Review by Booklist Review
Readers who know the British author solely from his Anno Dracula novels an alternate-history series in which vampires and humans coexist shouldn't expect to see Newman's energetic writing style and pop-culture references here. This is a gentler, more traditional horror story about a family on the verge of collapse that leaves the city for a new home in a small country village. Their new home, the Hollow, seems an idyllic place with an interesting history it was previously owned by a noted author of children's stories but the family soon begins to wonder if the house has some dark secrets. Newman crafts believable, very human characters and gives us time to get to know them before the odd things start to happen; and when those odd things do begin, they seem fairly tame at first. But soon enough the family is forced to face the truth: their lovely new home is haunted. While the story shares some DNA with the classic movie Poltergeist, Newman has his own story to tell, in his own way, and he has some fine surprises in store for his unsuspecting readers. Nicely done.--Pitt, David Copyright 2014 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
The idiosyncratic Naremores rejoice at fleeing London for the Hollow, a rural refuge in modern-day Somerset, in this well crafted if predictable haunted house tale. Parents Steven and Kirsty, adolescent daughter Jordan, and preteen son Tim relish their newfound family harmony, but odd events pile up and they start to sense the presence of apparently friendly otherworldly elements. Soon the outsiders are exploiting the family's weaknesses, turning relationships vindictive and potentially fatal. The Naremores' plight is exacerbated by the association of the Hollow with its former owner, deceased writer Louise Teazle, whose ghostly tales and fan club visits contribute to the increasingly tense atmosphere. Newman ( Anno Dracula ) achieves an interesting offbeat tone as ghosts casually appear, but their seeming amiability only fuels family hostility. Newman's innovative suggestion is that it is we, not our ghosts, who are responsible for our problems, but the obviousness of the plot and a transparent moralistic message obscure and diminish the underlying concept. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
The Naremores are looking for a new life in the countryside, and when they first see the Hollow residence they know that this is the place to start fresh. The Hollow, which sits on a piece of land that has been occupied for over a millennium, is famous for two things: it is where the noted children's book author Louise Teazle lived and wrote, and it is haunted. But the Naremores don't mind the ghosts, believing the house isn't so much haunted as charmed; a place where they can forget their anger and resentments and troubles. The estate also seems to welcome them; however, that welcome wears out quickly. VERDICT What starts out as a genteel family drama with friendly ghosts turns dark and terrifying when the menage falls back into old habits and the house turns on them. Newman (Anno Dracula) builds the tension well and infuses his country ghost story with exceptional menace. (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
The perennial reinventor of classic horror turns his sights on the traditional English haunted-house story.The Naremores, having suffered through an epic family meltdown, decide to move from London to the Somerset countryside to reconnect with one another, a prospect that seems dismal at best until the family stumbles as if by magic onto the Hollow, a rambling orchard house that was, until recently, the home of twee children's book author Louise Magellan Teazle. Miss Teazle's series featured haunted locations and friendly ghosts, and the family begins to suspect that her stories might not have been entirely invented. The Naremoresfather Steven, wife Kirsty, teenage daughter Jordan and precocious son Timare pulled into the orbit of the Hollow, and welcomed by its longtime ghostly inhabitants, in different ways. Kirsty finds a magic chest of drawers that makes objects disappear, then reappear after they've been disturbingly deconstructed; Tim plays soldier in the orchard with the spirits of the Hollow; Jordan finds her shawl floating in midair; and Steven thinks maybe, just maybe, the house will heal a rift in the family that he'd begun to think was irreparable. But it isn't long before Miss Teazle's irritating fan club begins imposing on the Naremores, and the ghostly presences start to turn on the family. Before long, Tim's playing at soldier starts to seem less like a child's game and more like preparation for an all-out ghostly war. A tongue-in-cheek ghost story that winks at the haunted-house trope without bringing much that's new to the table, though a few moments of genuine fright should thrill readers looking for a new take on an old classic. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
