The Hollow by Nora Roberts

Rating 4 out of 5

"In the small village of Hawkins Hollow, three best friends who share the same birthday sneak off into the woods for a sleepover the evening before turning 10. But a night of pre-pubescent celebration turns into a night of horror as their blood brother oath unleashes a three-hundred year curse. Twenty-one years later, Fox O'Dell and his friends have seen their town plagued by a week of unexplainable evil events two more times - every seven years. With the clock winding down on the third set of seven years, someone else has taken an interest in the town's folklore. A boutique manager from New York, Layla Darnell was drawn to Hawkins Hollow for reasons she can't explain - but the recent attacks on her life make it clear that it is personal. And though Fox tries to keep his professional distance, his interests in Layla have become personal too.”

It is hard now to review this book after reading the whole series. The Hollow is the second book in the Sign of Seven trilogy and tells the story of Fox and Layala. The story picks up where Blood Brother finishes.

The demon is growing stronger and making a more concerted effort to thwart the Scooby gang. But life goes on and they continue to live their lives. Layla being at a loose end and in a financial bind gets a job working for Fox as his office administrator.

The romance between Fox and Layla was no real surprise. However some more pieces of the puzzle fall into place and set the scene for the final book Pagan Stone.

"Though the kiss was soft, though it was slow, she felt the impact from the top of her head to the soles of her feet."

Now looking at this book in its place amongst the three I believe it and book one could have been combined. I felt the first two books focused on the romance between the two characters and the last book focused more on the story.

I enjoyed the book and it was a good introduction into the horror genre which to be honest I am not a huge fan of.