What do you think?
Rate this book
Hollow Valley
The bestselling horror survivalist THE HOLLOWS continues with the fifth book HOLLOW VALLEY
For most of her life, sixteen-year-old Stella King has known only survival. Raised in the shadow of the zombie apocalypse, she’s carved out a fragile peace aboard a drifting riverboat with her family.
But the idyllic illusion is broken when Remy disappears without a word. Her sudden departure leaves behind a trail of confusion, betrayal, and questions.
Determined to uncover the truth, Stella ventures into a brutal wilderness where the dead are the least of her worries. As she follows Remy’s path deeper into the unknown, she confronts threats more cunning than zombies.
For most of her life, sixteen-year-old Stella King has known only survival. Raised in the shadow of the zombie apocalypse, she’s carved out a fragile peace aboard a drifting riverboat with her family.
But the idyllic illusion is broken when Remy disappears without a word. Her sudden departure leaves behind a trail of confusion, betrayal, and questions.
Determined to uncover the truth, Stella ventures into a brutal wilderness where the dead are the least of her worries. As she follows Remy’s path deeper into the unknown, she confronts threats more cunning than zombies.
- GenresZombies
476 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 15, 2025
About the author
Amanda Hocking
82 books15k followersAMANDA HOCKING is the author of over twenty young adult novels, including the New York Times bestselling Trylle Trilogy and Kanin Chronicles. Her love of pop culture and all things paranormal influence her writing. She spends her time in Minnesota, taking care of her menagerie of pets and working on her next book.
Several of her books have made the New York Times Bestsellers list. Her zombie series, The Hollows, has been adapted into a graphic novel by Dynamite. She has published over twenty novels, including The Kanin Chronicles, the Watersong quartet, My Blood Approves series, the Valkyrie duology, and Freeks .
For more info about her and her books, here are some other places to check out and ways to contact her:
Website: www.hockingbooks.com
Amazon Author Page: Amanda Hocking
Patreon: Amanda Hocking
Instagram: @amanda_hocking
BlueSky: AmandaHocking.bsky.social
Threads: @amanda_hocking
YouTube: aehocking
Facebook: Amanda Hocking Fans
Etsy: Hocking Books by Amanda
TikTok: @amanda_hocking
Goodreads: Amanda Hocking
Spotify : Amanda Hocking
Several of her books have made the New York Times Bestsellers list. Her zombie series, The Hollows, has been adapted into a graphic novel by Dynamite. She has published over twenty novels, including The Kanin Chronicles, the Watersong quartet, My Blood Approves series, the Valkyrie duology, and Freeks .
For more info about her and her books, here are some other places to check out and ways to contact her:
Website: www.hockingbooks.com
Amazon Author Page: Amanda Hocking
Patreon: Amanda Hocking
Instagram: @amanda_hocking
BlueSky: AmandaHocking.bsky.social
Threads: @amanda_hocking
YouTube: aehocking
Facebook: Amanda Hocking Fans
Etsy: Hocking Books by Amanda
TikTok: @amanda_hocking
Goodreads: Amanda Hocking
Spotify : Amanda Hocking
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
January 2, 2026
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ❀⋆.ೃ࿔* HOLLOW VALLEY°❀⋆.ೃ࿔* Is the fifth full length zombie book in the (Hollows) series by author Amanda Hocking..Spoken in dual POV's (Stella & Remy)
Boden turned 31 this year, Remy 30
After I inhale this last book available (at the moment, another is coming) I don't know what to jump into next...
This is the first book of the year which had tears escaping me..
Remy broke my heart with what she put her loved ones through, like literally broke it, especially when it came to Boden, the way she left, a note, with her ring left behind......
Out of the blue Remy leaves a note for her family and takes off for destinations unknown, but those loved ones have a fair idea where she's going and are following behind in her footsteps, and hopefully they will bring her back home where she belongs.
But its not an easy journey, they form bonds with a good few people, come into trouble with a gorup which should be feared and barely come away with their lives intact, but still they carry on searching for Remy.
This series has been such fun to read, twists and turns, love, heartbreak, dark and gritty, and the animals which were incorporated within the storyline stole my heart.
Boden turned 31 this year, Remy 30
After I inhale this last book available (at the moment, another is coming) I don't know what to jump into next...
This is the first book of the year which had tears escaping me..
Remy broke my heart with what she put her loved ones through, like literally broke it, especially when it came to Boden, the way she left, a note, with her ring left behind......
Out of the blue Remy leaves a note for her family and takes off for destinations unknown, but those loved ones have a fair idea where she's going and are following behind in her footsteps, and hopefully they will bring her back home where she belongs.
But its not an easy journey, they form bonds with a good few people, come into trouble with a gorup which should be feared and barely come away with their lives intact, but still they carry on searching for Remy.
This series has been such fun to read, twists and turns, love, heartbreak, dark and gritty, and the animals which were incorporated within the storyline stole my heart.
November 25, 2025
this book follows Remy and Stella's view points on getting to the glacier Valley. Remys journey, who has a head start, makes her way with Ripley and Vince. Stella's journey has her own entourage to find Remy. another good read by Amanda in her zombie series.
August 11, 2026
4.5 stars for an ambitious entry in a series that's only going up.
Following up the most major, earth-shaking character death in your series isn't easy, but I honestly think this is such a crazy interesting direction to take the series in, I'm just happy to sit back and watch it all evolve! I'm gonna break it down with my fancy zombie-proofed list:
☘︎ Split Journey
☘︎ Mystery
☘︎ Evolving World
☘︎ Grief
☘︎ Survivor's Guilt
☘︎ Suicidal Intent
☘︎ Side Cast
☘︎ Legacy Characters
☘︎ Set-up
☘︎ Split Journey
This novel is split into two journeys: initially we follow Stella, getting POV chapters from her and even one or two from Lazlo, as well as emails from various scientists working from within a mysterious compound, which serve to flesh-out info about the state of the world AND cleverly set up character we'll meet in the following book. In the final act, though, after we, Stella, and Boden have been hot on Remy's trail the entire book retracing her footsteps, we finally reunite with Remy and follow her journey all over, from the minute she left. The characters are chasing each other's echoes throughout the entire book, and it actually adds a lot to the ambiance. It felt very video gamey to me, like chasing a character through a dungeon.
☘︎ Mystery
Of course we're also questioning why Remy left, what she's up to, where she might have gone...throughout the novel you're left chomping at the bit to know what our OG heroine might be up to. She's taken on a different role in the narrative now that Harlow, Lazlo, Stella, etc all have their own POV chapters. We see other people's interpretations of Remy and also know Remy isn't necessarily untouchable anymore.
☘︎ Evolving World
The lore, politics, and rules of the zombie virus continue to evolve as Hocking uses each book to further timeskip AND add new settlements, factions, zombie mutations, and substances, taking this from the immediate apocalyptic scenario of the first two books to the post-apocalyptic level and even showing glimpses at evolving into a post-post-apocalyptic new kind of civilization or sci-fantasy world.
It's great seeing each new book evolve the lore and throw wrenches in things! All zombie stories should have their zombies/virus keep some tricks up its sleeve like that.
☘︎ Grief
Following the biggest character death yet (and boy was it brutal) this book is really focused on the grief of living in a dead/dying world, and carrying ghosts with you. The bodies pile up again in this book like always with lots of brutal deaths and tragic losses to our party. Each new character actually gets a chance to make their mark and leave an impression that makes it hurt more when they inevitable serve their purpose as canon fodder.
☘︎ Survivor's Guilt
Remy in particular sees her worth in being a protector and warrior and has no clue what to do when she 'fails' in this role. The entire journey of this book is spurred on by the crushing weight of blame she's carrying around. She can't stomach how she's lived while so many she views as more deserving have died, often despite her best attempts to keep them alive.
