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Hollow Twilight
Not yet published
Expected 18 Aug 26It's all fun and games until somebody dies. Delve into the unsettling world of Hollow Twilight, a LitRPG where there's no XP to collect and no loot to scavenge, but one wrong move is the difference between life and death.
Reid, a seemingly average high school senior, is bored of his meaningless life. That is, until he and his friends learn about a new mobile game, Hollow Twilight, and decide to give it a shot. But what starts out as a strangely immersive video game turns out to be far more as the teens realize they've literally crossed over into the game world and must now fight the shadowy monsters hunting them with no clear understanding of how to survive.
Reid quickly becomes addicted to mastering the dark power he's been assigned—while ignoring the voice in his head that comes with it—but the initial fun of this new world abruptly vanishes when one of their party members is killed by a vicious monster known as a Pariah, resulting in their real-life death.
Now knowing his mortality is on the line if he chooses to keep playing Hollow Twilight, Reid must find a way to protect his friends and defeat the Pariahs—or return to the mundane, average life of a nobody.
Reid, a seemingly average high school senior, is bored of his meaningless life. That is, until he and his friends learn about a new mobile game, Hollow Twilight, and decide to give it a shot. But what starts out as a strangely immersive video game turns out to be far more as the teens realize they've literally crossed over into the game world and must now fight the shadowy monsters hunting them with no clear understanding of how to survive.
Reid quickly becomes addicted to mastering the dark power he's been assigned—while ignoring the voice in his head that comes with it—but the initial fun of this new world abruptly vanishes when one of their party members is killed by a vicious monster known as a Pariah, resulting in their real-life death.
Now knowing his mortality is on the line if he chooses to keep playing Hollow Twilight, Reid must find a way to protect his friends and defeat the Pariahs—or return to the mundane, average life of a nobody.
344 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication August 18, 2026
About the author
Kieran Starovsky
1 book4 followersKieran Starovsky works in the Toronto start-up space, has a degree in English literature from York University, and wanders the city with his wife and children. When not writing, he is usually scouring specialty stores for old video games he owned once as a kid.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
August 4, 2026
Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Canada for the eARC!
Hollow Twilight is such an oddball book and I say that in a “I love this oddball” way. This book will not appeal to everyone; I actually think it will easily gain a cult following of people like myself who have different tastes. 🤪
The book starts off with Reid who is bored of life. This is important to note because I think it says a a lot about what type of readers will like this. If you’ve never understood the idea that you need “something” to look forward to… you won’t like Reid and subsequently, the novel as a whole. Reid isn’t just “bored” - he feels this NEED to do something. When a new game app called Hollow Twilight comes and he finds out it’s not just a game but an alternate dimension, he is ready to be the navigator, the one who conquers this world and discovers its secrets. He wants to be the most powerful, the leader, the pioneer… He’s kind of a selfish protagonist in that way and it’s fascinating to have someone like him lead our narrative. Think.. Sung Jinwoo from Solo Leveling.
You can easily log out of Hollow Twilight so it differs from other death game / isekai type stories. As long as he’s not in battle, he can go home and live his normal boring life. It’s a unique take on the typical trope because in between dark moments in-game, we get chapters of Reid living a normal school life. It’s like a Shonen school-life manga 😂
Now, Melanie, why are you continually comparing this to anime and manga? Here’s the kicker and why I don’t think that this will appeal to everyone: this reads SO much like a manga. But it’s a novel right? No pictures? Exactly! It’s a novel that reads so much like a manga. The scenes are direct; there’s not much fluff. The scene changes are quick - we get time skips to next day scenes for chapter endings (not always but a good bit.) The internalizing is very blunt. All of these things make the writing style original and unique - something I’ve never really seen in western literature. And I bet readers may decide to skip this one because of that.
But I implore people to try to get used to the style and keep reading. What we get from Hollow Twilight is a unique and engaging story that blends a real world slice-of-life tale with the dark world of an alternate dimension, one with consequences that rock our characters’ lives.
In particular, I’d recommend this book to fans of anime and manga, especially slice-of-life manga and death game manga. I also think fans of other litrpg will enjoy this one.
Hollow Twilight is such an oddball book and I say that in a “I love this oddball” way. This book will not appeal to everyone; I actually think it will easily gain a cult following of people like myself who have different tastes. 🤪
The book starts off with Reid who is bored of life. This is important to note because I think it says a a lot about what type of readers will like this. If you’ve never understood the idea that you need “something” to look forward to… you won’t like Reid and subsequently, the novel as a whole. Reid isn’t just “bored” - he feels this NEED to do something. When a new game app called Hollow Twilight comes and he finds out it’s not just a game but an alternate dimension, he is ready to be the navigator, the one who conquers this world and discovers its secrets. He wants to be the most powerful, the leader, the pioneer… He’s kind of a selfish protagonist in that way and it’s fascinating to have someone like him lead our narrative. Think.. Sung Jinwoo from Solo Leveling.
You can easily log out of Hollow Twilight so it differs from other death game / isekai type stories. As long as he’s not in battle, he can go home and live his normal boring life. It’s a unique take on the typical trope because in between dark moments in-game, we get chapters of Reid living a normal school life. It’s like a Shonen school-life manga 😂
Now, Melanie, why are you continually comparing this to anime and manga? Here’s the kicker and why I don’t think that this will appeal to everyone: this reads SO much like a manga. But it’s a novel right? No pictures? Exactly! It’s a novel that reads so much like a manga. The scenes are direct; there’s not much fluff. The scene changes are quick - we get time skips to next day scenes for chapter endings (not always but a good bit.) The internalizing is very blunt. All of these things make the writing style original and unique - something I’ve never really seen in western literature. And I bet readers may decide to skip this one because of that.
But I implore people to try to get used to the style and keep reading. What we get from Hollow Twilight is a unique and engaging story that blends a real world slice-of-life tale with the dark world of an alternate dimension, one with consequences that rock our characters’ lives.
In particular, I’d recommend this book to fans of anime and manga, especially slice-of-life manga and death game manga. I also think fans of other litrpg will enjoy this one.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I really enjoy reading LitRPG and Ready Player One is one of my favourite books, so the blurb for Hollow Twilight had me excited for the story straight away.
Reid and his friends have downloaded a new game to play – Hollow Twilight. But upon pressing Enter, they find themselves in a strange city full of Hollow monsters with no idea what they should do or how they should progress…
Sadly, this book didn’t really grab me at all – it’s LitFic in the very loosest sense of the word, with the majority of the book actually being a high school, young adult romance with a main character that seems to think girls are from another dimension and has no idea how to talk to them. The female characters are all caricatures – the ‘pick me’ tomboy Maple who goes on and on about how small and cute she is, the abrasive Kari who seems to be angry at everyone for no reason and the seemingly perfect Reilly who has an abusive homelife but no-one cares enough about her as a person to ask her anything further about it. The female characters are all there as a driver for our male protagonist Reid to agonize over, and don’t exist in a realistic or fully formed way outside of that plot device. Reid himself is also incredibly frustrating, putting himself and his friends in danger frequently for no apparent reason.
There are no mechanics to the game as a whole – the level system, which is pretty redundant, is only explored in the first few chapters and then promptly forgotten. They each get one ability which is randomly assigned and don’t know how to use them for most of the book. The thing that confused me the most is that time passes differently in the game – hours and days in the game account for minutes in the real world and yet they only seem to spend 5 minutes at a time actually in the game and then have to make plans days in advance for going back into it. I liked Reid’s shadow ability, which was the only thing I would have liked to find out more about after finishing the story.
This is definitely book one of a series – it ends on a cliffhanger and doesn’t wrap up anything or answer any questions. I think if the majority of the book hadn’t been just about anxious teenagers trying to work out how to navigate normal social situations, it could have left room for more of the gaming and plot and we would perhaps not need a second installment – as it is, I won’t be rushing to pick the next one up.
Overall, Hollow Twilight has some potential, but it’s insistence on the young adult romance plotline, rather than the LitRPG elements that it pushes so hard in its blurb, led it to be a disappointment for me. Thank you to NetGalley & Penguin Random House (Canada) for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
For more of my reviews check out Kindig Blog
Reid and his friends have downloaded a new game to play – Hollow Twilight. But upon pressing Enter, they find themselves in a strange city full of Hollow monsters with no idea what they should do or how they should progress…
Sadly, this book didn’t really grab me at all – it’s LitFic in the very loosest sense of the word, with the majority of the book actually being a high school, young adult romance with a main character that seems to think girls are from another dimension and has no idea how to talk to them. The female characters are all caricatures – the ‘pick me’ tomboy Maple who goes on and on about how small and cute she is, the abrasive Kari who seems to be angry at everyone for no reason and the seemingly perfect Reilly who has an abusive homelife but no-one cares enough about her as a person to ask her anything further about it. The female characters are all there as a driver for our male protagonist Reid to agonize over, and don’t exist in a realistic or fully formed way outside of that plot device. Reid himself is also incredibly frustrating, putting himself and his friends in danger frequently for no apparent reason.
There are no mechanics to the game as a whole – the level system, which is pretty redundant, is only explored in the first few chapters and then promptly forgotten. They each get one ability which is randomly assigned and don’t know how to use them for most of the book. The thing that confused me the most is that time passes differently in the game – hours and days in the game account for minutes in the real world and yet they only seem to spend 5 minutes at a time actually in the game and then have to make plans days in advance for going back into it. I liked Reid’s shadow ability, which was the only thing I would have liked to find out more about after finishing the story.
This is definitely book one of a series – it ends on a cliffhanger and doesn’t wrap up anything or answer any questions. I think if the majority of the book hadn’t been just about anxious teenagers trying to work out how to navigate normal social situations, it could have left room for more of the gaming and plot and we would perhaps not need a second installment – as it is, I won’t be rushing to pick the next one up.
Overall, Hollow Twilight has some potential, but it’s insistence on the young adult romance plotline, rather than the LitRPG elements that it pushes so hard in its blurb, led it to be a disappointment for me. Thank you to NetGalley & Penguin Random House (Canada) for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
For more of my reviews check out Kindig Blog
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
4.5
Hollow Twilight was such a fun surprise. It takes the familiar "trapped inside a game" concept and raises the stakes by making every decision feel like it actually matters. Once the characters realize that dying in the game means dying in real life, the story shifts into a tense survival adventure that kept me hooked from start to finish.
One of my favourite parts was Reid's struggle with the power he's given. The temptation to embrace it, despite the consequences, added an interesting psychological layer that went beyond the action. I also really enjoyed the friendships within the group. They felt natural, and seeing them work together while fear and grief slowly crept in made the danger feel even more real.
The pacing kept things moving without sacrificing the mystery, and every encounter with the Pariahs had me wondering who would make it out alive. There were plenty of twists, exciting battles, and enough unanswered questions to keep me theorizing long after I finished.
This was an addictive blend of LitRPG, horror, and survival with characters I genuinely cared about. The ending left me desperate to see where the story goes next, and I am hoping there is a sequel!
Thank you, Penguin Random House Canada, Kieran Starovsky & NetGalley, for the #gifted earc. All opinions are my own.
Hollow Twilight was such a fun surprise. It takes the familiar "trapped inside a game" concept and raises the stakes by making every decision feel like it actually matters. Once the characters realize that dying in the game means dying in real life, the story shifts into a tense survival adventure that kept me hooked from start to finish.
One of my favourite parts was Reid's struggle with the power he's given. The temptation to embrace it, despite the consequences, added an interesting psychological layer that went beyond the action. I also really enjoyed the friendships within the group. They felt natural, and seeing them work together while fear and grief slowly crept in made the danger feel even more real.
The pacing kept things moving without sacrificing the mystery, and every encounter with the Pariahs had me wondering who would make it out alive. There were plenty of twists, exciting battles, and enough unanswered questions to keep me theorizing long after I finished.
This was an addictive blend of LitRPG, horror, and survival with characters I genuinely cared about. The ending left me desperate to see where the story goes next, and I am hoping there is a sequel!
Thank you, Penguin Random House Canada, Kieran Starovsky & NetGalley, for the #gifted earc. All opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy
I was lucky enough to read an ARC of Hollow Twilight, and I genuinely cannot stop thinking about it. The way the story unfolds kept me hooked from beginning to end.
The pacing was fantastic, with a constant sense of tension and discovery that made it almost impossible to put down. Every time there was a revelation, I enjoyed coming up with theories on how everything will unfold.
However, in reality, what truly made the novel shine was the cast of characters. Their relations and interactions were so believable, and each one of them had their unique quirks, issues, strengths, and weaknesses. It gave me some nostalgia of high school days haha! Their struggles, friendships, and conflicts were an incredible addition to the already fascinating story
The balance between the excitement and immersion into this dangerous dimension was amazing! I was on the edge of my seat wondering how each fight would play out. The mixture of survival elements, mystery, suspense, and the characters' personal development provided for an exciting reading experience.
If you're a fan of LitRPGs, especially those with intriguing character dynamics, a lot of action, and high stakes, you'll surely love this book! I'm eagerly awaiting book two because I have so many theories!
The pacing was fantastic, with a constant sense of tension and discovery that made it almost impossible to put down. Every time there was a revelation, I enjoyed coming up with theories on how everything will unfold.
However, in reality, what truly made the novel shine was the cast of characters. Their relations and interactions were so believable, and each one of them had their unique quirks, issues, strengths, and weaknesses. It gave me some nostalgia of high school days haha! Their struggles, friendships, and conflicts were an incredible addition to the already fascinating story
The balance between the excitement and immersion into this dangerous dimension was amazing! I was on the edge of my seat wondering how each fight would play out. The mixture of survival elements, mystery, suspense, and the characters' personal development provided for an exciting reading experience.
If you're a fan of LitRPGs, especially those with intriguing character dynamics, a lot of action, and high stakes, you'll surely love this book! I'm eagerly awaiting book two because I have so many theories!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I enjoyed this book! It was a well written YA book. I liked the video game aspect. It did take some time before Reid understood what Hollow Twilight is. I wish the pace was a bit faster as it took some time to really get the story going, but the second half of the book was a lot better for me. The story did introduce well the characters and there were some interesting teenager side plots, like a little romance. I wish we knew a bit more about Hollow Twilight, but we are learning as Reid learns. Overall, it’s a good story and fans of video games will definitely enjoy this one ! It is YA, so that is something to keep in mind if you prefer more adult books, as the characters are in high school. With the way the book ended, I definitely want to read the sequel!
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an arc of this book, opinions are my own.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an arc of this book, opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I received an arc of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest and fair review. I can definitely see this book being a big hit with a younger demographic. I think the storyline is an interesting idea and was fairly wellbeing executed but for me personally it read very YA. I would recommend this book to ages 12-17 possibly but for me it just didn’t work.
I thought it was a cool concept but the way the characters react to events in the book just felt unrealistic and off to me.
I thought it was a cool concept but the way the characters react to events in the book just felt unrealistic and off to me.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Hollow Twilight is an insanely well written book. It has extremely realistically written teenage characters, a hella engaging plot, and the eerie nature of the novel itself makes it a real page turner. This is a book I am going to be suggesting to everyone as it comes out and I honestly am chomping at the bit for the sequel with how this ended!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Hollow Twilight is an insanely well written book. It has extremely realistically written teenage characters, a hella engaging plot, and the eerie nature of the novel itself makes it a real page turner. This is a book I am going to be suggesting to everyone as it comes out and I honestly am chomping at the bit for the sequel with how this ended!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews