Reviews - Emilie and the Hollow World

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Emilie and the Hollow World by Martha Wells

103 reviews for:

I am not sure how a story with such an interesting setting could end up being so bland, but honestly that's kind of how I ended up feeling about her Raksura books too, so maybe I just don't love her third person narrative style.

infowitch's review against another edition

4.0

Copy editing was messy and formatting was wonky, especially with italics, but I absolutely adored this. It's very Wells, with a bit of the Raksura world in the hollow world, and lots that was reminiscent of the Ships of Ile Rien. I was hoping for some overt crossiver, but no such luck. Regardless, this was a delight and thoroughly YA.

grassangel's review against another edition

3.0

I fear I might be just a smidge too old for this sort of early teen YA adventure. I would have loved it during the age I was devouring Redwall books and similar books about adventures in fantastic lands; this book being a very easy to understand modern and feminist take on pulp sci-fi in the vein of Jules Verne, but the writing was just a smidge too juvenile and a bit too straightforward.

The second half does pick up a little - with more of the world-building and social construction/commentary I know Martha Wells for, as well as some politicking and double-crossing.
I would have loved to learn more about Kenar, Rani and the Cerathi and the other people of the Hollow World, but the action never really stopped nor concentrated on these details, even though there's plenty of time spent travelling and Emilie is very curious.

In short, an enjoyable pulp-y read, but probably much more enjoyable if you are a young teen who enjoys fantasy/sci-fi adventure stories.

metaphorosis's review

3.0

reviews.metaphorosis.com

3 stars

Sixteen year old Emilie has run away from an uncle and aunt with low expectations of her. Her adventure becomes much more exciting than expected when she is mistaken for a thief and ends up on a sorcerous aethership headed deep into the ocean and beyond.

Martha Wells seems to be struggling recently. While her early books were great, later offerings have been much weaker - not bad, but not up to the previous standard. Sadly, Emilie and Hollow World continues the trend.

Emilie is clearly written as a Young Adult novel, with a naive but plucky young heroine encountering the cruel world for the first time, and with many opportunities for her innate goodness to shine through. That's all well and good. What's disappointing is that Wells seems to be so consciously adhering to a formula. Every moment feels carefully scripted and targeted. The result is a book that's pleasant, but not especially interesting.

Despite the care, Wells seems to miss her target. We don't learn Emilie's age for a couple of chapters, and when we do, it's surprising. I had the feeling of a 10-12 year old, not an adolescent. Even when we learn Emilie is nearer being a young woman than a child, she doesn't feel like one. The introduction of a love interest is thus a bit offputting. Perhaps, in a world where most fictional teens face harsh dystopias at every turn, there's room for a return to starry-eyed childhood innocence, but it didn't work for me here.

Wells' world is a similar return to days of yore, with Emilie and crew visiting the hollow center of the Earth on aetheric currents. I assume this is in conscious homage to Verne and Burroughs, and took no issue with the sheer scientific improbability of the setting, though there's little attempt to explain it, and some of the background details are improbable even within the context.

Wells does better with characterization. She winks at historical stereotypes by quietly inverting some gender roles, but sets the story in an Elizabethan-era steampunk setting in which woman are meant to play a submissive role. This gives Emilie something to rebel against and overcome, but it feels a bit tired. Emilie herself is an active, intelligent protagonist. She worries and wonders, but takes action - not always in very credible ways. She faces and overcomes fairly predictable challenges.

Altogether, this is a quick, modest adventure for kids who haven't read too widely (and thus encountered most of the ideas already). There's nothing wrong with it, but also not anything particularly compelling. I don't feel any need to go on to the next book.

bfls's review against another edition

4.0

As an adult reader this was a good, fun 3 star read. If I'd had the chance to read it when I was a young teenager I would have adored this book.

mayamreads's review against another edition

3.5

adventurous dark reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

Very interesting world building. Unfortunately there were too many characters to really become invested in many of them. Pacing was a little all over the place.

erica_o's review against another edition

3.0

Emilie runs away from her uncle and aunt (her mother’s brother and his wife) because they’re too restrictive and want her to get married to an upstanding young man and have children. She wants an education and because she reads adventure novels, she decides to stowaway on a ship that will take her to her cousin’s school for girls.
But things happen and she winds up on another ship that takes her to the inside of the earth, a place known as Hollow World where adventure awaits.

This was very fast paced. Not sure who the target audience is, though. It reads like middle grade but touches on some YA topics but then the narrator made it sound like it's for the 8-12 crowd.

It reminded me a little of [b:Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos|472392|Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos (Theodosia Throckmorton #1)|R.L. LaFevers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348525782l/472392._SX50_.jpg|2143025] but not as cute.

2.5 stars