The Hollow Space
On the eve of her thirty-fifth birthday, librarian Tess Davis unearths a journal hidden within the library’s ancient, dust-laden shelves. The text reveals a harrowing pact from 1855: a mother’s bargain with a demon to save her child, paid for in the lives of her descendants. The curse is absolute—every woman in the lineage dies at thirty-five, just as their own daughters come of age.
With only one lunar month remaining, Tess races through a trail of ancestral records as her world begins to unravel. Shadows lengthen, reflections detach from their hosts, and the fabric of time itself frays. To shatter the cycle and secure her daughter’s survival, Tess faces a brutal ultimatum: she must incinerate the very library that houses the curse, sacrificing her legacy, her sanctuary, and her future to ash.
- Tess - Librarian
- Nick - Tess’s husband
- Lily - Tess and Nick’s daughter
- Zach - Lily's husband
- Maggie - Lily and Zach's daughter
- Sarah - Origin of the family curse
- Tess finds the journal that discusses her fate to die one month after her 35th birthday.
- Tess spends the next two weeks following clues in books in the library.
- She finds another journal stating the library sits on land Sarah owned.
- The library’s foundation contains a stone marked with Sarah’s handprint and blood that anchors the curse.
- Tess finds the stone but cannot destroy it, just as her ancestors could not.
- Tess finds her mother’s journal - it says fire will break the foundation stone.
- Tess sets the library on fire, destroying the foundation stone and freeing all the mothers’ and daughters’ souls who died before her.
- Tess is arrested for arson.
- Tess gets out of jail after 14 months.
- Tess and Nick divorce.
- Lily gets married, has her own daughter, and survives past 35.
- Tess gave up everything, but now she knows she saved Lily.
The Hollow Space by Carly Black straddles the line between thriller and horror. The author builds an intensely eerie atmosphere as Tess uncovers supernatural clues, racing against the clock to solve a mystery before time runs out. Tess is a highly sympathetic protagonist, making it easy to root for her and stay invested in the unsettling narrative.
Because it is a short story, I expected the pacing to be a bit faster, but it settles into a solid medium pace, leaning more into a creeping dread than a breakneck speed.
While I didn't love the ending due to a personal stylistic preference, it was handled exceptionally well and made perfect logical sense for where the plot needed to go. Overall, it’s a highly atmospheric, genre-blending read that succeeds at being both suspenseful and spooky. This feels like a great book for a thriller reader who wants to ease themselves into the world of horror.
- Death
- Fire
- Depictions of psychological distress
Publisher: Under the Cover Ink
ASIN: B0GKQ9WWYD
Publication Date: May 25, 2026
Note: Details are for the original edition. Other formats, editions, and audiobook versions may be available.
