Friday 9 October 2009

Review: The Hollow by Jessica Verday

Title: The Hollow

Author: Jessica Verday

Year: 2009

Rating: 4/5

Plot: When Abbey's best friend, Kristen, vanishes at the bridge near Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, everyone in the town assumes that she is dead. Everyone, that is, except Abbey.

Struggling to come to terms with Kristen's disappearance and desperately seeking some answers, Abbey finds herself drawn more and more to the mysterious - and drop-dead gorgeous - Caspian, who keeps reappearing in her life. But Caspian has secrets of his own, and when Abbey uncovers the frightening truth about him, she starts to question not only their emerging love but also her own sanity . . .



Review: When Abbey's best friend, Kristen, disappears and is assumed dead, Abbey feels as though she has no-one left to talk to. Refusing to believe that Kristen is really gone, ... (click here for more)  

11 comments:

Michelle (Red Headed Book Child) said...

I've seen this book mentioned on other blogs. It looks really amazing!

Amanda said...

Okay, I went out and read your full review, and here's what I'm thinking: this is a new YA book with a fabulous premise that was written fast and possibly even sloppily and will definitely disappoint me. If it had better research and more depth rather than being written for a quick thrill for teens, then it would be wonderful.

Of course, I've not read the book. From the cover and description, however, I'm afraid this is what I'd get. I'm tired of these kinds of books that sound cool but are riding on the Twilight wave (which wasn't such a great wave to start with). I'm afraid I'm growing more cynical. I think I'll skip this one. I doubt I'm the intended target audience.

Faye( Ramblings of a Teenage Bookworm) said...

Ekk!! the Hollow!! i like both the Uk and US covers. I have 2 get it!!

Jessica Verday said...

Thanks so much for the review! Very well thought out and helpful too.

@Amanda - Since THE HOLLOW took a year and a half to write and much of that time was spent researching (including three trips to the actual town of Sleepy Hollow, and research into the perfume making process and interviews with perfumers) I can assure you that this book was not written hastily or without research. I hope that puts your mind at ease, and I hope you'll give THE HOLLOW a chance.

Best,
- Jessica Verday

Violet said...

I like this cover so much better. The girl on the other cover scares me :)

I read your review and I can bet I'll like this book.

But I'm starting to think that there is this trend to YA books. As you said 'more of a appetizer, a quick introduction'. I would need a strong story and a resolution to the current problem to actually go and seek out the next.

But I am going to trust your review when you say it's a strong debut and give this book a chance if I manage to get my hands on it.

Thanks for the review Ceri.

Amanda said...

Jessica,

Thanks for replying to me. I've had a lot of bad experiences in the recent past which have been disappointing, so I've grown a bit cynical. I think part of it is that YA books tend to stay on the surface of things simply because of the age group they target, so that even if a lot of research was done, a lot of it is left out of the book - does that make sense? I don't mean to demean your book at all (and I hope I didn't sound like I was above, I was generalizing) - I just am wanting to read something more in depth, if that makes sense. It takes a lot to get me to read historical fiction, anyway.

The Bookworm said...

great review, this does sound good!
its always great when a book is hard to put down.
http://thebookworm07.blogspot.com/

Ceri said...

Michelle - It's good. It's worth giving a go if you like YA.

Amanda - I've messaged you on BookFace already. :)

Faye - I prefer the UK cover. As Violet says, the girl on the US cover looks scary hehe.

Jessica - Thank you very much for taking the time to read my review. :)

Violet - I couldn't agree more. The more YA books I read these days, the more trends and similarities I'm noticing.

Naida - Thank you. :)

Melody said...

Great review, Ceri! This book is already onto my wishlist! :)

Sarbear said...

This one sounds so good!

Tales of Whimsy said...

Fab review :)