The third book of The Wingfeather Saga, The Monster in the Hollows, is a good combination of cozy reprieve and heart-pounding adventure and danger. Janner, Tink(Kalmar) and Leeli, along with the rest of their family and friends, find out what it means to confront age-old issues of the heart while coming together as a community to fight the evil that threatens to overcome their precious Hollows. Bravery, intelligence, sacrifice and honor are all on display as the Wingfeather children come to discover more about their family history and themselves. Don't miss this third book in this wonderful series!

I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this story after the way it ends in book 2. I’m really enjoying this series and so many aspects of this story really come to fruition in this book. I was smiling and broken-hearted at the same time at the end. I am a big fan of this series and will be recommending it to everyone!

The Monster in the Hollows picks up where we left the Igiby family at the end of North! Or Be Eaten, which is still one of the best titles for an adventure book ever. Aboard their boat sailing for the Green Hollows, the Igiby children get their first glimpse of their homeland. In the distance they can see no land, but they can see smoke rising, from the fire that is still burning nine years after Anniera was set ablaze by the evil Gnag the Nameless. Their arrival at the Green Hollows is soothed by the music of the song maiden, but it is still a bumpy arrival. The people have grown hardened over the years. While their land never fell to the Fang army, their borders grew tighter, their hearts colder. The arrival of the Igiby’s with the winged Throne Warden, and the Wolf King, is immediately under suspicion. Nia Wingfeather steps into her role as the Queen of Anniera and pledges her own life for her youngest son. Now Kalmar’s fate,Kalmar’s actions, are directly linked, by some kind of blood oath, to his mother’s. If he is to be punished she will receive the same punishment.

After they have arrived and been given permission to stay, they discover that their ancestral home on their mother’s side is still there, and is still theirs. Along with an old friend, they settle into life with the Hollowsfolk. The children find and fight for their place at school. The Queen’s heart learns to beat again. Oskar N Reteep begins to translate the first book with more vim and vigor. Janner begins to think that they might know peace here.

All he really wanted were good books to read, a warm bed, and his family and friends near.

But of course the evil still lurks in the west. Anniera still burns. The borders of The Hollows are still plagued by the cloven, and other unnatural beasts. And within their lands are enemies that smell sweet, but are fouler by far. When Kalmar makes some secret decisions, he places his entire family in danger. As a result of his actions, more is drawn into the light than we could ever have known was hiding in the darkness, and the future becomes something else entirely.

The third installment of The Wingfeather Saga is gripping from first to last page. Things we thought we knew are upended, and things we had long hoped for are attained and then dashed to pieces. Yet as much of the development of the story of Anniera is engaging, it is the stories of the female characters in the saga that are the most interesting, and best developed in this installment.

In Nia Wingfeather we are given a Queen to rally behind, then shown how you can be a Queen, a mother, a friend, and interestingly enough, a lover, all without sacrificing any part of your character. She remains one of the strongest characters in this saga, and I am seriously contemplating some cosplay this Halloween if I can get my family on board. The culmination of the events of this book are devastating for her, and I am keenly anticipating where she goes after this.

Leeli Wingfeather is given the chance to shine in this book, finding her true calling in life. It is a joy to read as her talents are explored, and as the adults around her build her up, recognizing her gifts and encouraging her to pursue them. The teachers at the school are remarkable. They treat their young charges as valuable contributors to society, whilst educating them. Some of the scenes with the boys in training are amongst the best Peterson has written so far, but it is the relationships that Leeli builds that ultimately provide the most aid to the family and enjoyment to the reader. The O’Sally boys are everything their name sounds like they should be.

Then we come to Sara Cobbler. Sara was a throwaway line in the first book. The name of a child taken by the black carriage, seemingly just to show the evils that lurked in the night. In North! Or Be Eaten we come across Sara in the fork factory at Dugtown, and she helps Janner in his escape. In The Monster in the Hollows Sara becomes her own hero, the director of her own fate, and in many ways the leader of a whole new nation. Her character development is perhaps my favorite. Imagine Hermione Granger, but with more pluck, more danger, and less boys. Sara Cobbler’s character arc, and her ultimate showdown, receives a lot of chapter space in this book and rightly so. When you are with her, you are never too eager to get back to what is transpiring in the Green Hollows. You want to be with Sara, you want to be Sara.

This book definitely finds a better balance between male and female characters, and while Janner and Kalmar develop, it is the growth and strength of the various female characters that really stand out here. Nia’s relationship with her childhood friend. Leeli’s growing position in her guild. Sara, just for Sara alone.

She wanted them to know it was better to fight and lose than to sink away into nothingness under the Overseer’s evil grin.

Unfortunately Peterson does not continue with his delightful footnotes in this book, but there are still some gems in the Appendices which he uses to help further our history of this world. Indeed throughout this book we are given more history, whether through the studies of Oskar N Reteep, the recollections of Artham, or the relationships between NIa and the Hollowsfolk. If North! Or Be Eaten showed us a world outside of Glipwood, The Monster in the Hollows shows us just how interconnected everything and everyone actually is. Whether they know it or not, whether they accept it or not, the fate of the Annierans is directly tied to that of the Hollowsfolk, the Stranders, and even the dark beings that lurk in the forest. It isn’t just the distant smoke that hovers over them. More than anything however, Peterson shows us that there is always hope.

He had grown into something more and not less. That meant that the power Gnag the Nameless and his Stone Keeper had unlocked in the music could do more than just warp and deform. It could do more than destroy.
It could change something twisted into a flourish.
It could take what was bent and make it beautiful.
It could heal.


This saga shows us what can be accomplished when good people step up, when good people start speaking out, when we fight for what is right despite our own personal comfort. It’s a great book to read as a family this year, and is certainly the tonic that I needed right now.

I finished book 3, The Warden and the Wolf King of this Wingfeather series and was happy to have book 4 available immediately. As a fantasy series aimed at middle school children, I think these books hit all the right notes. The characters are believable, the plot is exciting, and the themes are echoed in the real world. The 3 children whose adventures the story follows have experienced the loss of their home, their family and their country. They have unique gifts, but struggle with their own and others flaws.
Although there is juvenile humor about smells and peoples appearance that as an adult I found jarring, many of my students would appreciate them. The best part is, that some of the most disgusting looking and smelling characters turn out to be real heroes. I felt it was a wonderful way to learn not to judge by appearances.

This series just keeps getting better with each book! I love this series and suggest you start with the first book and read them in order. This book is not just for kids, I'm 63 years old and I love it. Grab this series today and escape from the world for a while. Thank you WaterBrook & Multnomah via NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

Finally the Igilby family are safe! Having escaped from Gnag the Nameless, they arrive in the Green Hollows anticipating a warm welcome. No longer needing to run from toothy hounds and ridgerunners, they can finally settle down and even attend school like normal children. But there is a problem. There is a wild cloven on the loose and there have been reports of bloodthirsty Fangs sneaking into the Green Hollows. But perhaps the greatest threat is from the town folk themselves, for they do not trust the Igilby children, least of all Kalmar. You could not blame them really. With furry skin, whiskers and a tail, Kalmar looks more like an enemy Fang than a normal kid.

The story takes us from two boys learning how to deal with bullying classmates to an ominous cave filled with bones. But perhaps most of all, the book reminds us that the things that appear evil are not always so and sometimes those things that appear trustworthy need greater examination. Kalmar might live with the shame of his fur but eventually he learns that it a person's heart will directs his decisions and the the real truth of who someone is will surface for all to see. Andrew Peterson has written an adventure story for children (complete with a shocking twist) and yet manages to capture the emotion of grief in his characters as they lose someone precious to them. I highly recommend this book but don't start with this one - go back and read them from the beginning!

Long has it been since I read a book that made me literally tear up at the end. And for that, I am grateful, Mr. Peterson!

After the Wingfeathers have been chased all across Skree and eventually, across the sea, it seems that things have gotten better for them in the Green Hollows. I was happy to see the children going to school and making friends (and enemies). But all good things cannot last. And the children are once again thrown into danger as a monster is spotted in the Hollows.

The beginning felt more like Harry Potter, in the going-to-school-and-making-friends-and-enemies area. A new side of the Wingfeather world was explored in this way and everything just felt…different. In a good way. Once again, Peterson’s plot was expertly woven and written with just enough humor and poignancy to satisfy me.

New characters appear, now that they’re all in the Hollows, and each one has a large personality, just like the original cast. There are several characters previously mentioned in the first two books that appear that made me very happy! And very sad and angry and frustrated and wanting to read the next book. So, basically, they were perfect.

Not much happens, adventure-wise in the book until around 60%, but the tension and interest level are still pretty high as Janner, Kalmar, and Leeli navigate this new world.

There’s really nothing else I can think of to say besides the fact that I loved it! Monster in the Hollows is a beautiful, lovely third book in the Wingfeather Saga and I’m so glad that I was finally able to continue reading the series!

NOTE: I received a complimentary copy from the publisher through NetGalley for review purposes only. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Monster in the Hollows was written by Andrew Peterson. It is book three in The WingFeather Saga. This is not a standalone book. You need to read the first two in order to understand the storyline.

