The Ex Hex Ending Explained: How Vivi and Rhys Break the Curse — and What's Left Unresolved

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

The Ending in Brief

The Ex Hex ends with Vivi Jones, her cousin Gwyn, and her aunt Elaine breaking the accidental blood curse that Vivi cast on Rhys Penhallow nine years after their breakup. The curse, which had corrupted Graves Glen's ley lines and threatened to kill both Rhys and the town at midnight on Samhain, is lifted when the three Jones women channel their combined magic directly into the lines. Rhys survives, the town is saved, and after a brief separation, Rhys returns to Graves Glen in January to declare his love and start a new life near Vivi.

The Climax: The Jones Witches Take Back the Magic

The final confrontation doesn't happen in a dramatic battle but in the same cave where Rhys's ritual first went wrong. After summoning Aelwyd Jones's spirit into her body at the cemetery, Vivi learns that even Aelwyd cannot lift the curse — the ancestor's spirit admits she isn't strong enough. But Vivi has a realization: the ley lines were laid not just by Gryffud Penhallow but by Aelwyd, whose magic was stolen from her when Gryffud killed her. That same magic runs in Vivi's blood, Gwyn's blood, and Elaine's blood.

With about an hour until midnight, Vivi, Gwyn, and Elaine drive to the cave. Vivi insists Rhys wait outside — this has to be just the three of them. Inside, the ley lines are worse than before: murky with corruption, thick and sluggish, with sparks of reddish light occasionally flashing off them.

The three women form a circle, clasping hands. Vivi speaks over the lines: We made this magic. Our family did... So fuck Gryffud Penhallow. The Jones Witches are taking this back.

The ritual is physically punishing — Vivi describes it as trying to push a boulder uphill with something pushing back. But Gwyn cries out that it's working, and Vivi watches the purple light strengthen as the black sludge recedes. A flash of light, and then the lines run straight and clear and purple, humming now.

The curse is broken. Rhys pokes his head in, and Gwyn confirms his hair still does The Thing — a running joke that confirms he's alive and uncursed.

Major Character Outcomes

Vivi Jones: Vivi completes the most powerful magic of her life, moving from a witch whose spells were unreliable to someone who channels her ancestor's stolen power. She returns to work in January with new teaching roles in the folklore department, having grown into her identity as a Jones witch.

Rhys Penhallow: Rhys survives the curse, returns to Wales to tell his father about the revelations, and then makes the surprising choice to move to Graves Glen permanently. He secures a teaching position at the college (which is named after his family) and declares his love for Vivi.

Gwyn: Gwyn remains the comic relief and emotional support, teasing Vivi about her feelings for Rhys while also being a crucial part of the curse-breaking ritual. She's the one who confirms the curse is broken with her observation about Rhys's hair.

Aunt Elaine: Elaine provides the wisdom and stability, insisting the ritual wait for night and supporting Vivi through the summoning. She's part of the three-woman circle that breaks the curse.

Simon Penhallow: Simon's role is mostly antagonistic — he accuses the Jones family of cursing Rhys and dismisses their shop. He leaves using a Traveling Stone, and his fate after the curse is broken is left mostly off-page, though Rhys promises to confront him about Gryffud's crimes.

Piper McBride: Piper's ghost is trapped in the Eurydice Candle during the ritual at her old house. She delivers the crucial information about Aelwyd and Gryffud before being sucked into the candle. Her final fate — whether she's at peace or still trapped — is left ambiguous.

Resolved Threads

• The curse itself: Broken by the combined magic of Vivi, Gwyn, and Elaine at the ley lines.

• The corrupted ley lines: Restored to their proper purple glow.

• The ghost of Piper McBride: Trapped in the Eurydice Candle, though whether this is a permanent solution is unclear.

• The demonic toys and magical chaos: The random magical events caused by the curse end once the lines are cleansed.

• Vivi and Rhys's relationship: Resolved in the January epilogue when Rhys moves to Graves Glen.

Unresolved Threads

• The Penhallow legacy: Rhys promises to set things right about Gryffud — no more statue, no Founder's Day — but the book doesn't show this happening. The confrontation with Simon about his ancestor's murder of Aelwyd is left off-page.

• The college witches: Dr. Arbuthnot demanded the ghost situation be fixed, and it was, but the broader relationship between the college's witchery department and the Jones family isn't explored further.

• Tamsyn Bligh: The artifact dealer who trapped Piper's ghost for profit faces no apparent consequences.

• The Eurydice Candle: After Piper is trapped in it, the candle's fate is unclear. Is it destroyed, or could someone else misuse it?

• The other Penhallow brothers: Wells, Bowen, and Llewellyn are mentioned, but their reactions to the revelations about Gryffud are never shown.

Theme Resolution

Unintended consequences of magic: The entire plot is driven by a drunken curse that was never meant to be real magic. The resolution reinforces that magic has weight — Vivi's careless words had deadly consequences, and only deliberate, intentional magic could undo them. This theme is explored throughout the book on the unintended consequences of magic page.

Family legacy and ancestral responsibility: The climax reframes the story's history. Graves Glen wasn't built by Gryffud Penhallow alone — Aelwyd Jones's stolen magic is in the ley lines, and her descendants reclaim it. Vivi's speech at the lines — We made this magic — is the thematic heart of the book, tying directly into family legacy and ancestral responsibility.

Rekindled love and second chances: Vivi and Rhys get a second chance, but only after they've both grown. Rhys learns to take things seriously (his brother Bowen's advice), and Vivi learns to trust her own power. See rekindled love and second chances for more.

Tradition vs. modernity: The book ends with a compromise — Vivi and Rhys agree to split time between Wales and Graves Glen, honoring both their lives. This reflects the tradition vs. modernity tension running through the novel.

Self-discovery and reclaiming power: Vivi's arc culminates in the cave, where she moves from history teacher to badass witch — not by becoming someone else, but by claiming the power that was always hers. This is the core of self-discovery and reclaiming power.

The Epilogue: January

The final chapter jumps to January. Vivi is back at work, congratulating her colleague Ezichi on a tenure-track position and mentioning her new teaching roles in the folklore department. She received a book from Rhys at Yule with a note. Walking to meet Dr. Arbuthnot, she passes an office labeled R. Penhallow and finds Rhys inside.

He explains he moved from Wales to be near her, secured a teaching position because the college is named after his family, and declares his love. Vivi reciprocates, and they agree to split time between Wales and Graves Glen. It's a warm, low-stakes ending that prioritizes emotional resolution over dramatic fireworks.

Reasonable Interpretations

Was the curse truly broken, or just suppressed? The text presents the curse as definitively broken — the lines run clear and purple, and Rhys survives past midnight. But the book doesn't show what happens to the curse's magic after it's pushed out of the lines. It's reasonable to read the ending as complete, but the mechanics of curse removal are never fully explained.

Did Aelwyd's spirit remain in Vivi? After Aelwyd possesses Vivi at the cemetery and then departs, Vivi is exhausted but herself. The text doesn't suggest any lingering presence, but it also doesn't explicitly confirm Aelwyd has fully moved on.

Is Rhys's move to Graves Glen permanent? The couple agrees to split time between Wales and Graves Glen, so the ending is deliberately open about their long-term arrangement.

Reader Questions

1. Why couldn't Aelwyd lift the curse herself?

When Vivi summons Aelwyd's spirit at the cemetery, Aelwyd admits she isn't strong enough — the curse was built on her own stolen magic, and even as a spirit she can't undo it. The solution requires the living descendants to reclaim that magic directly.

2. What exactly broke the curse?

The three Jones women — Vivi, Gwyn, and Elaine — formed a circle at the ley lines and pushed their combined magic into the corrupted lines. Vivi's realization was that Aelwyd's magic was in the lines and in her blood, making the Jones women the rightful owners of that power.

3. Did Rhys know about the curse before Vivi told him?

No. Rhys was unaware until Vivi confessed after the failed cave ritual. He had assumed his bad luck was just that — bad luck.

4. What happened to Piper McBride's ghost?

Piper was trapped in the Eurydice Candle during the ritual at her old house. Before being sucked in, she delivered the crucial information about Aelwyd and Gryffud. Her ultimate fate — at peace or still trapped — is left ambiguous.

5. Why did Rhys leave again after the curse was broken?

He needed to tell his father about the revelations in person, and his travel business would get busier with the holidays. Vivi understood their lives were separate — her magic ties her to Graves Glen, while he had a life elsewhere. His return in January is framed as a choice, not an obligation.

6. Is the curse truly gone?

The text presents the curse as definitively broken — the lines run clear, Rhys survives Samhain, and the magical chaos ends. The book doesn't leave a lingering threat, though the mechanics of curse removal are never fully explained.