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I have read a lot of 'ugh' books recently. UGH books. Books I did NOT like. It's been a struggle. I did read the newest Janet Evanovich and while it's not quite like the earlier books (and there's still an annoying love triangle), it seemed less phoned in. I'm still not rushing out to buy her books but I'll pick the next up from the library. I read this book a few weeks ago. It was a spur of the moment library book based totally on the cover. It's not my normal type of book to be fair, as it has some horror elements. It's really delightful. Well, horror infused delight? I read it all in one sitting because I was hooked.  Title: House of Hollow Author: Krystal Sutherland Page Number: 304 pages (hardback) Genre: YA, Young Adult, fantasy, horror, thriller Publisher: G.P. Putnam and Sons Year: 2021 Seventeen-year-old Iris Hollow has always been strange. Something happened to her and her two older sisters when they were children, something they can’t quite remember but that left each of them with an identical half-moon scar at the base of their throats. Iris has spent most of her teenage years trying to avoid the weirdness that sticks to her like tar. But when her eldest sister, Grey, goes missing under suspicious circumstances, Iris learns just how weird her life can get: horned men start shadowing her, a corpse falls out of her sister’s ceiling, and ugly, impossible memories start to twist their way to the forefront of her mind. As Iris retraces Grey’s last known footsteps and follows the increasingly bizarre trail of breadcrumbs she left behind, it becomes apparent that the only way to save her sister is to decipher the mystery of what happened to them as children. The closer Iris gets to the truth, the closer she comes to understanding that the answer is dark and dangerous – and that Grey has been keeping a terrible secret from her for years. I've not read any of Sutherland's other books, but one of her books has been made into a film. I've seen the previews for that one. I'm very behind on movies/TV...I just can't sit down and watch to be honest. It follows three sisters, with the last name Hollow. Iris Hollow is the narrator. She's the youngest at seventeen and lives with her mother in the UK. She goes to school, tries to fly under the radar, and follows her sisters through social media. Her two sisters have moved out and have less contact with their mother. Their father committed suicide when they were younger. The eldest sister is Grey Hollow and is a supermodel of sorts. She has a supermodel boyfriend named Tyler Yang, who also makes an appearance in the story. The middle sister is a musical artist named Vivi. The infamy surrounding the sisters begins when they disappear one day in Scotland. They are found a month later, but their hair has turned white and their eyes have turned black. Their parents are at first overjoyed but then their father slowly begins to believe that the three girls are not his children. He eventually kills himself. The sisters have a fantastical element to their being that draws people to them. While Vivi and Grey use this power to further themselves, Iris tries to keep hers hidden and be normal. The book begins with Iris out on a run. She is disturbed to see a creature in her path. Scared, she turns around and runs back home and tries to contact her sisters. She soon discovers Grey has disappeared and her oldest sister's life is filled with mystery. Vivi, and later Tyler, join her on her country wide hunt. They uncover very odd (and disturbing) information about what Grey's been up to and what happened to them when they were children. I will say this was very well written and it kept me hooked. I don't really enjoy horror. AT ALL. The horror elements in the book were disturbing. The book really leans into a magical realism in some ways. It creates this disturbing realistic world. Parts of it did deal with some sad issues, as horror often leans towards death. Overall, the book has a truly interesting concept and leans into an idea like changelings. Random Penguin's House has a excerpt and audiobook sample on their website. Krystal Sutherland's website
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