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Hollowstone
Life for Noah Scott changes drastically when he is accepted to Hollowstone Academy, one of the most prestigious boarding schools in the country set in the mountains of Eastern Tennessee. Within the hallowed halls of the illustrious school, Noah soon discovers that the world of the privileged is rife with social hierarchies, politics, depravity and corruption. It is also there that Noah meets his roommate and best friend, the charming and enigmatic Caleb Warner. Tragedy soon strikes when Cal is brutally murdered in a hold-up. But when Noah is haunted by Cal's ghost, he soon discovers that the random act of violence was in fact a premeditated one. Determined to uncover the truth and find Cal's killer, Noah soon finds that the school and its patrons have more than their share of secrets. Secrets they are willing to preserve at any cost. Through a series of prophetic dreams and visions, Noah also quickly learns that greater supernatural forces are at play. In a race against time, Noah must solve Cal's murder and uncover the truth before he's the killer's next victim.
246 pages, Paperback
First published June 2, 2011
2 people are currently reading
230 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
November 14, 2011
The book is about a Gary Stu trying to solve the murder of another Gary Stu, who manages to upstage everyone with his spectacular violin-playing skills in a music theory class.
In an interview I read, the author claimed to treat women characters with respect, but they're nothing more than very offensive caricatures. Brianna is the kind of character only a misogynistic male could come up with, and the treatment of her is just horrifyingly sexist. At one point, the main character "figures" her out (actually, he ~figures out most of the women in the book, because he's just so astute) and the scene is just... I can't even explain. The content of this book is awful.
Originally, I wasn't even going to finish Hollowstone. Why? Because it's horribly written. The author does not use commas (except to make comma splices) and the novel's voice in incredibly wooden. I think you can find excerpts of the novel via Amazon and on the author's blog, so check them out first if you're considering purchasing Hollowstone. Not everyone can withstand constant butchery of the English language, and less people are willing to pay for it.
ETA (4 September 2011)
I decided to do a more detailed review, since some of the author's friends have decided that all the book's detractors don't have legitimate complaints -- that they just hate Upkins. Here are my issues with the novel...
-Saying that Hollowstone needs “some” editing is a massive understatement. Whether we're talking about form or content, the book feels as if no one besides the author bothered to read the manuscript before publication. For example, Upkins' prose violates basic grammar rules, particularly when it comes to punctuation. Commas appear only to create comma splices, and dialogue often sounds stilted and awkward because sentences are not properly broken up. (Speaking of dialogue, all the characters sound the same, too.)
Additionally, there are severe vocabulary issues in Hollowstone. Cal, the protagonist's best friend, says: “Finally, I get to fellowship with fellow writers, my brethren.” Well... fellowship is not a verb. Noah, whose perspective the story is told from, mentions that an alum donated a lot of money “...to the school in the subversive hopes of having a building named after him.” Here, it's obvious that subversive doesn't mean what he thinks it means. These are just a couple examples of words being used incorrectly, but it's a persistent problem in the text.
Re: content, there are a lot of scenes that, in my opinion, an editor would've elected to cut in order for Hollowstone to feel more like a Young Adult book. Characters that we're supposed to like—such as Nolan, the music teacher, and Caleb—say really heinously inappropriate things about women on multiple occasions. I'll get to some specific examples later.
-The novel is very poorly researched. In Hollowstone, The Art of War is by “Shang” Tzu (when in fact the author is Sun Tzu). Noah plays the violin in a music theory class, and “saws” away at his instrument. Neely (the only non-heterosexual woman in the text, who ends up being Noah's cheerleader and has no life of her own) does some research on the protagonist's behalf, and the supernatural elements of the novel are lazily explained. Neely tells Noah re: the school's location: “This place is a hodge podge of demonic energy. After the European settlers arrived, many warlocks met here and practiced the dark arts in secret. The warlocks went underground when the Salem Witch Trials hit but that doesn’t mean there still isn’t a supernatural presence here.” The Salem Witch Trials predate any permanent settlements and Westward expansion by... well, a lot of years, and if Upkins had done his research he could have easily found a better explanation for the existence of demonic energy or whatever. The “official” reason does not make sense at all.
-So many scenes in Hollowstone are awkward to the point of causing secondhand embarrassment. One example that sticks out for me is when Noah and Caleb go to an open mic event, and the latter performs a poem. Upkins' includes the entirety of it in the text. For the record, the poem's around 350 words and takes up two pages on this Microsoft Word document. We're also supposed to think the poem is great, but in reality it's very bad. For example, one stanza reads: “A small kiss / A kiss that triggered all of this / A kiss that sent him spiraling / A kiss that brought reason to Faust’s plight / For such a token could easily launch a thousand ships.” A stanza that's repeated multiple times goes like this: “He dances to surrender / He dances to forget / He dances to find the symmetry, / He dances to numb / He dances to mend / He dances for it to end.” Yep. Less severe secondhand comes from the very dated way in which Upkins' characterizes cliques—there are only two in the school, apparently, and it's the standard (and this point old) “dumb jocks” versus smart nerds thing.
-Since the author spends a great deal of time promoting himself in progressive online spaces (especially ones for LGBT individuals), I've not only been personally recommended Hollowstone, but I've also had to see this offensive train wreck pop up on websites made for feminists, lesbians/bisexual women, the LGBT community, etc. I thus believe it's worth mentioning that the novel really fails at tackling issues of inclusion. While some good points are made about race and class, Upkins is incapable of being subtle—and class issues are especially heavy-handed and ham-fisted. I've lived being a poor person in a much wealthier school system, and while high school students are cruel, in my experience they don't begin to rival the incredibly exaggerated version of class entitlement that Upkins depicts.
Women and non-heterosexual youths (there are no lesbians, nor or there any trans* young adults) are handled incredibly poorly. Caleb is pretty nasty and objectifies female characters constantly, lecherously describing certain women (like Brianna) only by their looks and level of promiscuity. By the way, this is how he treats women he has no issues with. When it comes to women Cal doesn't like, he shames their sexuality and either accuses them of being “skanks” (his proof: they slept with him) or of having STDs. Nolan, the music teacher, tells a female students to swallow her gum in the same way that she swallows for the football team. These are just a few examples.
I'm not sure why I've been recommended to read this as Gay or LGBT YA. Noah is straight, and the two bisexual characters (Cal and Neely) are only depicted as being in opposite-sex relationships, if they're in relationships at all. The gay subplot, which involved two minor characters, is very melodramatic and offensive. Spoilers ahead, but one character who is perceived as gay (and is in fact gay) is constantly bullied. His boyfriend, who's on the football team, comes out in order to help prevent some of the bullying. Things don't go the way he anticipated and one's left for the dead and the other decides he's going to shoot up the school (until the straight hero tackles him). When Upkins has talked about their scenes in interviews, he's made it a point to say how they're not “effeminate” gay men (implying that bullying and violence are OK in that context?) and how people should be more mindful of bullying because sometimes “LGBTQs,” as he calls us, fight back. (So, school shootings are justified? What?)
***
In conclusion, anyone saying this book is horrible and misogynistic and poorly researched and horribly edited... they're ALL right.
In an interview I read, the author claimed to treat women characters with respect, but they're nothing more than very offensive caricatures. Brianna is the kind of character only a misogynistic male could come up with, and the treatment of her is just horrifyingly sexist. At one point, the main character "figures" her out (actually, he ~figures out most of the women in the book, because he's just so astute) and the scene is just... I can't even explain. The content of this book is awful.
Originally, I wasn't even going to finish Hollowstone. Why? Because it's horribly written. The author does not use commas (except to make comma splices) and the novel's voice in incredibly wooden. I think you can find excerpts of the novel via Amazon and on the author's blog, so check them out first if you're considering purchasing Hollowstone. Not everyone can withstand constant butchery of the English language, and less people are willing to pay for it.
ETA (4 September 2011)
I decided to do a more detailed review, since some of the author's friends have decided that all the book's detractors don't have legitimate complaints -- that they just hate Upkins. Here are my issues with the novel...
-Saying that Hollowstone needs “some” editing is a massive understatement. Whether we're talking about form or content, the book feels as if no one besides the author bothered to read the manuscript before publication. For example, Upkins' prose violates basic grammar rules, particularly when it comes to punctuation. Commas appear only to create comma splices, and dialogue often sounds stilted and awkward because sentences are not properly broken up. (Speaking of dialogue, all the characters sound the same, too.)
Additionally, there are severe vocabulary issues in Hollowstone. Cal, the protagonist's best friend, says: “Finally, I get to fellowship with fellow writers, my brethren.” Well... fellowship is not a verb. Noah, whose perspective the story is told from, mentions that an alum donated a lot of money “...to the school in the subversive hopes of having a building named after him.” Here, it's obvious that subversive doesn't mean what he thinks it means. These are just a couple examples of words being used incorrectly, but it's a persistent problem in the text.
Re: content, there are a lot of scenes that, in my opinion, an editor would've elected to cut in order for Hollowstone to feel more like a Young Adult book. Characters that we're supposed to like—such as Nolan, the music teacher, and Caleb—say really heinously inappropriate things about women on multiple occasions. I'll get to some specific examples later.
-The novel is very poorly researched. In Hollowstone, The Art of War is by “Shang” Tzu (when in fact the author is Sun Tzu). Noah plays the violin in a music theory class, and “saws” away at his instrument. Neely (the only non-heterosexual woman in the text, who ends up being Noah's cheerleader and has no life of her own) does some research on the protagonist's behalf, and the supernatural elements of the novel are lazily explained. Neely tells Noah re: the school's location: “This place is a hodge podge of demonic energy. After the European settlers arrived, many warlocks met here and practiced the dark arts in secret. The warlocks went underground when the Salem Witch Trials hit but that doesn’t mean there still isn’t a supernatural presence here.” The Salem Witch Trials predate any permanent settlements and Westward expansion by... well, a lot of years, and if Upkins had done his research he could have easily found a better explanation for the existence of demonic energy or whatever. The “official” reason does not make sense at all.
-So many scenes in Hollowstone are awkward to the point of causing secondhand embarrassment. One example that sticks out for me is when Noah and Caleb go to an open mic event, and the latter performs a poem. Upkins' includes the entirety of it in the text. For the record, the poem's around 350 words and takes up two pages on this Microsoft Word document. We're also supposed to think the poem is great, but in reality it's very bad. For example, one stanza reads: “A small kiss / A kiss that triggered all of this / A kiss that sent him spiraling / A kiss that brought reason to Faust’s plight / For such a token could easily launch a thousand ships.” A stanza that's repeated multiple times goes like this: “He dances to surrender / He dances to forget / He dances to find the symmetry, / He dances to numb / He dances to mend / He dances for it to end.” Yep. Less severe secondhand comes from the very dated way in which Upkins' characterizes cliques—there are only two in the school, apparently, and it's the standard (and this point old) “dumb jocks” versus smart nerds thing.
-Since the author spends a great deal of time promoting himself in progressive online spaces (especially ones for LGBT individuals), I've not only been personally recommended Hollowstone, but I've also had to see this offensive train wreck pop up on websites made for feminists, lesbians/bisexual women, the LGBT community, etc. I thus believe it's worth mentioning that the novel really fails at tackling issues of inclusion. While some good points are made about race and class, Upkins is incapable of being subtle—and class issues are especially heavy-handed and ham-fisted. I've lived being a poor person in a much wealthier school system, and while high school students are cruel, in my experience they don't begin to rival the incredibly exaggerated version of class entitlement that Upkins depicts.
Women and non-heterosexual youths (there are no lesbians, nor or there any trans* young adults) are handled incredibly poorly. Caleb is pretty nasty and objectifies female characters constantly, lecherously describing certain women (like Brianna) only by their looks and level of promiscuity. By the way, this is how he treats women he has no issues with. When it comes to women Cal doesn't like, he shames their sexuality and either accuses them of being “skanks” (his proof: they slept with him) or of having STDs. Nolan, the music teacher, tells a female students to swallow her gum in the same way that she swallows for the football team. These are just a few examples.
I'm not sure why I've been recommended to read this as Gay or LGBT YA. Noah is straight, and the two bisexual characters (Cal and Neely) are only depicted as being in opposite-sex relationships, if they're in relationships at all. The gay subplot, which involved two minor characters, is very melodramatic and offensive. Spoilers ahead, but one character who is perceived as gay (and is in fact gay) is constantly bullied. His boyfriend, who's on the football team, comes out in order to help prevent some of the bullying. Things don't go the way he anticipated and one's left for the dead and the other decides he's going to shoot up the school (until the straight hero tackles him). When Upkins has talked about their scenes in interviews, he's made it a point to say how they're not “effeminate” gay men (implying that bullying and violence are OK in that context?) and how people should be more mindful of bullying because sometimes “LGBTQs,” as he calls us, fight back. (So, school shootings are justified? What?)
***
In conclusion, anyone saying this book is horrible and misogynistic and poorly researched and horribly edited... they're ALL right.
September 11, 2011
***SPOILERS AHEAD***
I have two main issues with this book's plot (besides the author's virulent misogyny, but I've spoken enough about that in my own Tumblr, so I'll keep this review book-specific)
First, why is this book being promoted as being LGBQ-friendly? The main character is straight and the white bisexual 'protagonist' is paired up with a guy five seconds after appearing, not that she even appears enough to be considered a main character. This book isn't LGBQ-friendly, and it's certainly not women-friendly either.
Second, the author claims that rape is handled respectfully and realistically—as a rape survivor I can say that no, it isn't. Caleb (the protagonist's friend who calls women skanks and accuses them of having STDs) finds out his dad raped his mother and that because he was wealthy and she wasn't, she couldn't do anything about it. Caleb is the product of rape, and considering the author's own stance on abortions due to rape, this is an incredibly offensive portrayal that smacks of author soapboxing.
Grossly simplifying rape culture in this context is not appropriate, it's offensive. In Hollowstone, rape/rape culture is used to add to Cal's bad/troubled past and his angst, like the plot line of a soap opera, without deconstructing it/condemning it.
As the author has, suggesting that Hollowstone speaks against rape culture is laughable and disingenuous. Just because the characters in the novel are not overtly pro-rape/rape apologists doesn't mean they're not enabling rape culture by cracking jokes about women characters swallowing and calling them skanks.
The characters in Hollowstone enable rape culture with their misogyny, and as a rape survivor, I'm offended by how this book handles rape.
Why the author continues to state that this book is inclusive and progressive, from a marginalized point of view, I have no idea, but it's simply not true.
I have two main issues with this book's plot (besides the author's virulent misogyny, but I've spoken enough about that in my own Tumblr, so I'll keep this review book-specific)
First, why is this book being promoted as being LGBQ-friendly? The main character is straight and the white bisexual 'protagonist' is paired up with a guy five seconds after appearing, not that she even appears enough to be considered a main character. This book isn't LGBQ-friendly, and it's certainly not women-friendly either.
Second, the author claims that rape is handled respectfully and realistically—as a rape survivor I can say that no, it isn't. Caleb (the protagonist's friend who calls women skanks and accuses them of having STDs) finds out his dad raped his mother and that because he was wealthy and she wasn't, she couldn't do anything about it. Caleb is the product of rape, and considering the author's own stance on abortions due to rape, this is an incredibly offensive portrayal that smacks of author soapboxing.
Grossly simplifying rape culture in this context is not appropriate, it's offensive. In Hollowstone, rape/rape culture is used to add to Cal's bad/troubled past and his angst, like the plot line of a soap opera, without deconstructing it/condemning it.
As the author has, suggesting that Hollowstone speaks against rape culture is laughable and disingenuous. Just because the characters in the novel are not overtly pro-rape/rape apologists doesn't mean they're not enabling rape culture by cracking jokes about women characters swallowing and calling them skanks.
The characters in Hollowstone enable rape culture with their misogyny, and as a rape survivor, I'm offended by how this book handles rape.
Why the author continues to state that this book is inclusive and progressive, from a marginalized point of view, I have no idea, but it's simply not true.
July 16, 2011
I was aware of this author's reputation for particularly virulent misogyny in the blogosphere and was very nervous in reading this book. Was that nervousness justified? Well...yes and no. Yep, every single woman or girl in this book is a stereotype. However, *none* of the characterizations are particularly deep, even those of the author-insert narrator. (You want to make an author insert interesting and able to fly under the radar as such, at least be self-aware enough to include your flaws.) It's less sexist and more...just a bad book. The prose is awkward, the ultimate conflict is outlandish, and I think that it was copy-edited by a drunk. ("Spared" and "speared" do not mean the same thing. Neither do "of course" and "of coarse", among so many other things. I should also note that, no matter how much the author wants to make points about various privileges, judges do not get to overturn jury verdicts in murder trials for funsies.) Hollowstone tries at various points to be a ghost story, a Southern Gothic, a crime thriller, and a social commentary, but it ultimately succeeds at none of these things.
July 29, 2011
Oh my. How to describe Hollowstone?
Upkins' achieves something incredible with his first novel. There may not be a single piece of dialogue in this book that wasn't stolen from an excitable movie poster tag line, yet Upkins' craft makes Hollowstone the perfect monotonous stand-in for when your wave machine has broken. Armed with sage advice not to overdo it on the dialogue tags, Upkins' is still keenly aware his readers will forget what quotation marks are for and sticks in ten or twelve "He said"'s to a page. Lesser authors might adhere to outdated rules like 'Don't write pages of your crappy adolescent poetry and have everyone act like it's the lost quarto of Shakespeare,' but Hollowstone is three sheets to the wind with that. When the author finds the perfect word to complete a sentence, he then uses it four or five times more in the same paragraph.
I was planning to do a serious review, but frankly I've wasted enough of my time reading this embarrassing dreck. Noah Scott is the id-fueled stand-in for the author. Without any flaws or failings, he makes no impression on any of the stories going on around him. He's hated by the evil characters (the preps and the jocks) admired and loved by the good characters (sociopaths, abusive school teachers, bisexual wiccans, mobsters). If they aren't stereotypes enough, there's also some evil right-wing politicians, slutty schoolgirls and gay kids having nervous breakdowns and holding hostages at gunpoint. There are moments when Hollowstone almost breaks free of it's cliche, but the plot bogs itself down by trying to be too many things at once.
To compound its sins, this deadly dull novel is over £5 for an ebook. Give it definite miss.
Upkins' achieves something incredible with his first novel. There may not be a single piece of dialogue in this book that wasn't stolen from an excitable movie poster tag line, yet Upkins' craft makes Hollowstone the perfect monotonous stand-in for when your wave machine has broken. Armed with sage advice not to overdo it on the dialogue tags, Upkins' is still keenly aware his readers will forget what quotation marks are for and sticks in ten or twelve "He said"'s to a page. Lesser authors might adhere to outdated rules like 'Don't write pages of your crappy adolescent poetry and have everyone act like it's the lost quarto of Shakespeare,' but Hollowstone is three sheets to the wind with that. When the author finds the perfect word to complete a sentence, he then uses it four or five times more in the same paragraph.
