Lauren Daniels, a beautiful, introverted bookworm, experiences a profound life shift when financial hardships force her to leave behind her cherished Connecticut private school to walk among the glamorous, affluent teens at Reddington High School
She becomes embroiled in a complex web of envy and rivalry involving two popular girls in this unfamiliar setting. The climax of their cruelty culminates in a chilling act of revenge that profoundly alters Lauren's life forever
Within the pages of "Hours of Darkness,” themes of unwavering determination, love, and heart-wrenching loss are intricately woven, offering a touching exploration of the unbreakable bonds of family. It explores the strength of the human spirit and will keep you spellbound until the very last page
Lauren Daniel is probably going to be relatable to many of us. She has experienced great trauma and copes by isolating herself and falling into books, where she can she alone and safe.
When Lauren starts a new school and is faced with a team of mean girls, she is deceived and the trauma she endures is pretty heartbreaking and makes you fall in love with her character.
The remaining story is her tale of pulling herself from the clutches of despair and rebuilding safe boundaries carefully.
Not my typical read these days, a thank you to the author with sharing an audio version of the book in return for my honest opinion, the story moved along well and I really enjoyed it. Great for lovers of: -Family lost, found family -Personal development -Strength of the Human Spirit Check those trigger warning though:attempted murder, drugs, loss of family
When you read the title to this book a million things go through your mind but NOTHING could have prepared me for this!
I am used to dark romance and this book was a PERFECT refresher.
This book will have you HOOKED from the first chapter!
Lauren really goes through so much in this book. I feel like in alot of ways everyone can relate to her wanting to fit in & make friends at times but also wanting to be to herself! Lauren really endures alot in this book. The whole point of the book is when her friends turn on her and she is almost killed.
This book tugged on my heart strings when Lauren's mom got sick. I remember all the emotions when my mom was diagnosed with Cancer so I can only imagine the hurt her character felt.
I am soo ready for the next book! This book is so refreshing, easy to read and so relatable
I need the love story of Lauren & Greyson. I need the story of Lauren & her boss, I am left NEEDING more! I loved this book & will be recommending this to friends🤍
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
This was definitely a roller-coaster of emotions. You follow a young girl starting out at a new school and soon gets deceived by a group of mean girls. What they do to her is absolutely unthinkable and your heart ends up breaking for her. I loved seeing someone healing from their trauma and making the most out of their life. I can't wait to see what book two brings. And I definitely can't wait to find out more about Ethan 😍
Hours of Darkness by V.F. Molloy is, quite simply, a psychological thriller that grabs you by the heartstrings and refuses to let go. From the very first chapter, I was hooked, completely captivated by the gripping narrative, vivid characters, and the raw, emotional depth of the story. This book isn’t just a must-read; it’s an experience—one that will make you laugh, cry, swoon, and, at times, hyperventilate with fear.
The story follows Lauren Daniels, a quiet, introverted bookworm who is forced to navigate a new world at Reddington High School after financial hardships uproot her from her life of comfort and familiarity. Early on, the dynamics of high school cliques and the toxic “mean girl” culture come into play, and while I thought I knew where the story was going, V.F. Molloy completely blindsided me. What happens to Lauren at the hands of these girls goes beyond anything I expected. I was utterly floored—mouth open, heart pounding, and filled with absolute terror. This book isn’t afraid to dive into the dark and twisted realities of cruelty, and it does so with an intensity that is both terrifying and captivating.
But this isn’t just a story of fear and heartbreak—it’s also one of growth, resilience, and hope. Watching Lauren navigate the aftermath of her trauma and find her inner strength was as uplifting as it was heartbreaking. V.F. Molloy crafts her character with such authenticity that I felt every moment of Lauren’s pain, triumph, and joy as if it were my own. Her journey is one of rediscovery and empowerment, and by the end, I was cheering for her every step of the way.
The supporting characters also deserve praise. Ethan, the dreamy yet enigmatic figure in Lauren’s life, is someone I am absolutely rooting for. His presence brings light to Lauren’s darkest moments, and their connection is both tender and electrifying. I am holding out hope that the book gods will grant Lauren the happy ending she so deserves—with Ethan by her side.
V.F. Molloy’s writing is masterful. She has an uncanny ability to evoke emotion, and the pacing of the story is perfect. From moments of light-hearted humor to scenes of unimaginable terror, every page is a rollercoaster of emotion. There were times when I had to put the book down just to catch my breath, and other times when I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. The vivid descriptions and psychological depth pull you in and don’t let go until the final word.
At just around 250 pages, Hours of Darkness is a relatively quick read, but it packs a punch that lingers long after the last page. The blend of suspense, emotion, and heart makes it a truly unforgettable book. And the best part? This is only the beginning. As the first book in the Hours trilogy, it sets the stage for what promises to be an incredible series. I am already counting down the days until I can dive back into Lauren’s world and find out what’s next for her.
