Scan barcode
A review by tashasbooks
The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I loved this book, and surprisingly one aspect I really loved in this book was the characters. We follow Kara who moves back to her Uncle's Museum to help out since he is having health issues. When living there and working, she discovers a hole in the drywall that she decides to explore with the next door worker of the coffee shop and new friend, Simon. They find and explore an alternate world, but this new realm isn't safe, and there are mysterious creatures that haunt it.
One thing extremely unique that I loved about this book was the characters and the relationships between them. You can't help loving everyone (except for Kara's newly divorced ex-husband) and that includes Simon, Kara, Uncle Earl, and even the barn/museum cat named Beau. The dynamic between Kara and Simon was very refreshing in a horror book, and there are times that the writing style and their dialogue cracked me up. It provided comical relief throughout the book.
"We're going to die here, aren't we?" "Yeah, we probably are." He said it so matter-of-fact and resigned that it helped. We were going to die.
The writing style and character dialogue was just fun, and they act a lot more reasonable than I think a lot of horror books paint characters as.
While definitely a horror book, I would say it was more eerie and tense rather than jump scares or horrible creatures everywhere. It was the anticipation of something is going to happen, and overall just creepy vibes. The first 50% was very fast paced and there is so much happening that you start to dread that the characters aren't going to make it. I think there were some issues with pacing, but it didn't take me out of the book and I enjoyed the overall plot and story.
The ending was amazing though, and it surprisingly is very heartwarming as well? This book combines fun and scary in an amazing way and I can't recommend it enough. If you want a horror book, but are also looking for some cozy vibes, this is the one.
One thing extremely unique that I loved about this book was the characters and the relationships between them. You can't help loving everyone (except for Kara's newly divorced ex-husband) and that includes Simon, Kara, Uncle Earl, and even the barn/museum cat named Beau. The dynamic between Kara and Simon was very refreshing in a horror book, and there are times that the writing style and their dialogue cracked me up. It provided comical relief throughout the book.
"We're going to die here, aren't we?" "Yeah, we probably are." He said it so matter-of-fact and resigned that it helped. We were going to die.
The writing style and character dialogue was just fun, and they act a lot more reasonable than I think a lot of horror books paint characters as.
While definitely a horror book, I would say it was more eerie and tense rather than jump scares or horrible creatures everywhere. It was the anticipation of something is going to happen, and overall just creepy vibes. The first 50% was very fast paced and there is so much happening that you start to dread that the characters aren't going to make it. I think there were some issues with pacing, but it didn't take me out of the book and I enjoyed the overall plot and story.
The ending was amazing though, and it surprisingly is very heartwarming as well? This book combines fun and scary in an amazing way and I can't recommend it enough. If you want a horror book, but are also looking for some cozy vibes, this is the one.