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Wednesday, October 4, 2023

The Hollows by Daniel Church

Everyone knows the Harpers are trouble. And it's not unusual for the ones still allowed at the local pub to get wasted and pick a fight. But Tony Harper was one of the better ones. 

Was. 

Now Tony's been found dead, frozen in the snow, and it's up to Constable Ellie Cheetham to share the bad news. 

What Ellie doesn't know is that Tony won't be the last. Something has begun. Something that puts all of them at risk. The Harpers know. They've passed the knowledge down from generation to generation. And they're thrilled to allow the rest of the village, the outsiders, suffer what's to come. 

The Hollows is snowed-in folk horror! 

So a horrible storm is looming, a dead body has been found, and Ellie Cheetham, a capable cop working under a boss who's basically just keeping his chair warm. 

He's ready to chalk this up as an accident. And it's not out of the realm of possibility that a Harper walking home drunk, fell and froze in the snow. Except there are some very strange details about the crime scene that Ellie can't ignore, even when pressed to do so. 

Her conversation with the Harpers devolves very quickly, adding another danger to the locals as the storm brews. And then a house on the border of the village is found ripped apart. 

There are so many excellent characters here. Ellie is of course a favorite, but there are others who stand out as well. 

And the lore! Holy moly! I absolutely love the created lore in this one. I say created, but forgive me if there's a kernel of actual folklore to this one, I'm not fully versed on UK folklore. Either way, it's a very cool bit of terror to pit against a poor little cut off village with limited competent officers!

Daniel Church is fabulous and I look forward to more (pretty sure I heard there are definitely more to come from Church via Angry Robot!).

Order a copy from Bookshop today!

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