I was planning to do a serious review, but frankly I've wasted enough of my time reading this embarrassing dreck. Noah Scott is the id-fueled stand-in for the author. Without any flaws or failings, he makes no impression on any of the stories going on around him. He's hated by the evil characters (the preps and the jocks) admired and loved by the good characters (sociopaths, abusive school teachers, bisexual wiccans, mobsters). If they aren't stereotypes enough, there's also some evil right-wing politicians, slutty schoolgirls and gay kids having nervous breakdowns and holding hostages at gunpoint. There are moments when Hollowstone almost breaks free of it's cliche, but the plot bogs itself down by trying to be too many things at once.
To compound its sins, this deadly dull novel is over £5 for an ebook. Give it definite miss.
not-in-a-gazillion-years
October 27, 2011This book sounded decent...I found it marked on my friend's shelves as "would-rather-eat-my-own-vomit-than-read" and "never-will-I-ever" and wondered why. I researched it...and I found out rather quickly.
No thanks. Not even for the lulz.
(EDIT: And may I add something else about this book? THE COVER SUCKS. I mean, really? Yellow font over, what is that, bronze? Seriously, dude? And that font. THAT. FONT. It's terrible. It doesn't even match the rest of the cover for god's sake. AND THE LIGHTNING LOOKS SO CHEESY. My inner designer screams in agony.
That is all.)
No thanks. Not even for the lulz.
(EDIT: And may I add something else about this book? THE COVER SUCKS. I mean, really? Yellow font over, what is that, bronze? Seriously, dude? And that font. THAT. FONT. It's terrible. It doesn't even match the rest of the cover for god's sake. AND THE LIGHTNING LOOKS SO CHEESY. My inner designer screams in agony.
That is all.)
September 13, 2011
I'll be honest. I haven't read the complete book, but I read enough excerpts to know it's so misogynist I don't care to know more.
Edited: to fix spelling.
Edited: to fix spelling.
September 13, 2011
Such a shame.
I had this book recommended to me as a good example of a non-white protagonist, so I had high hopes. I don't know what went wrong, but I am shocked to see that a book of this quality was put out by an e-pub, and not self-published. There were numerous grammar errors within the first fifty pages (all I could stomach). There are entire sections -- nearly four pages at one point -- which is pure back and forth conversation: no dialogue tags, no actions from either character to break it up, just straight talk. And this was to introduce one of the main characters!
Although this book was written in first person POV, the reader is rarely allowed access to the protagonist's inner thoughts. This is accomplished by way of long, long, (agonizingly long) dialogue blocks. There is little room for character reactions, leaving everything implied by speech. This does not make for a riveting read. For example in the prologue the protag sees his friend's ghost at his funeral. This treated with such blasé non-reaction that I wondered if the character commonly saw ghosts. Maybe he does, but it wasn't mentioned again in the first 50 pages so I doubt it.
Where the writing wasn't flat, it was ugly. There was one point where the protagonist's friend casually refers to two girls he had in a hot tub recently as "skanks". Literally the next line, the protagonist laughs and then mentions he hates being profiled (for the color of his skin). So racism = bad, but profiling women for daring to have sex = a'okay? This was presented without a hint of irony, by the way. I can tell the difference between an unreliable narrator, and, frankly troubling writing.
Again, I was only able manage to slog through part of the book. The bad guys (basically everyone but the protag, one bullied boy, his roommate and his girlfriend) are... almost cartoonishly evil. It's as if they all universally rolled out of bed thinking, "How can I be the most despicable, evil incarnation of a human being that I can today?" This is done, presumably, while twirling their Snidely Whiplash mustaches.
There ARE glimmers of brilliance in here. They are few and far between, and usually weighed down by clunky writing, but they are there! The music teacher is amusing in a good Snape-ish way (although I've never been to a music theory class where you actually preformed and not, y'know, studied music theory). The California valley girl made me cringe with the awful dialogue and 'like' every sentence, but she was at least burst of a colorful personality in an school full of blahs. The supernatural elements and the non-white protagonist got me excited for the book, and should have made for a refreshing change.
This book is in dire need of a tough editor and industrial-grade polish. Again, it's such a shame. It's a novel full of 'should have been'.
I had this book recommended to me as a good example of a non-white protagonist, so I had high hopes. I don't know what went wrong, but I am shocked to see that a book of this quality was put out by an e-pub, and not self-published. There were numerous grammar errors within the first fifty pages (all I could stomach). There are entire sections -- nearly four pages at one point -- which is pure back and forth conversation: no dialogue tags, no actions from either character to break it up, just straight talk. And this was to introduce one of the main characters!
Although this book was written in first person POV, the reader is rarely allowed access to the protagonist's inner thoughts. This is accomplished by way of long, long, (agonizingly long) dialogue blocks. There is little room for character reactions, leaving everything implied by speech. This does not make for a riveting read. For example in the prologue the protag sees his friend's ghost at his funeral. This treated with such blasé non-reaction that I wondered if the character commonly saw ghosts. Maybe he does, but it wasn't mentioned again in the first 50 pages so I doubt it.
Where the writing wasn't flat, it was ugly. There was one point where the protagonist's friend casually refers to two girls he had in a hot tub recently as "skanks". Literally the next line, the protagonist laughs and then mentions he hates being profiled (for the color of his skin). So racism = bad, but profiling women for daring to have sex = a'okay? This was presented without a hint of irony, by the way. I can tell the difference between an unreliable narrator, and, frankly troubling writing.
Again, I was only able manage to slog through part of the book. The bad guys (basically everyone but the protag, one bullied boy, his roommate and his girlfriend) are... almost cartoonishly evil. It's as if they all universally rolled out of bed thinking, "How can I be the most despicable, evil incarnation of a human being that I can today?" This is done, presumably, while twirling their Snidely Whiplash mustaches.
There ARE glimmers of brilliance in here. They are few and far between, and usually weighed down by clunky writing, but they are there! The music teacher is amusing in a good Snape-ish way (although I've never been to a music theory class where you actually preformed and not, y'know, studied music theory). The California valley girl made me cringe with the awful dialogue and 'like' every sentence, but she was at least burst of a colorful personality in an school full of blahs. The supernatural elements and the non-white protagonist got me excited for the book, and should have made for a refreshing change.