☘︎ Suicidal Intent
Remy herself is actively suicidal for a lot of this book, and somewhat aware of it, but also bordering on delusional at times so she can still function. The guilt, numbness, and self-hatred were handled really well in my opinion, but at the same time, Remy is still Remy: strong, assured, and single-minded. A woman on a mission who becomes a force of nature. The twist? this novel focuses more on what it costs HER. From the toll on her soul, to her body itself, we see the scars all built up from seeing the end of the world firsthand.
I love Remy. I think the way she was handled in this installment was fantastic, respectful, mindful of the fact that at this point she is this franchise's Sydney Prescott, Sarah Connor, etc - how do you evolve a legend AND shift their role in the narrative without destroying the character or making them feel predictable and boring?
Remy isn't stale. She's still able to capture my attention so well after all this time, especially now.
☘︎ Side Cast
New cast members such as Alphie, Leandro, Daiyu, Ryder, Nell, and more all come in to provide extra party members or to flesh out the world, lore, etc. Some are villainous, some are helpful, some are a mix of both.
As always Hocking uses the good old 'humans, animals, and other diseases are as dangerous if not more dangerous than zombies, and half the threat is the zombies force you into closer proximity to those threats' trope the genre loves, and it's fantastic. And horrible, but I mean, I'm here for the horrible, it's the end of days.
I genuinely felt some of the new cast members were destined to live and others were clearly canon fodder and was surprised to be wrong quite a few times. Loved the way the story played with my expectations that way.
Jordy, a new sexy man who is still on the loose and maybe a drug addict, also added a level of intrigue and lore that I was not prepared for! His entire section of the story is gripping. Another sexy new man we meet is Fergus, who honestly is a hugely welcome addition to the cast, although I lowkey think he's too old for Stella, he's clearly not a creep and she's literally a mother and has survive the apocalypse so I think she can handle it, so I ship it. At least so far.
Also Fergus has a story here that genuinely made me cry EVEN THOUGH I SAW IT COMING AND WARNED THE CHARACTERS. But alas, they were in a book and couldn't hear me.
☘︎ Legacy Characters
Remy, Boden, Ripley, Lazlo, and Harlow all make appearances, with Remy and Boden playing massive roles, while Lazlo and Harlow are more cameos, but that said they're good cameos, down to Harlow clocking Remy to a T before anybody else does and showing a minor fracture in their relationship, to Lazlo being devoted to rebuilding Emberwood and supporting his wife Nova who is now basically running things there.
Most of this novel is focused on Remy and Ripley. Where it all started. Who are they now? Who will they be next?
Remy is at such a huge crossroads in her life. She can barely even think the name of the person she's grieving. When forced to think about it she basically shuts down. Even after making huge progress in this novel, THAT hasn't changed. And it's kind of fascinating the grief is so heavy she's putting it off for an entire installment, but I do expect a crashout for both Remy and Jordy in the next novel!
I could not believe how twisted things got for Remy for a minute at the end there. But I have full confidence she'll handle business in the next book and Ripley will get to eat that man's face yet! Who knows, though, these books keep surprising me!
☘︎ Set-up
A lot of this book is a transition novel. If the OG duology was an apocalyptic action adventure, then book 3 existed to satisfy Harlow and Lazo stans and revive the series, then book 4 was basically the upgrade, taking things to a more ambitious, fleshed-out level of action adventure and showing what Hocking could do in the Hollows world now with all she's learned from her publishing experience in the years since the OG books. And now we have this book clearly setting up HUGE revelations, set pieces, and new characters and twists and lore in the next book?
GIVE. ME. IT. NOW.
I want all the scientists. Good ones. Bad ones. Scary ones. Kooky ones. I want all the labs, all the experiments, all the explosions. For some reason I thought Cold Shore had an Enclave-style oil rig offshore and wanted to go see it, so big set pieces of any kind will be appreciated, and to be fair, we got AMAZING set pieces in this book like Fort Lately (iconic, wouldn't be a Hollows book without a new cult lol) and stuff like the two new settlements and the abandoned overgrown campground.
If this book was grappling with the past, the next book will be determining the ultimate future of this world. AND I CAN'T [REDACTED FOR EXCESSIVE, IMPRESSIVE VULGARITY] WAIT!
