In My Mailbox 40

IMM is hosted by The Story Siren, inspired by Pop Culture Junkie

For Review:

Freefall by Mindi Scott

The Haunted by Jessica Verday (signed!)

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys (!!!!)

Also Received:

Between Shades of Gray bookmark + DVD (that video had me almost crying at the end)

A treat/trick (?) from "A" ("A" from Pretty Little Liars)

Abbey's Hollow Perfumer's Kit (I can make my own perfume! So cool!)

Won:

Shadowed Summer by Saundra Mitchell (signed to me!!!)

Banished by Sophie Littlefield

Thanks so much to Simon & Schuster, Jessica Verday, Penguin, Lauren Bjorkman & Saundra Mitchell, ABC Family & "A", and Random Buzzers. 

What did you get this week? 

The Hollow by Jessica Verday Review

Book: The Hollow

Author: Jessica Verday

Source: online at PulseIt

Summary:

When Abbey's best friend, Kristin, vanishes at the bridge near Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, everyone else is all too quick to accept that Kristen is dead...and rumors fly that her death was no accident. Abbey goes through the motions of mourning her best friend, but privately, she refuses to believe that Kristen is really gone. Then she meets Caspian, the gorgeous and mysterious boy who shoes up out of nowhere at Kristen's funeral, and keeps reappearing in Abbey's life. Caspian clearly has secrets of his own, but he's the only person who makes Abbey feel normal again...but also special.

Just when Abbey starts to feel that she might survive all this, she learns a secret that makes her question everything she thought she knew about her best friend. How could Kristen have kept silent about so much? And could this secret have led to her death? As Abbey struggles to understand Kristen's betrayal, she uncovers a frightening truth that nearly unravels her--one that will challenge her emerging love for Caspian, as well as her own sanity.

Review: This is a difficult book for me to review. First, I do not know if I can be entirely fair to the novel, just based off the fact that I read it online (courtesy of the fantastic Pulse It Program--which everyone should check out if they don't mind reading books online), and I spent a majority of the book being frustrated whenever the pages wouldn't load. (Darn my internet connection!)

That aside, The Hollow was...interesting. The beginning was a little blah for me, but as the book went on, I became more interested. This book was great at grasping my attention at points. Caspian's appearance in the book gets things moving, as well as when Abbey finds a secret(s) that Kristen hid from her. There were great points of intrigue, interest, but there were also spots where I didn't understand why it was in the book.

Abbey was, despite her sadness from losing her best friend, a great protagonist. I could relate to her, and I wanted to go make perfume after reading this (but then I remembered I'm horrible with things like that, I'd probably spill everything!).

Highlights: As sad as this sounds (and I don't mean it in a bad way), the end. We finally, finally, learn what's up with Caspian, and few more more secrets that made me go "Really? How awesome!". I wish it had all been thrown out there earlier, but I guess I'll be looking forward to the next book to see how it all plays out. I also loved how in the beginning of each chapter (or almost every chapter), there were little quotes from The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.

Also, that cover is absolutely awesome.

Oh! And I love Caspian's talents. He's a pretty talented guy, and I enjoyed the descriptions of his gifts to Abbey.

Lowlights: Pointless descriptions of Abbey doing this and that. It wasn't relevant to the story. And sadly, I could not read the entire epilogue, so I have no clue what happens there. Does anyone know? Email me if you do! (Seriously, email me, because still as of June 2010, I don't know!!)

In the end, I think I was overly observant of flaws, just because of my annoyance with the page-loading issue. I think this is one book I should just go buy, and read again (because then I can turn the page instantly!).

Rating:    

Interview: The Hollow by Jessica Verday

1. What happens to start off The Hollow? What makes this novel interesting?

THE HOLLOW starts off with the presumed death and viewing/memorial of Abbey's best friend, Kristin Maxwell. I think it's interesting because it shows the sudden struggle and questions that Abbey has to deal with when her best friend vanishes and leaves nothing behind but secrets.

2. What is Abbey like?

Abbey is a girl who really loves her hometown. She loves living in Sleepy Hollow, and above all, she loves her best friend. She's a perfumer in her spare time, and dreams of one day opening up her own perfume shop downtown on Main Street.

3. So dish, who is Caspian, and what is he like?

Caspian is an artist. He loves to draw and uses charcoal. It's a habit he picked up from working at a tattoo shop. He's quiet and mysterious, creative, and has the greenest eyes you've ever seen.

4. This novel takes place in Sleepy Hollow. Why did this town appeal to you?

I love the legend. I love the fall and leaves and pumpkins and Halloween. I love the atmosphere - that instant spooky feeling you get when you think of the Headless Horseman. After I visited the real town of Sleepy Hollow, I knew it was the perfect setting.

5. The Hollow took (according to your website) eighteen months, thirteen spiral bound notebooks and fifteen pens to write. Was this an easy novel to keep yourself invested in, or was it difficult to keep it going?

I'm not someone who likes to write every single day. Often, I would let weeks go by without writing a single thing. But the flip side of that, is if you let too much time pass, you run the risk of completely losing the story. There were times when I had to force myself to get back into it, and other times when I couldn't wait to write the next chapter. It varied from day to day.

6. Are you currently working on the next book in the trilogy? Anything you can share?

I just finished book two, and it was a blast to write. Everything changed on me about halfway through the book, and it really stepped up a notch. I can't wait for next year to share it with everyone.

7. Is the necklace on the cover in the novel? What do you think of the cover?

The necklace on the cover is based on a necklace in the novel. Although not identical, I think the whole mood of the cover fits really well with the scene they were basing it on. I think the cover is gorgeous. (And I am always very flattered whenever people think that it's me on the cover!)

8. Anything else you'd like to add?

Thanks for having me! It was lovely to stop by.

Thanks Jessica! I just finished with The Hollow a few days ago, and can't wait to post my review!

-YABQ