Finding a portal to another world, check. Walking through it to see what's on the other side, not a good idea. This story started out strong with pages of nail-biting suspense. It fell apart somewhat towards the end but I stayed along for the ride.

The Hollow Places" was my first novel by the wonderful T. Kingfisher but it most assuredly will not be my last! Holy cow, where to begin? The impending sense of dread that she is able to throw out into the story AND the ability to maintain its momentum was one of my favorite things about her plot development. It never seemed misplaced or even over the top in a novel that is definitely in the "suspension of belief may be required" category! Lol! Her characters are just perfectly rendered and lend an innate believability to a story that at its core is centered around a small North Carolinian museum in a town named Hog Chapel (because of course it was!) called the "Glory to God Museum of Natural Wonders, Curiosities and Taxidermy" (BECAUSE...OF COURSE IT WAS!!) What transpires there is a trip to...another place? Another time? Another world?? Suffice it to say, if you are a fan of "LOST" or "Stranger Things" you will feel right at home!! Yes, indeed.🙂🙃

This novel is just so unexpectedly real, chilling, and funny in its quirkily believable unbelievability that I'm really reluctant to say too much more. It is just one of those gems of a read that going in blind storywise seems to be right. It allowed this reader, at any rate, to quickly identify with the main characters, as well as to share their growing sense of horror at each new turn of events presented to us during our time at the Wonder Museum!

❤LOVED❤THIS❤NOVEL❤

I would like to sincerely thank NetGally for the privilege of reading an advanced digital copy of "The Hollow Places." But most of all CUDOS and many thanks to T. KINGFISHER (a.k.a. Ursula Vernon) for transporting this reader and hopefully many, many more future readers, to another place, another time, another universe if just for awhile through the alchemy of your words about worlds near, far, and inbetween!!

#TheHollowPlaces
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#SimonAndSchuster
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The Hollow Places is a scientific fantasy book of parallel worlds, portal fantasy, and terrifying creatures with a hint of horror and Comedy.
The story starts when a young woman Kara, goes to live with her Uncle Earl. After a painful divorce without having any aid, she had nowhere to go. When her uncle earl offers her to work at his Museum, Glory to God Museum of Natural Wonders with a place to stay, she gladly accepted.

She was happy having her life back together but soon it turned upside and down When Earl has to take a leave for a few weeks to get knee surgery and leaving Museum at kara's hand.

This story is full of adventure taking readers into a fantasy world with unexpected horror. This is my first reading by T. Kingfisher and I enjoyed her writing style, characters/world building. But I wish this story has more creepy/horror elements.

Overall I enjoyed the story and recommend it to anyone who likes to read fantasy books with light horror.

Thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for this free copy to read and review in exchange for an honest opinion.

I loved this ARC so much, I bought a physical copy for my home library. I loved the characters, the museum was strange and lovable, and the other dimensional world was well developed, creepy, and I loved every minute of it.

Strangely enough, I didn't enjoy this book as much as I did The Twisted Ones. It was just as creepy and the plot was food but something just didn't click for me.

I’ve been thinking all day about what to say in this review because I’m still not entirely sure what I just read. What I do know is that I loved it! I loved the setting, the weird little quaint museum of taxidermy and oddities is somehow both adorable and creepy. The adorableness I think mostly comes from its owner and how much it’s loved. Kara and Simon are witty and so likable. I don’t know if I’ve ever read a book that is equal parts warm, funny, creepy, and fucking weird in the best way!

Thank you NetGalley, author and publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I blazed through this book in less than 24 hours. It’s otherworldly and addicting. I find myself side-eyeing willows and questioning negative spaces even now. And I’m someone who loves to read outdoors.

The author has crafted two characters I adore; their banter and “real-ness” hit all the right notes for me. Only her second horror book, I cannot WAIT to read whatever she comes up with next.

I'm a little bit worried that the next part will come off as mean or dismissive, so I want to iterate clearly that what I'm about to say comes from place of love and not a little joy.

The Hollow Places is like the coffee-addicted lovechild of a wine and yoga cozy mystery and Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach Trilogy. I'm agog. This is a combo that really seems like it shouldn't work, but by the ancient and unknowable outer gods (who are assuredly the godparents of this story), I've rarely had more fun while being so thoroughly creeped out.

Kingfisher combines a wonderful modern everywoman as our protagonist-- quirky and imperfect, but charmingly so. She meets the sanity destroying events in the book with an understanding of her place ina horror story and a kind of panicked sarcasm we should all strive for.

The imagery and horror of the Willows is incredibly well done. Algernon Blackwood would (in my opinion, anyway) be proud. We are confronted by things ridiculously outside our experience and knowledge, yet at the same time the danger and fear of the place seems incredibly real and solid.

I honestly had no idea what I was getting into with this story, but I'm so glad I found it. It manages to be both refreshingly different and grounded in the meat and gristle of good horror.

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a Great story. I was invested from the very beginning of this eerie story. I can’t wait to see what else this authors writes!

Pray they are hungry.

Kara finds these words in the mysterious bunker that she’s discovered behind a hole in the wall of her uncle’s house. Freshly divorced and living back at home, Kara now becomes obsessed with these cryptic words and starts exploring the peculiar bunker—only to discover that it holds portals to countless alternate realities. But these places are haunted by creatures that seem to hear thoughts…and the more you fear them, the stronger they become.

If you like spooky, creep you out, give you nightmare books ( like me) than this is the book for you! The book has a fast pacing, smart, creepy, horror story that I read with all the lights on. I loved the characters, If you enjoy HP. Lovecraft, or Stephen King type stories this is for you!

A twisted and dangerous Narnia lives within the walls of quirky museum in a small North Carolina town. Unsettling, fast paced, and surprisingly funny, Kingfisher's novel doesn't disappoint.

I loved the two main characters of this books. They are so relatable and just fun to read about . Where this book looses me is when they find the portal to the other place. I feel like the explanation is so vague that by the end i was left with more questions than answers.

This is a super trippy book that is somehow simultaneously engaging but also feels like it drags at points. If you like Lovecraftian works, you will probably enjoy this one. I felt like overall it was pretty good but could have edited out about 50 pages or so.

ARC from NetGalley. All opinions my own.

I really wanted to like this book but it just was too gloomy. I liked the idea but the alernate space was too much.

I'm not even sure how to review this book. This was kind of a mix of comedy, portal fantasy, and horror all rolled up into one. This is pretty dark and has some gory moments, so if you are squeamish you may want to skip this one. I did appreciate the author's twisted sense of humor throughout the book and found myself laughing out loud several times while listening to this.

From the horror perspective, at no point was I ever terrified. There were some creepy moments and some really weird ones, but I wouldn't say this is scary. Take that with a grain of salt, I don't think most horror books are scary. You may find Kara and Simon's trip into "The Willows" nightmare inducing.

This follows Kara, a graphic designer who has returned home to help her uncle run his very odd museum. The museum itself is strange, but Kara finds a hole in the wall one day after the museum has closed. She enlists her friend Simon, the local barista, to help her patch the wall but they find the bunker instead. The two of them decide to explore the mysterious bunker, whose door opens up to an even weirder place. They were not prepared for what they encountered in the world outside. I don't want to say much more about the plot because anything more would spoil it and you kind of have to just experience as it comes.

This reminded me alot of Bird Box, where you aren't really sure what the "monsters" are but you know there is something sinister out there. It was fast paced and you weren't sure what was going to happen next. Overall I thought this was entertaining and I enjoyed the audio narration.

I did receive and ARC from Netgalley for an honest review. I did however listen to the final published version of the audiobook.

The Hollow Places was okay. There were parts that were confusing to me. I didn’t love the way she described the way they got to the other world. The in between of the wall and the bunker. I couldn’t picture it at all. There were a few other little things that bugged me, but it mostly had to do with the way the author described things. Also, the characters were just okay to me. Like I was interested in what was happening to them, but also didn’t really care that much if they made it or not. The one really bright spot in the book for me was Uncle Earl, but we don’t get very much of him. Overall though, I’d say I liked it okay, it had some parts I didn’t like, some I did. I wouldn’t recommend a friend run out and buy it, but it’s a quick, fun horror read if your library has it.

This book was definitely a very dark and twisted read. Not sure how to even review it because it was weird and crazy. I enjoyed reading about the characters and the setting of the story. Very creepy book and if you are looking for a horror story this one is the perfect one!

*Thanks so much to Gallery Books and NetGalley for the complimentary copy for my honest review*

I didn't want to put this book down. It hooked me from the first chapter and I was honestly sad when this book ended, I wanted more of the story. It was chilling, gory, and surprising in all the good ways and genuinely creeped me out. My advice, don't read this at night, alone, in the dark like I did.

Kara finds a hole in her uncle's house that leads to a bunker that holds portals to alternate realities. These other realities make you realize that your life isn't that bad. This is definitely a horror novel and I can't recommend this one enough. Make sure you have a lot of time before you start reading because you won't want to put this down.

“The Hollow Places” by T. Kingfisher
Sometimes, the world can stretch beyond our expectations. In “The Hollow Places,” by T. Kingfisher, there are holes in the world that lead to another. A frightening world, where children are stuck inside the seats of a school bus and thoughts alone may get you killed. Or eaten.
Kara is attempting to put her life back together while going through a “friendly divorce.” She moves into her uncle’s small museum in Hog Chapel, North Carolina, called the Glory to God Museum of Natural Wonders, Curiosities and Taxidermy. When her uncle takes time off for knee surgery, Kara discovers a hole in the back of the museum. With the help of Simon, the eccentric barista from next door, the two explore the hole and find that it is not a hole at all but a portal to an alternate world, one with tall grass, lots of water, and quite possibly, no way home.
“The Hollow Places” is a fast-paced, frightening read that made me afraid of willows and any crack in my walls. It also made me wonder about the fabric of my own world. If I look closely enough, or with enough persistence, will I discover a portal of my own? If I were to find an alternate world like the one in the head of T. Kingfisher I would prefer to ignore the cracks and stay safe and sound in my own reality.

Reviewed by Amy Sampson-Cutler for Suspense Magazine