A review by dancarey_404
The Hollowing by Robert Holdstock

3.0

I read [b:Mythago Wood|126192|Mythago Wood (Mythago Wood, #1)|Robert Holdstock|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1308639607l/126192._SY75_.jpg|121534] back when it was first published, and I loved it. I have read it several times and have always wished it could be turned into a move. The Hollowing is a much better tale than the middle book, [b:Lavondyss|280716|Lavondyss (Mythago Wood, #2)|Robert Holdstock|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1389643000l/280716._SY75_.jpg|1839828], which I considered to be a vast disappointment.

But when all is said and done, I love the idea of Holdstock's myth-haunted Ryhope Wood more than I love his stories. The Hollowing is a bit of a hot mess, alternating jerkily between well-crafted scenes and jumbled Jung-influenced images flung at you with what almost feels like hostility. Perhaps a strong-handed editor or agent could have guided Holdstock to a stronger narrative. But we will never know.