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A review by hackeynut
The Hollow Ones by Guillermo del Toro, Chuck Hogan
4.0
The Hollow Ones is the start of what appears to be a new series by Del Toro and Hogan after the success of their Strain trilogy. I both read and listened to the book and to get this out of the way, it was a strange experience given the changes to the book’s main character after the publishing of the ARC. The main character is originally named John Silence, a direct homage to the Algernon Blackwood detective. In the final version of the book, the character is named Hugo Blackwood as an homage and to separate the character from the Algernon Blackwood creation.
The book itself starts on an absolutely terrifying opening scene in which a spree killer attacks his family and the public and is killed by Odessa, an FBI agent. At the moment of his death, her partner goes crazy and attacks a surviving child with a knife before being shot by Odessa. It’s a shocking opening and sets a bar for energy the book fails to recreate.
This isn’t to say it is a boring book. We are introduced to Blackwood, a mysterious character also related to a 60 year old lynching case in the deep south. Throughout the book we learn about the history of Blackwood (who also appears in scenes set in the 16th century) and his mission. Needless to say, there are supernatural underpinnings both to him and his adversaries.
The book is relatively short and moves along at a good pace. The main plot is sewed up nicely, but it is certainly open to a series. Whether this is in another trilogy or an even longer series will probably be based on the authors and the success of this book.
It isn’t perfect, but it is very entertaining. Especially for a quarantine read or an early Halloween treat, Del Toro and Hogan give us an easy to read book that is a ton of fun.
A note on the narration. It is perfectly acceptable, but the narrator isn’t terribly skilled at differentiating characters beyond vocal pitch. Accents are rather cringeworthy. It is perfectly acceptable, but it certainly doesn’t add to the book.
Thank you to Netgalley to providing an audio and ebook version for review.
The book itself starts on an absolutely terrifying opening scene in which a spree killer attacks his family and the public and is killed by Odessa, an FBI agent. At the moment of his death, her partner goes crazy and attacks a surviving child with a knife before being shot by Odessa. It’s a shocking opening and sets a bar for energy the book fails to recreate.
This isn’t to say it is a boring book. We are introduced to Blackwood, a mysterious character also related to a 60 year old lynching case in the deep south. Throughout the book we learn about the history of Blackwood (who also appears in scenes set in the 16th century) and his mission. Needless to say, there are supernatural underpinnings both to him and his adversaries.
The book is relatively short and moves along at a good pace. The main plot is sewed up nicely, but it is certainly open to a series. Whether this is in another trilogy or an even longer series will probably be based on the authors and the success of this book.
It isn’t perfect, but it is very entertaining. Especially for a quarantine read or an early Halloween treat, Del Toro and Hogan give us an easy to read book that is a ton of fun.
A note on the narration. It is perfectly acceptable, but the narrator isn’t terribly skilled at differentiating characters beyond vocal pitch. Accents are rather cringeworthy. It is perfectly acceptable, but it certainly doesn’t add to the book.
Thank you to Netgalley to providing an audio and ebook version for review.