THE DARK AND HOLLOW PLACES by Carrie Ryan

Okay, so THE DARK AND HOLLOW PLACES is pretty much one of the first series I've finished since Harry Potter. No lie. I think I outlined my feelings about sequels and series in another post. Generally, they're not my favorite, because there's so many books out there waiting to be read. I want to get to know as many people as possible, and I generally don't have time for a series.

However, THE DARK AND HOLLOW PLACES is a little bit different. It's a companion novel to THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH and THE DEAD TOSSED WAVES, all by the magnificent Carrie Ryan. I enjoy companion novels much more. There are new people to fall in love with.

And this one has one of my favorites: Catcher.

But first, a little blurb about THE DARK AND HOLLOW PLACES: There are many things that Annah would like to forget: the look on her sister's face before Annah left her behind in the Forest of Hands and Teeth, her first glimpse of the Horde as they swarmed the Dark City, the sear of the barbed wire that would scar her for life. But most of all, Annah would like to forget the morning Elias left her for the Recruiters.

Annah's world stopped that day, and she's been waiting for Elias to come home ever since. Somehow, without him, her life doesn't feel much different than the dead that roam the wasted city around her. Until she meets Catcher, and everything feels alive again.

But Catcher has his own secrets. Dark, terrifying truths that link him to a past Annah has longed to forget, and to a future too deadly to consider. And now it's up to Annah: can she continue to live in a world covered in the blood of the living? Or is death the only escape from the Return's destruction?

There are many things I like about this series, this book. The first is the writing. Carrie Ryan is a master of present tense, and I decided to try my hand at it after reading her work.

Second, I love the complex relationships Annah has with her sister, with Elias, and with Catcher. They feel messy and imperfect, and very very human. I like that a lot.

If you haven't read this series, you must add it to your list! Start with THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH and just try not to fall in love. I double-zombie-dare-ya.

Remember! I'm giving away a signed copy of this book (along with MATCHED and POSSESSION) in conjunction with the Bookanistas Give Back. Click here for details on that.

Check out what the other Bookanistas are up to this week at the Reading Room.

Or on their blogs:

• LiLa Roecker gets silly over Spoiled
• Christine Fonseca has a passion for Possession – with giveaway
• Shannon Messenger marvels at Moonglass – with giveaway
• Jamie Harrington adores Invincible Summer
• Shelli Johannes-Wells is in the grip of Possession
• Scott Tracey bathes in Blood Magic
• Jessi Kirby praises Playing Hurt
• Carolina Valdez Miller interviews Invincible Summer author Hannah Moskowitz
• Bethany Wiggins delves into Divergent
• Shana Silver presents a Guestanista gushing over Between Here and Forever
• Carrie Harris sings out about Shift
• Rosemary Clement-Moore applauds Abandon
• Sarah Frances Hardy enjoys Me Jane
• Matt Blackstone loves Like Mandarin
• Corrine Jackson delights in The Duff
• Stasia Ward Kehoe discusses Displacement
• Beth Revis goes into Black Hole Sun