sophiaeve's review
4.0
I’m honestly surprised by how much I enjoyed this. It reminded me of haunting of hill house in some parts, but I love the middle grade feel to it. Also all the animals are precious and I wanna adopt them all.
barbarajean's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
halcyon_rising's review
3.0
Gregory Funaro’s Watch Hollow books are a fast-paced series for a Middle Grade audience starring Lucy, Oliver and their father, Charles Tinker, who two years after the death of their mother and wife are still feeling her loss, and are on the brink of poverty. The story starts when one day, a strange man enters their clock shop with a business proposal: in exchange for fixing a giant clock located in a wall of a house named Blackford House, they will receive quite an unbelievably large sum of money. What could go wrong?
What follows then is a fast-paced story about a magical clock, an evil forest, alchemy and secrecy, and also a story about confronting enemies and finding new friends – although not necessarily the human kind.
Mr. Funaro’s writing style is fluent and easy to understand for younger people as well as non-native speakers. I would definitely recommend this book to other people, as I think it would make a great read for the Halloween period. 3.5 stars!
What follows then is a fast-paced story about a magical clock, an evil forest, alchemy and secrecy, and also a story about confronting enemies and finding new friends – although not necessarily the human kind.
Mr. Funaro’s writing style is fluent and easy to understand for younger people as well as non-native speakers. I would definitely recommend this book to other people, as I think it would make a great read for the Halloween period. 3.5 stars!
hope0607's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
readinglegend's review
I don't DNF often but I'm not in a good mindset and I don't want to be in slump
venusfawn's review against another edition
5.0
*I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*
I really enjoyed this book. There is something supremely special about a lot of children’s and middle grade fantasy books. The magical clock and talking wooden animals were so whimsical, and the Tinkers are a family that will settle easily into your heart.
Lucy was the sort of bold heroine you love to root for, and Oliver was a loving older brother. The story was fun and spooky; I was reading it around Halloween and the vibes were perfect. I loved the bittersweet happy ever after kind of ending, and this is the type of book that you just know would make an excellent movie.
Watch Hollow carried messages of family, balance, and love triumphing over evil: themes we’ve seen many times before but that never diminishes their importance or how much they lend to a story. I genuinely loved every second of this book and all its scrappy characters (especially Fennish Seven) and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys spooky fantasy or middle grade novels.
I really enjoyed this book. There is something supremely special about a lot of children’s and middle grade fantasy books. The magical clock and talking wooden animals were so whimsical, and the Tinkers are a family that will settle easily into your heart.
Lucy was the sort of bold heroine you love to root for, and Oliver was a loving older brother. The story was fun and spooky; I was reading it around Halloween and the vibes were perfect. I loved the bittersweet happy ever after kind of ending, and this is the type of book that you just know would make an excellent movie.
Watch Hollow carried messages of family, balance, and love triumphing over evil: themes we’ve seen many times before but that never diminishes their importance or how much they lend to a story. I genuinely loved every second of this book and all its scrappy characters (especially Fennish Seven) and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys spooky fantasy or middle grade novels.