☘︎ Split Journey
☘︎ Mystery
☘︎ Evolving World
☘︎ Grief
☘︎ Survivor's Guilt
☘︎ Suicidal Intent
☘︎ Side Cast
☘︎ Legacy Characters
☘︎ Set-up
☘︎ Split Journey
This novel is split into two journeys: initially we follow Stella, getting POV chapters from her and even one or two from Lazlo, as well as emails from various scientists working from within a mysterious compound, which serve to flesh-out info about the state of the world AND cleverly set up character we'll meet in the following book. In the final act, though, after we, Stella, and Boden have been hot on Remy's trail the entire book retracing her footsteps, we finally reunite with Remy and follow her journey all over, from the minute she left. The characters are chasing each other's echoes throughout the entire book, and it actually adds a lot to the ambiance. It felt very video gamey to me, like chasing a character through a dungeon.
☘︎ Mystery
Of course we're also questioning why Remy left, what she's up to, where she might have gone...throughout the novel you're left chomping at the bit to know what our OG heroine might be up to. She's taken on a different role in the narrative now that Harlow, Lazlo, Stella, etc all have their own POV chapters. We see other people's interpretations of Remy and also know Remy isn't necessarily untouchable anymore.
☘︎ Evolving World
The lore, politics, and rules of the zombie virus continue to evolve as Hocking uses each book to further timeskip AND add new settlements, factions, zombie mutations, and substances, taking this from the immediate apocalyptic scenario of the first two books to the post-apocalyptic level and even showing glimpses at evolving into a post-post-apocalyptic new kind of civilization or sci-fantasy world.
It's great seeing each new book evolve the lore and throw wrenches in things! All zombie stories should have their zombies/virus keep some tricks up its sleeve like that.
☘︎ Grief
Following the biggest character death yet (and boy was it brutal) this book is really focused on the grief of living in a dead/dying world, and carrying ghosts with you. The bodies pile up again in this book like always with lots of brutal deaths and tragic losses to our party. Each new character actually gets a chance to make their mark and leave an impression that makes it hurt more when they inevitable serve their purpose as canon fodder.
☘︎ Survivor's Guilt
Remy in particular sees her worth in being a protector and warrior and has no clue what to do when she 'fails' in this role. The entire journey of this book is spurred on by the crushing weight of blame she's carrying around. She can't stomach how she's lived while so many she views as more deserving have died, often despite her best attempts to keep them alive.
☘︎ Suicidal Intent
Remy herself is actively suicidal for a lot of this book, and somewhat aware of it, but also bordering on delusional at times so she can still function. The guilt, numbness, and self-hatred were handled really well in my opinion, but at the same time, Remy is still Remy: strong, assured, and single-minded. A woman on a mission who becomes a force of nature. The twist? this novel focuses more on what it costs HER. From the toll on her soul, to her body itself, we see the scars all built up from seeing the end of the world firsthand.
I love Remy. I think the way she was handled in this installment was fantastic, respectful, mindful of the fact that at this point she is this franchise's Sydney Prescott, Sarah Connor, etc - how do you evolve a legend AND shift their role in the narrative without destroying the character or making them feel predictable and boring?
Remy isn't stale. She's still able to capture my attention so well after all this time, especially now.
☘︎ Side Cast
New cast members such as Alphie, Leandro, Daiyu, Ryder, Nell, and more all come in to provide extra party members or to flesh out the world, lore, etc. Some are villainous, some are helpful, some are a mix of both.
As always Hocking uses the good old 'humans, animals, and other diseases are as dangerous if not more dangerous than zombies, and half the threat is the zombies force you into closer proximity to those threats' trope the genre loves, and it's fantastic. And horrible, but I mean, I'm here for the horrible, it's the end of days.
I genuinely felt some of the new cast members were destined to live and others were clearly canon fodder and was surprised to be wrong quite a few times. Loved the way the story played with my expectations that way.
Jordy, a new sexy man who is still on the loose and maybe a drug addict, also added a level of intrigue and lore that I was not prepared for! His entire section of the story is gripping. Another sexy new man we meet is Fergus, who honestly is a hugely welcome addition to the cast, although I lowkey think he's too old for Stella, he's clearly not a creep and she's literally a mother and has survive the apocalypse so I think she can handle it, so I ship it. At least so far.
Also Fergus has a story here that genuinely made me cry EVEN THOUGH I SAW IT COMING AND WARNED THE CHARACTERS. But alas, they were in a book and couldn't hear me.
☘︎ Legacy Characters
Remy, Boden, Ripley, Lazlo, and Harlow all make appearances, with Remy and Boden playing massive roles, while Lazlo and Harlow are more cameos, but that said they're good cameos, down to Harlow clocking Remy to a T before anybody else does and showing a minor fracture in their relationship, to Lazlo being devoted to rebuilding Emberwood and supporting his wife Nova who is now basically running things there.
Most of this novel is focused on Remy and Ripley. Where it all started. Who are they now? Who will they be next?
Remy is at such a huge crossroads in her life. She can barely even think the name of the person she's grieving. When forced to think about it she basically shuts down. Even after making huge progress in this novel, THAT hasn't changed. And it's kind of fascinating the grief is so heavy she's putting it off for an entire installment, but I do expect a crashout for both Remy and Jordy in the next novel!
I could not believe how twisted things got for Remy for a minute at the end there. But I have full confidence she'll handle business in the next book and Ripley will get to eat that man's face yet! Who knows, though, these books keep surprising me!
☘︎ Set-up
A lot of this book is a transition novel. If the OG duology was an apocalyptic action adventure, then book 3 existed to satisfy Harlow and Lazo stans and revive the series, then book 4 was basically the upgrade, taking things to a more ambitious, fleshed-out level of action adventure and showing what Hocking could do in the Hollows world now with all she's learned from her publishing experience in the years since the OG books. And now we have this book clearly setting up HUGE revelations, set pieces, and new characters and twists and lore in the next book?
GIVE. ME. IT. NOW.
I want all the scientists. Good ones. Bad ones. Scary ones. Kooky ones. I want all the labs, all the experiments, all the explosions. For some reason I thought Cold Shore had an Enclave-style oil rig offshore and wanted to go see it, so big set pieces of any kind will be appreciated, and to be fair, we got AMAZING set pieces in this book like Fort Lately (iconic, wouldn't be a Hollows book without a new cult lol) and stuff like the two new settlements and the abandoned overgrown campground.
If this book was grappling with the past, the next book will be determining the ultimate future of this world. AND I CAN'T [REDACTED FOR EXCESSIVE, IMPRESSIVE VULGARITY] WAIT!
November 19, 2025
3.75 stars from me - overall, I liked it! Easy read - definitely reads like a “middle book in a trilogy”. It’s setting up the next book really well. Especially the last sentence - I finish it on a flight and gasped so loud.
Potential spoilers below this line ——
LOVED the multiple POV structure. I think the book would’ve really benefited from having them mixed up a bit more. Bouncing back and forth between Stella and Remy - not 30 chapters here, and then 30 chapters there. I forgot what the Stella/Boden gang was doing by chapter 65. It also made it impossible to remember who and where everyone was because of the unnecessary amount of new characters and 890 new names to keep up with. (I’ll touch on that later.)
I love how much bigger the world is. I also love how this book took place over 6-9 months time.
I think we will see more of Jordy. Ain’t no way Remy gets off that mistake that easily. Their relationship seemed outta character for Remy, but you could make the argument that that tracks with her mental state at the time.
Boden deserves a little more page time in the next book. We’ve been with him for 4 books now and we’ve seen SIGNIFICANTLY less of him. He was a solid, stronger character in book 2 and now he’s a mopey brooding weenie. Give me back my badass boden.
Fae calls Harlow her aunt but Harlow seemed reallllly icy towards Remy. We’ve barely seen them interact too - so seems odd?
I liked Stella more in this book - it’s fun that we’re getting glimpses of her growing up a bit (Ryder, Fergus, being a young mom). I find it odd we don’t hear more about Stella’s lack of mom though - seems like it would be a pain point for her?
