cursing, Bullying, Toxic relationship, Drug use, and Kidnapping

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Pedophilia, and Violence

stllyltc's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

A wolf in sheep's clothing. Having to uncover all the deep secrets beyond the truth of one's own origin is a scary thing to think about and this book came to tell a story just about it. In the first half, it intrigued me so much what lies under the mystery behind their disappearances. It somehow reminds me of Stranger Things when it came to an otherworldly path though this relied on a door. The craft of character building on the story was so interesting mainly because it involves nature, especially flowers. When all confusions came to fit like a puzzle, I got goosebumps over how Grey functions. Among the three sisters, Vivi is my favorite actually. There were a lot of despairing moments which can be really depressing and anxiety-inducing, better take note of that. It would be great to have a sequel on the book since it ended with loose ends. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Suicide, Violence, and Vomit