Book 25/30.
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
After a painful breakup nine years ago, witch Vivienne Jones decided to get a little revenge on her ex. She knew cursing him was a misuse of magic, but she figured a spell powered by an “orchard hayride” candle could not do much harm.
Then Rhys Penhallow, Vivi’s gorgeous and infuriating ex, returns to Graves Glen to restore the town’s magical ley lines and attend its fall festival. Almost immediately, strange disasters start following him, forcing Vivi to wonder whether her old breakup curse was more powerful than she realized.
Soon, the town is dealing with murderous wind-up toys, an angry ghost, and a talking cat, while Vivi and Rhys are left to clean up the mess together. With their chemistry making things even more complicated, they have to save Graves Glen and undo Vivi’s curse before it gets any worse.
The Ex Hex was a less satisfying read than I hoped it would be, and I think the reason is that Erin Sterling is the pen name of Rachel Hawkins, who started her career writing young adult (YA) novels before expanding into adult fiction and paranormal romcoms. And you can tell with The Ex Hex, because the storyline, the hijinks, the romance… it was all a lil’ too YA for my liking.
Do not get me wrong, I am a lover of young adult, but preferably when I am deliberately reading it. I went into The Ex Hex expecting a more mature read, but that is not what I got. It was enjoyable enough for me to rate it 3 stars, but not enjoyable enough to make me want to read the rest of the books in the Graves Glen Series.
** A guide to ratings **
1 star – did not like it
2 stars – it was okay
3 stars – liked it
4 stars – really liked it
5 stars – it was amazing