Reggie’s Recs - The Hole

I’m loath to read books that feature the destruction of a garden, but I also knew The Hole was advertised as a psychological thriller and thought, ‘it’s been awhile since I read a book that frightened me good’. So, with my trowel ready, in I dug.

Author Hye-Young Pyun’s book surprised me on many levels, bringing me into a world totally devoid of control. I felt helpless, and massively frustrated at being helpless. I haven’t felt this anxious since some rabbits started eating all my carrots—there was nothing I could do! But Oghi, the main character in our story, is even more helpless. He’s woken up from a coma after a bad accident: his wife has died and his Mother-in-law has become his only living family. 

Over the course of the book, his Mother-in-law takes more and more control of his life—his house, his finances, his personal care—and he, by dint of paralysis and related loss of speech, cannot change this. He grows more and more suspicious of her, especially when she takes over the garden.

I really can’t speak of it, it gives me chills. 

Through flashbacks introduced during the narration, we’re acquainted with Oghi’s history. His family, his wife’s family, the ups and downs of their relationship. The larger picture of the source of strife between him and his Mother-in-law is slowly revealed as we approach an inevitable end that leaves just enough room to keep us guessing right up to the conclusion. 

I give this book … three prickly pears. Delicious and spiny.