Book: The Mystery of Hollow Places
Author: Rebecca Podos
Pages: 304
Read on: Kindle
Read in: 2 hours
Plot Summary:
Now Imogene is seventeen, and her father, a famous author of medical mysteries, has struck out in the middle of the night and hasn’t come back. Neither Imogene’s stepmother nor the police know where he could’ve gone, but Imogene is convinced he’s looking for her mother. And she decides it’s up to her to put to use the skills she’s gleaned from a lifetime of reading her father’s books to track down a woman she’s only known in stories in order to find him and, perhaps, the answer to the question she’s carried with her for her entire life.
Things I Liked: Quick list:
1. The book’s premise seemed really interesting. A missing
father, a mother whose identity is shrouded in mystery and a daughter who is
trying to find her dad by learning more about her past. What’s not to like,
right? Exactly. That’s what drew us to this book on Amazon and we picked it up
thinking it would be a good mix of family secrets, mystery and some
investigative action. There were bits of these elements, to be fair.. but, well
that’s for the ‘Things I Didn’t Like’ section of this review.
2. Imogene’s journey to find her father is fairly interesting. She
puts together clues, seeks people out and goes about following leads in a very
realistic what-you-and-I-would-do manner. There were no over-the-top cutesy
shenanigans or some major detecting, which would seem totally unrealistic for
an seventeen-year-old to pull off on her own.
Things I Didn’t Like: Quick List:
1. This book lacked a soul. That’s the best way I can put it.
For a book with such an inherently emotional premise, the writing and lack of
depth leaves the reader very disconnected and unmoved with the narrative. The characters
are hollow (hah! Now the book’s name makes sense!), the relationships lack any
true warmth.. basically, you don’t connect with anything in this book. It’s a
superficial rush job of a book and it leaves you unmoved. Sad.
2. This may sound repetitive, but none of the characters had
any depth and were not people you could relate to or care about as a reader. Even
Imogene, our protagonist, seems very superficial. We don’t really get to know
her. She seems like this paper character and the only thing we know about her
is that she is super-awkward and does not like people. Also, she seems like a
bit of a bitch, given the way she treats the only person who wants to help her-
her childhood friend, whose name, I can’t for the life of me, remember!
3. The big mystery- her mom’s story, where her dad is- is so
super-duper lame!!!! It’s not worth reading the 304 pages!
Rating: 2/5
Avoid!
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