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House of Hollow-A Book Review

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
House of Hollow
Source: Goodreads

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

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

Rating: 4.5 out of 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!!

Posted on by Hermione · 4 Comments

The Hollow Places-A Book Review

Well, obviously, hello! (I have no idea what to write in this first paragraph) *guiltily skips it*

  • Title: The Hollow Places
  • Author: Ursula Vernon (under the pseudonym of T. Kingfisher)
  • Genre: Horror, Fiction, Mystery, Thriller
  • Publication Date/Publisher: October 6th 2020 by Gallery / Saga Press
The Hollow Places
Source: Goodreads

When Kara divorced her husband, she moved into her uncle’s museum, also known as the Wonder Museum. A museum filled with all sort of things like stuffed otters, raccoons, deer, elks and ”feejee” mermaids as well as stuff with ”Made in China” at the bottom. Everything goes fairly well for Kara since she is mostly busy the whole day, cataloging all the artefacts in the museum or suddenly bursting out crying because of her divorce.

When her uncle has to move in the hospital because he has to operate his leg, Kara is left in charge of the museum. This is when everything starts to become wrong. A tourist has punched a hole in the museum wall and curious Kara decides to poke her head into it and discovers something unexpected…

A mysterious passageway.

Uneager to explore it by herself, she calls to the barista of the nearby café shop, Simon who is also her friend. As they get into the passageways and investigate, they deduce it to be a bunker and further and further they walk until they reach a place with a hole on top….sunlight streaming in.

Kara and Simon discover alternate worlds where there are wicked willows that seem to come alive in the dark, emitting this strange silver light. They nearly get lost into that weird willow world themselves. Haunted place this thing is and evil creatures that hear your thoughts and with every thought, every fear, become stronger and stronger. Kara and Simon have to find a way to get out of this mess quick before that willow world takes a hold on them and never lets them go.

About The Author:

T. Kingfisher is the vaguely absurd pen-name of Ursula Vernon. In another life, she writes children’s books and weird comics, and has won the Hugo, Sequoyah, and Ursa Major awards, as well as a half-dozen Junior Library Guild selections.

When she is not writing, she is probably out in the garden, trying to make eye contact with butterflies.

[text taken directly from Goodreads]

My Ratings: 3/5

Rating: 3 out of 5.

My Thoughts:

I liked this book but I felt that there were many things missing in the book. Maybe this is just me but I’m not sure. This isn’t a horror novel, it is a mild horror. I think I really did set my expectations a little to high. The aspect of ‘other-worlds’ was great but I wished we talked more about it in the book. You know, just to get a little deeper into the what I call ‘willow-world’ so we get to understand it better. It felt mostly hazy but more interesting things happen that clear of the haze a little but not fully. The ‘willow-world’ didn’t feel as scary and as bone-chilling as I wished it would be but it sparked my interest very much so I was constantly wanting to know more about it.

The author’s style of writing was significantly beautiful but I have the feeling that not enough things happened in the book. The ending explained a lot about the rest in the book and seriously it was way out of my mind. It was much more interesting than the other chapters and I was constantly wishing the book was as interesting as the ending itself.

Well, I haven’t talk about the characters a lot have I? Well, the author has a sense of humour which she expresses very well through the dialogues between Kara, Simon and Uncle Earl and the other people but they didn’t feel real enough to me. Sometimes, the adventures through the ‘willow world’ felt a little to easy but they definitely made me relax and say ”Finally!” *with huge sighs*

I am still unsure about what to write over here but I think I still have a lot to say about the book but it would just be spoil kingdom. This mostly sums up about what I think about it.

See you with another book!

-Hermione

P.S. I just finished reading Made in Korea by Sarah Suk and I seriously can’t wait to share my review with you guys because the book was beautiful and a real bagful of multi-coloured emotions and happiness. I mean, it cheered me up so much it left me smiling for a whole day after…*tells myself not to start rambling about this book over here and remembers that I have a whole post to look forward to and talk how much I want about the book*

Posted on by Hermione · 4 Comments

Burn Our Bodies Down-A Book Review

Hey guys! Hope you are all fine! I finally read this book after so long! Let’s start with the review!

Title: Burn Our Bodies Down

Author: Rory Power

Genre: Horror. YA Fiction, Mystery, Thriller

Publication Date/Publisher: July, 7th 2020/Delacorte Press

Burn Our Bodies Down
Source: Goodreads

Margot Nielsen has never known any other life other than living with her single mother. She also has no knowledge of the rest of her family. If there is one thing she longs for the most, is the truth, the truth about her family, her mother, her unknown father and where they all came from. Margot never got any of her questions answered so she learned to live with unanswered questions haunting her mind every single day.