This book is in dire need of a tough editor and industrial-grade polish. Again, it's such a shame. It's a novel full of 'should have been'.
July 29, 2011
I picked it up for the protagonist and I finished it for the murder mystery.
I enjoyed spending 200 pages with the main character, even when I wanted to smack him a few times. I enjoyed watching all the dirty pool of a private school explode in slow motion. There was some very satisfying wish fulfillment of actually getting to tell the jerks what they've done to you and have some of them *listen.* It also captured how people get bone-tired and angry after hearing the same bigoted garbage a million times, which can be hard to understand if you haven't been on the receiving end.
Maybe best of all, everyone had baggage. By the end of the book, if I'm counting right, every school-age character and some of the adults had known struggles that clearly informed their behavior. Even if they were still awful people, it wasn't in a vacuum. Most of us are hurting one way or another, and a lot of YA books pass that by.
The book deserved a much better copy editor. I had to take off one star because there were enough missing commas, homophones, and just awkward sentences that it threw me out of the story frequently. Different people have different sensitivities, though. If I'd read this at 13, I'd have gobbled it up and never noticed.
I enjoyed spending 200 pages with the main character, even when I wanted to smack him a few times. I enjoyed watching all the dirty pool of a private school explode in slow motion. There was some very satisfying wish fulfillment of actually getting to tell the jerks what they've done to you and have some of them *listen.* It also captured how people get bone-tired and angry after hearing the same bigoted garbage a million times, which can be hard to understand if you haven't been on the receiving end.
Maybe best of all, everyone had baggage. By the end of the book, if I'm counting right, every school-age character and some of the adults had known struggles that clearly informed their behavior. Even if they were still awful people, it wasn't in a vacuum. Most of us are hurting one way or another, and a lot of YA books pass that by.
The book deserved a much better copy editor. I had to take off one star because there were enough missing commas, homophones, and just awkward sentences that it threw me out of the story frequently. Different people have different sensitivities, though. If I'd read this at 13, I'd have gobbled it up and never noticed.
December 7, 2011
Hollowstone is Upkins' first novel, I've been a fan of his net.writing for some time now, so I was very eager to read this. I even bought it in Kindle edition because it wasn't available in Google Books (my preferred e-reader). But that's not his fault.
Hollowstone is told from the point of view of a young African-American boy who gets a music scholarship to attend the prestigious boarding school after which the book is named. The protagonist's roommate is the resident bad-boy. The school is rife with politics and intrigue that turns serious and deadly.
Upkins did an impressive job with the structure of the book, and the pacing is very well handled. The language is a bit rough in places, but I'm looking forward to a second novel - he has the bones of a damn good story, and a few blemishes on its skin, and those are the kinds of things that can be worked out with practice.
Hollowstone is told from the point of view of a young African-American boy who gets a music scholarship to attend the prestigious boarding school after which the book is named. The protagonist's roommate is the resident bad-boy. The school is rife with politics and intrigue that turns serious and deadly.
Upkins did an impressive job with the structure of the book, and the pacing is very well handled. The language is a bit rough in places, but I'm looking forward to a second novel - he has the bones of a damn good story, and a few blemishes on its skin, and those are the kinds of things that can be worked out with practice.
September 13, 2011
FULL DISCLOSURE: Given the hype and my familiarity with it, I'm going to be somewhat specific in my thoughts on Hollowstone. Those unfamiliar with my personal rating system (why WOULD you be familiar with my rating system?) know that I tend to rate everything lower rather than higher; 2 stars literally means what the mouse-over says, "it was okay".
While I enjoyed it, I think I could've enjoyed it more had it benefited from more editing. I guess I had higher expectations in that regard. While there's something to be said for a quick pace, it largely felt too fast and I felt the plot could've used some more fleshing out to prevent it from feeling disjointed. While I typically knew what was going on, there were a couple of times where I became confused. Perhaps that speaks more to my own cognitive abilities.
I did find the much of the dialogue amusing ("nonplussed about the Emancipation Proclamation") and easy to envision the characters speaking in my head.
Overall, Hollowstone feels unpolished. I genuinely think more thorough editing prior to release would've improved it, as well as being thicker. However, it's also a first novel and I'm not expecting perfection. I will continue to pay attention to Upkins' future works.
EDIT: At the time I read Hollowstone, I hadn't read The Great Gatsby, which Upkins intentionally integrated themes from into Hollowstone. I completed Gatsby immediately after Hollowstone and it changed my perception of some characters, as well as allowing me to get some references I hadn't previously noticed. Lots of little "ah ha!" moments. I encourage readers who aren't familiar with Gatsby and who are interested in Hollowstone to read Gatsby first.
While I enjoyed it, I think I could've enjoyed it more had it benefited from more editing. I guess I had higher expectations in that regard. While there's something to be said for a quick pace, it largely felt too fast and I felt the plot could've used some more fleshing out to prevent it from feeling disjointed. While I typically knew what was going on, there were a couple of times where I became confused. Perhaps that speaks more to my own cognitive abilities.
I did find the much of the dialogue amusing ("nonplussed about the Emancipation Proclamation") and easy to envision the characters speaking in my head.
Overall, Hollowstone feels unpolished. I genuinely think more thorough editing prior to release would've improved it, as well as being thicker. However, it's also a first novel and I'm not expecting perfection. I will continue to pay attention to Upkins' future works.
EDIT: At the time I read Hollowstone, I hadn't read The Great Gatsby, which Upkins intentionally integrated themes from into Hollowstone. I completed Gatsby immediately after Hollowstone and it changed my perception of some characters, as well as allowing me to get some references I hadn't previously noticed. Lots of little "ah ha!" moments. I encourage readers who aren't familiar with Gatsby and who are interested in Hollowstone to read Gatsby first.
August 7, 2011
Quite possibly the most intriguing book I have read in a very long time. I have read a lot of YA books that are set at Boarding Schools, and I thought "ho hum, here's another one", but it wasn't at all what it seemed on the surface. Noah is not a completely reliable narrator, and he sees the world with too much compassion and grace, even as bad things happen and his world falls apart. Even when the story seems to be just about a young kid who survived Hurricane Katrina and lucked into a scholarship at a prestigious school, there is always a chilling element of "things are not what they seem" embedded into the narration. I wish Abby and Neely had been better developed (especially Neely-what a missed opportunity!).
Although the book stumbles in a few places (more to editing issues than story), this does not distract from a good story.
Although the book stumbles in a few places (more to editing issues than story), this does not distract from a good story.
December 10, 2011
I actually enjoyed this book. I would say it's target market is teenage boys, as the dialogue is pure "teen boy fantasy" in places, but teen boys amuse me, so I found it quite entertaining. I didn't take any of the chauvanist comments personally, so was not offended as I can see many readers have been. Maybe because I am not an LGBGTY or whatever the code is? It certainly had some good twists, and repulsive rich-kid bad guys to loathe. I particularly liked the wrap-up and closure for all the characters, something that is often lacking in good fiction or TV series. This would be a great tween TV mini-series, with an "upgrade" of the dialogue. Takes a surprising turn with the arrival of a helpful 'angel'. Unexpected, but fun.
One note to the author, drug is not an alternative word for dragged. "Drug" is something taken to get better, or high. Dragged, is when you are being taken across the floor, either under your own volition, dragging you legs behind you, or by someone else, usually being lifted under your armpits. Please get that right in future!! Since most of the kids in the novel had a penchant for drugs, it flowed badly using the word incorrectly.
One note to the author, drug is not an alternative word for dragged. "Drug" is something taken to get better, or high. Dragged, is when you are being taken across the floor, either under your own volition, dragging you legs behind you, or by someone else, usually being lifted under your armpits. Please get that right in future!! Since most of the kids in the novel had a penchant for drugs, it flowed badly using the word incorrectly.
August 18, 2011
a summary of my feelings on this awful excuse of a novel:
August 29, 2011
Very good book. Definitely worth checking out.
October 10, 2011
Hollowstone, a story about a young man’s experiences at a prestigious Tennessee prep school, is Dennis Upkins’ debut novel. Before I deliver my thoughts on this book, I need to provide a bit of context.
I love books. Love them, love them, and love them. Stories have weight and texture and scent and flavor, and nothing illustrates that better than a novel. I’ll always buy books. But in these times, books have gone digital and eBooks are extremely popular. As co-owner of a small “tree-friendly” publishing house, eBooks are all Middle Child Press does. So to embrace this trend, I bought a Kindle. Part of my soul died, as I felt like I was betraying the decades-long love affair I have with books.
Drawback of the Kindle: You can’t easily flip back and forth through earlier pages to clarify what you’ve read. This annoyed the hell out of me.
Hollowstone is the very first novel I downloaded to my Kindle. I read it over the course of two nights. I was looking forward to reading a book Mr. Upkins gave birth to during last year’s NaNoWriMo. I went into it, thinking I was going to read a simple tale about a young black man named Noah and his sudden thrust into the elitist world of privileged white kids. He has the benefit of being roommates with the most popular boy on campus, a rebel named Cal. Cal parties hard and lives life to the fullest. He doesn’t fit the mold of the typical Hollowstone student, and Noah is able to adapt because of Cal’s influence. Cal is also thusly affected by Noah’s presence.
The first half of the book depicts the common harsh treachery of high school students. There’s nothing exceptional or special about it. Mr. Upkins drops what I thought were random, disconnected blurbs disguised as Noah’s dreams. But the story was compelling. I was concerned about the pacing, as it felt like so much was happening during Noah’s first semester at Hollowstone that could have been stretched out over a year.
I got my first metaphorical punch in the face halfway through the book. Mr. Upkins deviated wildly to the left and it was at this point that I wondered what I was really reading about. It felt disjointed, disconnected, and surreal. But I kept reading because Mr. Upkins has a great flair for dialogue, and in my experience, dialogue can make or break a book. The book was un-put-downable, and if that isn’t a word, it is today.
I don’t want to give anything away, but Mr. Upkins demonstrated his prowess as a storyteller as the book continued. Most stories are clichéd and I thought I was reading a book that was going to follow a standard pattern. I was pleasantly surprised. When the other two stunning developments came, I felt like I’d been sucker-punched. Everything that felt disjointed at the beginning came together like a well-made quilt at the end. What I thought were random blurbs were a prelude to something deeper than the surface story; something much bigger than Hollowstone itself.
If I have a gripe with this story, it’s the pacing. So much was happening so fast that I couldn’t keep up with exactly where Noah was in terms of his education. He was doing so much; he’s a gifted musician and the prize student of the irascible Professor Nolan, one of the best minor characters in the book (the scene with the paintball gun had me in tears). He gets a job in a bookstore, and it seems as if he spends (along with other students) more time out of class than in it. In spite of this issue, Mr. Upkins takes these loose threads and produces an exceptional unconventional story. I had to step away for a while and think about the book before I wrote this review. If I hadn’t known that this was his first effort, and that it was written during NaNoWriMo, I wouldn’t have believed it. I’ve read thousands of books by newbies and vets alike, and Mr. Upkins is a better storyteller than a good third of the authors I’ve read, both neophytes and veterans. And considering where he started, he has nowhere to go but up and get better.
My $.02? Run, don’t walk to your Kindle (or any other eReader you may have) and download this book. It’s a great weekend read; even better if it’s a rainy weekend.
Bravo, Denny! Bravo!
I love books. Love them, love them, and love them. Stories have weight and texture and scent and flavor, and nothing illustrates that better than a novel. I’ll always buy books. But in these times, books have gone digital and eBooks are extremely popular. As co-owner of a small “tree-friendly” publishing house, eBooks are all Middle Child Press does. So to embrace this trend, I bought a Kindle. Part of my soul died, as I felt like I was betraying the decades-long love affair I have with books.
Drawback of the Kindle: You can’t easily flip back and forth through earlier pages to clarify what you’ve read. This annoyed the hell out of me.
Hollowstone is the very first novel I downloaded to my Kindle. I read it over the course of two nights. I was looking forward to reading a book Mr. Upkins gave birth to during last year’s NaNoWriMo. I went into it, thinking I was going to read a simple tale about a young black man named Noah and his sudden thrust into the elitist world of privileged white kids. He has the benefit of being roommates with the most popular boy on campus, a rebel named Cal. Cal parties hard and lives life to the fullest. He doesn’t fit the mold of the typical Hollowstone student, and Noah is able to adapt because of Cal’s influence. Cal is also thusly affected by Noah’s presence.
The first half of the book depicts the common harsh treachery of high school students. There’s nothing exceptional or special about it. Mr. Upkins drops what I thought were random, disconnected blurbs disguised as Noah’s dreams. But the story was compelling. I was concerned about the pacing, as it felt like so much was happening during Noah’s first semester at Hollowstone that could have been stretched out over a year.
I got my first metaphorical punch in the face halfway through the book. Mr. Upkins deviated wildly to the left and it was at this point that I wondered what I was really reading about. It felt disjointed, disconnected, and surreal. But I kept reading because Mr. Upkins has a great flair for dialogue, and in my experience, dialogue can make or break a book. The book was un-put-downable, and if that isn’t a word, it is today.
I don’t want to give anything away, but Mr. Upkins demonstrated his prowess as a storyteller as the book continued. Most stories are clichéd and I thought I was reading a book that was going to follow a standard pattern. I was pleasantly surprised. When the other two stunning developments came, I felt like I’d been sucker-punched. Everything that felt disjointed at the beginning came together like a well-made quilt at the end. What I thought were random blurbs were a prelude to something deeper than the surface story; something much bigger than Hollowstone itself.
If I have a gripe with this story, it’s the pacing. So much was happening so fast that I couldn’t keep up with exactly where Noah was in terms of his education. He was doing so much; he’s a gifted musician and the prize student of the irascible Professor Nolan, one of the best minor characters in the book (the scene with the paintball gun had me in tears). He gets a job in a bookstore, and it seems as if he spends (along with other students) more time out of class than in it. In spite of this issue, Mr. Upkins takes these loose threads and produces an exceptional unconventional story. I had to step away for a while and think about the book before I wrote this review. If I hadn’t known that this was his first effort, and that it was written during NaNoWriMo, I wouldn’t have believed it. I’ve read thousands of books by newbies and vets alike, and Mr. Upkins is a better storyteller than a good third of the authors I’ve read, both neophytes and veterans. And considering where he started, he has nowhere to go but up and get better.
My $.02? Run, don’t walk to your Kindle (or any other eReader you may have) and download this book. It’s a great weekend read; even better if it’s a rainy weekend.
Bravo, Denny! Bravo!
February 6, 2012
I had the honor of being asked to do a review of Dennis R. Upkins's debut novel Hollowstone. This is my first ever official book review, and I was very glad it was this book, particularly because I am a huge, huge fan of this man.
Upkins tells us the story of a young nerdy black man named Noah Scott who plays the violin and goes to church (earning him the nickname "Altar Boy"). Noah is also a brilliant student whose grades land him in a prestigious, exclusive, elitist school of spoiled, selfish rich kids who get away with everything - drugs, rape, even murder. And for Noah, what starts out as simply dealing with annoying classmates eventually turns into a literal life-and-death struggle.
At first I was surprised by the characterization of the students and the choice of setting, but then I realized it made perfect sense. In order for Upkins to discuss issues of violence, substance abuse, racism, sexism, homophobia, and classism, he needed a place where they constantly came to light yet often ran unchecked. And when writing young people, Upkins often captures their voices perfectly and quite humorously.
But one of the most fascinating aspects of Upkins' writing style is a glaring lack of filler. It's as though he never takes a rest; every paragraph is made to count, every chapter carries the momentum forward still. His pacing is astounding; he keeps the reader on the edge and oblivious to the passing of twenty to thirty pages in a row. Moreover, mystery/suspense is definitely his genre; I never ceased to be amazed at how writers like him can so definitely handle the numerous details which weave together a cleverly tangled web.
Deftly blending the realistic with the supernatural, Upkins presents a delightfully entertaining read and an overall impressive debut.
Upkins tells us the story of a young nerdy black man named Noah Scott who plays the violin and goes to church (earning him the nickname "Altar Boy"). Noah is also a brilliant student whose grades land him in a prestigious, exclusive, elitist school of spoiled, selfish rich kids who get away with everything - drugs, rape, even murder. And for Noah, what starts out as simply dealing with annoying classmates eventually turns into a literal life-and-death struggle.
At first I was surprised by the characterization of the students and the choice of setting, but then I realized it made perfect sense. In order for Upkins to discuss issues of violence, substance abuse, racism, sexism, homophobia, and classism, he needed a place where they constantly came to light yet often ran unchecked. And when writing young people, Upkins often captures their voices perfectly and quite humorously.
But one of the most fascinating aspects of Upkins' writing style is a glaring lack of filler. It's as though he never takes a rest; every paragraph is made to count, every chapter carries the momentum forward still. His pacing is astounding; he keeps the reader on the edge and oblivious to the passing of twenty to thirty pages in a row. Moreover, mystery/suspense is definitely his genre; I never ceased to be amazed at how writers like him can so definitely handle the numerous details which weave together a cleverly tangled web.
Deftly blending the realistic with the supernatural, Upkins presents a delightfully entertaining read and an overall impressive debut.
July 22, 2012
Well crafted and enjoyable murder mystery.
July 17, 2017
What in the name is this? I read some nonsense but the 'hero' is not compelling at all, the sexual aspect are poorly handled and the mystery itself is just as compelling as the hero(again Not at all). It feels like a chore to slog through, and not just because of the errors but the ideas and meandering of dialogue, definitely not a great first shot, read worse but wouldn't recommend it to most people I know and I got it as a gift.
May 17, 2013
So, I read this book twice.
The first thing I would like to say that I didn't find this a necessarily awful book. It wasn't the best but I've certainly read worse.
First, the things I liked:
1. Noah. Like having been a token minority in many situations myself, I knew what Noah was going through and have experienced the same looks, comments etc. It's a piece of my reality that I don't often see in fiction which was .... gratifying.
2. The actual plot. It was interesting and I love a good mystery. Especially one that I couldn't see the ending coming usually I can guess (and am right more often than not) but this ending through me for a bit of a loop.
3. The pacing. While Hollowstone is arelatively short book. I thought the pacing was well done. It wasn't too slow where there were parts that nothing happened and I got bored and it didn't move too quickly that my head spun. There was a part that seemed... unnecessary and wordy(that I wanted to skip)but I didn't think that detracted much from the story.
4. The overall commentary of our capitalistic society - Though it's kinda an overall thing I liked that the story, though about Cal and his messed up family, really painted a picture of how our society views people with money and allows them to run roughshod over people without money with little consequences.
Now on to the things I didn't care for:
1. Casual Sexism - There are a few instances where characters in the book had disparaging and shaming remarks about the sexual activities of the female characters. Unsurprisingly no one had anything to say about the male characters sexual activities that they were obviously taking part in. It was a little, "um can we not?" Like I understand the author may have been trying to make a point about the messed up priorities of our culture (slut shaming? A okay! You don't worship the football team? Fire and Brimstone!) but it didn't really come off that way and fell flat and was just cringe worth and more "um can we not?"
3. Grammar issues - There were a few grammar and spelling issues but to be honest I haven't found a book yet that didn't have them. There were a few places where I had to reread sentences and figure out, "oh, I think the author actually meant this" but they were few and far between and didn't detract from the story much.
So overall I liked the book. Just liked, it wasn't OMG AWESOME! But I was able to actually read the whole thing and I'll probably read it again in the future. It's by no means among my favorite books but like I said, I've most definitely read worse.
The first thing I would like to say that I didn't find this a necessarily awful book. It wasn't the best but I've certainly read worse.
First, the things I liked:
1. Noah. Like having been a token minority in many situations myself, I knew what Noah was going through and have experienced the same looks, comments etc. It's a piece of my reality that I don't often see in fiction which was .... gratifying.
2. The actual plot. It was interesting and I love a good mystery. Especially one that I couldn't see the ending coming usually I can guess (and am right more often than not) but this ending through me for a bit of a loop.
3. The pacing. While Hollowstone is a
4. The overall commentary of our capitalistic society - Though it's kinda an overall thing I liked that the story, though about Cal and his messed up family, really painted a picture of how our society views people with money and allows them to run roughshod over people without money with little consequences.
Now on to the things I didn't care for:
1. Casual Sexism - There are a few instances where characters in the book had disparaging and shaming remarks about the sexual activities of the female characters. Unsurprisingly no one had anything to say about the male characters sexual activities that they were obviously taking part in. It was a little, "um can we not?" Like I understand the author may have been trying to make a point about the messed up priorities of our culture (slut shaming? A okay! You don't worship the football team? Fire and Brimstone!) but it didn't really come off that way and fell flat and was just cringe worth and more "um can we not?"
3. Grammar issues - There were a few grammar and spelling issues but to be honest I haven't found a book yet that didn't have them. There were a few places where I had to reread sentences and figure out, "oh, I think the author actually meant this" but they were few and far between and didn't detract from the story much.
So overall I liked the book. Just liked, it wasn't OMG AWESOME! But I was able to actually read the whole thing and I'll probably read it again in the future. It's by no means among my favorite books but like I said, I've most definitely read worse.
August 27, 2014
I will admit I picked up the book mostly because the author is a friend of a friend, and watching their exchanges on Facebook made me curious about his writing (I honestly didn't realize he was a published author until a discussion about non-traditional protagonists in books) So I figured I would give it a shot.
I was pleasantly surprised. I expected good writing, just given how articulate the exchanges between the two are (happens when you have two writers conversing :D) I will say it's incredibly refreshing to read books with a more diverse cast of characters. White, black, LGBTQ...they're very well represented and normal people (which is so welcome. It gets really tiring reading the same trope-based heroines) I loved the character of Noah. So deeply spiritual and operating on faith, but he still has his moments where he's pushed too far and he responds appropriately. He's a well-drawn and well-observed character who shows incredible growth over the course of the book. Cal? I loved him. I knew guys like him...friends with everyone and just all-around good guys even with the bad guy image that they try to project. Sure, he does some things that aren't necessarily admirable, but overall he's a good guy. Knowing from the start that he wasn't going to survive the book...well, I will say that it kept me riveted, because I didn't want him to die! That he returned as a ghost and still played a major role in the remainder of the book was pleasing.
I will say that I figured out one of the bad guys (it was a guess, but a pretty good one) but not the other. But I wouldn't have guessed how it all fit together. It kept me intrigued right up to the end. And the integration between past/dream/present was so well-done and seamless that it never broke the immersion. I look forward to reading more from the author. Much more.
I was pleasantly surprised. I expected good writing, just given how articulate the exchanges between the two are (happens when you have two writers conversing :D) I will say it's incredibly refreshing to read books with a more diverse cast of characters. White, black, LGBTQ...they're very well represented and normal people (which is so welcome. It gets really tiring reading the same trope-based heroines) I loved the character of Noah. So deeply spiritual and operating on faith, but he still has his moments where he's pushed too far and he responds appropriately. He's a well-drawn and well-observed character who shows incredible growth over the course of the book. Cal? I loved him. I knew guys like him...friends with everyone and just all-around good guys even with the bad guy image that they try to project. Sure, he does some things that aren't necessarily admirable, but overall he's a good guy. Knowing from the start that he wasn't going to survive the book...well, I will say that it kept me riveted, because I didn't want him to die! That he returned as a ghost and still played a major role in the remainder of the book was pleasing.
I will say that I figured out one of the bad guys (it was a guess, but a pretty good one) but not the other. But I wouldn't have guessed how it all fit together. It kept me intrigued right up to the end. And the integration between past/dream/present was so well-done and seamless that it never broke the immersion. I look forward to reading more from the author. Much more.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 16, 2012
This book is an entertaining read with the types of characters whose points of view you don't often see in the published world.
However, it's not perfect and it does have some problems. First, it's in desperate need of an editor. Not just for spelling and grammar but for errors an editor should notice, like one section where information about a character is revealed in narration and pages later that same information, sometimes word for word, is revealed in dialog.
My other main complaint is that the Kindle ebook formatting of this novel is, or at least was when I read it, horrendous. It was often difficult to see the scene breaks, which frequently led to confusion.
Is the story itself a masterpiece? No, but it was good enough to keep me reading despite the problems I mentioned above, and to make me look forward to his future novels.
However, it's not perfect and it does have some problems. First, it's in desperate need of an editor. Not just for spelling and grammar but for errors an editor should notice, like one section where information about a character is revealed in narration and pages later that same information, sometimes word for word, is revealed in dialog.
My other main complaint is that the Kindle ebook formatting of this novel is, or at least was when I read it, horrendous. It was often difficult to see the scene breaks, which frequently led to confusion.
Is the story itself a masterpiece? No, but it was good enough to keep me reading despite the problems I mentioned above, and to make me look forward to his future novels.
March 5, 2013
**Review Pending***
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