Welcome to my stop for The Hollow Gods blog tour organized by Storytellers on Tour! The Hollow Gods is an interesting Urban fantasy set in a small town. I don’t read Urban fantasy often (this might be the first in a while), and that is why I chose to pick up this book. I enjoyed reading this book and thought instead of my usual review, I would share five things I liked about it (and why I would encourage you to pick it up!) with some aesthetic boards that I created. First up the book blurb:
Black Hollow is a town with a dark secret.
For centuries, residents have foretold the return of the Dreamwalker—an ominous figure from local folklore said to lure young women into the woods and possess them. Yet the boundary between fact and fable is blurred by a troubling statistic: occasionally, women do go missing. And after they return, they almost always end up dead.
When Kai wakes up next to the lifeless body of a recently missing girl, his memory blank, he struggles to clear his already threadbare conscience.
Miya, a floundering university student, experiences signs that she may be the Dreamwalker’s next victim. Can she trust Kai as their paths collide, or does he herald her demise?
And after losing a young patient, crestfallen oncologist, Mason, embarks on a quest to debunk the town’s superstitions, only to find his sanity tested.
A maelstrom of ancient grudges, forgotten traumas, and deadly secrets loom in the foggy forests of Black Hollow. Can three unlikely heroes put aside their fears and unite to confront a centuries-old evil? Will they uncover the truth behind the fable, or will the cycle repeat?
Content Notes: Coarse language, descriptions of violence, and missing loved ones.
5 reasons why I enjoyed The Hollow Gods
# 1 It has the Stranger Things feel.
The Hollow Gods has feels of Stranger Things. I love stories that are set in small towns! Though there isn’t an Upside Down in this book, there is definitely a dream realm where a good chunk of the battle of nerves takes place. How this world affects the other and the madness that is driving the events in the town was interesting to read.
# 2 There are three distinct point of views from which the story is told.
The chapters switch between Miya ( an undergraduate student), Kai (a boy haunted by a spirit) and Mason (an ontologist on leave). I found it easier to connect with Miya and Mason. Kai’s perspective added another dimension to the narrative though I was a bit confused about what he was a little longer than I wanted to be.
I liked Mason’s skepticism about the happenings in town and his struggle with coming to terms with his past mistakes. As an outsider looking in, his side of the story and his drive to understand he truth was monumental to his development and uncovering the truth of the Dreamwalker.
“He wanted to shield his simple world, and in his efforts, he’d smashed it to pieces, leaving a vacuum for everything he thought impossible to take its place.”
Excerpt From: A. J. Vrana. The Hollow Gods
# 3 It offers an interesting take on mythical creatures.
I am not very familiar with werewolves in literature though I have read the popular ones from Vampire Diaries, Harry Potter and Twilight, and recently The Order on Netflix. The Hollow Gods does not mention werewolves per se but it is easy to call a man that is also wolf a werewolf. There is a lot of opportunity for book two in this series to expand on the history of this race and how they came to be in Canada. Kai’s origins are in Siberia.
There are also spirits in this book, one of them primarily evil. I am interested to know more about that and the dream realm.
# 4 It is deeply rooted in small town legends and superstitions.
The Hollow Gods has a dark, mysterious and old storyline. The cast of characters that offer different aspects to a supernatural phenomenon and folklore ingrained in the town’s memory. Mason’s research around the legend of the Dreamwalker added extra context to the disappearing girls. I found some similarities between this book and another tour this year for a book called Harrow Lake – the madness of the villagers and how the things of the past affected choices was neat to see another iteration of.
Fact vs fiction and the power of stories was integrated into the narrative well.
“Stories aren’t told to convey the facts. They’re told to convey the truth.”
Excerpt From: A. J. Vrana. The Hollow Gods
# 5 It is a different kind of horror.
Horror isn’t always gorey and spooky. The Hollow Gods has its niche style of horror where the reader is interacting with spirits, supernatural elements and another realm. I like the commentary on time and the aspects of reality that have to be reconciled when one if both wold and human. There were a couple of spooky scenes that I found spooky, but nothing overtly terrifying (except maybe the superstitious beliefs of the villagers and the extent to which they would go to uphold a legend).
Some parts of the plot could have been stronger, but overall, the writing and world building makes up for the weak points. The story picked up in pace about 25% in and it had a conclusion that makes me look forward to book two of the duology.
** The Hollow Gods is now out in stores so get a copy and let me know what you think! **
Amazon Print
Amazon Kindle
Many thanks to the author for a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book was made available as part of blog tour organized by Storytellers on Tour. Check out the other stops on the tour – the schedule can be found here!
Cover image from Unsplash. Mood boards created using Canva. Blog tour graphic from Storytellers on Tour.
Loved your reasons to read this book. The small town settings, the mystery, and the folklore were the biggest draw for me in this book.
Thank you 🙂 Yes, those are quite attractive settings!
I agree with every factor that you have pointed out. Thank you for sharing your beautiful thoughts on this.
Thanks for reading! 🙂