I was given this book by the publisher via Netgalley in return for an honest review.

We have a witch in hiding trying to save her kind to repent for turning in her grandmother. Desperate to save more witches she evaluates who would be the best match to gain information. She of course lands in the most dangerous option.

Oblivious to one best friend's obvious infatuation and another's secrets she is determined to win in this witch saving game. But is she better at this game than the witch hunter?

This story gives you unrepentant love, enemies to lovers, heartbreak, secrets and intrigue. Though I thought some of the twists were obvious not all of them were. I'm really interested to see where this duology goes. I highly recommend reading this book ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Ok, but that ending though 😭😭😭 the next book is going to have a lot of explaining to do that's for sure!! I demand apologizing and lots and lots of silk flowers to make up for this extreme heartache

Thank you, Wednesday Books, for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 3.5/5 Stars

Heartless Hunter is definitely for the romantasy crowd. Although marketed as a young adult novel, it is more suitable for older teens and adults. If you previously loved Serpent & Dove, you want to check out Heartless Hunter.

Right from the first page, I was captivated by the story and the characters. This book moves fast for most of the book, but once you get towards the book's last quarter, it feels like it dragged.

The romance between Rune and Gideon is a slow burn that is worth the wait. They complement each other perfectly. There is a love triangle, but it is one-sided and does not detract from Rune and Gideon. 

The book is an enemies-to-lovers story where Gideon and Rune hate each other and eventually fall in love. They both pretend to court each other to find dirt on each other. Gideon wants to get close to Rune to see if she is the Crimson Witch, while Rune wants to get close to Gideon to find out where the other captured witches are.

For the most part, I could not put down this book and was loving every second of it. However, towards the end, I began to struggle with it. Although the world-building was good throughout most of the book, it seemed to lack in certain areas towards the end. Additionally, I found Rune to be somewhat annoying towards the end. The twists in the story were not surprising to me, and the execution of these twists left me feeling disappointed.  I felt like we made a lot of progress with where the plot and romance were going, and then when I got to the end, I felt like much was not accomplished. The last chunk of the book was filled with mostly romance, and then, all of a sudden, the plot just happened. So, I was frustrated in the end.

I know many people will and have enjoyed this book. I will read the sequel when it is released since I am curious about what will happen next.

All witches are strung up and killed, anyone found sympathizing will also be killed. Rune has been hiding her witchcraft her whole life and has pretended to be against witches. Only her two closest friends know what she truly is, The Crimson Moth, a witch vigilante protecting other witches.

Gideon Sharpe is her best friend’s brother, and a witch hunter himself. He has suspicions that Rune is a witch, and decides to court her to get close enough to find out the truth. Rune needs to get close to Gideon to find out valuable intel so she plays along.

I really liked this story. I enjoyed the plot and the characters. I liked the worldbuilding as well.

I really am over the brotherly love triangle Vampire Diariesesque. This one wasn’t that bad though.

The ending was sad and I will definitely read book 2


4.25 ⭐️

It's probably the best witchy YA book to come since Serpent & Dove and Kingdom of the wicked. Add a little dash of Bridgertoon parties and courtiersz dreses and dances and you got yourself a gem.

The cat and mouse game this witch in hiding and witch hunter did was absolutely amazing - fun, angsty and oh so delicious!

She tried to woo him to uncover his hunter and Red Guard secrets. He tried to woo her to uncover her secrets and see if she was one of his suspects. Until they fell into their own trap. The execution of that, the banter, enemies to lovers, secret meetings, courting and games while they tried to outsmart the other were the highlights of this book. Every time they got too close and had to retreat and regroup, somehow become more involved into each other's lives and it made it harder to pursue their duties.

There is a lot of darkness and a tiny bit of spice here too, and the MCs are 18/20 years old or so and very independent, so I'd say it's more upper YA/New adult.

Despite the games, the investigations, action and adventures and tentative partnership and maybe even love Rune and Giden have fallen into, there are more evil forces at play that somehow deceived them both. Which led to a quite explosive and gut wrenching cliffhanger. Just when I started getting more invested, ahh! 😔

So 4.5⭐️ and I'm looking forward to the next one!

***the things that prevented me from giving it 5 stars are spoilery so I will address that later. Let's just say that there were some plot threads that are very classic YA fantasy that I feel like I outgrew or have little patience for these days...

***arc provided by the publisher in exchage for my honest opinion

YA fantasy has not been living up to my expectations lately so I really had no expectations going into this one - but I ended up surprised how much I enjoyed it! It was a great story incorporating two of my favourite tropes - enemies to lovers and best friends older brother. And this was a true enemies to lovers story - our main characters are Rune (a secret witch) and Gideon (a witch hunter), who live in a society where witches are hunted and killed. Gideon is on the hunt for an elusive witch sympathize called "Crimson Moth" and Rune is seeking information - to satisfy their goals the two enter into a fake courtship to use the each other, and of course end up catching feelings.

The story is full of twists and I adored that at times the characters couldn’t tell if it was love or a game of cat and mouse between them. And the cliffhanger ending! I am excited to see how the author handles the enemies to lovers vibes going forward given that ending - definitely fully enemies at the end.
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While not a perfect story (the world building was non-existent really and the start of the romance a bit rushed), it was enjoyable! The story has similar vibes to Serpent & Dove, and I think people who enjoyed that book and want even better enemies to lovers vibes would love this one!

This book was unpredictable in the best way. Just when you think you have the story or characters figured out, they take you in a completely different direction. I found myself immersed in the world of witches and witch-hunters, and I can’t wait to see where the second book takes me.

I lost my kindle and couldn't redownload it. Sorry!
I lost my kindle and couldn't redownload it. Sorry!
I lost my kindle and couldn't redownload it. Sorry!
I lost my kindle and couldn't redownload it. Sorry!

I've actually never read or seen the Scarlet Pimpernel, which this is a retelling of but I am obsessed. I loved the story and I love the characters and I need the next one ASAP

Thank you for allowing me to read this book. I enjoyed the characters and their arcs, and found the plot interesting. I look forward to reading more from this author.

I cannot wait for book 2! This book was SO good. I couldn't put it down and when I did, it was all I could think about.

I have never read a story about witches like this one. I really enjoyed the fresh approach to telling of the magic, the secrets and how a girl knows she's a witch. I don't want to spoil too much, as it's so good, you need to read it for yourself!

I rated this a 5/5 stars and would definitely recommend this to a friend who enjoys witches, a tangled love story and lots of action. I promise, you won't be disappointed with this one!

I haven't read much fantasy in a while now, but I've read a couple (not counting a certain Urban Fantasy author, that I wait every year for the new book). I used to love it but slowly migrated away as some as my tastes changed. Now, for this book;

The best: This book! I loved the imagery and the story and the characters (Rune & Gideon) (well, most of them, see below).
The good: I was immersed in this world and look forward to reading the next book.
The bad: A couple of things here. First - that I have to wait to read the next book. Second - one of the evilish characters and their surprise reveal, okay, I saw this coming in the very beginning of the book, so not a surprise AT ALL. Third - Harrow, what was the purpose of such an annoying character. If she was supposed to be a red herring, again obvious, if not, then I hope there is some reason in the next book for the way this character acted and even then, still very annoying.
The worst: Cliffhanger! I hate cliffhangers, that leave you teetering on the precipice. Did she wrap up part of the story, sort of, but the unknown was too huge and really made me mad. Does it make me want to read the next book? Absolutely! Am I upset about it - you better believe it. And I can tell you if book two ends like book one, I doubt I will read book three (if there is one).

Thank you to St Martin's Press, Wednesday Books and NetGalley for providing an eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

Just closed the last page of Kristen Ciccarelli's "Heartless Hunter," and I'm already counting the days until the next release in the Crimson Moth duology. This book swept me into a lush, dangerous world where witches hide in plain sight and witch hunters prowl, adding a deliciously intense layer to the cat-and-mouse game between Rune, our vigilante witch, and Gideon, the relentless witch-hunter.

By day, Rune plays the part of a frivolous socialite, but by night, she's the Crimson Moth, rescuing witches from the clutches of hunters. Gideon, with his own haunting backstory, initially seeks to capture her but ends up entangled in a complicated dance of attraction that blurs the lines between captor and lover. Their chemistry? Off the charts! The slow burn and romantic tension had me flipping pages faster than a witch casts spells.

The love triangle added just the right amount of drama without overwhelming the main plot, and the ending? Absolutely gut-wrenching with a cliffhanger that left me desperate for more. Ciccarelli's blend of forbidden romance, morally grey characters, and a heart-pounding plot earns "Heartless Hunter" a glowing 5 stars from me. An absolute must-read for fantasy and romance enthusiasts alike!

I really loved this book! The characters were well written and the world building was so interesting and unique. I really enjoyed the enemies to lovers romance between the two main characters. There were twists I did see coming and some I did not expect exactly! The end had me on an emotional rollercoaster! I can't wait for the next book to see what happens!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. This was an entertaining romantasy that had me guessing throughout to see where it was headed. I did enjoy the romance but would have liked more action. I was also hoping for more from Rune because I was picturing her to be this sort of tough, action hero type of character and she fell pretty flat for me. Overall this was a good read and I’m looking forward to book 2!

Thrilling! I can't wait for the next book. The characters and the world building was SOLID! The magic system also made sense but I enjoyed it's new approach/style.

THIS WAS SO GOOD.

Incredible.

I've been in a book slump where I feel like everything I've been reading has been three stars, maybe four. But this was a hard five stars to me.

Rune is a wonderful FMC and is so complex and interesting. The tension, plot, and pacing are all perfection. Gideon was a slight surprise as I didn't expect to like him as much as I did, but as the story progressed, so did he.

The stakes were so high while the story was fun, easy to digest, but had unpredictable twists and turns.

Absolutely adored this.

I devoured this book—compelling story, likeable characters, and a promising start to the series. I'll definitely be looking into following this series as it comes out!

So much action. I typically don’t like witchy things, but this had an interesting story like that kept me wanting to know what happens next. It is a romantasy. Looking forward to the second book.

I loved this one! I thought the blood magic was interesting in the way it was used and the difference in powers between old and new blood used.

It’s been a while since I read a good ya fantasy with a love triangle trope and I thought this was well done.

The ending was shocking and leaves you with so many questions. I will definitely be reading the next one!