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Hexcommunicated
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The name is Tepes. Nicolae Tepes. I'm a federal agent with Hex Division. When the sun comes up, the girl of my dreams is going to kill me.
My partner's a werewolf, but we get along okay. We were investigating this murder when we stumbled across a conspiracy unlike anything we've ever dealt with before. Ghostmortems, Scarevoyants, all kinds of freaks.
It started bad and got worse quick: a psychic on our team had a vision of the future. At sunrise, I'll die at the hands of the woman I love, and then a psychotic death cult will deploy a supernatural weapon of mass destruction.
We've got eight hours to prevent this prophecy from coming true, but the psychics of Hex Division are never wrong...
Author has stated: I would like to have the series ("Agent Tepes") removed from this (stand-alone) book, as there will be no sequels.
The name is Tepes. Nicolae Tepes. I'm a federal agent with Hex Division. When the sun comes up, the girl of my dreams is going to kill me.
My partner's a werewolf, but we get along okay. We were investigating this murder when we stumbled across a conspiracy unlike anything we've ever dealt with before. Ghostmortems, Scarevoyants, all kinds of freaks.
It started bad and got worse quick: a psychic on our team had a vision of the future. At sunrise, I'll die at the hands of the woman I love, and then a psychotic death cult will deploy a supernatural weapon of mass destruction.
We've got eight hours to prevent this prophecy from coming true, but the psychics of Hex Division are never wrong...
Author has stated: I would like to have the series ("Agent Tepes") removed from this (stand-alone) book, as there will be no sequels.
286 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 7, 2012
3 people are currently reading
42 people want to read
About the author
Rafael Chandler
24 books40 followersRafael Chandler writes novels (The Astounding Antagonists, Hexcommunicated), video games (SOCOM 4, Rainbow Six: Lockdown), and tabletop role-playing games (ViewScream, Pandemonio). He's a metalhead, kaijuphile, gamer, and gorehound.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
October 12, 2012
Nick Tepes is a Vampoule – a synthetic vampire created by the government to fight terrorists after the destruction of Providence by tentacled monstrosities in Y2K. It’s a new world, one with arcane terrorist attacks whipping out cities and he, along with Zheng, a Fearwolf, are agents travelling the world to stop it.
But there is an attack due far closer to home and some rogue FAE, enhanced beings, that don’t make any sense. He can follow orders and be decommissioned, let the attack go ahead and accept his new, questionable boss – or he and his team can go rogue and figure out what’s really going on and try to do what they were made for – save lives
On the run from CIA, they have to investigate this new massive scale attack – but quickly find themselves neck deep in complexities – not least of which is their own agency’s illicit testing of a weapon that should never have been created and the involvement of FAE agents from 2 foreign governments – with their own super-weapons, ready to deploy.
This world has an excellently unique premise. Terrorist organisations and world governments are using weapons of mass destruction, but not conventional explosions. These are created to cause as much terror as destruction – using lovecraftian horrors, zombie plagues and other scourges out of humanity’s nightmares. After the destruction of Providence at Y2k, governments pushed the envelopes in their experiments to change their best and their brightest into super soldiers.
Unfortunately, super soldiers tended to become non-functional, unable to deal with the changes in their bodies – their best and their brightest didn’t work well either. But picking people with the right mental profile (frequently mentally ill people) and then changing them not into super heroes, but into the monsters of legend was far more functional and had the advantage of being extra frightening for their opponents.
So we have the super strength, speed and healing – but also Nick, the Vampoule, with detachable fangs he can load up with different chemicals for injecting and the red-filtered nictitating membrane for night vision. Zheng, a Fearwolf, with metal claws and fangs and bristling fur that launches a hallucinogenic drug causing fear. The Soultergeist telekinetics and the Frankenstitch with his massive synthetic muscles – all the creatures of legend and Urban Fantasy produced through artificial means. It’s pretty unique and really well done.
The story is excellently paced, full of action, character growth and with enough red herrings, questions and twists to keep me riveted and excited throughout the book. There was nothing that needed to be edited out and equally nothing that needed to be developed further – it was perfectly balanced. The characters are very real and endearing – I liked all of them, Zheng, Nick, Else, they were all very real, very engaging and very relatable characters.
I started this book and I was worried. We had a cast made of people who had fled persecution in foreign countries, Nick as a Rroma fleeing Ceausescu Romania and Zheng fleeing China, both to become US government agents, fighting Middle Eastern-sounding terrorists in foreign countries across the world to save the nation for all good and true people. I cringed, I worried, I had visions of “Team America World police” and prepared for the snark I would have to write.
But, thankfully, the book didn’t go that way. For a start, Al-Hazared seemed to be made up of monsters – pale, white monsters at that – and wasn’t the primary foe anyway. There was far more of a Cold War feel to the book that “noble true westerners face evil terrorists” with world governments using ever more dangerous and devastating technology to throw at each other in ever more sinister and ever less ethical means. The enemy governments are cruel users of people seeking to create the perfect mass weapon – and so are the western governments as well. Ultra-patriotism is linked to, at best, naivety and just as often cruelty, callousness and down-right evil; the architects behind these atrocities are considered evil no matter which side they’re on. Blinkered loyalty is presented as both foolish and immoral, obeying your orders without question is similarly condemned and the excuse of “just following orders” or “it’s for my country’s safety” is firmly stamped down.
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But there is an attack due far closer to home and some rogue FAE, enhanced beings, that don’t make any sense. He can follow orders and be decommissioned, let the attack go ahead and accept his new, questionable boss – or he and his team can go rogue and figure out what’s really going on and try to do what they were made for – save lives
On the run from CIA, they have to investigate this new massive scale attack – but quickly find themselves neck deep in complexities – not least of which is their own agency’s illicit testing of a weapon that should never have been created and the involvement of FAE agents from 2 foreign governments – with their own super-weapons, ready to deploy.
This world has an excellently unique premise. Terrorist organisations and world governments are using weapons of mass destruction, but not conventional explosions. These are created to cause as much terror as destruction – using lovecraftian horrors, zombie plagues and other scourges out of humanity’s nightmares. After the destruction of Providence at Y2k, governments pushed the envelopes in their experiments to change their best and their brightest into super soldiers.
Unfortunately, super soldiers tended to become non-functional, unable to deal with the changes in their bodies – their best and their brightest didn’t work well either. But picking people with the right mental profile (frequently mentally ill people) and then changing them not into super heroes, but into the monsters of legend was far more functional and had the advantage of being extra frightening for their opponents.
So we have the super strength, speed and healing – but also Nick, the Vampoule, with detachable fangs he can load up with different chemicals for injecting and the red-filtered nictitating membrane for night vision. Zheng, a Fearwolf, with metal claws and fangs and bristling fur that launches a hallucinogenic drug causing fear. The Soultergeist telekinetics and the Frankenstitch with his massive synthetic muscles – all the creatures of legend and Urban Fantasy produced through artificial means. It’s pretty unique and really well done.
The story is excellently paced, full of action, character growth and with enough red herrings, questions and twists to keep me riveted and excited throughout the book. There was nothing that needed to be edited out and equally nothing that needed to be developed further – it was perfectly balanced. The characters are very real and endearing – I liked all of them, Zheng, Nick, Else, they were all very real, very engaging and very relatable characters.
I started this book and I was worried. We had a cast made of people who had fled persecution in foreign countries, Nick as a Rroma fleeing Ceausescu Romania and Zheng fleeing China, both to become US government agents, fighting Middle Eastern-sounding terrorists in foreign countries across the world to save the nation for all good and true people. I cringed, I worried, I had visions of “Team America World police” and prepared for the snark I would have to write.
But, thankfully, the book didn’t go that way. For a start, Al-Hazared seemed to be made up of monsters – pale, white monsters at that – and wasn’t the primary foe anyway. There was far more of a Cold War feel to the book that “noble true westerners face evil terrorists” with world governments using ever more dangerous and devastating technology to throw at each other in ever more sinister and ever less ethical means. The enemy governments are cruel users of people seeking to create the perfect mass weapon – and so are the western governments as well. Ultra-patriotism is linked to, at best, naivety and just as often cruelty, callousness and down-right evil; the architects behind these atrocities are considered evil no matter which side they’re on. Blinkered loyalty is presented as both foolish and immoral, obeying your orders without question is similarly condemned and the excuse of “just following orders” or “it’s for my country’s safety” is firmly stamped down.
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September 13, 2012
HEXCOMMUNICATED centers around an operative in Hex Division (Hermetic Extropy Division), a next-generation cybernetic clan of soldiers. Agent Tepes, a Vampoule, has recently learned through a psychic vision (not his own) that he is going to be killed—soon—and he's also just been hexcommunicated from his division. So he's on the run, and forced to solve the mystery of his forthcoming murder all in this neat, tightly-plotted story that takes place over just a few hours.
Governments have been experimenting since WWII in all sorts of interesting cybernetic alterations to normal mortal men, and a few are interestingly named Nosferodents, Psychanthropes, Fearwolves and telekenetic Soultergeists. I know, the names initially sound kinda funny, but they really are quite clever once you embrace the fun aspects that are threaded throughout this story. As well, the world-building is incredibly creative and clever. Coming from an author who has written video games, I would expect the tight action and inventive characters, but what proved a real treat was the emotion Chandler wove into the story. And yes, there was even a teeny bit of romance and some bits of feelings about that relationship from the hero's POV. Those insights crafted a well-rounded hero that I think most readers will be able to relate to (even those who normally only read paranormal romance; like me).
One of my favorite 'creatures' was the Skelekenetic, who unleashes an bloody fury on the hero through Handroids. Yeah, Handroids are kind of exactly what they sound like. Disembodied hands cybernetically altered to kill. Loved it! Eventually an entire army of zombies—yes, Chandler even manages to squeeze zombies into this creature-fest—stalks the hero who is more of an anti-hero, in my opinion.
By the end of the story you will be routing for the clan of misfits gathered by Agent Tepes to solve his mystery. Favorite line spoken by the hero: "I'm a fruit bat." You'll smile at that one, and be glad you picked up the book to read.
For an action-packed non-stop ride through a wild and wacky world of cyber-enhanced creatures, you should check out Hexcommunicated. The writing is smart, snappy, and the worldbuilding is A+.
Governments have been experimenting since WWII in all sorts of interesting cybernetic alterations to normal mortal men, and a few are interestingly named Nosferodents, Psychanthropes, Fearwolves and telekenetic Soultergeists. I know, the names initially sound kinda funny, but they really are quite clever once you embrace the fun aspects that are threaded throughout this story. As well, the world-building is incredibly creative and clever. Coming from an author who has written video games, I would expect the tight action and inventive characters, but what proved a real treat was the emotion Chandler wove into the story. And yes, there was even a teeny bit of romance and some bits of feelings about that relationship from the hero's POV. Those insights crafted a well-rounded hero that I think most readers will be able to relate to (even those who normally only read paranormal romance; like me).
One of my favorite 'creatures' was the Skelekenetic, who unleashes an bloody fury on the hero through Handroids. Yeah, Handroids are kind of exactly what they sound like. Disembodied hands cybernetically altered to kill. Loved it! Eventually an entire army of zombies—yes, Chandler even manages to squeeze zombies into this creature-fest—stalks the hero who is more of an anti-hero, in my opinion.
By the end of the story you will be routing for the clan of misfits gathered by Agent Tepes to solve his mystery. Favorite line spoken by the hero: "I'm a fruit bat." You'll smile at that one, and be glad you picked up the book to read.
For an action-packed non-stop ride through a wild and wacky world of cyber-enhanced creatures, you should check out Hexcommunicated. The writing is smart, snappy, and the worldbuilding is A+.
September 1, 2012
I went into the novel with some trepidation--the concept ("an urban fantasy thriller set in a world of cybernetic werewolves, undead spies, and Lovecraftian terrorists") sounded fun, but I wasn't confident that the author would pull it off. He did. This was a solid first novel and the plot and setting were a pleasant mix of familiar urban fantasy and military thriller tropes with a twist.
I knew the author because I'd recently picked up a series of role-playing games (the Pandemonium series, including Dread and Spite--which you can pick up for free here) that I really enjoyed. I looked at the author's website and saw that he'd recently published a novel. The writing in the role-playing games was solid, so I had confidence that Chandler could write well. The setting and ideas were also great, so I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt that he'd pull this concept off well. Then I saw that it was on sale for only $0.99 for the Kindle version and I bought it on the spot. I'm glad I did.
I knew the author because I'd recently picked up a series of role-playing games (the Pandemonium series, including Dread and Spite--which you can pick up for free here) that I really enjoyed. I looked at the author's website and saw that he'd recently published a novel. The writing in the role-playing games was solid, so I had confidence that Chandler could write well. The setting and ideas were also great, so I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt that he'd pull this concept off well. Then I saw that it was on sale for only $0.99 for the Kindle version and I bought it on the spot. I'm glad I did.
February 16, 2018
Received from Bewitching Book Tours
Hexcommunicated it's a great book with very interesting world. Government made new kinds of soldiers, with surgeries and implants to make them heroes resembling supernatural beings: vampires, werewolves, Frankensteins,...
Nikolae is vampoule, he has fangs, speed, he can hypnotise people, basically he is super cool :). When investigating crime scene, he and his partner walked into something much worse.
Stumbling into conspiracy, they discover there much more going on than they realised. They discover vision of him dying (and they are never wrong), there is a threat of another terrorist attack and on top of all that, they are about to be Hexcommunicated.
Start of the book is a bit slow, there is a lot of world building and info dump (that is totally necessary), but after that the plot really picks up. It's non stop suspense and action. I was on the edge of my seat. :)
My favourite part were definitely reading about all the supernatural and how they work/were maid.
I love the relationship between him and his partner. I was pulled into the world and I love sci-fi aspect of it.
It would make an amazing movie. :)
December 7, 2012
A very good book - fun, gory, with good characters. Two things kept it from being great:
1. There were a few instances of heavy info dump, especially in the early parts: acronyms, descriptions, cute nicknames... It slowed the pace a bit.
2. I get that Nick was drawn to Else and it was unlike anything he'd felt before, but good grief. If you thought early Harry Dresden was horny, he's not nothing on Nick Tepes. If Harry had thought with his junk as much as Nick does, he never would have survived "Storm Front." It was very distracting
If those two things don't bother you, then by all means, check this book out.
1. There were a few instances of heavy info dump, especially in the early parts: acronyms, descriptions, cute nicknames... It slowed the pace a bit.
2. I get that Nick was drawn to Else and it was unlike anything he'd felt before, but good grief. If you thought early Harry Dresden was horny, he's not nothing on Nick Tepes. If Harry had thought with his junk as much as Nick does, he never would have survived "Storm Front." It was very distracting
If those two things don't bother you, then by all means, check this book out.
November 17, 2012
Nick Tepes finds himself in way over his head which leads to an action packed story. This story is fast paced with enough small breathers to make sure you keep up. It is a well written novel which is sure to grip you from the start and leave you searching for the next instalment. I found the characters to be well thought out and the creatures were fantastic twists on classic mythology. This carries depth of understanding and research without losing itself and getting too serious. A brilliant book for those who love contemporary/urban fantasy, light thrillers and good all round action!
April 17, 2018
I loved this completely different take on the "monsters" we are used to in paranormal and urban fantasy genres.
Chandler's "monsters" are man made creatures created by the government for a secret operation. The monsters are super soldiers that play on old myths and superstitions to create fear. Vampires, werewolves, Frankenstein, psychics... the old myths twisted into reality where science, medicine and madness meet to turn people into weapons.
Hexcommunicated has solid world building, interesting characters and a story that makes you wonder what the hell is really going on. Mystery, madness, and double agents abound in this tale.
My only complaint is that the story will be going full speed ahead then BAM it grinds to a halt due to an info dump or the inner ramblings of the main character thoughts and fears. When a story is moving quickly and really gets the reader involved the last thing you want to do is lose the pace. You can lose a reader. I was interested enough to continue because I got hooked and wanted to know where this story would take me.
Chandler's "monsters" are man made creatures created by the government for a secret operation. The monsters are super soldiers that play on old myths and superstitions to create fear. Vampires, werewolves, Frankenstein, psychics... the old myths twisted into reality where science, medicine and madness meet to turn people into weapons.
Hexcommunicated has solid world building, interesting characters and a story that makes you wonder what the hell is really going on. Mystery, madness, and double agents abound in this tale.
My only complaint is that the story will be going full speed ahead then BAM it grinds to a halt due to an info dump or the inner ramblings of the main character thoughts and fears. When a story is moving quickly and really gets the reader involved the last thing you want to do is lose the pace. You can lose a reader. I was interested enough to continue because I got hooked and wanted to know where this story would take me.
October 2, 2013
I found Hexcommunicated to be a pretty solid first foray into a series, overall. Chandler creatively takes supernatural tropes (vampires, werewolves and such) and turns them into high-tech government agents, attaching clever names to them, all in an effort of putting a unique spin on the detective thriller. It works for the most part, and I was able to suspend my disbelief and go along for the ride. The protagonists are interesting and well-defined. The plot is supercharged high-octane, giving little opportunity for the reader to catch a breath. The book could have used one more pass by an editor, but as indie titles go, it was more professional than most, and I came across only a handful of problems in the text. One of my pet peeves is a first-person narrative, and while Hexcommunicated is written in that perspective the book doesn't entirely suffer for it. Chandler avoids most of the pitfalls inherent in first-person, managing to inject tension into the story without resorting to shenanigans, though I do question the choice of perspective. It ends up causing the antagonists to be a little flatter than they should be because we are stuck in the protagonist's head. I think the story would have been better served from a more objective viewpoint, but it still works as it stands.
July 31, 2016
I decided to try this one because I liked the idea of a UF novel set in my area, but I couldn't drag myself through the whole thing.
The worldbuilding has a good amount of detail, and it's clear a lot of thought went into that. Unfortunately the prose is full of the kind of stylistic quirks that tend to make me wonder if an author writes more than they read.
There's too much jargon and infodumping, and the dialogue is stiff. The hero also rattles off a three page summary of his tragic backstory near the beginning, which cuts off any momentum that might have been building up in the actual mystery plot. I also ran into some grammar and usage errors early on, so an editor might have helped.
The worldbuilding has a good amount of detail, and it's clear a lot of thought went into that. Unfortunately the prose is full of the kind of stylistic quirks that tend to make me wonder if an author writes more than they read.
There's too much jargon and infodumping, and the dialogue is stiff. The hero also rattles off a three page summary of his tragic backstory near the beginning, which cuts off any momentum that might have been building up in the actual mystery plot. I also ran into some grammar and usage errors early on, so an editor might have helped.
August 12, 2012
FINALLY, a book with urban fantasy characters that don't sparkle or cry over pet humans. I enjoyed the different take on the genre here. It combines the best parts of military thrillers and old school monster stories. Really, really creative.
March 25, 2013
A wonderful mix of laugh out loud word plays and sinister possibilities. Conspiracies which are real and fabricated people who have characterises of myths and legends made real. It could be e stuff of night ares, but the humour is a critical element.
April 4, 2013
Government created super-agents go rogue to stop a foreign plot.
The US government turns a semi-sociopath into a vampire to work for the CIA.
The future of foreign policy?
Action, intrigue, character, novelty, action, entertainment. And lots of people die.
The US government turns a semi-sociopath into a vampire to work for the CIA.
The future of foreign policy?
Action, intrigue, character, novelty, action, entertainment. And lots of people die.
November 28, 2012
Great action-adventure sci-fi book that moves as quickly as any movie. The end will leave you breathless, looking forward to the sequel, and grinning madly.
April 26, 2013
Overall, I was happy with the story and that it kept me guessing at times. I was very disappointed with the proofing and a couple of continuity issues, particularly close to the end of the book.
October 2, 2013
I could cheerfully have throttled Else, the toxically-twee PI, and occasionally the author's research felt shoehorned in, but an entertaining read apart from that.
July 22, 2012
Dark, twisted, gruesome, outrageous, and awesome.
January 26, 2017
There are a few nice puns. The plot is wafer thin and basically an excuse to have a lot of characters fight. The protagonist, agent Tepes from the title, sometimes seems like a well rounded character but never gets there. There is a lot of heavy handed flashback exposition that just doesn't engage.
Plot: absent
Characters: props for fight scenes
Style: decent
Dialogue: decent
Setting: meagre
Plot: absent
Characters: props for fight scenes
Style: decent
Dialogue: decent
Setting: meagre
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews