Hey all people!
I hope none of you are getting stuck in other worlds or worlds of the dead or worlds between the lands of the living and of the dead or anything of this sort because I tell you…I have read enough about these to know that when you get stuck in some other world, it is very difficult to come back. So don’t go opening mysterious doors…
Well, the review shall not be forgotten haha.
- Title: House of Hollow
- Author: Krystal Sutherland
- Genre: Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Thriller, Magical Realism
- Category: YA
- Publisher/Publishing Date: April 6th 2021 by G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers

Can somebody tell me? How many beautiful covers exist in this world? My god!! Just look at the ants, beetles and flowery pattern on this face! I mean, how can people draw so beautifully?
WOW.WOW.WOW.
And tell me? How can any author be THAT lucky to have a cover that beautiful in a book????
Iris Hollow and her two sisters are the human definition of ‘strange’. Strange in a way that all three possess a half-moon scar at the base of their throat and a mysterious connection that binds all three to each other…almost magically. Iris doesn’t remember how she ended up with a scar but something happened to her during her childhood that she can’t recall, not even put a finger on.
Iris has always wanted to be a normal person but fitting in is not what the Hollow sisters do best. When Grey Hollow, Iris’s eldest sister suddenly goes missing, Iris and her other sister, Vivi will do anything to find her. Life cannot get any weirder than that can it? Even for the weirdest people?
Following mysterious trails and unraveling secrets along her way, Iris and Vivi’s mission won’t be easy. Horned men start following the two sisters, and the corpse of a man is discovered in one of Grey’s apartment. It isn’t the end either. Memories unfurl…memories of the sisters’ childhood that Iris starts to remember in fragmented pieces…all Iris and Vivi can hope is that things don’t become more complicated, impossible to solve and most of all, that their sister isn’t dead…but probably, she is. Already.
About the Author:

Krystal Sutherland is an internationally published author. Her latest novel for young adults, House of Hollow, was released by Penguin in April 2021. Sutherland’s first novel, Chemical Hearts, was published in over 20 countries and was named by the American Booksellers Association as one of the best debuts of 2016.
[Picture and text taken directly from Goodreads]
My Ratings: 4.5/5
My Thoughts:
Okay, if there is one thing I like, it is mystery thrillers with magical realism and in this book, the author blends those two EXTREMELY well. It was dark, mysterious and had the concept of ‘otherworlds’ (if any of you were wondering why I started this post with a very *hemhem* weird introduction). It wasn’t the sort of ‘otherworld’ that is about parallel universes and lands of the dead but rather the part between the land of the living and the land of the dead. And this place is mentioned under the name of the ‘Halfway‘ in the book. Unique I tell you.
Iris is the definition of weird, mysterious, dark, way-too-beautiful-but-doesn’t-know-how-to-take-advantage-of-it. The story is told in her point of view of course since she is our main character. She is a sort of person who wants to be NORMAL. Like lead a normal life where people don’t point at her wondering if she remembers anything about her childhood or thinking about whether she is a witch and if she is too dangerous. Haha, considering the fact that her and Vivi’s life fall upside down when Grey isn’t here. Like they are Grey’s fiercely loyal soldiers and Grey is the main commander and without her…well…upside down life it is.
This is why Iris and Vivi go nuts when their sister isn’t here. They have such a strong sister bond which I admire (considering the fact that me and my sister are constantly bickering and always have one major fight ever day)…
Vivi, is this person who almost HATES her beauty and even shaved her head for this. She has loads of tattoos and is the human definition of rock-n’-roll. She is that sort of person who wears crop tops, jeans, mini-skirts. And she ruins her health…okay…cannot live without smoking or drugs for a day and every day without is a day ruined for her😂. She is fierce, caring, a little clumsy when it comes to manners and loves her sisters very much.
Grey…the most enigmatic of all…she is a supermodel and owner of her own designer brand called House of Hollow where she designs clothes and being a very weird person, inserts secret runes or pieces of paper into the hems and all. She, unlike Iris, knows her worth very well and embraces her uniqueness. She uses her beauty as an advantage and is fiercely protective of her two smaller sisters (includes death threats to her own parents…and we see more things in the book.)
Other than that, the plot was unique and unlike any I have read before. Magical realism makes the book so out of the ordinary and you know what I explained above about the concept of the ‘otherworld’ which was definitely a different one. I have never read a book about an otherworld between life and death so that was an aspect that really liked.
There is just a way in which everything is explained in the book and nothing is left out. Like the childhood mystery wasn’t left unsolved. Like everything was part of of the main goal in the book.
Since I guess I have definitely talked enough, I should probably end this post and draft my August Wrap-Up since I haven’t yet done it and I cringe every time I think of it…😭
Well, I think that is all for today otherwise this post will become a very-long-post so bye for now!!!
Love, hermione!
P.S. Next post will be my August wrap up or a review of Tweet Cute by Emma Lord so be sure to stick around for more!!