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Cover of Hollow City

Hollow City

514 pages

A desperate, shadow-drenched flight through war-torn London where vintage nightmares and misfit magic collide.

What it feels like

Reading this book feels like flipping through a haunted antique photo album while an air raid siren wails in the distance. It plunges you into a shadowy, war-torn landscape where the uncanny and the historical bleed together. The pace is breathless, driven by a constant sense of pursuit and the desperate need to protect a fragile found family. You are immersed in an atmosphere that is delightfully macabre, filled with grotesque monsters and the rubble of 1940s London. The prose is highly visual, leaning into the eerie aesthetics of vintage photography to create a mood that is both nostalgic and deeply unsettling. It is a perfect read for those who crave dark, quirky fantasy, where misfits band together against encroaching darkness and every shadowed alleyway hides a bizarre secret.

Mood
  • shadowy
  • suspenseful
  • uncanny
  • vintage
  • atmospheric
Tone
  • urgent
  • eerie
  • earnest
  • macabre
Pace
brisk
Themes
found family · loss of innocence · survival against the odds · embracing the bizarre · burden of responsibility
The writing
Highly visual and atmospheric, blending historical grit with dark fantasy elements to complement its eerie photographic aesthetic.
The arc
Moves from desperate, breathless flight to hard-won resilience, culminating in a shocking revelation that tests the bonds of loyalty.
Who it's for
Readers who love dark, quirky fantasy, vintage aesthetics, and misfit found families on the run from terrifying monsters.
Content notes
  • fantasy violence
  • peril
  • wartime themes
  • grotesque imagery
  • mild body horror

About the book

In 1940, Jacob and his new friends escape from Miss Peregrine's island and travel to London where they encounter new allies, a menagerie of peculiar animals, and other unexpected surprises.

Description from Open Library.

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