THE HOLLOW SMILE: Every Face in Town Is Wearing It

In the isolated town of Hollow Creek, people have started smiling.

Not laughing. Not grinning.

Smiling.

At first, it seems harmless. A cashier holds a smile a little too long. A teacher stands motionless outside her classroom with her lips stretched impossibly wide. Neighbors stop speaking altogether, choosing instead to watch from their windows with the same expression.

Then the disappearances begin.

When bestselling true-crime journalist Ethan Hale returns to his hometown after twenty years, he discovers something impossible: every victim was last seen smiling.

The deeper Ethan digs, the more he uncovers a forgotten tragedy buried beneath Hollow Creek's abandoned theater—a place sealed after a fire claimed eighty-seven lives in 1954.

But the dead did not stay buried.

Now, every night at exactly 3:17 A.M., the town hears the same question whispered through walls, under beds, and from empty rooms:

"Are you smiling yet?"

As Hollow Creek descends into madness, Ethan must uncover the truth before the smile reaches him, his family, and eventually the rest of the world.

Because once you smile back...

It never leaves.

Perfect for fans of Stephen King, Paul Tremblay, and The Black Phone, THE HOLLOW SMILE is a terrifying supernatural thriller that will make you think twice before returning a stranger's smile.