Summary: The Igiby family has arrived in The Green Hollows-somewhere they can finally relax and be safe. But the townsfolk are not so sure about the Igibys-especially Tink, who now looks like one of their most dreaded enemies-the Grey Fang.

As the Igibys settle into their new home, the children begin attending school for the first time. Will the other children learn to accept them, or will the Igibys be outsiders for good?

Can Janner, Tink, and Leeli find their way in this new world safe from evil…or will evil come to them?

My Thoughts: I loved this book. It is definitely my favorite so far in the series. I loved the setting, the characters, the interesting school subjects, and just the overall storyline as the children try to settle in to a whole new way of living. It was an extremely enjoyable read, and I will definitely be reading it again!

I am really enjoying just how unique this series is-all of the different lands, peoples, creatures-it is really fascinating, and very well-written. It is reminiscent of other classic book series where entire worlds are developed by an author, and there is the classic good versus evil plot-like Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and the Narnia series.

I am looking forward to finishing the series, and then introducing it to my kids-as I think they are going to enjoy it too!

I would like to thank WaterBrook & Multnomah for providing me with a free digital copy of this book in exchange for my review. Thank you!

You know it's a good book when you're on your third read-through and you still hold your breath at the tense parts and don't want the book to end, even though you know what's coming. The Wingfeather Saga does not lose its captivating power on subsequent reads. It's the kind of story that gets better every time you read it and you come to appreciate the details in new and different ways.

Rating warning -- It's more than 3.5 but less than 4.

I discovered this series in Netgalley itself, and while I got the arcs for for book 3 and 4, I got myself the ebooks for 1 & 2 since I wanted to do justice to the series.

One thing for sure - The author has amazing world building skills. Almost none of the creatures we know exist in this world. And one that exists (a dragon) also has some unique characteristics.

Magic of this world - It is a soft magic system. And magic is not the most important part of the story, magic is used and felt, but the main focus of this story is courage and bravery. We don’t have any “Avada Kevada” to kill. You will have to do the hardwork yourself.

Inspiration - I think this series has been inspired by the LOTR series. There is almost no Harry Potter reference in this series, which is like a breath of fresh air.

Now the plot -----

The 2nd book was extremely engaging. The characters were facing situation one after the other, it was like they could not really take a proper breath or rest properly. That got solved in the third part. After their adventures in second book, this book was comparatively slow paced but it was a welcomed pace.

The book starts off sweetly and slowly we learn about how our society deals with those who are kind of broken. The major theme of this book was how fear can make people do certain things and that if you are afraid then you are not really free.

It is about Kalmar the High King of Anniera who has been fanged. The prejudices and fights that their family goes through, and most importantly we see how Janner deals with his emotions regarding his own brother who has been fanged and who needs to be protected by him.

I think I liked this book a lot because of how well Janner’s thoughts and emotions have been portrayed. That anger of having a responsibility you would not have signed for, that feeling of doing things you don’t want to and sacrificing your own desires, that grudge, anger and dislike you want to hold onto but unable to, knowing that you are being selfish yet not being able to help it, understanding what needs to be done still trying to deny it and throwing tantrums --- I loved it all. I have went through these, I could sooooo relate and I absolutely loved it.

There were 2 plot twists in this story. One was kind of expected and the other one was simply unexpected and was not delivered properly either, it felt abrupt. From whatever I have read in the past two books, I expected a more careful planning of the plot twist. A good plot would have connected the dots, whereas this felt like coming from nowhere.

(SPOILER) This incident raises many questions -- If King knew about Bonnifer than why did Throne Warden not know about it ? He should have and could have warned the children during their journey, said a tale perhaps ?(SPOILER OVER)

Last but not the least, we get a really important lesson about loss. Losing once is heartbreaking but twice, that is just terrible. This ending was simply heart wrenching and gut punching T_T !!

Thank you Netgalley and WaterBrook & Multnomah publishers for the free reading eArc.

It never ceases to amaze me how impressive these books can be. This next addition continues with all the majesty and brilliance as the first two books. I am quite sad the series ends after this next book. My son will love reading these when he is older as well. I can't recommend this author or the series enough!

Loved this third book in the Wingfeather Saga! The adventures of Leeli, Janner and Kalmar continue. The family has been reunited and is looking for a safe haven. They do find a place, but will it become a home and will they find acceptance.? I came to love the characters even more and will definitely be reading book #4. Come along for the ride!

