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A review by gabberjaws
The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
My favorite thing about T. Kingfisher's novel The Twisted Ones was that it had so much heart . So, when I went into this, I was hoping for the same - and man oh man did Kingfisher deliver.
The Hollow Places follows Kara - aka Carrot - a newly divorced freelance graphic designer who let her ex have the house and desperately needs a place to stay that ISN'T with her mother. When Carrot's Uncle Earl offers to let her stay at his Museum (think Gruncle Stan's Mystery Shack, but a much nicer Gruncle Stan) and run it while he gets his much needed knee surgery, Carrot jumps at the chance. She loves Uncle Earl and the museum, and is very aware that she may not have survived living with her mother.
A month into running the place with Uncle Earl, things seem to be going pretty well and he goes off to stay with Carrot's mom for his surgery and recovery period, and Carrot's left to mind the museum on her own. Which goes pretty damn swimmingly until someone knocks a hole in one of the museum walls that opens up into an impossible bunker that should NOT be able to exist.
You've gotta give them props for it, because Carrot and Simon (her barista friend from the coffee shop next door) tried very hard not to become main characters in a horror movie. But, alas, things had different plans and they wound up becoming main characters in a horror movie book.
And lemme just tell you, the horror aspect of this was sublime. It felt vaguely Annihilation-like (the movie, not the book. I haven't read that and I hear it's very bureaucratic?) and incredibly sinister. The strong sci-fi energy of was super satisfying and gave The Hollow Places an edge over The Twisted Ones. Between the Willows, and Them and the willow world, Kingfisher wove a horror story that was full of existentialism, and gently mind-fucky.
I especially liked the way the scope was narrowed towards the conclusion. The main horrors in themselves were Too Big and Too Complex for Carrot and Simon to conceivably fight on their own. But Kingfisher narrowed the circle slowly and just enough that their eventual escape from this horror tale felt justified, hard-won and, most importantly, reasonable.
The driving force in this book was, once again, how much Carrot loved. She loved her uncle, she loved the museum, she loved her uncle's cat Beau, and while her deeply sibling-esque bond with Simon might not have felt like love just yet, it was well on its way there. You cared for these characters, and for the new life Carrot was building in the wake of her divorce. You wanted her and Simon to make their way out of this place and close that goddamned hole up for good. You had your heart in your throat when Beau followed his cat-instincts and put himself in incredible harm's way.
I knew I'd found a good thing when I read The Twisted Ones, but the Hollow Places has absolutely cemented my love for how Kingfisher writes horror - and I'll definitely be reading more of her work.
The Hollow Places follows Kara - aka Carrot - a newly divorced freelance graphic designer who let her ex have the house and desperately needs a place to stay that ISN'T with her mother. When Carrot's Uncle Earl offers to let her stay at his Museum (think Gruncle Stan's Mystery Shack, but a much nicer Gruncle Stan) and run it while he gets his much needed knee surgery, Carrot jumps at the chance. She loves Uncle Earl and the museum, and is very aware that she may not have survived living with her mother.
A month into running the place with Uncle Earl, things seem to be going pretty well and he goes off to stay with Carrot's mom for his surgery and recovery period, and Carrot's left to mind the museum on her own. Which goes pretty damn swimmingly until someone knocks a hole in one of the museum walls that opens up into an impossible bunker that should NOT be able to exist.
You've gotta give them props for it, because Carrot and Simon (her barista friend from the coffee shop next door) tried very hard not to become main characters in a horror movie. But, alas, things had different plans and they wound up becoming main characters in a horror movie book.
And lemme just tell you, the horror aspect of this was sublime. It felt vaguely Annihilation-like (the movie, not the book. I haven't read that and I hear it's very bureaucratic?) and incredibly sinister. The strong sci-fi energy of was super satisfying and gave The Hollow Places an edge over The Twisted Ones. Between the Willows, and Them and the willow world, Kingfisher wove a horror story that was full of existentialism, and gently mind-fucky.
I especially liked the way the scope was narrowed towards the conclusion. The main horrors in themselves were Too Big and Too Complex for Carrot and Simon to conceivably fight on their own. But Kingfisher narrowed the circle slowly and just enough that their eventual escape from this horror tale felt justified, hard-won and, most importantly, reasonable.
The driving force in this book was, once again, how much Carrot loved. She loved her uncle, she loved the museum, she loved her uncle's cat Beau, and while her deeply sibling-esque bond with Simon might not have felt like love just yet, it was well on its way there. You cared for these characters, and for the new life Carrot was building in the wake of her divorce. You wanted her and Simon to make their way out of this place and close that goddamned hole up for good. You had your heart in your throat when Beau followed his cat-instincts and put himself in incredible harm's way.
I knew I'd found a good thing when I read The Twisted Ones, but the Hollow Places has absolutely cemented my love for how Kingfisher writes horror - and I'll definitely be reading more of her work.