If you’re a fan of psychological thrillers, stories of resilience, or simply books that make you feel, Hours of Darkness is an absolute must-read. V.F. Molloy is a writer to watch, and I cannot recommend this book enough. Prepare to be blindsided, captivated, and completely enthralled.
If you’re ready for a story that will grip your heart, challenge your mind, and leave you breathless, pick up Hours of Darkness. You won’t regret it.
I was given an ARC in exchange for my honest review. I appreciate the opportunity I was given to read Hours of Darkness.
There is a lot about this book that isn’t there just yet, but I can really see the potential in the plot and the author. I am confident that as the author continues to write and develop, they will be able to accomplish great things! I cannot stress enough that the potential is there!
Lauren, our FMC, is sweet and kind, but that’s really it. Everything else about her is defined by her trauma. Yes she’s smart and likes to run and read — but what else? There isn’t a lot of depth to her character and her growth and recovery kinda happens off page. Like all of sudden, she’s like “yeah, I work on this in therapy and I’m better now.” It was all very cliche Lifetime movie.
The time skips didn’t make sense. The ages were off for everyone and I didn’t know if Lauren was 19 or 25. Grayson was only a year older than her but when she meets him 2 to 3 years later he’s 23. Her mom was an executive assistant for 30 years but she was 37 at the start of the book. It got confusing.
But, I don’t want to seem like I am picking the book apart. My review can be summed up simply. This book would have made a solid first draft of the first novel of a series. It would have been better, in my opinion, to make this a believable story about “the incident” and her recovery from that. Going through the legal trials, facing adversity instead of being so easily believed, and graduating therapy. Then maybe setting her up for her next hurdle once all of that is done — her mom’s passing and juggling the new job being in the second book.
I feel like a couple good beta readers, a few more revisions, and a copy editor would have sincerely helped this.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
"Hours of Darkness" is a young adult novel that beautifully captures the tumultuous journey of adolescence. V.F. Molloy weaves together themes of friendship, identity, and the complexities of first love, creating a relatable and engaging narrative.
The MFC, Lauren, is a well-developed character whose struggles with fitting in at a new school resonate deeply with readers. Her relationship with Grayson adds a sweet yet complicated layer to the story, showcasing the excitement and uncertainty of young romance. The emotional depth of their connection is portrayed with authenticity, making their moments together both heartwarming and poignant.
Molloy's writing is vivid and immersive, drawing readers into Lauren's world filled with both lighthearted moments and darker undertones. The tension surrounding the challenges she faces, including peer pressure and betrayal, keeps the plot engaging and suspenseful.
While the story is compelling, some plot points could benefit from further development, particularly regarding secondary characters. However, the overall narrative arc and character growth make it a worthwhile read.
"Hours of Darkness" is a beautifully crafted tale that will resonate with anyone who has navigated the complexities of teenage life. It's a must-read for fans of young adult fiction, and I look forward to seeing where Lauren's journey takes her next.
It’s been a long time since I read a book like this after a huge romantasy kick, but oh man, am I so glad I went for this book. I think we can all relate at least on some level to some of the themes in this book, whether it’s surrounding bullying, hardships, friendships, or family. There’s so many parts of this book that are realistic inner dialogue for a young woman trying to simply be genuine in an often less than genuine world.
The relationships in this book are done so well and I loved how they were all introduced, and especially how they all developed. It was a little Mean Girls -ish at first and I wasn’t sure how much I would like it going forward, but it works really well in this book and is I feel truly necessary to set up the absolute insanity that happens later in the story. I genuinely can’t wait to read the second book and to continue falling further into this world, V.F. Molloy really did wonderful things in this book, and I am very excited to keep reading her work with new releases.
This review is copied from my bookstagram @justanotherbook10
Finished...
Hours of Darkness By V.F. Molloy ✨️Book One in The Hours Trilogy✨️ ✨️ARC audiobook✨️
Thank you @vfmolloy for the audiobook of this series. 😊 I SO appreciated the opportunity to listen to this book.
My review... I went into this book absolutely blind and when I listened to the first chapter, I became hooked. I will admit, I expected something completely different based on the title of the book. After listening to the whole book, twice, it makes PERFECT sense to be called Hours of Darkness. This book pulled at my heart a bit because of things like finding yourself in a new environment and fitting in at a new school. The main character, Lauren, really goes through horrible things and is a strong-willed fighter. I'm SO rooting for Lauren in the next book and seeing her personal growth more in a new city.
Tropes... ✨️Personal growth ✨️Found family ✨️friendship/family
Trigger warning... ✨️Attempted murder ✨️Cancer/loss of family member ✨️Drugs
The life of Lauren is a somewhat sad one. She lost her dad at the age of three, has a terrible high school experience and then ultimately loses someone else very close to her. While this book is extremely fast paced I also felt it lacked details! I wanted more! I wanted more of her story with her high school boyfriend as well as more of her story getting through her trauma. Over all the book was an easy read and a great build up for Lauren’s story! I am very eager to see what’s next after starting her first job after everything that has happened to her!!
This was an ARC read from the Author herself! I am so thankful for this opportunity!
Tropes 📚 found family 📚 trigger warnings (attempted murder, drugs, loss of family) 📚 personal development 📚 FMC
I am so excited to start the next book to see where Lauren goes and how her story evolves!
Listened to this book on audio and really enjoyed it!The narrator was great and made it very easy to listen and follow.
In “Hours of Darkness”, V.F. Molloy, weaves a captivating tale of growth, trauma, and loss, that leaves you eagerly anticipating what’s next.
“Hours of Darkness” has an engaging narrative, drawing you into the FMC’s life. The FMC, Lauren has tremendous growth and is very enjoyable to read and follow her journey.
While "Hours of Darkness" excels in keeping you hooked from beginning to end, there is a few aspects of the story could have been further explored. I would have loved to hear more about Lauren’s high school boyfriend and working through her trauma. A bit of a where they are now.
Overall, "Hours of Darkness" is a very promising start to what promises to be an amazing trilogy and will have you wanting more!
I think this story has a ton of potential. As is, I’d consider this a good first draft. Dialogue could use editing throughout to feel more natural and less stiff. I think suspense should be built more around the actual “incident” (no spoilers here). I would also suggest reorganizing some key moments of conflict. I found the introduction to the Mother’s conflict should have interwoven the daughter’s, rather than two stand alone problems. And I truly wish we were introduced to the father’s story before the 80% mark of this book.
I think there was a lot trying to be packed into this one book where just the “incident” could have been stretched out with more tension, and suspense with a more traumatic cliffhanger to lead into the next book.
All that being said, I did enjoy this book, so I hope these critiques are beneficial to the author.
Although I only gave this book 3 stars, I still enjoyed the plot. The writing style was geared towards young teens in my opinion and some of the dialogue was a little juvenile (granted the main character is a teenager). I feel like I just wanted a bit more detail to really help me imagine all the characters. This book totally reminded me of Mean Girls (which gave me all the nostalgic vibes) in the beginning, but ended up turning more sinister and caught me off guard and I continued reading to find out what happened next. As a mother myself, I could picture and imagine the emotions that were shared in a lot of areas of this book. Lauren’s life is a little sad, but the love and gratitude she has for her family is strong despite her trauma and trials. I’m hopeful Lauren will find love in the next book and I’m really hoping it’s with a certain someone she meets!
This book took me on an emotional roller-coaster ride from start to finish. Following a young girl navigating the challenges of a new school only to fall victim to the cruelty of a group of mean girls was heart-wrenching. Witnessing her journey of healing and resilience was inspiring. I'm eager to delve into the next installment and learn more about Ethan. Despite having veered from usual reads, I was so excited to read this book. Its themes of bullying, resilience, and authenticity resonate deeply, and the realistic portrayal of inner struggles adds to its relatability. The intricately woven relationships, reminiscent of Mean Girls initially, evolved brilliantly, setting the stage for the gripping events that unfold. I'm eagerly anticipating diving deeper into this world created by V.F. Molloy, as this book left me captivated and eager for more of her work.
VF Molloy writes a YA novel centering around Lauren, a new girl at the local high-school. Lauren is peer mentored by the school "it" girl and her group of friends. I definitely got Mean Girl vibes the first half of the book. But things took a twist when the Mean Girls turn murderous. It was unexpected and turned this YA into a Thriller for me. I enjoyed the surprise action and wanted more!
The last quarter of the book felt more like a long epilogue or perhaps the beginning of a 2nd novel. I did NOT see the events with Lauren's mom unfolding. It definitely played my emotions but did seem like a 2nd story. However, as the theme was "Darkness" I understand why this 2nd event was included in Book 1.
Hours of darkness is a beautiful telling of a young girls life before and after and encounter with tragedy. This tale is sweet and heartwarming and also tragic, gut wrenching, and heartbreaking. It’s and amazing novel that’s makes the darkness seem beautiful especially when it you realize that’s darkness does show you to appreciate the light. Reading this book I found myself laughing and blushing, unable to look away from the pages. I cried and felt my heart break and glued together again. V.F. Molly is an amazing author that mastered the balance of having a story with wonderful high and tragic lows, and it never pushed to far. I absolutely loved this book and look forward to reading along on Lauren’s next chapter in her life.
