The Hollow Gods (The Chaos Cycle Duology, #1)

A perfect story for contemporary fantasy readers who love their narratives razor-sharp and their secrets dark and deadly.

Black Hollow is a town with a dark secret.

For centuries, residents have foretold the return of the Dreamwalker—an ominous figure from local folklore said to lure young women into the woods and possess them. Yet the boundary between fact and fable is blurred by a troubling statistic: occasionally, women do go missing. And after they return, they almost always end up dead.

When Kai wakes up next to the lifeless body of a recently missing girl, his memory blank, he struggles to clear his already threadbare conscience.

Miya, a floundering university student, experiences signs that she may be the Dreamwalker’s next victim. Can she trust Kai as their paths collide, or does he herald her demise?

And after losing a young patient, crestfallen oncologist, Mason, embarks on a quest to debunk the town’s superstitions, only to find his sanity tested.

A maelstrom of ancient grudges, forgotten traumas, and deadly secrets loom in the foggy forests of Black Hollow. Can three unlikely heroes put aside their fears and unite to confront a centuries-old evil? Will they uncover the truth behind the fable, or will the cycle repeat?

Rating:

Content Tags:

Perfect for readers who want:

• Creepy horror that builds and builds on itself.
• A super spooky atmosphere that pulls you in.
• Compelling folklore and superstitions.
• Interesting narrative about the power and danger of superstitions.
• A mystery that slowly unfolds.
• Super cute, slightly dysfunctional romance.

Many thanks to The Parliament House and MTMC Tours for a copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review and for inclusion on this blog tour.

I really didn’t know much about this book going in, except that I’d seen it everywhere and it seemed like something I needed to read. Dark, witty characters with deadly secrets? Mmm, yes, sign me up! I’m so glad I gave in and read it. This was fabulous!

The Hollow Gods is a dark, atmospheric exploration into superstition, complete with a spooky forest setting, a rural town, and lots of surprises!

I will admit that there were sections that were a little too obscure and they lost me, but the nice thing was that it was easy to get back into the flow of things, so it never lost me for long. Plus, the dreamlike writing and non-linear timeline added a really spooky, supernatural feel to the atmosphere that I just loved!

Want to grab your own copy? The Hollow Gods will be on sale for $1.99 on a Bookbub special on November 10. Click here for more details.

Vrana establishes a dark, creepy atmosphere that doesn’t let up and just sucks you in.

I love horror stories. I’m just gonna put that out there to start with. Not the sort that’s extremely gory, but the psychological sort, that makes you start questioning the shadows in your room. Maybe even your own sanity. Give me creepy atmospheres and a question whether what’s happening is real or not and I’m happy. Vrana does a wonderful job of establishing just that in The Hollow Gods.

The creep factor of this book is definitely dialed up (it’s not a book for chickens, that’s for sure), and there’s an almost dreamlike, fog-in-the-forest quality to the writing.

It really brings the setting to life in a way that made me feel like I was there. Or maybe that’s because I actually have a forest in my backyard. It’s not a creepy magical one, though. I hope.

This book raises a lot of questions about reality versus superstition and what humans choose to believe.

Spoiler alert: it’s not always “the truth,” which I feel like should be absolutely no surprise to any of us at this point. Vrana presents not only a superstition that has this town in a chokehold, completely terrified and paralyzed from fear, but also its origins. Which isn’t what you might expect.

The mystery rolls out slowly, little by little, and it was so enjoying being able to piece it together bit by bit. I was fully engrossed in learning more about the superstition and why the town believed it, and I loved reading about how it came to be.

The real question is how far are people willing to go for their beliefs? You’ll just have to read it to find out!

The story is told through three points of view, so there’s a little something for everyone.

There’s the main protagonist, Miya, who is a young adult rather down on her luck. She thought she’d leave her parents’ house and things would just work out, but … the real world had other ideas. She’s struggling, lost, and not sure what the heck to do now, which makes her so relatable. Also, her biting sarcasm helps, too.

Then there’s Kai, who’s half man, half wolf, all sarcasm. No, really. His social awkwardness is absolutely adorable (and if I’m honest reminds me a little of hubby if he had fewer inhibitions). He walks a unique line between myth and reality, straddling both the forest and the human world.

The balancing point of view, for those who like more quite, introspective characters, is Mason, who is your typical quiet character. His world is mostly black and white, right and wrong, reality and fantasy. He’s got the logic thing down … or so he thinks. He’s really just in town on a “vacation,” which is what he calls his attempt to escape the stress of his oncology job.

I enjoyed these characters, Kai and Miya more so than Mason. Mason is kind of boring. But if you like boring … errm I mean less sarcastic characters, you’ll probably enjoy Mason and his personal struggles.

There is a lot of big, meta thinking that goes into this book, and if you don’t get it at first, trust me, it makes sense in the end!

There were definitely portions of the book where I was confused and wondering what was happening or where this was going. Fret not! In the end, it pulls together, and suddenly everything makes sense. There were little instances where I thought, oh, is this the truth? I was happy with the way the ending wrapped up, while still leaving things a little open.

If you’re the sort who wants things spelled out for you, you’re probably not likely to enjoy this book. I love needing to work for things and having to really piece things together, so this worked perfectly for me!

The Hollow Gods Aesthetic

Enter the rafflecopter below for a chance to win a The Hollow Gods character poster!

Open International.

November 2 – Paperfury
November 3 – The Bookwyrm’s Den
November 4 – Bookishfairytail
November 5 – The Reader and the Chef
November 6 – Melancholic Blithe
November 7 – Mirkwoodbooks
November 8 – A Court of Books and Love
November 9 – Leosthetics
November 10 – L.M. Durand’s Little Book Corner
November 11 – Woven from Words