Reviewed by Annika
TITLE: Hexmaker
SERIES: Hexworld #2
AUTHOR: Jordan L. Hawk
NARRATOR: Tristan James
PUBLISHER: Widdershins Press
RELEASE DATE: January 16, 2017
LENGTH: 7 hours, 52 minutes
BLURB:
A straight-laced policeman. A lighthearted thief.
A murdered millionaire.
Fox shifter Malachi steals for one of the biggest crime rings in New York City. But when he witnesses the murder of a millionaire, the only person who can keep him safe is Dr. Owen Yates, forensic hexman for the Metropolitan Witch Police – and Malachi’s witch.
Owen is horrified to discover his familiar is an uneducated thief. Even worse, Malachi threatens to unleash Owen’s deepest desires…desires Owen can’t act upon, as he’s destined for an arranged marriage to secure the Yates family fortune
Their agreement: Malachi will be Owen’s lover as well as his partner, until the day of the wedding. But as their hunt for the murderer carries them from teeming slums to Fifth Avenue mansions, Owens begins to realize Malachi commands his heart as well as his body.
With dark forces drawing ever closer around them, Owen must decide whether to bow to the demands of duty, or to risk everything for the man he loves.
REVIEW:
This was new, and kind of unexpected, for me with a Jordan L. Hawk series – we follow a new couple for each book. I don’t mind that, but I also wasn’t expecting it – I guess I should do my homework before picking books up. But hey like I said, it’s a book by Hawk so I know it’s going to be good.
You know, they say that stealing can be bad for your health. Someone that quickly realises this is fox shifter and familiar Malachi. He was taken in and trained as a lost youngster and now he steals for New York City’s biggest crime ring. Only his latest heist went terribly wrong as he walked in on his intended victim being murdered. A murder he’s arrested and accused of committing. Enter Owen Yates, hexmaker for the police department and the only one believing in Malachi’s innocence. And he also happens to be his witch, the one person destined for him. Only problem is, Owen also has a fiancé and is scheduled to wed in a few weeks’ time. And let’s not forget the real murderer out there shall we? A murderer intent on silencing the only witness to their crime.
Malachi and Owen are as different as two people can get. They are on different sides of the law and different sides of society. Yet they are drawn to each other like nothing else before. The affair they start is steamy to say the least – and kinkier than previous books by Hawk’s that I’ve had the pleasure to listen to (pun kinda intended). It’s not my cup of tea, but I do know many will enjoy the D/s relationship between them.
With Hexbreaker I had two main issues; the long pauses that took the listener out of the book and the happenings in 19th century New York and the time period that to me makes the book feel like a mix of a contemporary mystery novel and a historical romance. That’s still true in Hexmaker and for me the two don’t gel that well together. While I do understand that hexes makes things possible that otherwise wouldn’t have been, it’s a bit too much. Don’t get me wrong, I love the world Jordan L. Hawk created. I love the idea of the hexes and what they can do (and what terrible things they are used for). However, I’m not really liking the idea of hexes in lieu of modern day sciences and technology. As magical spells and mystical properties I’m all for them, but not as replacements.
Tristan James is a masterful narrator and he performs this tale with ease and there’s no doubt that he knows what he’s doing. He has a great pace and speaks clearly, but whenever he brings out those accents I’m melting just a little bit. There weren’t a lot of them, but every now and then you’re in for a treat.
Hexmaker was far from my favourite book of Hawk’s, probably my least favourite. Then again, that’s all because of my own personal preferences and is of no fault of Hawk or James. That being said, I am looking forward to see what comes next in this world, not the least because I still want Isaac’s story.
RATING: 
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