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The Hangman
Kente Cromwell Sr. is murdered by his neighbors for committing adultery with one of his neighbor's wives. He escapes purgatory by making a deal with a demon, which includes him avenging his death and sending the souls of his killers to the underworld. He returns to earth with new demonic powers and a new name - the Hangman. However, things don't go as he plans and he reluctantly gets involved in war for the fate of mankind between demons, angels, vampires and vampire hunters. His newfound powers are the key to the war and he must decide to join the demon whose powers he possesses or join the angel who has sworn to destroy him and return him to purgatory.
- GenresParanormal
327 pages, Hardcover
First published September 27, 2014
3 people are currently reading
321 people want to read
About the author
Dee Rose
17 books41 followersDee Rose was born in Gary, Indiana and now resides in Denver, Colorado with his two beautiful daughters, Nadia, and Nicole. He has always wanted to write a story involving a vampire slayer from watching television shows such as Supernatural and Angel. He says, “Popcorn books are just like popcorn movies in my opinion. When my readers put down my books, I want to leave them wanting more.”
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
November 2, 2014
An unlikely hero? A self-obsessed adulterer who got what he deserved? Who is the Hangman? Once called Kente Cromwell Sr., an adulterer who was murdered for his sin, a deal with a demon saves him from purgatory and sets him on a path of vengeance against those who killed him. But will the cost be too high for the Hangman to pay as he is given demonic powers, mirroring his creator in exchange for the souls of his murderers?
A war for the fate of humanity is being waged and the Hangman finds his quest interrupted as he realizes he must take a stand, choose a side and deal with the consequences. Demons, angels, vampires and vampire hunters will battle to the final death and the Hangman may be the key to winning. Should he remain a pawn to the demon or stand on the side of good and seal his fate to return to purgatory forever? Has the Hangman finally learned to look beyond what he wants and risk his eternal soul for the good of mankind?
The Hangman by Dee Rose is NOT your run-of-the- mill good versus evil paranormal fantasy. There are ancient enemies, the battle between good and evil with humans in the balance, but there is also attitude. What kind, you ask? Street attitude, contemporary attitude, snark, humor and a cast of characters that often stretch our preconceived mold we have placed them in. I admit, it did take me a few pages to fall in line, but after that, these heroes/anti-heroes were humorous, brave and had feelings for those around them. How often can you get lost in a book whose author chose to break off the beaten path and set his own course? These characters were unique, and there is so much to build on for future books where we can get to know them better.
Dee Rose’s world is fast-paced, intense and each scene reflects the chaos going on. There aren’t many smooth transitions, but the battle waged had its ups and downs to match. Pay attention or you will miss out on some great action and dialogue, which I must say, is real, and not what one would expect from the ancients involved. I would like to see more from this author, as he continues to develop his strong style.
I received a review copy from Dee Rose in exchange for my honest review.
Publication Date: October 4, 2014
Publisher: Outskirts Press, Inc.
Genre: Paranormal/Urban Fantasy
Print Length: 209 pages
Available From: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Reviewed for: http://tometender.blogspot.com
A war for the fate of humanity is being waged and the Hangman finds his quest interrupted as he realizes he must take a stand, choose a side and deal with the consequences. Demons, angels, vampires and vampire hunters will battle to the final death and the Hangman may be the key to winning. Should he remain a pawn to the demon or stand on the side of good and seal his fate to return to purgatory forever? Has the Hangman finally learned to look beyond what he wants and risk his eternal soul for the good of mankind?
The Hangman by Dee Rose is NOT your run-of-the- mill good versus evil paranormal fantasy. There are ancient enemies, the battle between good and evil with humans in the balance, but there is also attitude. What kind, you ask? Street attitude, contemporary attitude, snark, humor and a cast of characters that often stretch our preconceived mold we have placed them in. I admit, it did take me a few pages to fall in line, but after that, these heroes/anti-heroes were humorous, brave and had feelings for those around them. How often can you get lost in a book whose author chose to break off the beaten path and set his own course? These characters were unique, and there is so much to build on for future books where we can get to know them better.
Dee Rose’s world is fast-paced, intense and each scene reflects the chaos going on. There aren’t many smooth transitions, but the battle waged had its ups and downs to match. Pay attention or you will miss out on some great action and dialogue, which I must say, is real, and not what one would expect from the ancients involved. I would like to see more from this author, as he continues to develop his strong style.
I received a review copy from Dee Rose in exchange for my honest review.
Publication Date: October 4, 2014
Publisher: Outskirts Press, Inc.
Genre: Paranormal/Urban Fantasy
Print Length: 209 pages
Available From: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Reviewed for: http://tometender.blogspot.com
July 8, 2015
*I received this book from the author in exchange for my honest review*
Make a deal with a demon and get to come back with the living and seek revenge?! Heck ya! This book started out very promising to me and got me instantly hooked, unfortunately the story's progression and character introduction and development often left me confused and the story hard to follow. It took me awhile to finish the book as I had to reread sections to try to piece the story together. Unfortunately this story just wasn't for me.
Make a deal with a demon and get to come back with the living and seek revenge?! Heck ya! This book started out very promising to me and got me instantly hooked, unfortunately the story's progression and character introduction and development often left me confused and the story hard to follow. It took me awhile to finish the book as I had to reread sections to try to piece the story together. Unfortunately this story just wasn't for me.
January 8, 2015
The story begins very promising: a story about a man who, after being murdered, makes a deal with a demon to return into the living world for revenge. We follow the Hangman on his killing spree and get a glimpse of the police puzzling over his gruesome legacy. While anticipating a straight suspenseful horror-thriller with a creepy main character, the plot unexpectedly takes a turn and the Hangman is thrown into the middle of the age-old war of good against evil, including a grumpy angel, vampires and vampire hunters.
Suddenly, the story jumps into the past revealing some background and introducing a number of vampires and vampire hunters who take turns killing each other. However, all these plots are connected too loosely. New characters are thrown in just to be killed at the end of each chapter and I wondered about their significance for the main plot. Suddenly, vampires and vampire hunters become the main focus of the story, while the Hangman retreats to a pitiful sidekick position.
At the beginning we learn about a set of magic rings, whereof the Hangman holds one in his possession. While I would have appreciated more information about their origin, the following flashback chapters suddenly focus on a magic sword serving the generations of vampire hunters. My impression was that the author couldn't decide between telling a horror story about an avenging demon and a story about a vampire war, so he decided to mix both into one.
Unfortunately, there is no seamless transition between chapters, which stand on their own instead of meshing into a smooth plot. While each scene may have some entertainment value of its own, their sequence does not make a satisfying story.
The author sure knows how to vividly describe an entertaining fighting scene, but the dialogues, which also play a great part in the presentation of characters, are very simple in contrast. Also, I noticed some remaining typing errors, which while not distracting the reading flow could be easily erased by another round of proof reading.
In the end, I didn't care much about any of the characters or whether they survived (yet another) battle. While there are several entertaining chapters, especially the first ones, and also some fascinating ideas, the book as a whole did not work for me.
(I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review)
Suddenly, the story jumps into the past revealing some background and introducing a number of vampires and vampire hunters who take turns killing each other. However, all these plots are connected too loosely. New characters are thrown in just to be killed at the end of each chapter and I wondered about their significance for the main plot. Suddenly, vampires and vampire hunters become the main focus of the story, while the Hangman retreats to a pitiful sidekick position.
At the beginning we learn about a set of magic rings, whereof the Hangman holds one in his possession. While I would have appreciated more information about their origin, the following flashback chapters suddenly focus on a magic sword serving the generations of vampire hunters. My impression was that the author couldn't decide between telling a horror story about an avenging demon and a story about a vampire war, so he decided to mix both into one.
Unfortunately, there is no seamless transition between chapters, which stand on their own instead of meshing into a smooth plot. While each scene may have some entertainment value of its own, their sequence does not make a satisfying story.
The author sure knows how to vividly describe an entertaining fighting scene, but the dialogues, which also play a great part in the presentation of characters, are very simple in contrast. Also, I noticed some remaining typing errors, which while not distracting the reading flow could be easily erased by another round of proof reading.
In the end, I didn't care much about any of the characters or whether they survived (yet another) battle. While there are several entertaining chapters, especially the first ones, and also some fascinating ideas, the book as a whole did not work for me.
(I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review)
October 31, 2014
Fatal for Tachophobic
First of all a huge thanks to the author and his team for providing me with a copy of this book. But unfortunately I come bearing bad news.
The Hangman no doubt has a very interesting plot but unfortunately succumbs to a hasty execution. The story starts with a particular direction, deviates to another and then to another path and by the end of the book it feels nothing in line to how it started.
I loved the plot but unfortunately the pace was really fast and kept dodging the main elements.
The development and the turn of events are too fast that you do not get time to get accustomed to the characters and the plot.
The irony is that even though the book is titled Hangman, the book is way broader than the character hangman and it comes down to be a miniscule portion of the whole book.
The language while being simple, at times feels out of theme since it is difficult to digest when characters coming from vintage backgrounds starts speaking modern day lingo and cuss words. The death bringer for this book is its lack of proper progression and blending of story elements.
The book is more like a movie script, like a scene to scene written version of a movie which is not something that can hold the readers of a book for too long. The pace kind of hampers the intensity and depth of the book. Also I could not help noticing tiny grammatical errors here and there.
The book had an interesting plot to work around but a lack of schematic development made the entire work a bit vapid. The book brings in a lot of themes and keeps deviating itself amidst these and the rapid pace of the book makes it difficult to immerse oneself into the plot since there is no gradual or proper build up to the plot. The book is more or less like small blocks that is barely connected together.
How was it?
First of all a huge thanks to the author and his team for providing me with a copy of this book. But unfortunately I come bearing bad news.
The Hangman no doubt has a very interesting plot but unfortunately succumbs to a hasty execution. The story starts with a particular direction, deviates to another and then to another path and by the end of the book it feels nothing in line to how it started.
I loved the plot but unfortunately the pace was really fast and kept dodging the main elements.
The development and the turn of events are too fast that you do not get time to get accustomed to the characters and the plot.
The irony is that even though the book is titled Hangman, the book is way broader than the character hangman and it comes down to be a miniscule portion of the whole book.
The language while being simple, at times feels out of theme since it is difficult to digest when characters coming from vintage backgrounds starts speaking modern day lingo and cuss words. The death bringer for this book is its lack of proper progression and blending of story elements.
The book is more like a movie script, like a scene to scene written version of a movie which is not something that can hold the readers of a book for too long. The pace kind of hampers the intensity and depth of the book. Also I could not help noticing tiny grammatical errors here and there.
The book had an interesting plot to work around but a lack of schematic development made the entire work a bit vapid. The book brings in a lot of themes and keeps deviating itself amidst these and the rapid pace of the book makes it difficult to immerse oneself into the plot since there is no gradual or proper build up to the plot. The book is more or less like small blocks that is barely connected together.
How was it?
October 25, 2014
It's my book and even I can't get enough of it
November 3, 2014
This book was a good one. I enjoy anything that deals in the paranormal or super natural so I was captured from the beginning. Then as I read I got even more involved as this book keeps you on the edge of your seat wondering what will come next. Though i had never heard of this author he quickly became a favorite and I look forward to reading more books by him.
If you enjoy a little super natural adventure and enjoy reading what translates into a great thriller then this is the book for you. I highly recommended it.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for my honest opinion.
November 13, 2014
I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. What drives someone to evil? Other than being a cheater, Kente was an average guy. He paid a high price for his cheating ways. While not a fan of evildoers, I could understand his need for revenge. I enjoyed this book, as I am a big paranormal fan. Angels, demons, vampires, mortals with special powers, good stuff. I was kept entertained following Kente's journey. This was a unique read, in a good way!
October 2, 2014
My best work yet!!
November 27, 2014
won this book on first reads. good read well written.
November 11, 2014
original review @ JC's Book Haven.
"Be warned, Kente." Frank took a deep breath and exhaled. "Once you use a spell from this journal, it does something to you."
"Like what?"
"It's in the beginning of the journal. My father said he started feeling weird. He started wanting to use more and more black magic like it was an addictive drug."Frank shook his head. "The ideal of attaining more power consumed him. I'm counting on your good nature to resist that."
The Good
I liked how he brought four different types together to make the hero team. A vampire slayer that's chosen by a magical blade gifted to the first Vampire Hunter. A demon hunter following in his father’s footsteps. And then The hangman and the Angel sent to bring him back to purgatory. I loved all the different enemies they get to face from vampires to Demon possessed psychopaths. Something else I really enjoyed is the snarky moments sprinkled throughout the book. It's not all serious doom and gloom.
The Bad
It did start off a bit slow for me. Rose takes the time to lay background for The Hangman and then bounced suddenly to other characters in the story. At first I wasn't a fan, but as you see why the time is taken to lay out background for the 4 heroes, it makes sense.
The Romance
No real romance to speak though it does have a bit of lust in the beginning.
Conclusion
Overall, I really liked The Hangman. While it left me with a few questions, it delivered as far as the fighting and character building went. I felt like I knew each of the heroes, and at the same time I felt I knew who the villains were. More than just evil actions and deeds, you get the chance to know the vampires in particular. If you enjoy vampires or angel and demon books then you should give this one a read.
"Be warned, Kente." Frank took a deep breath and exhaled. "Once you use a spell from this journal, it does something to you."
"Like what?"
"It's in the beginning of the journal. My father said he started feeling weird. He started wanting to use more and more black magic like it was an addictive drug."Frank shook his head. "The ideal of attaining more power consumed him. I'm counting on your good nature to resist that."
The Good
I liked how he brought four different types together to make the hero team. A vampire slayer that's chosen by a magical blade gifted to the first Vampire Hunter. A demon hunter following in his father’s footsteps. And then The hangman and the Angel sent to bring him back to purgatory. I loved all the different enemies they get to face from vampires to Demon possessed psychopaths. Something else I really enjoyed is the snarky moments sprinkled throughout the book. It's not all serious doom and gloom.
The Bad
It did start off a bit slow for me. Rose takes the time to lay background for The Hangman and then bounced suddenly to other characters in the story. At first I wasn't a fan, but as you see why the time is taken to lay out background for the 4 heroes, it makes sense.
The Romance
No real romance to speak though it does have a bit of lust in the beginning.
Conclusion
Overall, I really liked The Hangman. While it left me with a few questions, it delivered as far as the fighting and character building went. I felt like I knew each of the heroes, and at the same time I felt I knew who the villains were. More than just evil actions and deeds, you get the chance to know the vampires in particular. If you enjoy vampires or angel and demon books then you should give this one a read.
November 30, 2014
REVIEW
I have read a couple of Dee Rose's books and they never disappoint. THE HANGMAN is a book that everyone should read. It takes your attention as soon as you open the book. Every time you turn a page you can't help but move closer to the edge of your seat. Those pages just keep turning and turning.
As you read those pages, you keep hoping the end won't come.
It's about a man that is sent to purgatory. It seems he has made a deal with a demon. He, Kente Cromwell, Sr. is sent back to earth with new powers and a new name - The Hangman. He goes to war with vampires, angels, demons and vampire hunters. After that he has a choice to make. Should he stay and join up with the demon or the angel? Who will he choose? He has another choice. Keep his powers or go back to purgatory? I'm not sure about the other readers, but this book will be read again and again. You can't let go of it. The book takes hold of your mind and makes you think what you would do if you were in The Hangman's place. What would you do?
I received a complimentary copy of THE HANGMAN from the author Dee Rose and OutSkirtsPress for my view of this book. No other compensation took place.
I have read a couple of Dee Rose's books and they never disappoint. THE HANGMAN is a book that everyone should read. It takes your attention as soon as you open the book. Every time you turn a page you can't help but move closer to the edge of your seat. Those pages just keep turning and turning.
As you read those pages, you keep hoping the end won't come.
It's about a man that is sent to purgatory. It seems he has made a deal with a demon. He, Kente Cromwell, Sr. is sent back to earth with new powers and a new name - The Hangman. He goes to war with vampires, angels, demons and vampire hunters. After that he has a choice to make. Should he stay and join up with the demon or the angel? Who will he choose? He has another choice. Keep his powers or go back to purgatory? I'm not sure about the other readers, but this book will be read again and again. You can't let go of it. The book takes hold of your mind and makes you think what you would do if you were in The Hangman's place. What would you do?
I received a complimentary copy of THE HANGMAN from the author Dee Rose and OutSkirtsPress for my view of this book. No other compensation took place.
October 25, 2014
Given To Me For An Honest Review
Dee Rose's book The Hangman is a must read. It grabs you, puts you on the edge of your seat and then keeps you there as you turn the page and turn the page and turn pages some more. You will not put it down until you get to the end. It is about a man that is sent to purgatory. He makes a deal with a demon. Kente Cromwell, Sr. is sent back to earth with new powers and a new name - The Hangman. He ends up in a war with vampires, angels, demons and vampire hunters. He then has to decide who he wants to join -- the demon or the angel. Who does he choose? Does he keep his powers or does he go back to purgatory? This book is really, really good. I enjoyed reading it. And believe me you will want to re-read it again. I gave this book 5 stars but it really deserves at least 10+. I highly recommend this book to everyone. I look forward to more from Dee Rose.
Dee Rose's book The Hangman is a must read. It grabs you, puts you on the edge of your seat and then keeps you there as you turn the page and turn the page and turn pages some more. You will not put it down until you get to the end. It is about a man that is sent to purgatory. He makes a deal with a demon. Kente Cromwell, Sr. is sent back to earth with new powers and a new name - The Hangman. He ends up in a war with vampires, angels, demons and vampire hunters. He then has to decide who he wants to join -- the demon or the angel. Who does he choose? Does he keep his powers or does he go back to purgatory? This book is really, really good. I enjoyed reading it. And believe me you will want to re-read it again. I gave this book 5 stars but it really deserves at least 10+. I highly recommend this book to everyone. I look forward to more from Dee Rose.
October 4, 2015
"The Hangman" by author Dee Rose asks an age old question. If you had a chance to go back to avenge your death what would you do? Just as The Hangman is murdered a war has started. Good and evil are not going to stop until one of them is defeated. But, who should he help? A vampire slayer, an angel and a demon hunter, or the vampires and demons who have brought him back with powers? It is a decision that might change everything as we know it. I give this book a 4/5. I was given this book for a review and these are all my opinions.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews