The Hollow Boy is the third book of the Lockwood & Co. series. It was published on the 15th of September 2015 in the UK and the US.
Blurb[]
As a massive outbreak of supernatural Visitors baffles Scotland Yard and causes protests throughout London, Lockwood & Co. continue to demonstrate their effectiveness in exterminating spirits. Anthony Lockwood is dashing, George insightful, and Lucy dynamic, while the skull in the jar utters sardonic advice from the sidelines.
There is a new spirit of openness in the team now that Lockwood has shared some of his childhood secrets, and Lucy is feeling more and more as if her true home is at Portland Row. It comes as a great shock, then, when Lockwood and George introduce her to an annoyingly perky and hyper-efficient new assistant, Holly Munro.
Meanwhile, there are reports of many new hauntings, including a house where bloody footprints are appearing, and a department store full of strange sounds and shadowy figures. But ghosts seem to be the least of Lockwood & Co.'s concerns when assassins attack during a carnival in the center of the city. Can the team get past their personal issues to save the day on all fronts, or will bad feelings attract yet more trouble?[2]
Plot[]
I: Lavender Lodge[]
Lockwood, Lucy and George investigate a series of disappearances with one mutual connection: they all rented a room in the Lavender Lodge. Meanwhile in flashbacks, Lockwood shares part of his past with Lucy and George by showing them the closed room of the house.
II: Whitechapel Night[]
When during a recent case, Lucy partially connects with a spirit, she grows certain that she can use her Talent to understand the dead, but Lockwood doesn't want to hear about it. By luck, a solo assignment provides her with yet another opportunity to test her theories. Meanwhile, in an effort to contain a series of severe hauntings, multiple agencies to pool their manpower together, from which only Lockwood & Co gets left out.
III: The Bloody Footprints[]
A wealthy old client presents an intriguing and challenging case for the agency, which promises long awaited fame for the team.
IV: Unrest[]
Following the success of their previous case, Lockwood & Co is finally allowed to take part in the Chelsea outbreak containment.
V: Dark Hearts[]
When George identifies the source of the Chelsea outbreak, Lockwood & Co recieve help in the form of an unlikely ally: Kipps and his team. The tension between Lucy and Holly burst out in the worst possible moment.
VI: A Face in the Dark[]
Investigating the source of the Chelsea outbreak hints at the involvement of the living. A haunting vision forces Lucy to make a heartbreaking decision.
Trivia[]
The title has a double-meaning. It refers to the Fetch that appears and takes Anthony Lockwood's form to Lucy, but also to Lockwood himself and his hollow nature.