I liked the lake house excursion but Ryder seemed like a weird call out. He died fast and was barely on page - I think it would’ve been a better swap to keep him around than Leo.
So many city and people names, my god. I do not think everyone needs a last name. By the end of the book, I was having to remind myself who tf anyone was because why are there 783927 people mentioned when 98% of the world is dead?? A lot of the new people did not need to be named, or could have been combined to make following easier. We also don’t need last names for unimportant footnote characters.
The clementine scene. Amanda - respectfully how dare you!!!!! I teared up! Poor Remy. Poor clementine. What an awful thing to happen. Great writing here.
LOVE the ending coming full circle back to Max’s blood. Love love love. There were a few moments that made me gasp (remyxjordy, grinleaf is brain, teddy go bye bye, clementine, the last sentence.)
Seeeeeeeems like Chosen (again, Smosh fans unite in what this makes us think of) was lowkey shoved in the story? Like I needed a little more of him for me to care about - yes it circles back to him (sorta) in the end, but like - meh. The Loths don’t do much for me other than making me gag and picture my old Appalachian neighbors.
Grinleaf was F U N. I loved that lil side tangent mixed with Dr Leila’s letter. I imagine this will come back up.
Lots of typos in this one - I love self publishers and I know AH was rushing to get this out, but it immediately takes me out of the story. A stray ] on a few of the pages, repeated words and sentences, incorrect words, misspelled words, or referring to Fae as Stella (“she wrapped Stella up”). AH please let me proof ya!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Excited for Hollow Night - great job, Amanda! I love Remy’s heart so much.
**Highly recommend reading the novellas first.
Ranking:
Men
Stars
Land
Valley
Child
Graphic novel
Potential spoilers below this line ——
LOVED the multiple POV structure. I think the book would’ve really benefited from having them mixed up a bit more. Bouncing back and forth between Stella and Remy - not 30 chapters here, and then 30 chapters there. I forgot what the Stella/Boden gang was doing by chapter 65. It also made it impossible to remember who and where everyone was because of the unnecessary amount of new characters and 890 new names to keep up with. (I’ll touch on that later.)
I love how much bigger the world is. I also love how this book took place over 6-9 months time.
I think we will see more of Jordy. Ain’t no way Remy gets off that mistake that easily. Their relationship seemed outta character for Remy, but you could make the argument that that tracks with her mental state at the time.
Boden deserves a little more page time in the next book. We’ve been with him for 4 books now and we’ve seen SIGNIFICANTLY less of him. He was a solid, stronger character in book 2 and now he’s a mopey brooding weenie. Give me back my badass boden.
Fae calls Harlow her aunt but Harlow seemed reallllly icy towards Remy. We’ve barely seen them interact too - so seems odd?
I liked Stella more in this book - it’s fun that we’re getting glimpses of her growing up a bit (Ryder, Fergus, being a young mom). I find it odd we don’t hear more about Stella’s lack of mom though - seems like it would be a pain point for her?
I liked the lake house excursion but Ryder seemed like a weird call out. He died fast and was barely on page - I think it would’ve been a better swap to keep him around than Leo.
So many city and people names, my god. I do not think everyone needs a last name. By the end of the book, I was having to remind myself who tf anyone was because why are there 783927 people mentioned when 98% of the world is dead?? A lot of the new people did not need to be named, or could have been combined to make following easier. We also don’t need last names for unimportant footnote characters.
The clementine scene. Amanda - respectfully how dare you!!!!! I teared up! Poor Remy. Poor clementine. What an awful thing to happen. Great writing here.
LOVE the ending coming full circle back to Max’s blood. Love love love. There were a few moments that made me gasp (remyxjordy, grinleaf is brain, teddy go bye bye, clementine, the last sentence.)
Seeeeeeeems like Chosen (again, Smosh fans unite in what this makes us think of) was lowkey shoved in the story? Like I needed a little more of him for me to care about - yes it circles back to him (sorta) in the end, but like - meh. The Loths don’t do much for me other than making me gag and picture my old Appalachian neighbors.
