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2428 ratings | 651 reviews | avg rating:3.85

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Ray Hecht

Goodreads Author

Website

https://linktr.ee/rayhecht

Genre

Fiction, Memoir, Comics

Influences

Irvine Welsh, William S. Burroughs, James Joyce, Grant Morrison, Danie ...more

Member Since

January 2008

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/rayhecht

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Ray Hecht was raised in America, from the Midwest to the West Coast, on a starchy diet of movies and comics and science fiction paperbacks. Mostly writing about such states as California and Ohio, and such provinces as Guangdong. Lived in Shenzhen, China since 2008, that Special Economic Zone & Hong Kong-bordering chaotic city of the future, occasionally partaking in freelance journalism for various local publications. Ray now lives in Taiwan.

350 posts
Ray Hecht's Blog

Podcasts: Radio Taiwan International’s Geek Out & Formosa File’s The History of Comics Books in Taiwan

I appeared on Radio Taiwan International’s Geek Out podcast to talk with Bronwen Shelwell about our Memories of Taiwan comic anthology. Great conversation with host Michelle Chiang, about the creative process and our favorite comic stories in the book, a fun exchange all around:

https://www.rti.org.tw/en/programnews?uid=4&pid=113125

I also appeared on the Formosa Files po

Combine Editions
Ray Hecht’s books

Average rating: 3.79 · 381 ratings · 206 reviews · 19 distinct works • Similar authors

	Always Goodbye 3.83 avg rating — 75 ratings — published 2019 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	South China Morning Blues 3.94 avg rating — 65 ratings — published 2015	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	2020: A Year in Taiwan 4.17 avg rating — 30 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Visions of Taiwan # 1 by Ray Hecht (Goodreads Author), Fabienne Good, Jon Renzella (Goodreads Author) 3.71 avg rating — 28 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Saturnine, In Her Head, Out of Time 3.84 avg rating — 25 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Pearl River Drama: Dating in China - A Memoir 3.44 avg rating — 27 ratings — published 2015 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	This Modern Love 3.25 avg rating — 24 ratings — published 2016 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	411 3.47 avg rating — 19 ratings — published 2013 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Visions of Taiwan # 2 by Ray Hecht (Goodreads Author), Angela Sauceda, Bronwen Shelwell 4.13 avg rating — 16 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Ghost of Lotus Mountain Brothel really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 9 ratings — published 2013 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Ray is Currently Reading

Ray is currently reading

X-Men Epic Collection, Vol. 17: Dissolution & Rebirth

by Chris Claremont

bookshelves: comics, marvel, x-men, superhero, currently-reading

read in March 2023

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Ray said: " This was the official beginning of the 1990s X-Men, heading towards the climax of the multi-decades-long Chris Claremont saga, and that makes for a confusing read.

Before the best-selling renumbered X-Men # 1, before the animated series status quo so This was the official beginning of the 1990s X-Men, heading towards the climax of the multi-decades-long Chris Claremont saga, and that makes for a confusing read.

Before the best-selling renumbered X-Men # 1, before the animated series status quo so many think of when they hear “the X-Men”, there was this transitionary time when the 80s had to wrap up in order to begin anew.

After the mutant team gave up and left Australian Outback, they went through the mystical Siege Perilous and ended up all over the world. In the premiere of superstar artist Jim Lee’s first issue, Storm seemingly dies (later it’s revealed she’s transformed into a child… yes, it’s confusing. That storyline did introduce the gentleman thief Gambit).

Then Wolverine and Jubilee go on the run, where they meet Psylocke who has been transformed into an Asian ninja—this happened to be due to Iron Man villain the Mandarin, during the Acts of Vengeance storyline in fact. That trope has aged a bit poorly, I admit, but this iteration of Psylocke sure looks cool.

In the meantime, there are many sub-par issues about the extremely slow-building Shadow King storyline on Muir Isle. The focus turns to Banshee and Forge for some reason, as if there weren’t enough characters, with mysterious psychic forces manipulating everyone. There’s also a buildup towards a showdown with apartheid-analogue nation of Genosha, crossover event scheduled for the next graphic novel, and amnesiac Colossus and Dazzler show up here and there along with Jean Grey and many weird bad guys.

Taking each chapter individually, there are a lot of high-quality stories in this collection. As a whole, it felt like too much. So many overlapping plot threads made it increasingly difficult to keep track of what the heck was going on, and in retrospect one can’t blame Marvel for soon wiping the slate clean and starting over.

Can only recommend for the most hardcore of fans, those who know all the backstory and can’t get enough. Still, that’s what used to make superhero comics fun. Eventually, it all becomes too much and reboots are inevitable. Note that this pattern is even happening to the superhero genre in film nowadays…

Anyway, it’s not the best X-Men ever, but Jim Lee and Gambit and ninja Psylocke would all be necessary elements to fully understand the mad decade that was the 90s. ...more "

Mar 19, 2023 09:01PM · see review

Ray is currently reading

There Is No Antimemetics Division

by qntm (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: novels, currently-reading, sci-fic

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Sep 18, 2026 08:22PM

Ray is currently reading

Once & Future Deluxe Edition, Book 1

by Kieron Gillen

bookshelves: currently-reading, comics, fantasy, indie

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Sep 17, 2026 07:12PM

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Ray and 59 other people liked Gianfranco Mancini's review of Batman: Arkham Asylum - A Serious House on Serious Earth: " Absolutely not just a graphic-novel. This is a dream-like lynchian descent into madness. Best Dark Knight story ever with "The Dark Knight returns" and "The Killing Joke". A masterwork." Read more of this review »
Sep 24, 2026 12:31AM · see review
Ray rated a book really liked it Batman: Arkham Asylum - A Serious House on Serious Earth by Grant Morrison	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Better than The Killing Joke, but not as good as Grant Morrison's later Batman run, the Arkham Asylum graphic novel has gorgeous art by Dave McKean (of Sandman covers fame). And yet Batman doesn't really feel like a superhero protagonist in this, and ...more
Sep 24, 2026 12:31AM · 16 likes · like · see review
Ray rated a book really liked it Etna by Paul Yoon	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 21, 2026 04:53PM · 9 likes · like
Ray started reading X-Men Epic Collection, Vol. 17: Dissolution & Rebirth by Chris Claremont	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 19, 2026 07:02AM · 6 likes · like
Ray started reading Etna by Paul Yoon	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 19, 2026 01:00AM · 4 likes · like
Ray started reading There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 18, 2026 08:21PM · 4 likes · like
Ray made a comment on his status in Once & Future Deluxe Edition, Book 1 " Zachary wrote: "Once and Future is so much fun" I love Kieron Gillen, really enjoying the read so far ...more "
Sep 18, 2026 05:20AM

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Ray’s Quotes

“We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.”
― Kurt Vonnegut, Mother Night

tags: action, attitude, choice, imagination, inspiration, life, pretend

18139 likes

“Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy.”
― H.L. Mencken, A Mencken Chrestomathy

tags: attitude, definitions, fear, happiness, orthodoxy, puritanism, strictness

524 likes

“Never believe that anti-Semites are completely unaware of the absurdity of their replies. They know that their remarks are frivolous, open to challenge. But they are amusing themselves, for it is their adversary who is obliged to use words responsibly, since he believes in words. The anti-Semites have the right to play. They even like to play with discourse for, by giving ridiculous reasons, they discredit the seriousness of their interlocutors. They delight in acting in bad faith, since they seek not to persuade by sound argument but to intimidate and disconcert. If you press them too closely, they will abruptly fall silent, loftily indicating by some phrase that the time for argument is past.”
― Jean-Paul Sartre

657 likes

“Men are afraid that women will laugh at them. Women are afraid that men will kill them.”
― Margaret Atwood

tags: apocryphal, feminism

4022 likes

“It was, of course, nothing more than sexism, the especially virulent type espoused by male techies who sincerely believe that they are too smart to be sexists.”
― Neal Stephenson, Snow Crash

125 likes

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Ray’s Friend Comments

Comments (showing 1-4) post a comment »

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message 4: by Blake

Mar 13, 2026 07:30AM

Hi, Ray! I am more than thankful to find someone who truly puts their time into weighing out all of the necessities for when it comes to finding info! How do I see if there's a book you've read, because I would love to read your review? I want to read your 'Less Is More by Jason Hickel' if you've done it? Many thanks :)

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message 3: by Ziznase

May 29, 2021 08:24AM

merhaba.teşekkürler arkadaşlığınıza. daha çok yazılarınız olması dileğimle. güzel günler dilerim. saygılar

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message 2: by Treece

Jun 27, 2017 01:37PM

Hello, Ray. Thanks so much for the friend request. Keep up the good work and much success in your writing.

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message 1: by Majenta

Mar 01, 2017 03:25PM

Hello, Ray! Thanks for contacting me. Congratulations on your books! Happy reading, writing, and everything else. Blessings!

Best wishes from Majenta

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Ray Hecht’s Followers (430)

Ray Hecht

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