Through The Lens – Review – Hollow by Rhonda Parrish @rhondaparrish

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I was inundated with review requests over horror season in 2019. Hollow by Rhonda Parish was one of the ARC’s I chose.

Cover by Guillem Mari

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

I love books that involve photography in some way, so when I read the blurb, I had to check out Hollow by Rhonda Parrish.

The accident changed her world.

Her only solace was running…and Sevren.

An abandoned hospital. An evil doctor. A camera. A magpie.

Life is full of ups and downs, good times and bad times, good people and some not so good, but we all have a story to tell.

It’s hard to talk about Hollow without giving too much away, but Morgan faces her fears and tragic events.

I enjoyed Hollow by Rhonda Parish and it kept me curious. This is an easy reading story that I finished in one sitting.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of Hollow by Rhonda Parish.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
3 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

A car accident shattered sixteen-year-old Morgan’s family. Now her brother’s dead, her mom’s paralyzed in more ways than one, her dad lives at work and her seven-year-old sister Amy tries too freaking hard to salvage everything. What’s more, high school is its own special kind of hell, where her ex-boyfriend delights in spreading rumors that shred her reputation and make her feel like a loser.

When she finds an old camera in a creepy abandoned hospital, it seems like her luck is finally changing. And it is changing–from bad to worse. Because of course it is. Each time Morgan photographs one of her classmates they become corrupted versions of themselves. It’s like the camera steals their goodness, their essence, and leaves them hollow.

Then her sister uses the camera to take a selfie.

No matter what the cost, Morgan will find a way to reverse the effects of the cursed camera and save Amy, before her already-fractured family completely self-destructs.

ABOUT RHONDA PARRISH

Rhonda Parrish

Rhonda Parrish is driven by a desire to do All The Things. She founded and ran Niteblade Magazine, is an Assistant Editor at World Weaver Press and is the editor of several anthologies including, most recently, Earth: Giants, Golems and Gargoyles, and Grimm, Grit and Gasoline.

In addition, Rhonda is an award-winning writer whose short work has been in publications such as the Rhysling Anthology and Imaginarium: The Best Canadian Speculative Writing (2012 & 2015).

Her YA Thriller, Hollow and her paranormal non-fiction title, Eerie Edmonton are both coming in 2020.

Her website, updated regularly, is at http://www.rhondaparrish.com

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The Killing Fog by Jeff Wheeler @muirwoodwheeler @JeanBookNerd

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Print Length: 404 pages
Publisher: 47North (March 1, 2020)
Publication Date: March 1, 2020
Sold by: Amazon.com Services LLC
Language: English
ASIN: B07RJQPB63

Praise for THE KILLING FOG
“Wheeler (Broken Veil) opens the Grave Kingdom series with this winding tale of valor and sacrifice, set in a realm where using magic summons a heavy fog that kills every living thing it touches. [T]he threat of the fog looming in the background adds atmosphere and tension…This excellent introduction to the prolific Wheeler’s work will appeal to fans of Asian-influenced fantasy.” —Publishers Weekly

The Wall Street Journal bestselling author of the Kingfountain series conjures an epic, adventurous world of ancient myth and magic as a young woman’s battle with infinite evil begins.

Survivor of a combat school, the orphaned Bingmei belongs to a band of mercenaries employed by a local ruler. Now the nobleman, and collector of rare artifacts, has entrusted Bingmei and the skilled team with a treacherous assignment: brave the wilderness’s dangers to retrieve the treasures of a lost palace buried in a glacier valley. But upsetting its tombs has a price.

Echion, emperor of the Grave Kingdom, ruler of darkness, Dragon of Night, has long been entombed. Now Bingmei has unwittingly awakened him and is answerable to a legendary prophecy. Destroying the dark lord before he reclaims the kingdoms of the living is her inherited mission. Killing Bingmei before she fulfills it is Echion’s.

Thrust unprepared into the role of savior, urged on by a renegade prince, and possessing a magic that is her destiny, Bingmei knows what she must do. But what must she risk to honor her ancestors? Bingmei’s fateful choice is one that neither her friends nor her enemies can foretell, as Echion’s dark war for control unfolds.

You can purchase The Killing Fog at the following Retailers:

Amazon / B&N / Book Depository

THE KILLING FOG BY JEFF WHEELER EXCERPT

Bingmei turned back to watch the struggle between Kunmia and the Qiangdao leader. If only it were the man who had murdered her grandfather. She’d hoped to find him this season, to make him pay for what he’d done. But this was the first band of marauders they’d come across.

Kunmia’s weapon was soon the only one shining, and the fog’s sickly haze was drawn toward it like a flock of moths. Magic lured the fog. It was why the artifacts were used sparingly, if at all.

And then the leader went down, his skull cracked by the staff.

“Lieren!” Kunmia shouted in warning. The valiant man continued to fight, not seeing the creeping mist that licked at his adversaries’ ankles as if to taste them. He was still surrounded. And then the fog suddenly surged forward, engulfing him and the others near him.

“Please!” Marenqo gripped the young man’s arm, hoisting him to his feet. The fisherman’s boy saw the fog then, the scene illuminated by the glow of Kunmia’s staff. No further warnings were needed. The boy leaped into the boat and began unfastening the ropes, working quickly. Screams of panic started. The fog had begun its deadly work.

“Kunmia!” shouted Zhuyi. “The boat!”

Kunmia stood transfixed, gripping the weapon that had helped summon the death of her friend, her companion in arms. Bingmei saw the anguish in her face, which was quickly replaced by implacable determination. The leader of the ensign rushed toward the boat, the staff’s glow slowly decreasing. Still it lured the fog to follow her. Knee-high tendrils of mist snaked through the grass, chasing after Kunmia.

Photo Content from Jeff Wheeler
Jeff Wheeler took an early retirement from his career at Intel in 2014 to write full-time. He is a husband, father of five, and a devout member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Jeff lives in the Rocky Mountains. His books have been on the Wall Street Journal Bestseller list 5 times (for The Thief’s Daughter, The King’s Traitor, The Hollow Crown, The Silent Shield, and Prism Cloud) and have sold more than 4 million copies. His novels have also been published or will be published in many languages: Italian, Chinese, Hungarian, Turkish, Polish, Spanish, Russian, and German.

He is also the founder of Deep Magic: the E-zine of Clean Fantasy and Science Fiction (www.deepmagic.co), a quarterly e-zine featuring amazing short stories, novellas, and sample chapters.

You can usually find Jeff at Emerald City Comic Con, New York Comic Con or at writers conferences.

He welcomes hearing from readers: jgwheels /at/ gmail dot com

If you are interested in purchasing signed copies of his books for friends, family, or your own collection, please e-mail: WOJWbooks /at/ gmail dot com

Follow the tour and enter the giveaway HERE.

  • You can see my Giveaways HERE.
  • You can see my Reviews HERE.
  • If you like what you see, why don’t you follow me?
  • Look on the right sidebar and let’ talk.
  • Leave your link in the comments and I will drop by to see what’s shakin’.
  • I am an Amazon affiliate/product images are linked.
  • Thanks for visiting fundinmental!