Jennifer Norwood's reviewAug 28, 2020 · edit
really liked it

This book was a great read. I enjoyed the entire thing, though I read this one first since I downloaded it first on my phone. The characters feel like they could be living today, even with the extra features. The plot twists and turns so well that I couldn't stop reading. I think I read the whole thing in 12 days or so which I think is good for a mom of 2 toddlers.
I am going to read all the rest of the books in the series so that I can find out what happened before this book that I missed and what happens next. This book makes me want to see what other series are available by Andrew Peterson and try some others. It was that good!!
I received this book free from Waterbrook and Multnomah. #PRHpartner

These stories were our escape from the weirdness of 2020.

Thank you to the publisher through Netgalley for an advanced copy.

I love this series so much! I recommend this series 100% thank you for the opportunity to be able and read this! I love the story and your writing flows naturally. A given talent to be able to write so wonderfully.

The Monster in the Hollows was the first book in the series that made me cry (thank you major plot twist!). The whole series is allegorical of the Christian life and our struggle with identity in the midst of an evil world. With the introduction on the cloven, the author speaks to those who feel broken beyond repair. There is great hope in the Maker and his deep love.

I was able to join the launch team for books 3 & 4 of the Wingfeather Saga by Andrew Peterson. You can check out the book series here: http://wingfeathersaga.com/.



I am attempting to not include any spoilers in this review, that being said, let's begin.



The story begins where book 2 left off - the family is attempting to cross the Dark Sea of Darkness. Kalmar is the wolf king/prince/Gray Fang appearance. Janner struggles with his role as the Throne Warden. Leeli grows as the Song Maiden.



The story does not fail to provide humor, laughter, joy, hope, redemption, adventure, action, twists and turns, just like the first 2 books of the series. Our favorite characters return and some new characters are introduced.

That being said, I have read 3 out of the 4 books at this point. Without including spoilers here, I believe this very well could be my favorite book of the 3 books I've read from the 4 of the series. Give the series a chance, check out the website for the books: http://wingfeathersaga.com/





SPOILER ALERT: Okay, I know I said that I would attempt to not include spoilers, but I believe I can't do justice for a review of the book without including these next thoughts. Some people may consider these thoughts as spoilers, so proceed at your own risk.



Above I said that Monster in the Hollows very well could be my favorite so far. I stand by that statement. For reasons that may be hard to point into words.

The book being titled Monster in the Hollows and the fact that Kalmar Wingfeather now looks like a Fang, you would think that Kalmar is the Monster. But there are other monsters in the Hollows as well. To be honest, I was frustrated and upset as the story progressed.

"It isn't fair!" I thought multiple times as I read. "NO!" I screamed inside my head on at least one occasion. Major plot twists occurred in book 3 as well. "I did not see that coming" happened as well.

But as with books 1 & 2, redemption occurs as well. As Nia Wingfeather states in one part of the book (I'm paraphrasing as well) "show them mercy and forgiveness."

Perhaps the biggest reason or two that I'm such a fan of the Wingfeather books is the fact they contain hope and redemption, as well as the existence of evil and how to fight it. Our world is a messy place, and we need reminders that there is hope. Andrew Peterson gives us books of hope, but it shows that it can and is messy at times. His books are not all sunshine and roses. We need stories that show people rising up and fighting the good fight. We need stories of hope and redemption. And we find that here in book 3 of the Wingfeather Saga: The Monster in the Hollows.

Andrew Peterson has once again blessed us with a world of adventure with his creativity. In this third book, the saga continues. I have young children and I cannot wait to introduce them to this series. I recommend it for audiences of all ages.

Sometimes in a book or movie series you find one is not quite as good as the others. This is definitely not the case for Andrew Peterson’s 3rd writing in The Wingfeather Saga series. The Monster in the Hollows did not disappoint in the least. I read it in one day because I absolutely had to know what was going to happen next. From the beginning of this leg of the tale, you are drawn in by new surroundings and characters, each one described in such a clever way that you can easily picture them and feel like you are right there in the story with them.
The depth of meaning in many of the events in this journey are eye opening. Andrew Peterson has a gift for portraying human character that makes it relatable even if it’s not the most pleasant trait that you are identifying with. It’s well balanced with challenging events, humor and heartwarming moments. As an adult, experiencing this book took me back to times spent reading as a young adult, finding adventures that gave me a respite from challenging life situations and hope for the future.

This book is exceptional. I'm re-reading the entire series (again!) with my 11-year-old, and I flew through book 3 to get it into her hands. With all the adventure in books 1 & 2, I'm glad for the pace of this book -- a real chance to catch your breath before the final book of the series.

I cannot wait to add these new illustrated hardback versions to our collection.