The Hollow Girl

Alternating between 1961 and 1973, The Hollow Girl is the stunning new literary suspense novel from the award-winning author of The Silent Listener.

HARROWFORD HALL A safe haven for lost girls? Or a breeding ground for revenge?

It’s 1973 and Detective Sergeant Eleanor Smith is finally assigned her first homicide case. A woman’s body has been discovered at Harrowford Hall, a home for unmarried mothers deep in the Victorian countryside.

Led by the formidable Mrs Montague, Harrowford has for decades sold itself as a refuge for ‘girls in crisis’ – like fourteen-year-old Jane McEvoy, who has no idea of how she got pregnant. And Marilyn Pollard, a scared, angry teenager desperate to escape.

But when Detective Smith arrives at the once-grand gothic mansion, she finds it all but deserted. What’s more, the home’s overgrown graveyard suggests the apparent poisoning of Nurse Chapman is not Harrowford’s first suspicious death . . .

‘The Hollow Girl is a haunting mystery, observed with moral clarity and a scalpel-sharp pen. Once again, Yeowart imbues a gripping crime narrative with literary sensibility, and the result is one of the best crime novels I’ve read in years.’ JP POMARE, author of The Wrong Woman

‘An expansive and vivid story that wells up from a dark place in history. A tale of lies and betrayal that will make you angry and keep you up at night. Lyn Yeowart is a writer to be reckoned with and this story grabbed me from the opening scene. You need to read it – now!’ HAYLEY SCRIVENOR, internationally bestselling author of Dirt Town and Girl Falling

‘Fiendishly clever and wonderfully original, The Hollow Girl reveals a sordid world swept under history’s carpet. This is a fantastic follow-up to the triumph of The Silent Listener, full of compelling characters and startling plot twists.’ ASHLEY KALAGIAN BLUNT, author of Dark Mode

‘The Hollow Girl is a searing tale of injustice and revenge. Lyn Yeowart is an extraordinarily powerful writer. I loved it.’ MARGARET HICKEY, author of The Creeper

‘The Hollow Girl is as compelling as it is shocking. Lyn Yeowart breathes such startling life into this remarkable story, it’s impossible to put down – and will keep you guessing all the way to its unpredictable ending.’ GLENNA THOMSON, author of Gone

‘Yeowart delivers a gothic gut-punch of a novel – haunting, twisted, and fiercely intelligent. The Hollow Girl gives voice to a generation of women denied one. Brave, brutal, and impossible to ignore.’ R.W.R. MCDONALD, author of The Nancys

‘A page-turning, unputdownable thriller.’ New Idea

‘A gripping story laced with murder and the historic powerlessness of women. It’s written from three points of view with a cracking pace.’ Sisters In Crime

Author Biography

Lyn Yeowart is a consulting writer and editor who lives on the traditional lands of the Kulin Nation. Her debut novel, The Silent Listener, won the 2022 Indie Book Award for Debut Fiction, was a finalist in the UK People’s Book Prize, and was shortlisted for three other national awards in Australia. The Hollow Girl is her second novel.