I received this book for free from the library in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Source: the library
Hex Appeal
by
Linda Wisdom
It is part of the Hex #2, Jazz Tremaine #2 series and is a paranormal romance in Paperback edition that was published by Sourcebooks on November 1, 2008 and has 354 pages.
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Other books in this series include [books_series]
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include 50 Ways to Hex Your Lover, Wicked By Any Other Name, Hex in High Heels, Demons are a Girl's Best Friend, A Demon Does It Better, “Hotel Hex”
Second in the Jazz Tremaine, a.k.a., Hex, paranormal romance series revolving around a witch and her friends in Southern California.
My Take
I love it! I love it! Instead of the usual ending for a spell, “so mote it be”, Jazz uses “because I say so, damn it!” Too funny.
Oh, man, I love the rubber duckies!! Wisdom is too funny in describing their actions when Jazz is taking her bath!?! I can’t wait to see how they react to a swimming pool!
What I don’t get is how lackadaisical Jazz is about investigating what happened to Willie? She keeps waiting until there’s another threat against Fluff and Puff before she thinks about detecting. The same thing happens when she loses her powers. She has no interest in really digging in and finding out what happened. Who caused it. She’s just really whiny and irritating here. Then there’s her lame approach on the dream realm. Duhhh…certainly explains why she keeps getting years added on to her banishment.
The Story
It starts badly with Nick sucking down Jazz’s blood while they’re in bed. At least…she thinks he was sucking it down. On her stomp back to her place, Jazz decides to take a chance with crossing the boardwalk with Fluff and Puff…only, Rex catches them and accuses them of eating Willie! Rex intends to bring it up to the Ruling Council — a sure death sentence unless Jazz can find out what really happened to Willie.
The pluses are the cool croc shoes that Thea sent Jazz and the fabulous payment Patrice gives her for taking care of that curse. A negative is that a couple of the old movies Jazz was in back in the 1920s that Krebs found. And Jazz still isn’t sure what she thinks of Krebs and Nick getting together to watch sports…
The bigger negatives are becoming mortal and all those damned nightmares! It’s not just Jazz either. Irma, Nick, and Krebs are also suffering. And Nick’s nightmares have him wondering if Jazz wouldn’t be better off. At least, until Jazz drags the three of them off with her into the dream realm!
Nick has a few interesting cases: Mrs Archer wants to find her son, a newly-turned vampire, and be sure he’s okay, and Esme wants to protect her daughter from her family — hmmph…the truth always outs.
The Characters
Jazz Tremaine and her fellow witches have been naughty for centuries — at least they’re consistent, since being naughty is what got them banished in the first place. Fluff and Puff are her anything-eating bunny slippers who’ve been banned from the boardwalk by Rex, the boardwalk manager. Irma is a matronly ghost who comes with the T-bird Jazz drives, who spends most of her time whining at Jazz and trying to light up a cigarette in the car, the garage, the… She’s recently acquired a nameless ghost dog, Sirius. Ooh, Jazz gets a great shoe present from Thea!! I want a pair!! Croc and Delilah are magical crocodile shoes that change to match your outfit. They also like makeup. And men…watch out, boys! Stasia Romanov and Blair Fitzpatrick are two of her witch friends who live nearby.
Nick Gregory, a.k.a., Nikolai Gregorivich, has been a vampire for longer than Jazz has existed as a witch, I think. He and Jazz are currently in an on-again stage of their centuries-old relationship. Krebs, a.k.a., Jonathan, is Jazz’s housemate and a computer whiz. Well, actually, he owns the house and runs his website creation company from it. Contrary to Jazz’s “orders”, Krebs has been seeing one of his clients, Leticia, on the side.
Dweezil runs All Creatures Car Service and specializes in the othernatural market. He’s had a succession of receptionists since he fired Mindy for sabotage. He’s pretty much a scumbag with his eye perpetually on the money — when it’s not focused on his collection of vintage erotica. His current receptionist is Grevia, a zombie. Kurdilir is Dweezil’s lead mechanic. Luger is a vampire leader. Coby is the local pack leader and runs the Full Moon Café. And gives Jazz some help on her missing Willie case.
Mindy has set up a rival driving company Historic Cars with her very hostile father Eilemar‘s backing and is seducing Dweezil’s workers away from him. Not that it’s hard to seduce ’em, as cheap as Dweezil is.
Patrice Sanibel is a client of Jazz’s. Someone has put a curse on her and she’s “disappearing” from her friends’ horizons.
Willie the wereweasel, works the carnival rides at the boardwalk before he disappears. Thea is another of Jazz’s witch friends; she’s been writing for centuries. In this century, she’s a celebrated romance author — the girls reckon she’s got personal experience to draw on for still more centuries. Reinhold is an enforcer for the Protectorate and not one of Jazz’s fans. Angelica is a bitch vampire from way back with a short romantic history with Nick. She’s just become the new leader of the Vampire Protectorate. Detective Larkin is a sheriff’s detective and has been discovering about the othernaturals, unhappily. Dyfynnog is a powerful wizard and the former owner of Fluff and Puff until Jazz liberated them.
Eurydice is one of the witches on the Witches’ Council. Pithias is on the Wizards’ Council.
The Cover and Title
It’s another cartoon cover with the red-haired Jazz in her pointy, witch’s hat and wearing a push-up bra with a black halter dress with a Dracula-type collar rising up behind her head, its empire waistline accented by a fuchsia belt and her fuchsia, peep-toe, fuck-me-sandals, sitting on a park bench as she pets a cat — why isn’t she petting Puff or Fluff?? The coffin represents Nick. The background is the park with a blocky city skyline at night. A quarter moon is shining in the background with a bat flying. I don’t understand why the artist isn’t making the boardwalk that Jazz loves so much the background..?
I really don’t know where the title comes from…unless it’s Jazz’s Hex Appeal that appeals to Nick.
