DNF Review: Hexed by Michelle Krys

Hexed
by Michelle Krys
Series: Hexed #1
Publication date: 10 June 2014
Delacorte Press, Hardcover, 384 pages
Source: eARC from publisher via NetGalley

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If high school is all about social status, Indigo Blackwood has it made. Sure, her quirky mom owns an occult shop, and a nerd just won’t stop trying to be her friend, but Indie is a popular cheerleader with a football-star boyfriend and a social circle powerful enough to ruin everyone at school. Who wouldn’t want to be her?

Then a guy dies right before her eyes. And the dusty old family Bible her mom is freakishly possessive of is stolen. But it’s when a frustratingly sexy stranger named Bishop enters Indie’s world that she learns her destiny involves a lot more than pom-poms and parties. If she doesn’t get the Bible back, every witch on the planet will die. And that’s seriously bad news for Indie, because according to Bishop, she’s a witch too.

Suddenly forced into a centuries-old war between witches and sorcerers, Indie’s about to uncover the many dark truths about her life—and a future unlike any she ever imagined on top of the cheer pyramid.

Rating: ★½ (DNF at 27%)

I wanted to like Hexed. I truly did. It reminded me of Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins, with all its witchiness and humor. At least in the case of Hex Hall the humor was awesome, but as for Hexed… not so much. How can I most accurately describe it? You know one of those books you wait months for, get all hyped up over, tell your friends that you have a good feeling about but ultimately turns out a major let down? Yes, this is one of those books.

Less than 10 pages into the novel, I had already been drowning in its bimboticness (I know this isn’t an actual word but it was the most suitable). Indie was incomprehensibly shallow and her frenemy relationship with her supposed best friend make me doubt the existence of her backbone. Then lets throw in the quarterback boyfriend! Who also turned out to be supposed best friend’s ex of about a month.

Who dates their best friend’s ex after they’ve split for only about a month?

No one smart, that’s who. Especially when supposed best friend still has obvious feelings for that boy. It made me wonder if Indie was intentionally finding ways to ruin the supposed friendship. Moreover, said boyfriend was a complete tool and whose ongoing relationship with Indie once again brought me to doubt the existence of a backbone in her anatomy.

The fact that toolsy boyfriend also saw going to a Jay-Z concert as a great date is just a personal insult. I don’t think I could possibly think any less of Indie, toolsy boyfriend, and supposed best friend.

Hang on, actually I could. Lets bring in Paige, Indie’s adorkable, girl-next-door, kind of nerdy, book-loving neighbor. She was practically created based on the formula of the perfect booknerd, with the slight flaw of her constantly tagging along with Indie, trying to be good friends despite Indie’s obvious attempts to kick Paige out of her life. But when Paige actually moves on to another—and I’m sure much nicer—friend, Indie gets jealous.

No, girl. You have no right to feel anything even close to envy when the sweet girl you’ve been treating like dirt decides to hang out with someone much more pleasant (and whom probably has a brain too).

Yet, Indie played the “you’ve wanted to be my friend forever so lets suddenly hang out now, all of a sudden (because I’m secretly trying to use you)” card on Paige. And what does she (Indie) have to say about her atrocious actions?

Sure, some people might say I’m “using” her, but those people just don’t have the complex understanding of human behavior that I do.
– 23%, eARC

Dear Indie, no matter how much you trying to sugarcoat it, using people is still using people. There’s no way around it.

In case you’re thinking things can’t get any worse, you’re wrong. Bishop. He is one creepy, stalker-ish weirdo whose connection to the dead guy Indie witnessed dying was so obvious I’m marveling at how she has yet to connect the dots after seeing him in the same leather jacket (in summer, in LA) multiple times throughout a single day. Funny thing is, she asked herself the question “Who in the world wears a leather jacket during summer in LA?” at least 3 times and it still did not occur to her she had wondered the same thing about the dead guy.

Amid all these unpleasantness, whatever plot Hexed had was unfortunately drowned out. The very awkward attempt at humor did not help either. I constantly found myself pondering whether I should just laugh out of politeness. Of course, all these are my personal views and there’s still a chance you guys out there would enjoy Hexed. Even though I do have some serious doubts about that.