What is the Hollower? At times it can look like a man in a black coat and a black hat. But its definitely not a man. Its not human at all. Its sole purpose is to stalk, to torment and to drive its victims to their deaths. It can sense each victims weaknesses, change its appearance and strike however it will hurt the most, physicallyand mentally. Dave Kohlar is a man racked with guilt, doubt and worry. The perfect prey. Hes about to learn exactly what the Hollower isand how it feeds.
First time authors, take note. As the unofficial debut novelist reviewer for Horror-Web.com, I feel it is my duty to impart a few tidbits of wisdom upon those of you that will send your books my way. First, do NOT self-publish. (Insert long rant here). Second, be original, creative, and exciting. Third, have at least some level of talent and competence in your writing. And fourth, believe in yourself and your book and make sure that attitude comes across to your audience (whether online or in person). Fortunately for myself and other readers alike, Ms. SanGiovanni has all of these attributes.
The plot of this one is the old reliable boogeyman type story, but with enough twists to make it somewhat original. Instead of the scary looking creature that strikes fear in the hearts of its victims by its appearance alone, this authors version of the boogeyman is nothing. Or should I say no one? Its a faceless, trench coat wearing with no hands, but who wears gloves. You wouldnt think this would be that scary or exciting, but it is. The author does an outstanding job of making something thats nothing frightening.
The characters were hit and miss. It seemed that all of the male characters in this work were extremely well thought out and created. They were fully developed, and as a reader, you will find yourself rooting for them to succeed. The female characters, on the other hand, were not as well developed. You really couldnt get a feel for any of them, and there was just something lacking. It may just be that since the author is female, she worked even harder to make the male character believable (and achieved masterfully), and spent less time fully developing the females.
The atmosphere was very well done, but somewhat confusing in a good way. You were never sure whether what was happening was real or a dream or a combination thereof. The result was a heightened sense of unease that was never fully erased even after the novel was finished.
Now, as everyone knows, no debut novelist is perfect, which leads us to the pace of this novel. Im not sure if it was because the prose became clunky in spots or that the author got bogged down with too much detail, but the book definitely has some lag time. At times, the pace is break neck, and you dont want to put the book down, but at other times, it drags like molasses on a cold January morning. It also may have been that in setting this novel, the author had a certain thing in mind, but failed to adequately convey that vision onto paper. By way of explanation, this novel takes place both in the real world, and in the world of the Hollower. Im sure the Hollowers world is really maniacal and scary, but I dont feel that was adequately conveyed to the reader. It got very confusing and caused me to slow the pace of my reading dramatically.
This leads us to my biggest complaint about this one. Im going to try to explain this without ruining the end for everyone. The end of the novel just seemed too neat. It was too simple to me, and I think to most horror readers. However, on the plus side, the Epilogue makes up for this deficiency.
I give this one a 3*. Mary SanGiovanni is one of the brightest new stars in the horror field. However, like most new authors, there is room for improvement. The difference between SanGiovanni and most new novelists is that all of the improvements she needs to make are minuscule, and I think will be gone by the time her next book hits the shelves. Okay, quit reading my review, and go pick this one up today.
................................
The Hollower
By Mary Sangiovanni
Publisher: Dorchester Publishing
Format: Mass Market Paperback
Length: 308 pages
Price: $6.99
Originally reviewed by Renfield on Horror-Web.com
First time authors, take note. As the unofficial debut novelist reviewer for Horror-Web.com, I feel it is my duty to impart a few tidbits of wisdom upon those of you that will send your books my way. First, do NOT self-publish. (Insert long rant here). Second, be original, creative, and exciting. Third, have at least some level of talent and competence in your writing. And fourth, believe in yourself and your book and make sure that attitude comes across to your audience (whether online or in person). Fortunately for myself and other readers alike, Ms. SanGiovanni has all of these attributes.
The plot of this one is the old reliable boogeyman type story, but with enough twists to make it somewhat original. Instead of the scary looking creature that strikes fear in the hearts of its victims by its appearance alone, this authors version of the boogeyman is nothing. Or should I say no one? Its a faceless, trench coat wearing with no hands, but who wears gloves. You wouldnt think this would be that scary or exciting, but it is. The author does an outstanding job of making something thats nothing frightening.
The characters were hit and miss. It seemed that all of the male characters in this work were extremely well thought out and created. They were fully developed, and as a reader, you will find yourself rooting for them to succeed. The female characters, on the other hand, were not as well developed. You really couldnt get a feel for any of them, and there was just something lacking. It may just be that since the author is female, she worked even harder to make the male character believable (and achieved masterfully), and spent less time fully developing the females.
The atmosphere was very well done, but somewhat confusing in a good way. You were never sure whether what was happening was real or a dream or a combination thereof. The result was a heightened sense of unease that was never fully erased even after the novel was finished.
Now, as everyone knows, no debut novelist is perfect, which leads us to the pace of this novel. Im not sure if it was because the prose became clunky in spots or that the author got bogged down with too much detail, but the book definitely has some lag time. At times, the pace is break neck, and you dont want to put the book down, but at other times, it drags like molasses on a cold January morning. It also may have been that in setting this novel, the author had a certain thing in mind, but failed to adequately convey that vision onto paper. By way of explanation, this novel takes place both in the real world, and in the world of the Hollower. Im sure the Hollowers world is really maniacal and scary, but I dont feel that was adequately conveyed to the reader. It got very confusing and caused me to slow the pace of my reading dramatically.
This leads us to my biggest complaint about this one. Im going to try to explain this without ruining the end for everyone. The end of the novel just seemed too neat. It was too simple to me, and I think to most horror readers. However, on the plus side, the Epilogue makes up for this deficiency.
I give this one a 3*. Mary SanGiovanni is one of the brightest new stars in the horror field. However, like most new authors, there is room for improvement. The difference between SanGiovanni and most new novelists is that all of the improvements she needs to make are minuscule, and I think will be gone by the time her next book hits the shelves. Okay, quit reading my review, and go pick this one up today.
................................
The Hollower
By Mary Sangiovanni
Publisher: Dorchester Publishing
Format: Mass Market Paperback
Length: 308 pages
Price: $6.99
Originally reviewed by Renfield on Horror-Web.com
