If you read my post earlier this year, you’ll remember that The Hollowing wasn’t supposed to exist.
Haunted 5 was waiting in the wings, tapping its foot. I was supposed to be getting on with that.
And yet, somehow, I found myself staring at a blank map of the North East coast, sketching a town that isn’t real, and a woman who shouldn’t be there.
That town became Cauldfreet.
That woman became Lillian Ashcroft.
And the story that wasn’t meant to happen became The Hollowing.
This one feels different. The atmosphere, the tone, even the pacing – it all leans into a quiet, creeping dread I’ve wanted to explore for a while. Unlike the more psychological intensity of my previous books, The Hollowing drifts deeper into gothic territory. It’s steeped in folklore, superstition, and that slow, insidious unease born from the idea that some myths aren’t just stories – they’re memories.
I’ve loved immersing myself in that world – in the eerie quiet of Cauldfreet, a coastal town that feels both real and otherworldly. There’s something intoxicating about working with fear in subtler ways. No jump scares. No cheap tricks. Just atmosphere, suggestion, and the creeping sense that something ancient might still be watching.
So what’s it actually about?
The Hollowing follows Lillian Ashcroft, a woman who, like many, arrives in Cauldfreet hoping to escape the humiliation of her past and to forge something new. She buys an old gift shop carved into the cliff face – a place she plans to turn into a haven for tourists, filled with ghost walks and lantern-lit tours. But the legends she’s trying to sell aren’t the harmless stories she thinks they are. They’re something else. Something far, far worse.
The Hollowing is atmospheric, emotional, and deeply unsettling in a way that feels… old. Not old-faashioned, but rooted – in the myths and superstitions that have haunted our heritage for generations.
And now, it’s yours to experience.
