Monday 12 June 2017

Hex - Thomas Olde Heuvelt

Hex – Thomas Olde Heuvelt



This is the first book I have read by this author, and it is the author’s first debut English novel. When I saw reviews and comments stating this author’s writing style had similarities to that of Stephen King, along with the seriously creepy blurb, I just knew I had to read this. I wasn’t disappointed. I read this book in one sitting, in less than a day. I had been hooked right from the get go.

Whoever is born here, is doomed to stay until death. Whoever comes to stay, never leaves.
Welcome to Black Spring, the seemingly picturesque Hudson Valley town haunted by the Black Rock Witch, a seventeenth-century woman whose eyes and mouth are sewn shut. Blind and silenced, she walks the streets and enters homes at will. She stands next to children's beds for nights on end. So accustomed to her have the townsfolk become that they often forget she's there. Or what a threat she poses. Because if the stitches are ever cut open, the story goes, the whole town will die.
The curse must not be allowed to spread. The elders of Black Spring have used high-tech surveillance to quarantine the town. Frustrated with being kept in lockdown, the town's teenagers decide to break the strict regulations and go viral with the haunting. But, in so doing, they send the town spiralling into a dark nightmare.

The story Hex is told from varying viewpoints of people who live in Black Spring. We have Steve Grant, a doctor working at a school. Whose family were outsiders and moved to Black Spring 20 years ago. Tyler, Steve’s teenage son, and actively involved in Project OYE (Open Your Eyes) with a group of other teenagers. Robert Grim a member of Hex, an organisation in place to keep track of the Black Spring witch, and ensure she is shielded from the outside world, with no risks of exposure. Then finally Griselda Houlst, a widowed butcher’s wife who idolises and worships the witch. I found it so interesting seeing each narrative within this story, so many different views and opinions. Parents merely wanting to protect their family and some going to such extremes in doing so. A teen wanting his freedom back and a man trying to ensure a town remains safe. You were really able to become involved within the story and paint the picture of a town that essentially ran off rules, regulations and out right fear. I felt at moments as if I was watching a horror movie, bracing myself for the jump scares with each page I turned.

Within the first few pages of this book I was a bit confused, with the appearance of ‘Gramma’ as the Grant family called her. At first I thought it was actually a family member until the mention of a cloth covering her face and her being stood in the corner of the room, which made it question how unusual this would be to greet a family member who had come to visit. I found the interactions to be quite funny, and I thought maybe the blurb was far scarier than what the actual book may be. However as the book continues, it soon shifted and started to become much darker. I only realised how much of an affect the witch had on me, when I finished the book and went to turn off the light to go to bed. I had this instant fear that she would be in my room, at the end of my bed. That was when I knew that this novel had sucked me in so much that I was fearful of such a character, which is not so easily done to me. I am always able to disassociate myself from any book I read, so credit to the author there for bringing this character to life with his words.

The novel did take a slight dip in the middle, and I’m still not so sure how I feel about the ending of it all. But the writing and the premise in this book was brilliant. Knowing this was translated from Dutch and the town names had been altered too again is a credit to the author. There were some really emotional pull at your heart string moments in this novel, to which I never realised how invested I was in characters. I almost felt a bit cheated at points due to how invested I was, if things were not heading the way I had hoped for them. This book is dark, incredibly dark. But it made it all that much grittier to read, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I can see how it will not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I love a good scary story, especially one involving witches. Learning the history of the town, and the witch and what has led them to this point was fascinating. But then also seeing how barbaric council members were, in what is essentially a modern day era, was terrifying.

I would say if you like the works of Stephen King, and you like a good horror story. I would say pick this up. It is certainly a book I will tell others about, and I would even say would be a perfect book for the autumn/ winter time when Halloween comes around. What better way to scare you silly than this.

I have given this book 4 out of 5 stars.



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