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The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling Series: Graves Glen #1
Published by Avon on September 28, 2021
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Halloween, Paranormal
Pages: 318
Format: Paperback
Source: Library
Purchase Links: Amazon*Libro*Kobo*Chirp
Goodreads
New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hawkins, writing as Erin Sterling, casts a spell with a spine-tingling romance full of wishes, witches, and hexes gone wrong.
Nine years ago, Vivienne Jones nursed her broken heart like any young witch would: vodka, weepy music, bubble baths…and a curse on the horrible boyfriend. Sure, Vivi knows she shouldn’t use her magic this way, but with only an “orchard hayride” scented candle on hand, she isn’t worried it will cause him anything more than a bad hair day or two.
That is until Rhys Penhallow, descendent of the town’s ancestors, breaker of hearts, and annoyingly just as gorgeous as he always was, returns to Graves Glen, Georgia. What should be a quick trip to recharge the town’s ley lines and make an appearance at the annual fall festival turns disastrously wrong. With one calamity after another striking Rhys, Vivi realizes her silly little Ex Hex may not have been so harmless after all.
Suddenly, Graves Glen is under attack from murderous wind-up toys, a pissed off ghost, and a talking cat with some interesting things to say. Vivi and Rhys have to ignore their off the charts chemistry to work together to save the town and find a way to break the break-up curse before it’s too late.
The Ex Hex is book one in the Graves Glen series by Erin Sterling. It screams cozy Fall romance with a dash of magic.
I struggled with The Ex Hex. The cover and blurb made me think this would be a cute witchy romcom and at times it was, but at other times I was wrestling with the lack of discussing the issue from the past and the slow progress on figuring out the curse.
The story follows a semi-practicing witch Vivienne, who teaches history at a small college and is unable to forget her ex Rhys, a Welsh witch she spent a whirlwind summer with almost a decade ago who also can’t forget his ex.
This whirlwind romance came to an end when Rhys revealed he’s betrothed to another witch back home. The author brings this point up repeatedly throughout the storyline, but it’s never actually explained. Vivie and Rhys never talk about it either. I kept wondering if he was still betrothed? These two have chemistry, oh boy do they, but I never felt any true connection. They never talk much and don’t deal with the past. This frustrated me to know end.
As for the curse, not a lot happens on this front and I never felt a rush from the characters to solve it. Vivie and Rhys don’t take action to reverse this apparently malicious curse until the last minute. The plot is squished into the final quarter of the book wrapping up everything agreeably.
Unfortunately; I was bored with this novel. You’d think with magic involved we’d get a magical gripping romance with a dash of mystery. The story doesn’t deliver. I wasn’t invested in the curse nor the relationship with our leads. I will say I adored Vivienne’s Aunt and Cousin. Fun characters.
The Ex Hex was not the book for me. If the blurb intrigues you, I urge you to give it a shot. Just because it did not work for me does not mean it won’t for you.
Rated: 2.5 Stars
Was this review helpful? If so, please consider liking it on Goodreads (Angela)!
About Erin Sterling
Pen name of Rachel Hawkins.
Born in Virginia and raised in Alabama, Rachel Hawkins has been writing since Kindergarten when her first book, a tense thriller involving a unicorn, a witch, and a princess, was called, “very imaginative!” by her teacher and “a searing work of genius” by her mother.
Since then, Rachel has written over a dozen books for children and adults (sadly all unicorn-free thus far), and been published in more than twenty countries. As Rachel Hawkins, she wrote the New York Times bestselling THE WIFE UPSTAIRS, a Southern Gothic twist on JANE EYRE that the Southern Review of Books called, “a thrill ride,” and Entertainment Weekly dubbed, “a gothic thriller laced with arsenic.” Her latest thriller, RECKLESS GIRLS, also debuted on the New York Times list with Kirkus calling it, “a soapy, claustrophobic page-turner.”
When not writing modern Gothic thrillers as Rachel Hawkins, she also pens paranormal romantic comedies under the name Erin Sterling. Her debut romance, THE EX HEX, was a Book of the Month pick as well as a New York Times and USA Today Bestseller.
Rachel currently lives in Auburn, Alabama with her husband, son, and five cats. (Yes, five. She knows.). In her free time, she enjoys reading, cooking, and picking up an assortment of creative hobbies she will give up on after a week or two.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- 2024 COYER Chapter 4: Fall Rules from October – December
- 2024 Goodreads Challenge
- 2024 Library Love Challenge
- 2024 The Backlist Reader Challenge
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So sorry to hear this one had so many issues for you. I think I’ve enjoyed this author’s other books under her Hawkins name and had high hopes for this one. I won’t make this a priority to get to since you had so much trouble with it. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
https://lisalovesliterature.bookblog.io/2024/12/20/l-l-l-little-reviews-69-december-2024-part-1-holiday-reads/
What gave me trouble is that it was more Contemporary Romance then Paranormal. We do get some magic, but not much and to many things left unanswered on the characters. I might try another in the Graves Glen series, but not sure. The title and cover are cute and that is what drew me in. I’m just =( sad it didn’t work for me. Oh well! On to the next. Thanks Lisa for visiting.
Sounds like a bit of a catastrophe with him being engaged and the plot not moving much.
Well he was engaged as a 20 something, but I never learned what happened on that front and if he was still engaged when he came back this time. Lots of things unanswered and not much magic like you might expect with the title. Oh well! On to a new read. Thanks for visiting!