Hours of Darkness by V.F. Molloy is one of the best books I have read in a while and I’ve been reading some great books lately! We follow along with Lauren as she experiences some serious trauma and loss. I shed real tears and felt so many of her feelings vividly. My ability to feel so much is a reflection of the wonderful way V.F. Molloy tells the story! I almost never read the sneak peaks for the next book but there was no question as I needed to know what Lauren does next! I can’t wait to read the next in the trilogy!!!
This book was not what I was expecting! I was expecting a thriller/suspense the entire book. I was pleasantly surprised at how much I loved it! Lauren’s life is so sad from the age of three, her teenage years and then she loses someone very close to her. The trauma she dealt with in high school reminded me of a sadistic mean girls spin. Then it went into how she overcame all the obstacles she went through. It definitely reminded me of a Kristin Hannah type read. I loved it and will definitely read the others in the trilogy when they came out!
This story overall was good. I like the idea of a kind of thriller mean girls vibe. I like the it was action packed and kept me reading. In my personal opinion I felt the word evil was over used. The dialogue could use some work it felt as if all the characters were talking like teenagers. The overall plot was really good and I still enjoyed the story. My critiques are of good intention. I look forward to reading the second book to see what happens next in Lauren’s life! Thank you to V.F. Molloy for giving me a chance to read your book.
Lauren is at a new school and her mother encourages her to make friends and to Lauren’s surprise a popular girl wants to befriend her and the popular boy wants to date her. Her new friends start bullying Lauren. When one of the girls invite Lauren to her birthday party the night goes terribly wrong. This book was gripping and heartbreaking. I was gifted an audio version of the ARC and the narrator was great. I can’t wait to read what is next for Lauren.
This book gave me Mean Girls vibes mixed with the vindictiveness of Jawbreaker and The Craft, without the magic. I could also relate to this book slightly in the fact that I am the same age as the mom in the beginning and my daughter is the same age as Lauren.
I do feel like the writing style didn't grab me like other books but the plot was great and I am still curious to find out more about Lauren's life after everything she has been through.
I read this book as an ARC reader. It took me a while to get into the story as transitions could have been done better, especially at the beginning of the book. This is definitely Mean Girls, but taken to the extreme and the author did a great job with setting those characters up to be very disliked. The writing improved as the storyline picked up. I look forward to book 2, and hope it just keeps improving. :)
Unveiling Hours of Darkness, a five-star masterpiece. This gripping novel begins with a courageous newcomer seeking acceptance, blossoming into romance, and confronting the dark forces of teenage jealousy. This emotional rollercoaster propels you forward, refusing to let go. I finished it in three enthralled sittings. Its profound wisdom inspires perseverance, the power of family, and the unyielding strength within us.
Wow! This book hit it out of the park! It delt with extremely sensitive topics in a way that was very well done. This book had me laughing and sobbing within chapters of each other. I truly connected to Lauren and her journey in this book. I loved everything about the story and cannot recommend it enough!
Hours of Darkness was a fascinating story of trauma, loss, growth, and healing. The story (though faced paced) was captivating from start to finish. The narrator of the audiobook did a terrific job at keeping it easy to follow!
I cannot wait to see how Lauren’s story evolves through the next two books!
Overall I enjoyed this book. I think Lauren’s story has a lot of potential. I enjoyed reading about her relationship with her mom and how she tackled adversity. This book was almost two short stories together about Lauren. I rooted for Lauren but the dialogue is weirdly written, especially for a teen. Everything was neatly tied up by the end, except for the big question…Will Lauren find love?
Lauren’s journey is soul crushing and truly inspiring all at once. Finding strength within herself after facing a life changing event while also going through a major tragedy in her home she has to learn to believe in herself and what she is capable of! The end felt a bit rushed and leaves you with unanswered questions but I’m hoping book two will set some of those questions straight!
This was a fun read! It was a romantasy but also felt like a gilmore girls/kristan hannah read with heartwarming relationships & drama. It did leave me wanting more so that’s the reasoning behind the 3.5 stars (rounded up to 4). I wanted more world-building & even more drama. I need more Greyson!!!! It definitely left me intrigued for the second book. Overall, a good, easy read!
The story of hours of darkness is one of change and the conflict that comes with trying to find your place in the world. This story has a good hook and draws you into the story. I highly recommend it to anyone who in a fan of fiction.
Good story. Definitely really well written. I would like to see the author put more work into the final draft as well as the cover, but all in all, this is a talent I look forward to watching unfold
I enjoyed Amanda's narration with accents and other effects. She reads at a pace I enjoy, and others may adjust if desired. The story is relatable and reminds us of people in our past and present-- from teen years and beyond. I'll be excited to see what happens next.