Title: The Hollow Places
Author: T. Kingfisher
Source: Pasco County Library System
Publication Date: October 6, 2020
Synopsis: Goodreads
Purchase Link: Amazon

Other books by this author: A House With Good Bones

Why did I choose to read this book?

This one was sitting in my library holds, probably because after I read A House With Good Bones I was like, I gotta get more of that weird horror in me and Kingfisher is speaking my language! I picked it up at the start of this summer (2024) and read it in like, 48 hours.

What is this book about?

This book is about finding weird shit in your eccentric uncle’s weird tourist museum that is basically just filled with weird shit and then almost dying multiple times while you try to get your life together and figure out the supernatural forces at play that will NOT leave you or your housecat alone.

This book is just about that life is a fucking dumpster fire sometimes and some people survive and some don’t but we’re just doing our best, OKAY?? Please ignore the taxidermied raccoon, he’s meant to be there.

What is notable about this story?

This is an imaginative and terrifying new take on the Narnia phenomenon. Hole opens into another universe, but instead of fauns and Turkish Delight (which is nasty btw) it’s monsters that will eat you but if they’re not hungry they’ll just fuck you up real bad and leave you on an island to be a sentient pile of goop or leaves or something. I love a new story based on a familiar location or idea because I can feel my feet firmly on the ground which makes me feel safe to absorb the new elements that the author wants to introduce and guide me through. And Kingfisher really, REALLY wants to take you to weird places.

Was anything not so great?

I wish that the thing that forced Kara into living with her uncle wasn’t a divorce. The ex-husband constantly poking his head in to try to bait Kara into fighting with him or trying to make her mad with his new partner who he apparently was with before they officially ended their relationship just kind of felt extra? Like, she could have just lost her job, or gotten kicked out of an apartment, or the rent went up too much and she had nowhere to go – did we really need this extra side character? Not a deal breaker but you could take that completely out of the story and still have everything that makes it great.

What’s the verdict?

5 stars on Goodreads! I could NOT put this book down. I had to know what happened next, or why something was happening, and if everything was going to be okay. I loved all the characters immediately and wanted them to be happy and safe. And everyone can use an eccentric uncle that has a spare room for you whenever you need it, even if his museum is full of scary taxidermy. A horror book that’s for everyone! Go get it, quick!

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