Kindle Edition Amazon SEVEN-X SEVEN-X Category:  Horror Publisher: SEVEN-X Film Group ISBN-10:  0615505813 Type: Fiction Pages: 271 Copyright: March 6, 2012 ISBN-13: 9780615505817 Price: $0.99 (eBook) An Investigative Reporter becomes the subject of his own story as an unwilling participant in a paranormal experiment. SEVEN-X is the first book in a trilogy, revolving around Los Angeles Times Investigative Reporter Eddie Hansen, who gets a tip on a missing death row prisoner being held at a Behavioral Health Center in a remote location outside the small town of Dell City, Texas. With an opportunity to break the story, Eddie voluntarily commits himself into the asylum,  becoming the subject of his own story as an unwilling participant in a paranormal experiment.       Excerpt WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 8, 2010 I feel like I’m signing away my life. Literally. I just read through the consent forms I need to sign to cover this story. A story that has to be told. A story I uncovered as part of my investigation into seven missing death row prisoners in the State of Texas. This journal along with my audio recordings and video diary is my record of the Uphir Behavioral Health Center in Uphir, Texas. An unofficial ghost town that’s completely off the grid. A place without a ZIP code or mailing address. My best guess is that this is a privately funded asylum where experimental procedures are being conducted without the consent of its patients. While conducting this investigation, I am voluntarily under the care of Dr. Alan Haworth, a clinical psychologist and Reverend William H. Billings, a local minister. My name is Eddie Hansen. I’m a reporter for the Los Angeles Times. It is my theory that Annette Dobson, The SIDS Killer, is being held in Uphir, at the asylum, under the care of Billings and Haworth. In case you missed the news, here’s her story. Over a thirteen-year period, Mrs. Dobson killed six of her children before they reached their first birthday. Each time, SIDS was determined as the cause of death and no wrongdoing was suspected. Pregnant with child number seven, Dobson broke down and confessed to the murders. A trial quickly ensued, and Annette Dobson received the death penalty from the great state of Texas, with her execution scheduled for Friday May 13, 2011. According to case records, Mrs. Dobson had requested a closed execution to be moved to November 19, 2010 with no media, no family, and no outside witnesses to be present. She stated that her privacy was to be respected, and she alone would suffer the consequences of her actions. She left no last statement. A death certificate was filed with the state on the nineteenth, and her case was closed. Kevin Dobson, her infamous husband vehemently denied knowledge of the murders. He repeatedly muttered to me in our interview that Annie was afraid to die. “She didn’t want to go to hell and take the baby with her,” he told me. “There is no way she would move her execution.” Kevin said she pleaded insistently for an abortion, then an exorcism before her execution, so she wouldn’t be attached to the demons committed to dragging her to hell. She told Kevin months earlier that she wanted him to be with her at the end, but when the State told Kevin that her wishes had changed, he knew something was wrong. So he came to me. He begged me to find answers. So here I am sitting in the only diner in Dell City, Texas, a booming bastion of 413 people. The town infamously known in the children’s song The Farmer in the Dell, and the last place I’ll have phone service or Internet access for a while. I feel like Michael J. Fox in Back to the Future. It’s as if I punched 1957 on the dashboard of my Delorian and crashed into this world. A far cry from my bungalow in Hollywood. Hearing people talk about hunting elk with a White Onyx, double barrel, is refreshing compared to the endless chatter of wanna-be Spielbergs gabbing about their latest film project over a half-decaf double latte. The fashionable beauty of missing teeth makes every smile a picture worth a thousand words, and I’m stuck in this moment, enjoying simplicity. Everything seems so appreciatively simple, yet this hunger in me is pushing me to sign my life away for my shot at glory. These people don’t give a shit about glory. They ain’t crying to become the next reality star or rock legend. They’re not spending their last dollar on plastic surgery desperately trying to maintain fleeting youth. No. They’re going to take their toothless asses out into the woods behind me and shoot a deer or elk or rabbit and some primal urge within them are going to find unlimited satisfaction in dragging that carcass back home on top of their pickup truck and ripping it apart to eat. I guess I’m the same animal with a more sophisticated palette and better dental coverage. My unlimited satisfaction is coming from the hunt too. The hunt for truth, for my story to be seen by the world. I’m going thirty-two miles away from what these Dell folks call civilization, heading into nowhere to hunt. Or maybe I’m the poor elk, wandering into the path of the White Onyx, staring stupidly into that double barrel wondering what the hell I did to deserve this fate. As a precautionary measure, my assistant, and part-time girlfriend, Melody Swann is transcribing my tapes and piecing this diary together from my notes. You read that right. Her real name is Melody Swann, and as fate would have it, she came to Hollywood to be a singer. Five American Idol auditions later and a part time job at Dimples Karaoke Bar and here we are together. Anyway, should anything happen to me, Melody will retain authorship of this work and she has instructions for its completion.

Don't read when you're by yourself!
You WILL be spooked out and start hearing whispers if you read this alone at night. Be forewarned!!

The author did a fantastic job of making the reader feel the horror of delving into the unknown supernatural world of demons and other things that go bump in the night. The premise that when you get "exorcised", that seven more demons join the original in hijacking your soul is unique and really scary. Just when you think you're safe!!

Half the time I really bought the medical conspiracy theory, too! This proves how well-written the storyline gets, you're never really sure of the truth.

There could have been lots more character development of the demons, though. We got quick glimpses as Eddie got "touched" by their presence, but didn't really understand the depth of their evil. Also, I never understood the leopard references/obsessions. Is there going to be a sequel that explains what happens to Eddie?

Best Horror Book I've Read
This was a really good book. I have never read a book quite like this. It was scary, dramatic and suspense filled. I could totally see this book turning into the next exorcist movie!! Eddie is a stubborn man looking into missing death row inmates and what he stumbles upon will creep you out and keep you on the edge of your seat. Definite must read. There were times when the description was sooooo good I believed I was there!!!

Great Debut Horror
"Seven-X" is a unique, incredibly dark, deeply intense, and powerfully addicting debut novel by Mike Wech. Although it could fit into many different genres including mystery, psychological thriller, paranormal or possibly science fiction, I would generally classify this novel as a horror.

Reporter Eddie Hansen has found what he believes is the ticket to fame and fortune. He is chasing a big story, one that could put his life on the line to obtain. He has found evidence that death row prisoners, after being reported dead, have instead been transferred to a secret `Behavioral Health Center' in Texas. What are they doing there? Are those people, and possible other prisoners really still alive? Are they conducting experiments on them? Are any of the things they tell him about their work true? Just what in the world is really going on?? He knows this story could get him more then he ever dreamed of and he's willing to risk everything to get it.

The character development in this book was amazing. The book is written as journal, audio, and video entries/recordings made by Eddie while he stays at the Center. There are so many layers and intertwined characters, all done perfectly. I liked how part of the book was actually the transcriptions made by Eddie's girlfriend when she would receive his notes in the mail.

This isn't a book for the faint of heart. It is undeniably creepy and intense. It's also not a book for those who like all the answers by the end. This book ends in a fantastic cliffhanger. I personally like not knowing all the answers, it makes reading the book that much more interesting.

This is an absolutely FANTASTIC horror novel. If you are even remotely interested in that genre you should definitely read this book. It isn't a genre I normally read, but I could not put this book down. I will unquestionably keep my eye out for any new novels by Mike Wech. He is definitely someone to keep your eye on.