Grinleaf was F U N. I loved that lil side tangent mixed with Dr Leila’s letter. I imagine this will come back up.
Lots of typos in this one - I love self publishers and I know AH was rushing to get this out, but it immediately takes me out of the story. A stray ] on a few of the pages, repeated words and sentences, incorrect words, misspelled words, or referring to Fae as Stella (“she wrapped Stella up”). AH please let me proof ya!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Excited for Hollow Night - great job, Amanda! I love Remy’s heart so much.
**Highly recommend reading the novellas first.
Ranking:
Men
Stars
Land
Valley
Child
Graphic novel
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 25, 2025
Amanda Hocking is still proving she’s the Queen of Fast-Paced Zombie Chaos. As expected, Book 5, Hollow Valley, had me absolutely hooked from the very first page.
The vast settings are vivid, gritty, and alive—or…should I say, undead?
I’m a big fan of multiple POVs, and I love getting different insights. That being said, I’m DYING for a Bowden POV chapter. The man has layers, and I need to know what’s going on inside that brain besides, “how do I survive today?”
Stella has bloomed into such a wholesome little powerhouse—equal parts heart, bravery, and “I might cry but I’ll still fight.” Meanwhile, Remy is an absolute badass. She’s got the kind of grit that says, “I will survive, and also maybe stab a few things on the way.”
Not going to lie, Hocking ripped my heart out a few times. Some damn awesome characters got killed off. But hey… it’s a zombie apocalypse. Everyone’s fair game, and honestly, that’s half the thrill. I mourn, I curse, and then I keep flipping pages at 2 AM anyway.
I absolutely love Ripley the lion (majestic chaos) and Vince the mule (absolute legend, zero drama). Strong animal bonds in books are always the best.
This book was fun, emotional, gritty, and addictive. Whether you’re here for zombies, messy humanity, or loyal animal companions, Hollow Valley delivers. Bring on Book 6—I’m ready to get my heart broken again! 🧟♂️
The vast settings are vivid, gritty, and alive—or…should I say, undead?
I’m a big fan of multiple POVs, and I love getting different insights. That being said, I’m DYING for a Bowden POV chapter. The man has layers, and I need to know what’s going on inside that brain besides, “how do I survive today?”
Stella has bloomed into such a wholesome little powerhouse—equal parts heart, bravery, and “I might cry but I’ll still fight.” Meanwhile, Remy is an absolute badass. She’s got the kind of grit that says, “I will survive, and also maybe stab a few things on the way.”
Not going to lie, Hocking ripped my heart out a few times. Some damn awesome characters got killed off. But hey… it’s a zombie apocalypse. Everyone’s fair game, and honestly, that’s half the thrill. I mourn, I curse, and then I keep flipping pages at 2 AM anyway.
I absolutely love Ripley the lion (majestic chaos) and Vince the mule (absolute legend, zero drama). Strong animal bonds in books are always the best.
This book was fun, emotional, gritty, and addictive. Whether you’re here for zombies, messy humanity, or loyal animal companions, Hollow Valley delivers. Bring on Book 6—I’m ready to get my heart broken again! 🧟♂️
June 24, 2026
I really loved all of these books. However, this one really pulled me out of it when they had a character who was non-binary/ they then using xe for pronouns. I felt like it really didn't add to the story and was unnecessary to State. They previously has had a transgender character and that one didn't bother me since they maybe mentioned it one time and then just continued on. It wasn't as jarring and pulling you out. This one seemed to really be just trying to push the issue and putting it in there to put it in there. The character really had no depth to it.
November 19, 2025
I am obsessed with The Hollows series! I should not like these books (zombies aren't usually in my interests), but I am addicted. Hocking has created a very interesting world and I am always anxious to see what will happen next. I am so glad that she continued past Book 2 and and already anxious for Book 6!
You must read this series in order, and I highly reccomend reading the novellas as well, they really enrich the story.
You must read this series in order, and I highly reccomend reading the novellas as well, they really enrich the story.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews