Miles Warren is a good kid in The Hollow and the Haunted by Camilla Raines. He goes to school, gets decent grades, is nice to his little sisters, listens to his parents, he even helps out with the family business. If only the family business was a little convenience store, or a family restaurant, Miles would be so much happier. But no, the family business is helping people with supernatural problems: possessions, hauntings, curses, things like that. Then Miles has a death vision. Someone calls out to him for help. The only problem is that that someone is Gabriel Hawthorne. Their families have a long-standing feud, as in generational. His parents don’t want him anywhere near a Hawthorne, but Miles can’t just sit back and let Gabriel die. Teenage life is never easy, is it?
[Note: While I am reviewing this novel independently and honestly, it should be noted that it has been provided to me by UK Press and Publicity for the purpose of this review. Warning: My review of The Hollow and the Haunted contains some spoilers!]
Special gifts and supernatural problems in The Hollow and the Haunted
Miles Warren is part of a very special family. The Warrens all have psychic gifts (except his mom, who married into the family). They use these gifts to help the people of their town deal with supernatural problems. The Warrens aren’t the only gifted family in town. There are quite a few of them. Most of them get along great, but the Hawthornes have used their gifts to grow rich and look down on the other families. There’s also rumors that their powers aren’t exactly natural. None of the families get along with the Hawthornes, but the Warrens have an even stronger animosity than the other families towards them. Miles doesn’t know why, he just knows the families hate each other.
Then Miles gets a death premonition. That’s bad enough on its own, but his premonition concerns Gabriel Hawthorne. He knows his parents will never let him help Gabriel, even though ignoring his vision means that Gabriel will die. Of course acting on his vision doesn’t mean Gabriel will live, death premonitions are very difficult to change. But Miles has to do something, he can’t just let Gabriel die. So he tracks him down and tries to unravel the mystery of who is going to kill Gabriel before it happens.
Camilla Raines has produced a well-written adventure
Raines has a very easy writing style. The story flows smoothly, and the dialogue sounds like real people talking, not stilted or overly stylized speech. Miles and Garbiel’s interactions are highly enjoyable insult fueled exchanges that sound exactly like two teenage boys going at each other. Miles’ internal dialogue is well done, too. The whole story was fun and easy to read.
The mystery of The Hollow and the Haunted isn’t solved by the end of the book. Raines obviously is setting up a series. I’m not crazy about this ploy, especially since the story left off with a huge cliffhanger. But everything leading up to that cliffhanger was interesting. Raines got me invested enough that I want to read the next book. Some of her twists were obvious to me. But I think that they will be more surprising to teenagers, who are the obvious target audience here. And I want to find out if my other deductions prove true.
A different take on being gay and closeted
Miles Warren has more than one secret in The Hollow and the Haunted. He’s hiding his sexuality from everyone around him. He isn’t quite sure why he’s keeping this secret. He’s certain that his family will be accepting of his feelings. His mother does spend a lot of time pushing him to get a girlfriend, but he’s pretty sure that’s just because she wants him to have a “normal” teenage life. If he told her he wanted a boyfriend instead, he doesn’t think she’d be upset. She’d probably just start pushing him to have a boyfriend.
So why doesn’t he tell his family how he feels? I imagine that, like many young people struggling to come to terms with their desires, he was just nervous to share anything that sensitive. It was an interesting look at accepting your sexuality. Most stories either have the gay person surrounded by people who don’t accept their desires, or by a strong and loving support group.
Having an accepting support group surrounding a closeted person who isn’t really sure why they’re still hiding their sexuality is an unusual story. But I think it’s a useful one. I would bet there are many people out there who aren’t ready to reveal their sexuality, even though they’re pretty sure those around them will accept them. Seeing someone else in a similar situation is comforting. It makes people feel less alone or different when they can see themselves in stories. So thank you, Camilla Raines, for a different kind of LGBTQ+ story.
Miles and Gabriel have a great chemistry
Miles is sweet and a little awkward. Gabriel is always calm, cool, and collected. On the surface, they’re very different. But those differences complement each other nicely. When Miles starts to get worked up, Gabriel keeps them focused. When Gabriel disassociated too much, Miles reminds him what’s at stake.
And then there are the fireworks that are set off when the two clash. It’s not a new dynamic. Two people who seem to hate each other on the surface come to slowly respect each other. Eventually, that respect turns to liking and that liking to something more. Eventually, they have to give in to the love that’s grown between them.
Camilla Raines didn’t invent this story, it’s the basis of almost all rom-coms. But she does tell the story rather well. Listening to Miles and Gabriel trade stinging words and thinly veiled insults is funny at first. Watching those sharp remarks start to hide deeper feelings is fun and when they finally realize how they feel about each other (in a graveyard of course!) that first kiss is exhilarating. There’s something about the whole “opposites attract” storyline that still appeals, even if it’s been done a million times before.
By the end of The Hollow and the Haunted you can really see just how much Gabriel and Miles care for each other, which makes the ending that much more emotional. The next book and a resolution to their situation is needed ASAP!
The Hollow and the Haunted is a great story for any season
I would certainly recommend this one for a spooky season read, but truly this is a great read for any season. Just be sure that you’re ready to enter a several book series and make sure you are comfortable not having a true conclusion at the end of the book. If not for that, I would likely have given The Hollow and the Haunted a perfect 10 out of 10. Still, Camilla Raines’ story is worth spending a few long nights with.
Rating: 8/10
The Hollow and the Haunted by Camilla Raines is available wherever books are sold! Are you going to check this one out? Let us know on social media @mycosmiccircus!
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