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Hexes #1
Hexes Volume One
Four supernatural horror tales set in the same universe; a man pursued by the ghost of him as a child, a man plagued with the children of his nightmares, a woman full of guilt at the loss of her son and a sinister care home housing a all-devouring monster.Four stories, four artists, one universe.
Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
September 4, 2024
Not terrible. Not great.
I don't really know exactly how I feel about this one.
I never would have even looked twice but this one was a Bonus Borrow on Hoopla so I downloaded it for shits and giggles.
It was better than I expected.
There are 4 somewhat spooky stories in this volume, each with a different artist. I wasn't crazy about any of the art, tbh. Although, I did love the colors in Waking Nightmare.
Midnight Oil (about the mother who lost her child) was the only story that made sense. The The Boy Who Came Closer & Waking Nightmare seemed half-formed. And while 101 really drew me in at first, it just kind of trailed off at the end without any real sort of satisfaction.
I would try another comic by the author, though. There was a spark of something to all the issues that kept me reading. Maybe he just needs more time to find his footing?
I don't really know exactly how I feel about this one.
I never would have even looked twice but this one was a Bonus Borrow on Hoopla so I downloaded it for shits and giggles.
It was better than I expected.
There are 4 somewhat spooky stories in this volume, each with a different artist. I wasn't crazy about any of the art, tbh. Although, I did love the colors in Waking Nightmare.
Midnight Oil (about the mother who lost her child) was the only story that made sense. The The Boy Who Came Closer & Waking Nightmare seemed half-formed. And while 101 really drew me in at first, it just kind of trailed off at the end without any real sort of satisfaction.
I would try another comic by the author, though. There was a spark of something to all the issues that kept me reading. Maybe he just needs more time to find his footing?
April 3, 2021
Hexes: Volume One is a collection of different stories regarding dark magic in the same universe. I picked up this copy in The Mountains of Madness Kickstarter to support some smaller publishers. While I originally came for the Lovecraft, the darker nature of the Hexes series caught my eye and I decided to give it a go.
The first story, The Boy Who Came Closer is a disorientating tale. The artwork looks like controlled chaos, which certainly seems in theme with the narrative; a young sickly boy, full of fear about his death makes a deal to live longer as long as he doesn’t lose a special pebble. As the tale progresses we view witness to his idle drawings, which feature a looming specter coming ever closer. The chaos of the art very well portrays the mindset of a character who knows that his bill is soon coming due. The only particular issue I have is that I was not a fan of the eyes of the characters. The style of the eyes was fine, I think it was the placement of some of the pupils, which, admittedly, is a small complaint on my part. I enjoyed the narrative, and I especially loved the coloring to indicated a change in the timeframe. The strange man that made the deal has me wondering if he will return as a reoccurring figure or not, as there was literally nothing explained about him. All in all, a good place to start this overall volume.
The second story, Waking Nightmare, is a tale totally different from the first. I hesitate to call this action-packed, but there is a climactic fight at the end. The art is odd for me. It works best when it is dark in the panel, and the colors can go to emphasize something on the page. The scenes that took place in full daylight seemed a bit muddy to me. The story is barebones, a child who had nightmares is now a man fighting those nightmares. Literally. Apparently, the nightmare creatures stole his hair as a child (the parents thought he ripped it out, from what I understand) and that is how they subsist. The story, as I said, is barebones, but I’m murky on some details. I’m not sure if the main character suffered nightmares his whole life, or that he has literally spent his adult life fighting these manifestations of a nightmare. Overall I was not overly wowed with the story, and somehow am confused over what was essentially just the setup and then fight with a monster. But the full-page shot of the blood moon and the house on the island surrounded by mountains is beautiful enough to put on my wall.
Midnight Oil, the third story, may be my favorite of the bunch. The art is ok, it’s not super-stylized like the first two comics. I wish I had more to say about the art, but ok is the best descriptor I can give it. The story deals with overcoming grief, confronting and accepting your past mistakes, no matter how great, and then moving forward. I love the look of the Messenger. Just a strange entity that appears, and conveys its message. The blond lady monster antagonist was fine for an obstacle. The trend I am seeing with this universe is that not much is put into the origin of the monsters or the magic. I enjoy a healthy dose of the unknown in my horror, but there needs to be some nugget that explains even the smallest detail. A solid fact amidst the unknown makes the unknown more threatening. It’s disappointing that the art did not match the story in terms of quality, but regardless, this is the best part of the total volume.