In a stroke of luck when Margot visits the pawn shop, she comes across an old Bible book which belonged to her mother and in that book was an old photograph which should be her family. On the back of the picture was a phone number and Margot believes that she finally has the precious key to unravel all her family secrets.

As she calls the number, she talks with an old lady, Vera Nielsen who is surprisingly her grandmother. Having finally uncovered a part of her family, Margot decides to leave Calhoun and head for Phalene, the place Vera said where she could find her.

When Margot reaches Phalene, she expects to be happy to have found her grandmother and everything would become normal again and she and her mother would get along and there would be no secrets. What she didn’t expect was to discover that Vera isn’t what she really is and her family’s roots in Phalene go way deeper than she thought. Phalene isn’t safe and after a few days, she realizes that her family tree is just too much poison and if she stays here any longer, she might never get out.

About the Author:

Rory Power
Source of picture: goodreads

Rory Power lives in New England and works as a crime fiction editor and story consultant for TV adaptation. She writes mostly Young Adult books and is the New York Times Bestselling author of Wilder Girls and Burn Our Bodies Down.

My ratings: 4.5/5

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

OMG! This book is so full of unexpected twists sometimes you don’t know what’s really coming. I never expected anything as such! Seriously! Ridicine! (I cannot tell more about this word because it would spoil everything and anyways you won’t find it on internet so if you are curious, you have to read this book). Vera looks so nice at the beginning, you almost hate Margot’s mom but then as you progress in the story, you have different thoughts about the whole thing.

Everything starts normally and then it slowly gets interesting and then very interesting and then you end up with your eyes glued to the pages at the end. It is definitely worth reading and you have to try it! Oh and BTW, the cover is beautiful!

Well! That’s all for today!

See you all next time ;D

~Hermione

P.S. I think I will read Beyond the Ruby Veil by Mara Fitzgerald next! So stay around for more! (Another fantasy book😁) See ya later!🧡

Posted on by Hermione

The Haunting of Rookward House-A Book Review

Name: The Haunting of Rookward House

Author: Darcy Coates

Genre: Horror, Thriller, Fiction,

Publication Date: September, 2017

Source: Goodreads

When Guy finds a very old document about his mother, Heather inheriting an old house, he decides that this is his opportunity to help his mother in their financial problems and to repay back a little bit of her kindness towards him.

On reaching Heather’s inheritance, Rookward House, Guy is surprised at its state. Broken and grimy windows, overgrown vines, rotten wood, Guy realises that it will take weeks to make this place inhabitable and fit for sale.

Guy packs up everything needed for his stay at Rookward, food and water and tools. As Guy is cleaning up the vines from one of the windows, he finds, shocked, two palms plastered against the window glass, greyish like a sea creature that has been left in the sun for too long. He also sees a body blurred by the window’s dirtiness and a face with long dark hair. Does someone else lives here? Is that thing even alive? Surely not…

Bizarre things do not stop there. Doors that Guy closed seem to open by themselves, clothes with dark stains in the middle, a baby monitor long dead emitting sounds and strange footsteps. Surely staying there for a week cannot be that bad. When Guy spends many disturbed nights dreaming flashbacks of Rookward House and its inhabitants, he is sure that this house is haunted by a ghost.And what does the ghost want? Guy doesn’t know.

My ratings:

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

I must say after reading The Haunting of Gillespie House, it seems only mild horror compared to Rookward. I don’t think it would be a very good idea to read it at night. It all depends on the person. I don’t think I would do that because I could vividly imagine Amy, the ghost during the night and she was very SCARY in my imagination😂. So now Darcy Coates is my favourite author and I really like horror now. I have’t read many horror books before so it was quite new to me. BUT there is one thing…I WOULDN’T DARE TO WATCH HORROR MOVIES. I still remember my friend from primary school and last year she told me she watched Annabelle and so many other horror movies at night. I really don’t know how she did that!

I found Amy a very intriguing and scary character and her physical description could be vividly imagined. Guy also was interesting and I love how Darcy Coates puts a great amount of bravery and courage in her main characters which makes her books more suspenseful and daring.

So I think that is all.

Thanks for reading,

Hermione

Posted on by Hermione · 3 Comments

The Haunting of Gillespie House-A Book Review

Name: The Haunting of Gillespie House

Author: Darcy Coates

Genre: Horror, Thriller, Fiction

Publication Date: August, 2015

The Haunting of Gillespie House by Darcy Coates
Source: Goodreads

Elle is going to live in Mr and Mrs Gillespie’s house for some time so as to look after it as the couple are going to town. Elle is so excited as is eager to discover the ancient gothic style of the old house. She finds the house to be very dim-lighted and old with its creaking floorboards and strange sounds.

