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A Rope of Thorns (The Hexslinger Series Book 2) by [Gemma Files]

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Gemma Files

A Rope of Thorns (The Hexslinger Series Book 2) Kindle Edition

by Gemma Files (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

8 ratings

Book 2 of 3: The Hexslinger

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The second book in the “top-notch horror-fantasy saga,” following A Book of Tongues, is “a spectacular blend of Aztec religion and Western gunslinging (Publishers Weekly).

Welcome to Hex City. Population: magicians. Thanks to hexslinger “Reverend” Asher Rook, sorcerers now have a sanctuary where they can live and work in peace. But a storm is coming—a tempest known as Chess Pargeter.

Infuriated by his former lover Rook’s betrayal and sacrificed in the name of the Mayan goddess who is Rook’s current consort, Chess leaves a trail of death and destruction in his wake. Caught up in Chess’s crusade is Pinkerton-agent-turned-outlaw Ed Morrow and a young woman spiritualist. But there are more than Chess’s own demons to be reckoned with, including a resurrected lawman with a bone to pick—and a final judgment to deliver . . .

“Paints a stark, vivid, and gory picture of the ‘wild west’ in the years following the Civil War . . . Files’s latest is not for the squeamish but should delight fans of gothic Western fantasy and Central American myths.” —Library Journal

“Files’ prose remains a delight to read, the cadence of her sentences captures the wild west setting perfectly, and the images she paints are a fascinating mix of frontier practicality and magic bred surrealism.” —The Turned Brain

Praise for A Book of Tongues

“Boundary-busting horror–fantasy . . . This promising debut fully delivers both sizzling passions and dark chills.” —Publishers Weekly

“Ridiculously vivid . . . A magic-riddled, horror-strewn West with hexes running around wrecking reality and a spectrum of queer characters.” —Tor.com

“Truly one-of-a-kind: violent, carnal and creepy.” —Fangoria

Print length

359 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Open Road Media Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Publication date

October 13, 2020
Reading age

16 years and up
File size

7012 KB
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Next 2 for you in this series See full series

Total Price: $15.98

Books In This Series (3 Books)

Complete Series

The Hexslinger

Kindle Edition

Page 1 of 1Start OverPage 1 of 1

1
A Book of Tongues (The Hexslinger Series 1)

(9)

Kindle Edition

$7.99
2
A Rope of Thorns (The Hexslinger Series Book 2)
Gemma Files

(8)

Kindle Edition

$7.99
3
A Tree of Bones (The Hexslinger Series Book 3)
Gemma Files

(11)

Kindle Edition

$7.99

Gemma Files
9
Kindle Edition
1 offer from $7.99
Gemma Files
224
Kindle Edition
1 offer from $6.49
Gemma Files
11
Kindle Edition
1 offer from $7.99
Gemma Files
2
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1 offer from $19.99
Gemma Files
23
Kindle Edition
1 offer from $7.99
Gemma Files
21
Kindle Edition
1 offer from $7.99

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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Gemma Files, a former film critic, journalist, screenwriter, and teacher, has been an award-winning horror author since 1999. She has published two collections of short work; two chapbooks of speculative poetry; the “weird western” Hexslinger Series; a story-cycle; and the standalone novel Experimental Film, which won the 2016 Shirley Jackson Award for Best Novel and the 2016 Sunburst Award for Best Adult Novel. Files also has several story collections and a collection of poetry forthcoming.

Review

Praise for Gemma Files

“Experimental Film is sensational. When we speak of the best in contemporary horror and weird fiction, we must speak of Gemma Files.”
―Laird Barron

“Gemma Files has one of the great dark imaginations in fiction―visionary, transgressive, and totally original. With this new novel [Experimental Film], Files explores the world of film and horror in a way that will leave you reeling. A smart, sharp page-turner with heart and depth.”
―Jeff VanderMeer

“Gemma’s been producing top-notch horror stories for years, and her weird Western Hexslinger trilogy is chock full of hellish horrors.”
―Mike Allen

“I am surely addicted, and this new addiction has a name–Gemma Files. We had company over the weekend, company I adore and hadn’t seen in a year, and I still snuck in bits of this audio book. The author spins together imagery that is breath-taking in both beauty and terror.”
―A Dab of Darkness (audiobook review)

--This text refers to the paperback edition.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08F9WF8ZM
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Open Road Media Sci-Fi & Fantasy (October 13, 2020)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 13, 2020
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 7012 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Print length ‏ : ‎ 359 pages
Lending ‏ : ‎ Enabled

Best Sellers Rank: #1,144,867 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #465 in LGBTQ+ Horror eBooks
- #1,812 in LGBTQ+ Fantasy Fiction
- #2,148 in Fantasy Erotica

Customer Reviews:
8 ratings

About the author

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Gemma Files

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Born April 4, 1968, in London, England, Gemma Files is the child of two actors (Elva Mai Hoover and Gary Files), and has lived most of her life in Toronto, Canada. Previously best-known as a film critic, teacher and screenwriter, she first broke onto the horror scene when her short story "The Emperor's Old Bones" won the International Horror Guild's 1999 award for Best Short Fiction. Her current bibliography includes two collections of short work (Kissing Carrion and The Worm in Every Heart, both Prime Books) and two chapbooks of poetry (Bent Under Night, from Sinnersphere Productions, and Dust Radio, from Kelp Queen Press). Her first novel, A Book of Tongues: Volume One in the Hexslinger Series (CZP), was published in April 2010. The trilogy is now complete, including sequels A Rope of Thorns (2011) and A Tree of Bones (2012), and she is hard at work on her first stand-alone novel. Files is married to fellow author Stephen J. Barringer, with whom she co-wrote the story "each thing i show you is a piece of my death" for Clockwork Phoenix 2 (Norilana Books). They have one son.

Customer reviews

5 star		51%
4 star		15%
3 star		33%
2 star 0% (0%)		0%
1 star 0% (0%)		0%

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Top reviews from the United States

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rateto

Four Stars

Reviewed in the United States on February 1, 2015

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well

Helpful

Juushika

Delightfully messy, character-driven, and huge. Recommended

Reviewed in the United States on March 18, 2015

As Rook builds Hex City, the first established gathering of magicians, newly-awakened Chess sets out for revenge--but he doesn't journey alone. A Rope of Thorns is a right mess, but that's not a bad thing. It (re)introduces character and settings, cluttering up the stage; it has numerous metamorphoses and developments; the end stacks on itself in layers of aborted climaxes, messy and labyrinthine. But while it could use some paring down (the ending, in particular), I would expect nothing less. I'm reminded of Monette's Doctrine of Labyrinths: the plot occasionally gets in its own way, but its chaos and scale fit the context; meanwhile, the story's core is its cast and their messy interpersonal dramas and character growth. It's writing that sits in the gut and heart more than the head. Chess's developments aren't subtle but they are compelling, and the new characters are great. The first volume was more successful, but I remain pleased with this series and look forward to seeing it through to the end.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Abi Walton

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 28, 2015

Verified Purchase

What a great sequel

squirly

Great Book

Reviewed in Canada on February 24, 2014

Verified Purchase

It would be hard to put this book down once you start reading.
One again it is interesting, great author and by a publisher who cares what he puts out there. The quality of work from Author and publisher really enhance each other.

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