The Volume concludes with 101. We see back to a more stylized art form, which I really enjoyed. The deep blacks really emphasized the shadows, the night, and the demon that served as the antagonist. The story involves a man who lost his patents to the aforementioned demon returning to the same place later in life and encountering a 101-year-old lady who later uses him to kill the demon. And then they team up for more adventures. It’s a quick and fun tale, and the art style served the story well.
If I had to rank everything, it would be Midnight Oil, followed by 101, then The Boy Who Came Closer, and finally Waking Nightmare. I really enjoyed the first two on my list and enjoyed the art for the second two. This collection did leave me with some questions, such as who/what were the strange fisherman and blond lady from the first and third story respectively. I think the biggest Hangul I have with the Hexiverse, as it’s called on the back cover, is what are the rules? Magic works best when there is a set of rules that govern it, and I have no clue what the rules are. It’s ok for the characters to not know the rules, but the reader should know them, as that disconnect can create a lot of tension for the reader if a character is about to attempt something that we know will not work. I have Hexes Volume Two, and I plan to read that soon. This collection, however, was a bit uneven. Weirdly enough, when the story wasn’t great the art was good and when the art was ok the story was golden. This is a great start, but it is not transcendent. 3/5
The first story, The Boy Who Came Closer is a disorientating tale. The artwork looks like controlled chaos, which certainly seems in theme with the narrative; a young sickly boy, full of fear about his death makes a deal to live longer as long as he doesn’t lose a special pebble. As the tale progresses we view witness to his idle drawings, which feature a looming specter coming ever closer. The chaos of the art very well portrays the mindset of a character who knows that his bill is soon coming due. The only particular issue I have is that I was not a fan of the eyes of the characters. The style of the eyes was fine, I think it was the placement of some of the pupils, which, admittedly, is a small complaint on my part. I enjoyed the narrative, and I especially loved the coloring to indicated a change in the timeframe. The strange man that made the deal has me wondering if he will return as a reoccurring figure or not, as there was literally nothing explained about him. All in all, a good place to start this overall volume.
The second story, Waking Nightmare, is a tale totally different from the first. I hesitate to call this action-packed, but there is a climactic fight at the end. The art is odd for me. It works best when it is dark in the panel, and the colors can go to emphasize something on the page. The scenes that took place in full daylight seemed a bit muddy to me. The story is barebones, a child who had nightmares is now a man fighting those nightmares. Literally. Apparently, the nightmare creatures stole his hair as a child (the parents thought he ripped it out, from what I understand) and that is how they subsist. The story, as I said, is barebones, but I’m murky on some details. I’m not sure if the main character suffered nightmares his whole life, or that he has literally spent his adult life fighting these manifestations of a nightmare. Overall I was not overly wowed with the story, and somehow am confused over what was essentially just the setup and then fight with a monster. But the full-page shot of the blood moon and the house on the island surrounded by mountains is beautiful enough to put on my wall.
Midnight Oil, the third story, may be my favorite of the bunch. The art is ok, it’s not super-stylized like the first two comics. I wish I had more to say about the art, but ok is the best descriptor I can give it. The story deals with overcoming grief, confronting and accepting your past mistakes, no matter how great, and then moving forward. I love the look of the Messenger. Just a strange entity that appears, and conveys its message. The blond lady monster antagonist was fine for an obstacle. The trend I am seeing with this universe is that not much is put into the origin of the monsters or the magic. I enjoy a healthy dose of the unknown in my horror, but there needs to be some nugget that explains even the smallest detail. A solid fact amidst the unknown makes the unknown more threatening. It’s disappointing that the art did not match the story in terms of quality, but regardless, this is the best part of the total volume.
The Volume concludes with 101. We see back to a more stylized art form, which I really enjoyed. The deep blacks really emphasized the shadows, the night, and the demon that served as the antagonist. The story involves a man who lost his patents to the aforementioned demon returning to the same place later in life and encountering a 101-year-old lady who later uses him to kill the demon. And then they team up for more adventures. It’s a quick and fun tale, and the art style served the story well.
If I had to rank everything, it would be Midnight Oil, followed by 101, then The Boy Who Came Closer, and finally Waking Nightmare. I really enjoyed the first two on my list and enjoyed the art for the second two. This collection did leave me with some questions, such as who/what were the strange fisherman and blond lady from the first and third story respectively. I think the biggest Hangul I have with the Hexiverse, as it’s called on the back cover, is what are the rules? Magic works best when there is a set of rules that govern it, and I have no clue what the rules are. It’s ok for the characters to not know the rules, but the reader should know them, as that disconnect can create a lot of tension for the reader if a character is about to attempt something that we know will not work. I have Hexes Volume Two, and I plan to read that soon. This collection, however, was a bit uneven. Weirdly enough, when the story wasn’t great the art was good and when the art was ok the story was golden. This is a great start, but it is not transcendent. 3/5
November 15, 2020
A nightmarish journey into the world of Hexes. Both writer and artist seem to tap in the parts of our psyche that we attempt to suppress in the waking world. A great graphic novel collection, not for the faint of heart or mind.
November 5, 2019
Very good read. Nicely disturbing with great story lines and wonderful art work. Definitely worth picking up.
September 6, 2025
Life is nothing to the young. It is small, not even considered. To the young, people last forever, and death is something that happens to pets. But death is everywhere, Between the cracks in every surface, in every scratch. And death is just waiting. And waiting. And walling. Sometimes it has enough. But sometimes, like a cat with a wounded bird, death likes to play with us…
I have long been a fan of Blue Fox comics and Simon Birks, having enjoyed their array of H.P. Lovecraft adaptations. However, I had never got around to reading the flagship series of horror anthologies, Hexes.
In this first volume we get four spine-tingling stories of the supernatural and horror. As the title implies, the stories follow the cursed, the damned if you will, and are all set within the same Universe.
People carry hexes in different ways, some are haunted by the past, others by their nightmares. Many have monsters on their tails, whilst a few stand up to fight back.
Each of the stories has a different artist, which adds to the atmosphere as you never quite know what to expect. A thrilling first anthology and a full 5 stars.
I have long been a fan of Blue Fox comics and Simon Birks, having enjoyed their array of H.P. Lovecraft adaptations. However, I had never got around to reading the flagship series of horror anthologies, Hexes.
In this first volume we get four spine-tingling stories of the supernatural and horror. As the title implies, the stories follow the cursed, the damned if you will, and are all set within the same Universe.
People carry hexes in different ways, some are haunted by the past, others by their nightmares. Many have monsters on their tails, whilst a few stand up to fight back.
Each of the stories has a different artist, which adds to the atmosphere as you never quite know what to expect. A thrilling first anthology and a full 5 stars.
August 5, 2024
I wasn't really sure what was going on with this. It's four one issue stories with a supernatural bent. The storytelling was obtuse though and I wasn't very sure about what was going on in any of it.
August 8, 2024
2.5 stars. Creepy stories but I'm confused how they tie into Hexed. Perhaps I'm thinking of the wrong thing, but we're talking Hexed as in "Thief & the Harlot," right? That's urban fantasy w/ some horror flare. These are generic, albeit enjoyable, horror stories.
January 8, 2023
I don’t quite know what to make of this. It’s split up into 4 books on varying subjects. It’s strange, great illustrations and some interesting stories which are difficult to follow sometimes.
August 2, 2024
This was maybe 3.3
I typically like anthologies and I liked this, I wasn’t great, just a solid OK which is good sometimes
I typically like anthologies and I liked this, I wasn’t great, just a solid OK which is good sometimes
August 10, 2024
An interesting book of haunted short stories
August 13, 2024
Colorful - uneven and almost interesting
October 14, 2024
4 short stories, I really liked one of them as it was quite captivating, another one was fairly good but two really weren’t entertaining at all. The different art styles are good and nice to see.
December 27, 2022
Got this at MCM London Comic Con. The Author is very friendly and knows how to advertise.
Good collection of short stories each with distinct art styles.
Good collection of short stories each with distinct art styles.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews