Sonderbooks Book Review of

by Jonathan Stroud

read by Emily Bevan

Lockwood & Co

The Hollow Boy

by Jonathan Stroud
read by Emily Bevan

Reviewed August 31, 2016.
Listening Library, 2015. 12 hours on 10 compact discs.
Starred Review

Today I finished listening to the audiobook of Lockwood & Co. Book Three -- and ordered the hardback edition of Lockwood & Co. Book Four! I love this timing. If I remember right, they did the same thing last year -- brought out the audiobook of the last volume a few months before the next volume was coming out in print. (Or at least that's when our library got them.) Listening to the audiobook version is the perfect way to prepare for the next book coming out!

It's a series, and you do need to read the books in order, so I shouldn't say too much about later volumes -- but rereading Book Three by listening gives me an excuse to rave about the series again.

My only complaint about the audiobook versions is that so far each volume has had a different reader. But it had been a year since I listened to Volume Two, and I liked the reader of Volume Three a lot. I don't know a lot about British accents, but I did gather that she gave Lucy a working-class accent, which is appropriate. And Holly Munroe even sounded annoyingly perfect.

I'm struck again by how brilliant the writing is. All the emotions and relationships are done by showing rather than telling -- and so realistic. We never find out exactly what age they are, but they're kids, young teens -- and Lucy clearly is attracted to her friend Anthony Lockwood and loves working with him and values their team. And then this perfectly together young woman gets hired while Lucy is out of town having a disappointing trip back with her family. And Lockwood and George like the way Holly is so perfect and together and annoyingly feminine.

And oh my goodness, I relate to Lucy maybe a little too much.

And that part isn't even the focus of the story, which is about an outbreak of ghosts in Chelsea. George, ever the brilliant researcher, figures out that DEPRAC forces are looking in the wrong place, and Lockwood & Co. tackle a frighteningly powerful entity.

Meanwhile, Lucy's power of communicating with Visitors is getting stronger all the time. But it's unprecedented, and she doesn't think the normal rules should apply. However, just because she can communicate with ghosts doesn't necessarily mean she should.

I am so excited that the next volume comes out September 13!