Review: Dark Hollows by Steve Frech

I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Dark Hollows by Steve Frech
Published by HarperCollins UK on December 6, 2019
ISBN: 9780008368227
Genres: Fiction, Crime, Thrillers, Psychological, Suspense, Horror, Mystery & Detective, General
Pages: 384
Format: ARC, eBook
Source: NetGalley, Publisher
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads

‘Wowzers, what a read... I absolutely LOVED this book... An unputdownable page turner of a read.’ Ginger Book Geek, 5 stars
Jacob Reese enjoys the quiet life, running a coffee shop and renting out his cottage in The Hollows, Vermont.
But the calm is shattered when a woman who looks eerily similar to his ex-girlfriend Laura turns up to stay in the cottage, and leaves a mysterious note in the guest book.
Now Jacob’s seeing Laura everywhere—a glimpse of her face across the street, her music box left outside his house, a gift he gave her years before hanging from the trees.
But it can’t be Laura. Because Laura’s dead.
Someone knows Jacob’s secret—what really happened the night Laura died—and they’re out for revenge...
A gripping and twisted thriller. Fans of Gillian Flynn, Gregg Olsen and Mark Edwards will love Steve Frech.
Readers LOVE Dark Hollows:
‘Wow!... This book just pulls you right in... I couldn’t put it down!’ NetGalley reviewer, 5 stars
‘One of the best thrillers I’ve read this year.’ NetGalley reviewer, 5 stars
‘Best psychological thriller of 2019.’ NetGalley reviewer, 5 stars
‘Couldn’t put it down... Absolutely fantastic nail-biting novel, so gripping I just could not stop reading.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars
‘Exciting and thrilling... Like riding a rollercoaster... Should be on everyone’s reading list.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars
‘I burned through this.’ NetGalley reviewer, 5 stars
‘Once I started I couldn’t put it down!!’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars
‘Wow! I absolutely loved this book! I was hooked from page one.’ NetGalley reviewer, 5 stars
‘Impossible to put down.’ NetGalley reviewer, 5 stars
‘Great book! I could not put it down. Read the book in one day. Had me guessing until the end.’ NetGalley reviewer, 5 stars
‘This one would go down on my list of favorite thrillers this year... I loved this book!’ NetGalley reviewer, 5 stars

Dark Hollows.  The premise of this book instantly grabbed me.  A spooky setting, an intriguing backstory, a loveable mutt and shrouded in the cloak of Halloween.  The vista was hypnotic.  I envisioned myself walking the paths, talking to the characters and being entranced by the quaint little town of The Hollows.  Life is finally going the way Jacob Reese wants it to.  He’s a respected businessman, a well-liked individual and most importantly he’s put his past to bed.  It’s not coming back to haunt him…until of course, he takes that booking from an attractive female.  A booking that he decides to forgo his usual booking protocols for. 

Jacob Reese inherited money from his parent’s death.  They didn’t quite see eye to eye when they were alive but none the less, they left everything to their only child.  He put that money to good use and bought his home and a cottage to rent out in The Hollows, Vermont in New England.  He topped it off by buying a coffee shop on the main street – life was good.    There was an undercurrent of dread palpating through-out Dark Hollows that had my fingers itching ready for the madness that was surely just around the corner. 

Things are about to get even better for Jacob, with talks of a company interested in turning his gem of a coffee shop into a franchise he could be looking at a cool couple of million in the bank.  He can’t believe his luck!  With a hardworking team and a booming business all his dreams could come true – that can happen, right?  Can the appearance of a face from his past (or is it?) undo everything he has worked so hard to achieve or is his mind just working overdrive?  Red Hair.  Those Eyes.  That Scar.  He’s imagining it, he’s almost sure of it, and yet…

Things kick into overdrive when he wakes up the next morning and finds his house guest gone.  The front door is left open, the entire house takes on a creepy edge and he can’t bat away the feeling that something is dreadfully wrong.  The dog feels it.  He feels it.  Has he let something sinister into his house and more importantly, how on earth do they know certain details about his past?  Halloween is edging towards them, its meant to be fun but it just adds to the threatening dread that builds in intensity. 

At some points I had a hard time connecting with the Jacob we met at the start of the story to the Jacob that we become accustomed to from the middle of the book onwards.  We met a kind and generous man with an infinity towards giving back to the community.  Whereas we got to meet a man that became consumed by his desire to get to the root of his troubles (not necessarily a bad thing but…)  he became, obsessive, taking courses of action that were not only unhinged but could have landed him in even more trouble.  Sometimes the character didn’t fully add up. 

Dark Hollows is a great read that will give you the creepy feels.  It was an immersive examination of how your past is never really in the past.  Actions have consequences. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Steve Frech lives in Los Angeles. His debut thriller, ‘DARK HOLLOWS’, is available through Harper Collins/HQ Stories. His followup novel, ‘THE NIGHTINGALE HOUSE’, a supernatural thriller, will be available in July of 2020. In addition to writing, his award-nominated podcast, ‘Random Awesomeness’, has been developed for television by the Emmy-winning team at ‘Thank You, Brain! Productions’. He is also the co-creator of ‘Sports? with Jessiemae Peluso’ for Comedy Central. He is a frustrated fan of the Chicago Bears, finds cooking to be very cathartic, and is amazing a pub trivia.

Steve Frech