Hexhunter, Jordan L. Hawk

Hexhunter breaks the mould of this series a little bit, which was a relief: the couple didn’t have a mid-book miscommunication-and-break-up, which was a feature of each of the others. Not that Isaac and Bill’s story is entirely smooth-sailing: there’s a whole jealousy subplot (sigh) and, of course, Isaac’s trauma and self-hatred. If you might have triggers around that and about a victim blaming themself for what happened to them, be careful with this one (though Bill is entirely supportive of Isaac).

The relationship between them is sweet, though in the relatively short space of the book you don’t have time to entirely feel the weight of the pining Bill’s been doing for quite some time. Isaac’s road to some kind of recovery is pretty satisfying, given we’ve been seeing his pain since book one.

This book doesn’t draw the series to a close, either, despite the fact there’s been nothing new since that one — the overarching plot that ran through the four main stories isn’t solved, though each couple has had a happy-ever-after. So that’s worth noting, too.

Not my favourite of the series, I think, but enjoyable as ever!

Rating: 4/5

Hexslayer, Jordan L. Hawk

I wasn’t sure how to feel about a book where Nick was one of the romantic leads, since he’s stubborn as a (yes, yes) horse, and it felt like it was going to be a pretty big barrier to a romance. I feel like it was shockingly easy, actually, and while it made sense… I don’t know, I could’ve used a little more time for it to develop, or something.

Which is not to say I didn’t have fun with this book, and with the development of Jamie’s character as he begins to understand he’s been privileged and blinkered — and with Nick’s slow acceptance that some people can be depended on.

I didn’t love the scene where Nick decided to let Jamie ride him in his horse form, despite his initial refusal to ever countenance it, I must admit. It felt like Nick saw that as servitude, as degrading, and then decided… what? He’d be okay with that because the case was more important? Jamie was more important? His motives weren’t entirely clear to me there, and I didn’t feel comfortable with it being fairly glossed over, and then repeatedly happening again. There’s a whole intersection there with Jamie’s disability and Nick being accommodating of that, but still, not wholly comfortable.

Overall, not a favourite of the series, but I’m definitely curious what it’s all building up to — does the fourth book finish things up?

Rating: 4/5

A Christmas Hex, Jordan L. Hawk

It’s probably the wrong time of year to read A Christmas Hex, but I was curious about this one and decided to go ahead anyway. Unlike the other Hexworld books, this one doesn’t concern the police and their familiars, but a private detective, Gus. Roland realises that Gus is his witch and quickly becomes fascinated, but he’s terrified to admit that his animal form is that of a wolf, since people normally fear wolves.

It’s a fun set-up, but the relationship between the two feels more than a little rushed by the amount of space available in such a short narrative, and I didn’t get the usual sense of two people figuring out how to match up their experiences and come to some kind of accord. It all feels like it’s a bit too easy, but not in the sort of way where it makes total sense — like there’s some important scenes of negotiation or reaction or something skipped.

It was a fun short read, but definitely not a favourite.

Rating: 3/5

Spectr: Volume 1, Jordan L. Hawk

Reaper of Souls closes the first volume of the Spectr series, so now that I’ve finished it, it seems like an appropriate moment to take a look around and try to review the series so far. Volume one is on a strict timeline: Caleb has been possessed by a drakul, Gray. If Gray can be exorcised before 40 days are up, Caleb can go back to his life. If he can’t, well… there’s normally no hope for a human host/victim after that point. John is an agent with Spectr, and he’s meant to be pretty darn good, but he can’t get Gray out.

As a result, and due to Gray’s unique circumstances (he hunts other paranormal entities, not humans; his possession of Caleb is an accident), John ends up babysitting Caleb while he tries to figure out how to exorcise him — and then Caleb ends up helping him with cases using Gray’s strength and supernatural senses, and then Caleb and John start falling in love.

I enjoyed the ambivalence surrounding Gray — the fact that he seems to care about not harming Caleb, not causing too much trouble, and especially his curiosity about John. John’s confused feelings about both of them add another dimension as well, one that becomes increasingly important toward the end of the volume.

I’m looking forward to reading the second volume and learning how everything shakes out.

Rating: 3/5