The Hollow and the Haunted / Camilla Raines / Book Review

THE HOLLOW AND THE HAUNTED

Miles Warren knows two things for certain: he'll be doing this job for the rest of his life, and he'll never get along with the Hawthornes. The family business might not be exactly profitable, but somebody has to commune with the dead, undo curses, and banish malignant spirits for the townies. At this point, Miles is used to digging up graves late on a school night. That's just part of the gig.

But Miles's world is thrown for a loop when he gets a bloody premonition. At first, he thinks the face he saw in the mirror is a spirit that followed him home from the cemetery. He's an empath, after all, not a seer. But the visions grow more violent, and then... Then he meets Gabriel Hawthorne.

The Warrens and the Hawthornes have always been at odds. The Hawthornes are snobbish, rude, and above it all. They're definitely not banishing spirits for whatever price the locals can pay. But now that Miles has seen Gabriel's death, well, he can't just sit by and let it happen. Not if there's a chance he can do something about it--even if that means working with a Hawthorne.

THOUGHTS

I absolutely adored this book. Camilla Raines creates a gloomy PNW townscape full of ghosts and psychics that might not be exactly common knowledge (but aren't exactly hidden, either). The only peeve I had with this book is the brutal cliffhanger it ends on. It was so abrupt I wondered if I was missing a chapter at the end. While I'll definitely be scooping up whatever follow-up volume drops, I was still disappointed to be left with so little conclusion.

PROS

Reluctant Alliance	There's such a good antagonism between Miles and Gabriel right off the bat. They don't see eye-to-eye. They're quite bad at communicating their (rather good) intentions to each other. And at the same time, they're both desperate. Gabriel doesn't want to die. Miles doesn't want to be a harbinger of death. So as much as they chafe against each other, there's no real hatred there. Just enough to stir up some good banter--and good chemistry, too, if they can get over their denial!
Black Magic	This book is steeped in a sort of black magic that more contemporary fantasy should really be leaning into. These psychics are naturally gifted, but there's something else going on here, too--some dark history that they don't know (and don't want to know) the truth of. From the gory premonitions that push Miles and Gabriel together to the unsettling hints toward bloody sacrifice, Camilla Raines does a really good job here of stringing readers along each and every page.
Family Backing	I really love a YA book that includes an actual family element. Sure, Miles might not be sharing his secrets with his overworked, underpaid, and overprotective parents, but he has his cousin Charlee. She's got his back, even when she thinks he's being stupid. And it's nice not to have him be in this alone. Gabriel, too, has siblings he is close to, who will notice when something's gone wrong, and I love that inclusion as well. More teen characters need close family to help them along--and tell them when they're being ridiculous!

CONS

I knew pretty early on exactly where this story was going, and though this one leaves off on a pretty big cliffhanger (which meant not all of my predictions have come true yet), this book played out pretty much exactly how I thought it would. Which is unfortunate on the one hand, since I didn't get any unexpected revelations, but at the same time, Camilla Raines told the story well enough that I didn't mind ending up in the place where I thought, by page 5, that we would. It was more about the journey for me than the destination, at the end of the day, but others might not feel the same.	Personal Premonition
The rules in this world of psychics and ghostly apparitions seem to be, to a large extent, individual, since all the psychics work slightly differently. And Miles and Gabriel come from very different backgrounds in that regard, with a blood feud in between. So when Miles and Gabriel are theorizing about what's happening, they really shouldn't be so immediately on board with each other's ideas. There should have been more questions, more arguing. They shouldn't have been so quickly on the same page, even with the rather desperate nature of their relationship. They didn't doubt each other enough, is what I mean to say.	Not Enough Questions
This is possibly the worst cliffhanger that I've read. It's the worst in a long time at least. Obviously, this book is set up for a sequel, and I don't mind that in any way. But there just wasn't enough conclusion for me here. I felt like the conclusion we did get wasn't climactic enough to feel like a conclusion, and it should feel definitive, even if it turns out to be a (predictable) fake-out. I felt like I was missing a chapter or two at the end. I was unsatisfied. And that's a problem.	Cliffhanger

Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
7/10

Fans of Aiden Thomas's Cemetery Boys will like this new duo fighting against a deadly fate. Those who enjoyed Kendare Blake's Anna Dressed in Blood will love following along with these teen psychics.

Details Publisher: Titan Books Date: October 22, 2024 Series: The Hollow and the Haunted Add to Goodreads Buy it HERE

Note: I was provided with an ARC by the publisher through Edelweiss+ in exchange for an honest review. All opinions here are my own.