Elle decides to visit the upper part of the house. On reaching, she enters a large room filled with old-fashioned gothic furniture covered in a large and dusty white cloth. All of a sudden, the door snaps close behind Elle. She is surprised as she is supposed to be the only one in the house and terribly afraid at the same time. As she slowly creeps downstairs, not daring to make any sound, she calls Mrs Gillespie to tell her about what happened but only receives a response saying that the house is old and any strange noise can be expected. Still very suspicious, Elle switches off her phone.

Things start getting stranger and stranger when Elle sees an eye between two shelves in the library, strange scratchings against the wood at night, dreams that seem to real to be ordinary dreams and the mysterious room, the only room that has been locked in the house.

My ratings:

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

That was a real horror story. I mean it was so mysterious and filled with suspense and the last thing that happens in the story is the most interesting part and it makes your bone chill. I really love Elle’s character, that amount of bravery she has and that air of I-can-do-it. Beautifully written!

…maybe you are wondering why I have posted two times a week, well, it is because I have practically disabled Youtube off my phone for a week and I am still trying to keep up that challenge. I know it is slightly hard for me and I did break it off in Thursday and I have restarted. So no Youtube till Thursday afternoon for me. Duh!

Thanks for reading!

Hermione

P.S. Maybe next review will be The Haunting of Rookward House by Darcy Coates.

Posted on by Hermione · 1 Comment

Deception Point-Critique de Livre

Je suis désolé de ne pas avoir pu publier pendant un certain temps. La semaine dernière, nous devions assister à un mariage le samedi et le dimanche, donc j’avais à peine le temps de faire mes propres devoirs. J’espère que vous comprenez tous.

Nom: Deception Point

Auteur: Dan Brown

Genre: Thriller, fiction

Deception Point eBook: Brown, Dan: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store
Source: Amazon

Quand la NASA fait une découverte surprenante, une météorite gigantesque enfouie dans la glace, Rachel Sexton est envoyée au cercle polaire par le Président Herney par avion mystérieusement. En croyant que Herney va s’en servir d’elle pour gagner les élections contre son père, le sénateur Sexton, elle s’en va à contrecœur.

En arrivant à sa destination, Rachel rencontre le fameux naturaliste, Michael Tolland, le savant Corky Marlinson, et le Professeur Ming

Plus surprenant encore, on y trouve des fossiles dans une partie de la météorite. Rachel fait rencontre avec la glaciologue Norah Mangor qui lui explique sur la météorite. Finalement on y retire la météorite et un trou énorme y reste.

Une nuit, Michael, Corky et Rachel découvre une chose mystérieuse dans le trou…cherchant le Professeur Ming et Norah seulement Norah arrive. Où est Professeur Ming ?

Tout à coup, Norah et Corky se font attaqué par un ennemi invisible. En courant loin de la zone, Michael et Rachel s’éloignent peu à peu de la station. Vont-ils survivre ?

Mes notes:4/3

Rating: 4 out of 5.

C’était une belle histoire. Même si c’était vraiment long, cela en valait la peine. Je recommande vraiment de lire ce livre.

Au revoir,

Hermione

Posted on by Hermione

The DaVinci Code-A Book Review

Name: The Da Vinci Code

Author: Dan Brown

Genre: Mystery, Detective Fiction, Conspiracy Fiction, Thriller and Suspense Novel

In Paris, Robert Langton, a Harvard symbologist and Agent Sophie Neveu, a French cryptologist find the elderly curator of the Louvre, Jacques Sauniere, murdered in the museum covered with intriguing symbols and bizarre riddles, naked, spread like an eagle in Leonardo da Vinci’s famous painting, The Vitruvian Man. Robert and Sophie soon discover clues which leads them to the famous works of art of Leonardo da Vinci, the Mona Lisa. They find a key embossed with the symbol of the Priory Of Sion, a secret society in which Isaac Newton, Victor Hugo, Da Vinci, Botticelli and Sophie Neveu’s grandfather, Jacques Sauniere belonged to.

Together, Robert and Sophie work together in a quest to find the Holy Grail, which is in fact Mary Magdalene’s tomb or something that is related to it. They do not know that the Opus Dei centre is searching for exactly what they are searching for. Using Jacques Sauniere’s difficul clues, they are aware that if they do not succeed or if the Holy Grail falls in the wrong hands, the ancient truth will be lost forever…

This book was as amazing as Harry Potter. I loved it! I really recommend to people to read this book at least once.

My ratings:

Rating: 5 out of 5.
Hermione