This book was slow moving. I knew who did it as soon as all the characters were introduced. The love story was frustrating as well. Sorry to say this book was just an ok read for me.

This was somewhat of a miss for me. I was expecting a psychological thriller/mystery, but it’s more of a romantic drama with a mystery kind of sprinkled in. I wish there had been more backstory about the first disappearance, and the current mystery wrapped up too quickly. If you like a romance featuring a love triangle this might be the book for you!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I went in blind and was pleasantly surprised by the departure from Kiersten Modglin’s typical thriller. I had flashes of The Summer I Turned Pretty and a little bit of Every Summer After and while it was quick, enjoyable, and binge-able, it was a bit too slow paced for my preference with an anticlimactic ending that didn’t seem to pay off.

The narrator was great but felt a bit young for the present timeline and made me feel I was in more of a YA world.

I still love diving into this author’s books and will continue to do so- and I look forward to more suspenseful romances!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the opportunity to review this audio ARC.

Thank you so much to NetGalley for a ARC of the audiobook of The Hollow!

The audiobook was great, unfortunately I didn’t enjoy the overall story as much as I was hoping. This was more of a 2.5 stars than a 3 for me.

The Hollow leads you to believe this is going be a romantic thriller/suspense, but even the cover and the way the synopsis reads it really seems like it’s going to have heavy thriller/suspense elements when that’s really not the case.

We barely get any thriller/suspense in this book. It’s mostly just a love story, a love triangle at that. I wasn’t invested enough in the characters to care that much about reading a whole book about their love story and I wasn’t a fan of how one of the love interests is almost villainized in ways for no reason really expect to make us like the other love interest more.

The book remembers it promised a thriller/suspense in the last like 30 pages. Didn’t care for the big reveal or who ended up being the big bad. A very weak ending, imo.

Obviously, we all have different opinions on books so take what I say with a grain of salt and just go into this knowing it’s light on thriller elements and heavy on romance.

This one fell a little short for me and I believe it was because the "mystery" part of it took more of a backseat to the romance plot. There was a lot of focus on Carmen and her flashbacks to her teenage love with two brothers versus which brother she loves now. I think if that was more of a secondary plot and the focus was more on the murder it would have been 4 stars for me. This was still a good book and you may enjoy it more if you go into it knowing the romance story is the main trope. I will say, I absolutely did not predict the ending so that was nice! The narrator did a great job as well!

I usually love books by this author but this wasn’t my favorite. It didn’t feel like the two storylines converged together well. The audio was done well, just not my favorite plot.

Kiersten Modglin’s newest thriller, "The Hollow," delivers an electrifying punch! I found myself completely absorbed in its suspense. While I anticipated some twists, others blindsided me, leaving me stunned. What a fantastic audiobook! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the early copy in exchange for my honest review.

I loved this book. This is the kind of book I was looking for. The characters go through all kind of emotions in this book and mostly grief. They were so realistic and flawed. The bond between the characters was flawed too. The book has suspense, mystery and romance. The writing is compelling, engrossing and poetic.

Eleven years later, Carmen McKenna comes back to her new home in rural North Carolina. Let me tell you about setting. It’s perfect, mysterious, creepy and full of secrets. Hunter's Hollow—a bustling campground is place which is not only harbouring secrets but it has both bad and good memories. Carmen is happy to be back home with her mom but in young age, she lost her dad and her mother’s world became empty. Since then the tragedy has left its mark on everyone. The memories swamps Carmen. Jack was her first love but so many things ruined their bond while Dean has always been there for her and made her feel good. In the past their world turns upside down when someone is found dead at Hunter's Hollow. The killer was lurking around. Carmen leaves and eleven years later comes back to find out the answers of that unfortunate night but in the present, a guest vanishes. The secrets and mystery unveiled with truth comes out in light. While things take a different turn for Carmen’s mom and Sam but I felt happy for Carmen.

A lot of things happens in this book. I felt so connected with the characters. Ending was jaw dropping and Plot twists were so good. I liked the reminiscing and suspenseful vibe of the book. The Narrator did a good job. Characters perspectives were clear and definitely captured the vibe of the book. I liked the dual timelines; past and present. I would highly recommend it

Thanks to the Publisher, Narrator and Author.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great mystery novel and I really enjoyed the chapters alternating between the past and present. This book had me guessing and I was so wrong about who the murderer was and really enjoyed the reading experience. Carmen was a great character and I was happy with how her story turned out in the end.

The hollow by Kiersten modglin. I hated the main character Carmen so much, it was hard to follow along with the rest of the story . The female. Played with the two brothers emotions so much. She is the dictionary meaning of a bitch

I like that this one has a little romance in it with a little thriller. Carmen is back in Hunter's Hollow and the past is repeating itself. Years earlier a girl was found murdered and now another girl is missing.

This is a dual timeline. A lot of it revolves around her relationship with Dean and Jack but there is also a murder that happens so we get that, too. Carmen is back and wants to help find the missing girl but then stumbles upon the truth behind that awful night years earlier. It was quite a shock when we found out what happened all those years earlier.

This one was hard to put down because there is a lot in it!

3.5 stars rounded to 4.

I love Kiersten Modglin but admittedly, this wasn’t my favorite book of hers. The thriller part was really in the background of the book, the reveal wasn’t that crazy and the ending felt rushed. But as always, I still had fun reading it and I will continue to read anything she releases. This just wasn’t her best in my opinion but still decent.

Thank you Dreamscape Media for the ARC audiobook on Netgalley!!

The Hollow by Kiersten Modglin
(Narrated by Diana Bustelo)

A romance thriller with a captivating storyplot. The narrator did a great job to present the story with a dual time line, which was not confusing. Such an enjoyable read. A slow- paced story but I have been drawn into the story immediately from the beginning. The ending was a good twist which shocked me well!

Many thanks to NetGalley, Dreamscape and the author for my copy.

Pub date: May 28, 2024

Being a fan of Kiersten Modglin, I have to say The Hollow kind of surprised me. Why? Well, The Hollow comes off a lot more on the romance side than the mystery/thriller I was expecting. Not that there is anything wrong with that, I’m just not used to love triangles in Modglin’s books. Yes, there is a side of mystery surrounding the incident at the cabin, but in a way that part feels like the subplot which wasn’t what I was expecting given the book’s blurb. That being said, I really liked the characters. Diana Bustelo delivers a solid performance with her narration. While still enjoyable, The Hollow doesn’t rank up there with some of my favorites by Modglin, but it’s still worth a read/listen. 3.5 stars, rounded up. I’d like to thank Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to an advanced copy of the audio version of Kiersten Modglin’s The Hollow.

https://www.amazon.com/review/R2YQYL3C7DJIC4/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_SRTC0204BT_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

While Kiersten Modglin's latest book, "The Hollow" isn't her best (or her worst), it is still worth the read/listen. The reader did a great job on it.

This was a little different than most Kiersten Modglin books I've read. The romance twist made it very interesting. The plot with the brothers reminded me a lot of The Summer I Turned Pretty, but with a thriller aspect. This book did not end or go how I thought it would at all! It was more of a domestic thriller than psychological, but it was still really good!

The set up for this novel was captivating. However, the middle of the novel started to lose me as a reader and slowed considerably. Then the last 25% came out of no where and it felt rushed at the end. But it's a good thriller/mystery.

The Hollow wasn’t your typical Kiersten Modglin thriller. With the title alone, I was expecting more suspense and mystery involved, instead this is a coming of age romance thriller. It did have some great parts and kept my interest peaked. However, I really did enjoy this book. Thank you Net Galley for the advance read #TheHollow #NetGalley #KierstenModglin

Pros:

Without the time leaps back and forth here the story couldn’t have unfolded in such a dramatic way. It really helps that it is a single point of view in both timelines keeping the perspective and knowledge consistent.

Cons:

People coming off of reading The Stranger by Kiersten Modglin will likely be disappointed with the book. I went in blind because I enjoyed The Stranger so much. It was unique, dark, fascinating and new. This feels more like a typical family drama thriller.

One of the main focuses here is a love triangle two brothers focused on the same girl. One of my least favorite tropes that feels incredibly overdone.

This story, told in chapters of past and present, slowly unfold the story of a past mystery and the past relationships that have shaped the main character's life. I enjoyed the way the relationships are slowly revealed as we slowly learn what has brought us to this point in the present. I found the main character to be unlikeable at times as she flip-flopped between two brothers, but I like how it worked out in the end.
Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape media for the advanced reader.