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Hexed
Nicoli thought it was over. After leaving an abusive relationship with another man, he is piecing his life back together when his former lover assaults him with an acid hex on the streets of New York City. Taken to the hospital, there is nothing he can do but sit in bed with his eyes bandaged and hope his vision returns. A wounded soldier shares the room, recovering from grievous injuries he sustained in war. Though Bruno exists to Nicoli only as a voice, a relationship develops between the two men while they trade stories to pass the time. Hexes have disrupted their lives yet brought them together, and Nicoli wishes that he could only see the soldier that he is falling more and more in love with every day. A literary steampunk novella set in post-Civil War America, Hexed is 17K in length.
52 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 23, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
January 7, 2017
Well, that was... odd. I think that's the best way to describe this book. Over a distance of only a couple of days I've read 3 short stories and this one was definitely the weirdest and, unfortunately, the weakest out of them. For me it was more like 2.5 stars rounded up for really good writing and editing. I mean it was fluent but so what??
When I read stories, and especially shorts, I want emotions! I want feels! I found a lot of mood and ambience in The Royal Inquisitor despite the horrid editing errors and rating both those stories with 3 stars just doesn't seem fair... (Or maybe it's because Megan Derr really knows how to write a good short!)
I also read Back from the Edge and though it's even shorter than Hexed it's packed with feels!!!
So, getting to the point... I wanted to meet the MCs and know what they feel instead of simply reading descriptions! Hexed felt more like a philosophical-religious tirade than a story. Ok, even it isn't a romance per se, it's supposed to show me some emotions, right? Or is it just me? (And sorry, but the blurb told me more about the MCs than the story itself!)
Aaaand! It was also supposed to be a steampunk short...
So I think I should see something like this in my mind's eye:
Ok, I'm not an expert. I haven't read any actual novels from this genre (only a few shorts) but what I got was some nice wording (which sounded mediaeval or very old-fashioned - which maybe is appropriate for this style), almost next to nothing of steam/industrial stuff (only the rumble buggies) and a seemingly contemporary hospital.
Like I said, I KNOW NOTHING about steampunk but if that's what it is - I'm not sure I want to read more from this genre... :(
But leaving the whole mood/atmosphere thing aside... I didn't feel connected to the MCs at all. It was all "descriptive" and not "empirical".
The best part was Nicoli's little stories about the magical trinkets shop he worked for. THAT I could feel! And it brought some nice images to my mind:
So, sorry for the critical reflections, but it might be just me and not the book! :(
When I read stories, and especially shorts, I want emotions! I want feels! I found a lot of mood and ambience in The Royal Inquisitor despite the horrid editing errors and rating both those stories with 3 stars just doesn't seem fair... (Or maybe it's because Megan Derr really knows how to write a good short!)
I also read Back from the Edge and though it's even shorter than Hexed it's packed with feels!!!
So, getting to the point... I wanted to meet the MCs and know what they feel instead of simply reading descriptions! Hexed felt more like a philosophical-religious tirade than a story. Ok, even it isn't a romance per se, it's supposed to show me some emotions, right? Or is it just me? (And sorry, but the blurb told me more about the MCs than the story itself!)
Aaaand! It was also supposed to be a steampunk short...
So I think I should see something like this in my mind's eye:
Ok, I'm not an expert. I haven't read any actual novels from this genre (only a few shorts) but what I got was some nice wording (which sounded mediaeval or very old-fashioned - which maybe is appropriate for this style), almost next to nothing of steam/industrial stuff (only the rumble buggies) and a seemingly contemporary hospital.
Like I said, I KNOW NOTHING about steampunk but if that's what it is - I'm not sure I want to read more from this genre... :(
But leaving the whole mood/atmosphere thing aside... I didn't feel connected to the MCs at all. It was all "descriptive" and not "empirical".
The best part was Nicoli's little stories about the magical trinkets shop he worked for. THAT I could feel! And it brought some nice images to my mind:
So, sorry for the critical reflections, but it might be just me and not the book! :(
September 20, 2019
Basically two guys sharing a hospital room talking about the events that led them there…and frankly I’m not sure I understood much of the rest. Just talking about religion and other things that I found rather boring. The writing was interesting just not riveting…
“How much did I not work when my vanity was stung? And now I am here, unable to work at all, and that head full of steam while I am well shames me.”
“How much did I not work when my vanity was stung? And now I am here, unable to work at all, and that head full of steam while I am well shames me.”
January 20, 2017
Ummmm.. this was not a bad story I guess just weird ...I felt nothing for either character.. maybe it was the dialogue I wasn't feeling...at certain times while reading I was like "wth"... again just a weird story.. 2.5 stars
July 23, 2016
I rarely give five stars, but this was just so beautifully written and wonderfully creative that I had to award it top marks. I have heard of other stories of two patients with one blind and the other experienced only as a voice, but this story went far beyond that. Each man has an intriguing backstory and Bruno's lighthearted explanations dodge the real nature of his medical malady. Bruno is an enigma, a mystery, that is slowly teased out over the course of the story. Since Niccoli is the POV (third person), we get flashes of what led up to his being hexed but we only get each man's confessional close to the end. There is an amazing sense of intimacy in the story and a growing sense these two needing each other and filling something up in the other. The language is lyrical, smooth and rich. I have read The Tracker and found that this is a trademark for Reece. The world that the author creates beyond their hospital room is rich in various religions, mildly steampunk, and contains a fascinating world of illegal hexes that have touched each man so deeply. Even though all the story's secrets have been revealed, I'm positive that I will find myself reading it many more times.
March 26, 2021
Short and sweet
A nice bite sized romance that could be read in a day but was pretty cute and enjoyable. Like some of Reece's other books I've read, this was somehow both a slow-burn and insta-love story for me. I think this would've been a lot greater if it was better developed and longer. That would've probably smoothed the romance a bit and made the transition from infatuation to love more believable. I recommend this book to people who want a quick yet sweet read and who happen to like fantasy books.
A nice bite sized romance that could be read in a day but was pretty cute and enjoyable. Like some of Reece's other books I've read, this was somehow both a slow-burn and insta-love story for me. I think this would've been a lot greater if it was better developed and longer. That would've probably smoothed the romance a bit and made the transition from infatuation to love more believable. I recommend this book to people who want a quick yet sweet read and who happen to like fantasy books.
September 8, 2016
excellent story :)
fave quotes:
Should we go to an infirm home when we can match one's curse to another's gift, Nicoli? Should we cut ourselves off entirely from the race when we could instead putter on together in the slow lane?
There would be times of need for both of them, but not now. A meal, a walk, a home, a bed...in such strange ways did love come, and there was nowhere else that Nicoli would rather be than right here, right now, in a misty world with this man.
fave quotes:
Should we go to an infirm home when we can match one's curse to another's gift, Nicoli? Should we cut ourselves off entirely from the race when we could instead putter on together in the slow lane?
There would be times of need for both of them, but not now. A meal, a walk, a home, a bed...in such strange ways did love come, and there was nowhere else that Nicoli would rather be than right here, right now, in a misty world with this man.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 18, 2016
KU
Very well written, just not my favorite type of story. I would have preferred a little more action. This was mainly 2 people getting to know each other.
Very well written, just not my favorite type of story. I would have preferred a little more action. This was mainly 2 people getting to know each other.
December 29, 2017
Unuasal and well worth the read.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews