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SPECTR Series 2 #1-5
SPECTR: The Complete Second Series
“…a fresh take on the vampire genre.” – Reader Review
Caleb has spent the last six months adjusting to life possessed by the vampire spirit Gray and hunting demons with their boyfriend, federal exorcist John Starkweather.
Unfortunately, the other agents of SPECTR view Caleb and Gray as a ticking time bomb. Their frustration mounts as the new district chief puts more and more restrictions on them. John wants to help, but he has problems of his own. Charleston is in the grip of an outbreak of demon possession, and the human members of SPECTR have been pushed to the brink.
But Caleb and Gray have a new ally: the drakul Drugoy and his host Yuri Azarov. Yuri and Dru live by no mortal’s rules, and they can show Caleb and Gray how to do the same…depending on how far they’re willing to go.
Because ultimately Caleb and Gray must decide where they belong: with the only other living drakul, or at the side of the man they love.
SPECTR: The Complete Second Series contains:
Mocker of Ravens
Dancer of Death
Drinker of Blood
Breaker of Chains
Shaker of Earth
Caleb has spent the last six months adjusting to life possessed by the vampire spirit Gray and hunting demons with their boyfriend, federal exorcist John Starkweather.
Unfortunately, the other agents of SPECTR view Caleb and Gray as a ticking time bomb. Their frustration mounts as the new district chief puts more and more restrictions on them. John wants to help, but he has problems of his own. Charleston is in the grip of an outbreak of demon possession, and the human members of SPECTR have been pushed to the brink.
But Caleb and Gray have a new ally: the drakul Drugoy and his host Yuri Azarov. Yuri and Dru live by no mortal’s rules, and they can show Caleb and Gray how to do the same…depending on how far they’re willing to go.
Because ultimately Caleb and Gray must decide where they belong: with the only other living drakul, or at the side of the man they love.
SPECTR: The Complete Second Series contains:
Mocker of Ravens
Dancer of Death
Drinker of Blood
Breaker of Chains
Shaker of Earth
618 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 1, 2019
23 people are currently reading
50 people want to read
About the author
Jordan L. Hawk
84 books2,638 followersJordan L. Hawk is a trans author from North Carolina. Childhood tales of mountain ghosts and mysterious creatures gave him a life-long love of things that go bump in the night. When he isn’t writing, he brews his own beer and tries to keep the cats from destroying the house. His best-selling Whyborne & Griffin series (beginning with Widdershins) can be found in print, ebook, and audiobook.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
March 3, 2020
What a second series with Gray, Caleb and John!!! 😱😲🤗🥰 This one had my emotions going all over the place especially the last part of the series, poor Caleb and Gray seriously got a raw deal 😤😡 with spectr.
November 27, 2019
I'm reviewing the audio version of the complete second series.
The storytelling itself was great - I enjoyed it immensely, especially the last book & a half of the series, which was near constant suspense. I almost switched to print, because I wanted to know how it would all end faster. And then as the ending approached, i didn't want it to end, because well, then it would be over. (I know there's a 3rd series in process, but still). I loved the new side characters introduced, at least the "good guys," and absolutely hated the bad guys, as one should.
So far as the narration...meh. The voices are pretty well differentiated, but not consistent. As in, Gray's voice changes over time, becomes even slower & deeper, and sometimes Caleb appears to have a bit of a southern accent, but other times, he does not. A side character, who is Muslim, begins without an accent, with it specifically mentioned how she has lived in the US all her life, and then in the next book within the volume, she suddenly has a totally different accent. The same occurred with another character, who suddenly had an accent he didn't before. The voice of the old district chief was different in this volume as well. I binge-listened to The Complete First Series as a re-listen, followed immediately by a binge of The Complete Second Series, so this might have been more obvious to me than to someone taking them at a slower & more intermittent pace though.
Over all, I would DEFINITELY recommend the book itself - it is excellent - but if I'd owned the print and had more time to focus on print, I would've switched to that route.
The storytelling itself was great - I enjoyed it immensely, especially the last book & a half of the series, which was near constant suspense. I almost switched to print, because I wanted to know how it would all end faster. And then as the ending approached, i didn't want it to end, because well, then it would be over. (I know there's a 3rd series in process, but still). I loved the new side characters introduced, at least the "good guys," and absolutely hated the bad guys, as one should.
So far as the narration...meh. The voices are pretty well differentiated, but not consistent. As in, Gray's voice changes over time, becomes even slower & deeper, and sometimes Caleb appears to have a bit of a southern accent, but other times, he does not. A side character, who is Muslim, begins without an accent, with it specifically mentioned how she has lived in the US all her life, and then in the next book within the volume, she suddenly has a totally different accent. The same occurred with another character, who suddenly had an accent he didn't before. The voice of the old district chief was different in this volume as well. I binge-listened to The Complete First Series as a re-listen, followed immediately by a binge of The Complete Second Series, so this might have been more obvious to me than to someone taking them at a slower & more intermittent pace though.
Over all, I would DEFINITELY recommend the book itself - it is excellent - but if I'd owned the print and had more time to focus on print, I would've switched to that route.
October 4, 2019
Another excellent story-arc from JLH, filled with excitement, suspense, and emotion.
I posted individual Goodreads reviews of S2-#1–S2-#4, and plan to do the same for #5, but here's my overview. I thought that this boxed set wasn't yet listed on GR when I last checked (a few hours ago) — though I now suspect it was just the colon causing Search problems — so I assumed my review would be just on Amazon for the moment.
There's a lot of thrilling action, but also so much more, enriching the stories. I went down maybe half a star because (A) book 4 of 5 is one screaming humdinger of a cliffhanger, and (B) our guys spend too much time hiding things from each other, despite their deep and passionate love.
Nevertheless, it's very plausible and sympathetic, given the complicated circumstances they find themselves in. Caleb and Gray chafe under the restrictions placed on them, so when they finally meet a pair like themselves (not until the third book, BTW), it's natural that they'd leap at the chance to spend time with someone who understands. Only maybe Yuri and Drugoy don't appreciate mortals and the ephemeral joys of the world the way Gray has come to do, nor the ethical obligations Caleb reluctantly realizes he now believes in.
There are several changes throughout this set, at work and in their personal lives. New supporting characters and human antagonists are introduced. New types of demonic non-humans, from different mythological traditions, prove challenging in the first couple novellas/short novels. Then their world, and eventually all of Charleston, is turned upside down, including a painful estrangement between John and his lovers.
I'll give a semi-spoiler, though, and reassure you that these books may have gory violence, but they don't leave readers with a romantic tragedy: the ending is a hopeful one.
Now I'm back to the agonizing wait for the *next* series to be complete — though if there's a two-halves option again, without a cliffhanger ending the first section, I may do that next time.
EDIT: Oh, I just checked my bookshelf, and the review written on my Kindle made this boxed-set listing appear! Weird, but good news.
I put lots of shelf tags. "mystery" isn't applicable to #5, for instance, and of course neither "cliffhanger" nor "under 160 pages" refers to the set as a whole. I keep debating making a fantasy sub-category for "demons and~or angels", but "demon" can be such a vague term.
I posted individual Goodreads reviews of S2-#1–S2-#4, and plan to do the same for #5, but here's my overview. I thought that this boxed set wasn't yet listed on GR when I last checked (a few hours ago) — though I now suspect it was just the colon causing Search problems — so I assumed my review would be just on Amazon for the moment.
There's a lot of thrilling action, but also so much more, enriching the stories. I went down maybe half a star because (A) book 4 of 5 is one screaming humdinger of a cliffhanger, and (B) our guys spend too much time hiding things from each other, despite their deep and passionate love.
Nevertheless, it's very plausible and sympathetic, given the complicated circumstances they find themselves in. Caleb and Gray chafe under the restrictions placed on them, so when they finally meet a pair like themselves (not until the third book, BTW), it's natural that they'd leap at the chance to spend time with someone who understands. Only maybe Yuri and Drugoy don't appreciate mortals and the ephemeral joys of the world the way Gray has come to do, nor the ethical obligations Caleb reluctantly realizes he now believes in.
There are several changes throughout this set, at work and in their personal lives. New supporting characters and human antagonists are introduced. New types of demonic non-humans, from different mythological traditions, prove challenging in the first couple novellas/short novels. Then their world, and eventually all of Charleston, is turned upside down, including a painful estrangement between John and his lovers.
I'll give a semi-spoiler, though, and reassure you that these books may have gory violence, but they don't leave readers with a romantic tragedy: the ending is a hopeful one.
Now I'm back to the agonizing wait for the *next* series to be complete — though if there's a two-halves option again, without a cliffhanger ending the first section, I may do that next time.
EDIT: Oh, I just checked my bookshelf, and the review written on my Kindle made this boxed-set listing appear! Weird, but good news.
I put lots of shelf tags. "mystery" isn't applicable to #5, for instance, and of course neither "cliffhanger" nor "under 160 pages" refers to the set as a whole. I keep debating making a fantasy sub-category for "demons and~or angels", but "demon" can be such a vague term.
November 16, 2024
phew! What a ride! So happy I waited until the season was complete - I would have died a thousand times if I had had to wait between each book - talk about cliffhangers!
December 3, 2020
The rating might go up after a reread/relisten, but this was probably the wrong time for this book.
April 13, 2020
I read this collection even faster than I did the first one. It’s too bad I can’t give it an even higher rating than 5 stars.
John, Caleb, and Gray are back to doing what they do best — dispatch demons with extreme prejudice. Their world looks very different after the events in the first SPECTR series, and in some ways (thanks to government bureaucracy), completely the same. But Hawk introduces us to newer, badder demons in this collection, finally giving Gray a bit of a fight.
The references to a Russian drakul in the previous series made it pretty obvious that they would have to show up here. I was not disappointed on any front, especially since Hawk is fantastic at taking expectations and completely subverting them. Nothing happened between Caleb/Gray and Yuri/Dru the way I anticipated, and I couldn’t be happier. I again stayed up way too late reading to finish, and I regret nothing.
Once again, Hawk’s effortless inclusion of diversity made me a happy reader. I especially adored new secondary character Zahira, and I hope to see more of her in the future despite the new normal that exists at the end of this series. My use of “demons” in my reviews is a misnomer based on Hawk’s worldbuilding, where these creatures are merely beings from a different plane of existence without a religious framework. So it’s fascinating that the exorcist characters do seem to use religion in the way they interact with the creatures. This applies to Zahira in Hawk’s portrayal of modern Islam, but I’m especially eager to learn in a future story why John worships(?) an almost forgotten Egyptian deity in apparent contrast.
Honestly, I could go on a whole tangent picking apart all the worldbuilding that Hawk does so well in this series. Instead, you should go experience it for yourself.
John, Caleb, and Gray are back to doing what they do best — dispatch demons with extreme prejudice. Their world looks very different after the events in the first SPECTR series, and in some ways (thanks to government bureaucracy), completely the same. But Hawk introduces us to newer, badder demons in this collection, finally giving Gray a bit of a fight.
The references to a Russian drakul in the previous series made it pretty obvious that they would have to show up here. I was not disappointed on any front, especially since Hawk is fantastic at taking expectations and completely subverting them. Nothing happened between Caleb/Gray and Yuri/Dru the way I anticipated, and I couldn’t be happier. I again stayed up way too late reading to finish, and I regret nothing.
Once again, Hawk’s effortless inclusion of diversity made me a happy reader. I especially adored new secondary character Zahira, and I hope to see more of her in the future despite the new normal that exists at the end of this series. My use of “demons” in my reviews is a misnomer based on Hawk’s worldbuilding, where these creatures are merely beings from a different plane of existence without a religious framework. So it’s fascinating that the exorcist characters do seem to use religion in the way they interact with the creatures. This applies to Zahira in Hawk’s portrayal of modern Islam, but I’m especially eager to learn in a future story why John worships(?) an almost forgotten Egyptian deity in apparent contrast.
Honestly, I could go on a whole tangent picking apart all the worldbuilding that Hawk does so well in this series. Instead, you should go experience it for yourself.
June 30, 2020
2020/70: SPECTR: The Complete Second Series -- Jordan L Hawk
There are five short books in this omnibus edition, but I barely noticed the joins.
The second series of SPECTR picks up some months after the end of Series One. John and Caleb (and Gray) are working for SPECTR, but Gray is chafing at the restrictions -- such as caring more about saving possessed mortals than eating the demons possessing them -- and Caleb is uncomfortably aware that he represents nothing more than a very valuable Gray-container to SPECTR. To complicate matters, John's boss Kaniyar has been promoted, and he and Caleb now report to District Chief Barillo, a micromanager who's out of his depth and who strongly disapproves of John's liaison (professional and personal) with a 'faust', or demon-possessed individual. On the plus side, there's a new member of their team, Zahira Noorzai, who thinks Gray is 'amazing'.
Luckily Caleb is not without resources. He finds a support group for people with mild paranormal abilities (though obviously he can't tell them about his co-pilot), and then -- even better -- encounters another drakul, as powerful as Gray, and his charming host Yuri. Maybe it's time for Caleb and Gray to learn a bit more about the demon-infested world and their place in it.
Like series 1, this was a quick read that built steadily to a pyrotechnic finale but didn't sacrifice characterisation, humour or style. There's plenty of tension, a genuine sense of development, and even more diversity than in the first series. There's a lot about gender in this series: there's also a mature and sensitive examination of the interplay between trust and love. John, Caleb and Gray negotiate the dynamics of their poly relationship, and the complex web of loyalties and affection, imperfectly but satisfactorily.
And I was extremely happy that, amid the somewhat stylised hyperviolence, the big bad was defeated by .
Onto season 3 except oh wait, it isn't complete yet ...
... never mind, I'll read in installments.
“In all those years, he must have had mortals who served him. Perhaps he calls them something else?”
“I never cared about mortals until I had a living body. Unless they were possessed. Then I ate them.” [loc. 5003]
There are five short books in this omnibus edition, but I barely noticed the joins.
The second series of SPECTR picks up some months after the end of Series One. John and Caleb (and Gray) are working for SPECTR, but Gray is chafing at the restrictions -- such as caring more about saving possessed mortals than eating the demons possessing them -- and Caleb is uncomfortably aware that he represents nothing more than a very valuable Gray-container to SPECTR. To complicate matters, John's boss Kaniyar has been promoted, and he and Caleb now report to District Chief Barillo, a micromanager who's out of his depth and who strongly disapproves of John's liaison (professional and personal) with a 'faust', or demon-possessed individual. On the plus side, there's a new member of their team, Zahira Noorzai, who thinks Gray is 'amazing'.
Luckily Caleb is not without resources. He finds a support group for people with mild paranormal abilities (though obviously he can't tell them about his co-pilot), and then -- even better -- encounters another drakul, as powerful as Gray, and his charming host Yuri. Maybe it's time for Caleb and Gray to learn a bit more about the demon-infested world and their place in it.
Like series 1, this was a quick read that built steadily to a pyrotechnic finale but didn't sacrifice characterisation, humour or style. There's plenty of tension, a genuine sense of development, and even more diversity than in the first series. There's a lot about gender in this series: there's also a mature and sensitive examination of the interplay between trust and love. John, Caleb and Gray negotiate the dynamics of their poly relationship, and the complex web of loyalties and affection, imperfectly but satisfactorily.
And I was extremely happy that, amid the somewhat stylised hyperviolence, the big bad was defeated by .
Onto season 3 except oh wait, it isn't complete yet ...
... never mind, I'll read in installments.
October 24, 2023
Considering I can't even watch a horror movie without holding my hands in front of my eyes, I totally devoured this latest collection of SPECTR stories. In fact, book 4 in this collection was so good and ended on such a hair-raising cliffhanger, I want right into book 5 and didn't stop until the end. Seriously, so good. But also dark, bloody, gory, dangerous, nail-biting, heart-breaking, tearful, and much, much more. Amazing works too. Let's just say this author has an incredible imagination,
I have a love/hate relationship with the narrator though. I rolled my eyes as the audio started and I remembered his voice. But, TBH, I couldn't imagine Grey with any other voice. I'm sure I'd be terribly disappointed if someone else took over.
All the stars go to this. Many of my friends have reviewed this book by book or for the series #2 collection as a whole and have done a wonderful job. I'll just say ditto. If you love a thriller, complete with demons and more, this is the best series for it.
I have a love/hate relationship with the narrator though. I rolled my eyes as the audio started and I remembered his voice. But, TBH, I couldn't imagine Grey with any other voice. I'm sure I'd be terribly disappointed if someone else took over.
All the stars go to this. Many of my friends have reviewed this book by book or for the series #2 collection as a whole and have done a wonderful job. I'll just say ditto. If you love a thriller, complete with demons and more, this is the best series for it.
August 24, 2023
Audible edition
Unlike the first season, this season is one continuous story. Glad I waited for the complete book.
Again this season ends with a happily for now that sees our heroes driving off into a new horizon.
No Southern accents for an entirely southern cast. Difficulty marking distinct voices for 3 male main characters and a large male supporting cast. Gray's voice does not imply vast age and ancient secrets, it makes him sound slow, disoriented and uncomprehending. Voicing for Gray after the first book gets even slower and much more annoying.
I'll wait for the omnibus Season three.
Unlike the first season, this season is one continuous story. Glad I waited for the complete book.
Again this season ends with a happily for now that sees our heroes driving off into a new horizon.
No Southern accents for an entirely southern cast. Difficulty marking distinct voices for 3 male main characters and a large male supporting cast. Gray's voice does not imply vast age and ancient secrets, it makes him sound slow, disoriented and uncomprehending. Voicing for Gray after the first book gets even slower and much more annoying.
I'll wait for the omnibus Season three.
December 7, 2023
"SPECTR: The Complete Second Series" received FOUR stars.
The novel gained *stars* for these items:
* gained for: "The book caught my interest in the first five pages."
* gained for: "I thought about the book when I was forced to set it down and re-enter society."
* gained for: "There were no info dumps, poor writing, or copy edit mistakes that jerked me out of the story."
* gained for: "I was sad when the book ended. I wanted more!"
The novel failed to gain stars for this item:
NO STAR gained for: "That's it. I'm hooked on this author. I will automatically try anything she/he/they writes."
The novel gained *stars* for these items:
* gained for: "The book caught my interest in the first five pages."
* gained for: "I thought about the book when I was forced to set it down and re-enter society."
* gained for: "There were no info dumps, poor writing, or copy edit mistakes that jerked me out of the story."
* gained for: "I was sad when the book ended. I wanted more!"
The novel failed to gain stars for this item:
NO STAR gained for: "That's it. I'm hooked on this author. I will automatically try anything she/he/they writes."
April 26, 2021
A TUMULTUOUS RIDE BUT WHAT AN ADVENTUTE
Caleb/Gray and John have a struggle of a different kind. All monsters are not always from another plane. Hawk crafts , for us, a world where Grey not the one and only. The longing for someone to true understand a unique heart. This set leads the reader to wish both Caleb and Gray the chance to "just have a buddy". The well built story of surprise twists and turns is harrowing. Intricate and imaginative, it is hard to imagine how Hawk can glue you to a book so firmly, but his work is breathe taking.
Caleb/Gray and John have a struggle of a different kind. All monsters are not always from another plane. Hawk crafts , for us, a world where Grey not the one and only. The longing for someone to true understand a unique heart. This set leads the reader to wish both Caleb and Gray the chance to "just have a buddy". The well built story of surprise twists and turns is harrowing. Intricate and imaginative, it is hard to imagine how Hawk can glue you to a book so firmly, but his work is breathe taking.
September 4, 2021
DNF at 19%, between the first & second stories. I started reading this in May. I can't motivate myself to continue, so I'm calling it here. I had trouble finishing the last collection, and I suspected this might happen, but hoped otherwise. I enjoy the characters, but the office politics, the disrespect, the constraints all drag the stories down now, and there is no end in sight, and that? That hopelessness? I just can't deal with that in 2021.
March 31, 2023
I did this series via Audiobook and it was fantastic - wonderful, unique MC's in an alternate universe and their relationship and the different stories just kept me completely entertained.
Audiobooks always take me longer because I don't have the opportunity to listen regularly but these books kept me thoroughly enchanted and it was always easy to slip right back into the books. I am so, so happy there is a 3rd series! I just love Caleb, Gray and John and am not ready to say goodbye.
Audiobooks always take me longer because I don't have the opportunity to listen regularly but these books kept me thoroughly enchanted and it was always easy to slip right back into the books. I am so, so happy there is a 3rd series! I just love Caleb, Gray and John and am not ready to say goodbye.
July 8, 2025
Queer PNR continuation of previous series. This collection contains the entire second arc of Gray, Caleb, and John's journey together with a focus on Caleb increasingly alienation from the human world due to mistrust and prejudice and John's disillusionment with SPECTR as an organization. Once again, this set delivers strong world building, action, and some beautifully spicy romance.
September 15, 2020
Once more an excellent set of books. Listening to them as block was good too because I wouldn't have wanted the wait!
Fantastic characterisation on the mains again and on secondary characters. Fight/action scenes had very good pacing, and you could feel the threat level increasing as time went on.
Fantastic characterisation on the mains again and on secondary characters. Fight/action scenes had very good pacing, and you could feel the threat level increasing as time went on.
February 24, 2021
This series is just so great. The second series is a lot more angsty than the first. The monsters are scarier, yes, but mainly the conflicts between our three main characters are what keeps you on the edge of your seat.
June 6, 2024
I unabashedly love bundles. The 4th and 5th books were what tipped my 3.5 rating up to a 4 for GdRds.
Well written. Development solid. Enjoyed.
Did end up skimming a lot of the sex and fight scenes from book 3 of bundle to end. Probably would not have if I'd not read them back to back.
Well written. Development solid. Enjoyed.
Did end up skimming a lot of the sex and fight scenes from book 3 of bundle to end. Probably would not have if I'd not read them back to back.
August 30, 2025
The complete set books 2 is worth it!
This series gets better and better! The evolution of Caleb/Gray is beautiful to read, as is John's very human doubts. It's an exciting read, that I devoured.
I highly recommend!!
This series gets better and better! The evolution of Caleb/Gray is beautiful to read, as is John's very human doubts. It's an exciting read, that I devoured.
I highly recommend!!
March 11, 2020
Loads of Fun
Loads of fun - no in-depth review here, it’s 2:15 in the morning. I don’t do that often these days. Excellent story that pulls you through.
Loads of fun - no in-depth review here, it’s 2:15 in the morning. I don’t do that often these days. Excellent story that pulls you through.
April 17, 2020
No one does monster mayhem better than Jordan Hawk. But there is much more to her stories. They have heart, soul, and characters that pull you in. Loved it.
June 18, 2022
Quite enjoyable.
July 16, 2022
It got very frustrating (in a good way) midway when everything was going to shit and I hated almost every character xD Overall, very entertaining.
August 22, 2023
Fun series with lots of action. I think I like these even better than Whyborne & Griffin. Too bad the third installment isn't completed yet.
August 15, 2024
Growing into an enjoyable series. It's definitely worth reading them as a set because the last book is essentially an extended fight scene, the climactic battle of the series.
January 12, 2021
Thank you Berry Kinkiss for the gift 🥰
That was quite the ride!
RTC
That was quite the ride!
RTC
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews