I was provided an ARC of this book via Netgally, however I did opt to listen to the final published version of the audiobook. As always all opinions are my own.

This was a fun new YA fantasy. If you are looking for something with magic and romance, but without the spice this is a good option. There is romance, but everything is pretty fade to black when thing get to that point between characters. This will be great for the teenager who wants to read something a bit more mature, but without all the details and language you might find in a more adult fantasy romance. As I was reading this, I was reminded Cassandra Clare's Shadowhunter's Series, Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard, and Night of the Witch by Beth Revis and Sara Raasch. If you enjoyed those books I thin you will enjoy this.

This follows Rune a wealthy socialite by day, and a revolutionary by night. In a society where magic is hated and feared and witches are put to death, Rune is known as a friend to the Republic for having been an informant in the past. She spends her nights as a double agent freeing the women that the republic is trying to eradicate and that she spends her days pretending she hates. Gideon is one of the Republic's most repected guards and witch hunters. He has a personal vendetta against witches and he would love to catch the vigilante known as the Crimson Moth who frees the witches he and his comrades capture and mark for death. He and Rune enter into a dangerous game to gain information from each other, but their hearts get involved as much as their heads do.

I really enjoyed watching this play out. This had some twists and turns to keep the reader interested, but I did feel it was a tad predictable. The author did make some creative decisions that I did think were unexpected with a few of the plotlines. I enjoyed getting to know Rune and Gideon and the banter between them. I'm anxious to see how their relationship develops in the next installment. There is a major reveal and bit of a cliffhanger at a the end and their relationship will certainly be a big part of the next book. I also enjoyed the magic system, it was well explained and not overly complex. I always appreciate when the author takes the time to explain the magic system and the rules, and we do get that here. There is blood magic and the mention of blood quite a bit in this book, so if you aren't into that you might want to steer clear of this.

I'm looking forward to the next book and finding out what happens next for Rune and Gideon.

I completed this in less than 24 hours. Obsessed! I need more! Enemies to lovers to enemies. Wow wow wow!

At page 121, I'd realized that I have no emotional investment in these characters nor I am interested in seeing the development of their affair/various causes so I deciced to stop reading.

The book is alright. It checks things off the list, re: There are popular elements that should entertain its targeted audience. Regretfully, I was hoping for something more.

Deadly fantasy!
18yo Rune lost her only family to witch hunters two years earlier when Nan told Rune to betray her. Nan was a witch who knew her time was up and she wanted to save Rune. Nan made Rune promise to turn her into the witch hunters and denounce everything she grew up knowing and loving. After Nan’s capture and death, Rune became the Crimson Moth; a vigilante who rescues witches and helps get them to freedom. Rune attends social events to discover the witches who are next in line to be captured, so she can swoop in and save them. Her disguise seems to be working but one guard suspects her and will do everything he can to catch her.

Likes/dislikes: I enjoyed the mystery and the reveals. The world building was done well. The danger makes the story even more interesting.
Mature Content: R for on page sex.
Language: R for 28 swears, 8 f-words.
Violence: R for bloody deaths.
Ethnicity: The ethnicity consists of mostly white, with ocher and golden skin tones mentioned.

Heartless Hunter: The Crimson Moth is the first book in a duology set in the Republic of Red Peace, where witches once ruled, but are now hunted by witch hunters known as the Red Guard. Teenage Rune Winters, a wealthy socialite, is known for turning in her own witch grandmother to be purged. However, Rune was persuaded to do so by her grandmother, to save herself. To vindicate her death, Rune operates in secret as the Crimson Moth, who helps witches escape the Purge. Her grandmother charged her with finding the witch Seraphine for help, and to do so she courts Gideon Sharpe, the head of the red Guard, hoping to get a clue about her location. In turn Gideon suspects Rune of being the Crimson Moth and returns her advances, trying to catch her in the act. What they didn't expect was to fall in love. The complexity of the conflict paints neither side as wholly good nor evil. A dramatic ending sets up the sequel in which the two factions will continue their battle.

First of all, thank you NetGalley for the ARC of one of my most anticipated releases of the year.

While the romance in this book wasn't for me, I can see why others love it. For my fantasy romance, or romantasy, I prefer my characters to have a REAL and deep connection. I despise books with instalove, and unfortunately that is what we got here. We got Rune, a girl who at the start of the book is using vials of blood stored from her last period to cast magic. Until almost the ninety percent mark, she hasn't had another period. Which means that she fell in "love" in under four weeks? That isn't real or believable and didn't make me love the romance because they truly did not have a connection in my opinion.

Also, this under four week love story ruins any pretense of enemies to lovers. It had such a promising premise, and the story itself was really interesting, if not a bit predictable, that the romance was truly the biggest downfall. Friends to lovers would have made this much sweeter and believable since we had characters with a history and who accepted one another despite their station in life and circumstances, and that would have made for such a good pairing. I just want characters to chose one another in my fantasy books and not "the bad guy" for once! Is that too much to ask for?!

Instead, what we got here is a sexual assault victim who is leading the campaign to eliminate an entire group of people, but who is then pressured into having sex with another girl in order to inspect her body for the telltale scars left behind by practicing witchcraft. I repeat, THIS. IS. NOT. LOVE. This is gross. Thinking about it now, this book should not be classified as young adult. This definitely read more NA in my opinion.

Overall, I did like this and I will probably be picking up the next book when it comes out to see where the author goes from here.

Overall: 3.75/ 5 ⭐️
Spice: 0.5/ 5 🌶️

🖤 witchy Bridgerton
🖤 witch x witch hunter
🖤 third person POV
🖤 dual POV
🖤 fake courting
🖤 blood magic
🖤 love triangle

Originally believing herself to be a powerless human, a young Rune discovers that she is, in fact, a witch. She must maintain her pretense of being a vapid socialite in order to stay hidden. In a world where witches are persecuted, Rune and her friends must work covertly to help captured witches flee to safety. Her best friends Alex and Verity have their own motives for helping the witches, and Alex’s brother Giddeon is a witch hunter/ captain of the guard. Rune and Giddeon pretend to be courting each other in a deadly game of cat and mouse to try to uncover each other’s secrets. Gideon is desperate to discover the identity of the Crimson Month and capture her. Meanwhile, Rune will stop at nothing to fulfill her grandmother’s final wish and rescue the witch, Seraphine. Which of the two will succeed and who will be caught in the crossfire?

What I liked:
-the story was well paced
-characters and world were well developed
-ALEX
-the sense of urgency was well executed

What I didn’t like:
-the chemistry between Rune & Gideon was not believable to me
-GIDDEON – honestly, he’s just such a jerk
-HARROW – always appearing unexpectedly, the suspicious timing, and always pushing for Giddeon to sleep with Rune to find out if she’s a witch…honestly, the whole thing was weird and gave me the ick.

Favorite quotes:
“The sight of him was like coming home. Like wrapping herself in a warm blanket on a chilly day”

“she reminded him of the sea: steal-your-breath beautiful on the surface, with the promise of untold depths beneath.”

*Goodreads review posted, Amazon review pending approval

I enjoyed this more than I expected to! It's a relatively predictable fantasy, written in a YA style, but some of the content is not appropriate for YA, especially towards the end. I've seen it listed as YA in some places, but I believe it is meant to be an adult book. Fans of Defy the Night will probably love this, I found myself comparing aspects of the two books.

It was a fast paced and exciting read, even though I was able to predict quite a bit of the end. Sometimes seeing if your predictions are right is what makes it fun to keep reading. I likely wouldn't re-read, but I will keep an eye out for the sequel when it comes out.

The characters had good chemistry and reading their internal struggles were described well to understand motivations without feeling stuck in a character's head for too long.

Some things to be aware of if you're squemish or otherwise concerned about content:

The magic system is blood based. There are some descriptions of bloody scenes/murders for the sake of this blood magic. There is also the use of menstrual blood for this magic which was kind of gross to me.

There is an explicit sex scene towards the end and lots of comments about sex and using it as a tool to get information throughout. I wouldn't recommend this book to teens despite the YA writing style.

“𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗲𝘀-𝘁𝗼-𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗵𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿 𝗞𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗖𝗶𝗰𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶’𝘀 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗳𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘀𝘆.”

I loved it! For me, it was exactly what it was supposed to be, but I’m easy to please when it comes to #romantasy. Give me a sexy MMC, a steamy game of cat & mouse, & a little magic and I’m all in! If the story hits, the sexual tension is well executed, and there’s enough high-stakes to keep me interested, rest assured I read and enjoyed it.

“𝙍𝙪𝙣𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙙𝙚𝙚𝙧, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙝𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧. 𝙏𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙢𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙚, 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙙𝙚𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙡 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙛𝙡𝙖𝙬, 𝙩𝙧𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙞𝙛 𝙨𝙝𝙚’𝙙 𝙗𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙪𝙣𝙩.”

I would compare the plot/story level to that of the Letters of Enchantment and Belladonna YA fantasy series in both style in storyline. Letters of Enchantment in the way I was absolutely invested in the main characters from start to finish, and Belladonna in the dark, yet whimsical vibes it gave.

“𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙂𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙤𝙣 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙜 𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨, 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙙 𝙝𝙞𝙢 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙖: 𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙡-𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧-𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝 𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙛𝙪𝙡 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙚, 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙨𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙙𝙚𝙥𝙩𝙝𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝.”

The book ended on a cliffhanger that has me more than happy to read the next book; it will be a duology. This was a fun YA fantasy with depth, a captivating magic system, and very well executed romantic storytelling. What more can you ask for in romantasy?

This is the first book in the Crimson Moth duology. I was sucked into this new world. I immediately wanted to know more about Rune, the main character, and her backstory. And we meet Gideon early on and their enemies vibe is intense. I loved the cat and mouse courtship that had real vibes and cold strategizing all mixed together. And the side characters... they were so well fleshed out, and I wanted to know all of their secrets too. I enjoyed the storyline too. There was definitely a plot with lots of action the balanced well with the banter and character development. For me this was the whole enchilada. I'm counting down until the next one.

Thanks to the publisher for sharing a copy. All opinions are my own.

Excuse me, I’m obsessed! I literally could not put this story down!! Everything from the cat and mouse relationship between witch and witch hunter, a small love triangle between brothers and our brave, formidable Rune, a found family, and the sloooooow burn feelings it was impossible not to race to the end of it!

This is squarely in the new adult genre and as a 31 year old, I had no issues with the writing at all - it was a dream to read through! The setting of a more modernistic regency era was such a joy to read while also leaning more realistic within the ways women lived their lives. Women were studying in college, they owned their own estate, rode horses in the streets without escorts, there were still balls with dancing ribbons and suitors but you could kiss a boy without spinning out of control from shame. A total breath of fresh air to the regency setting!

I really loved the use of magic in this story and the world building around the magic system was done so well and effortlessly, it was a joy to learn about. Blood magic by using menstrual blood <spoiler>to stay scar-less</spoiler>?! (For those quesy about blood, there is no in-depthon page collection, just mentions that it is the source.) I certainly haven’t seen menstruation as a magic source before and so unashamedly. In a time where women are embracing our flows more openly, I wish I had a book like this when I was a new adult.

And the ENDINGGGGGGGGG. AHHHHHHH! I NEED THE NEXT BOOK ASAP!

Thank you to my husband who endured my squeals and giggle outbursts while reading this one! And thank you to Netgalley and the publishers who gave me early access to review it and fall in love with it!

4.25⭐️

What a wonderful start to a duology. Witches are hunted relentlessly after the abuse of power of the former witches who ruled the small island. Heartless Hunter follows Rune Winters, a witch in hiding posing as a loyal citizen. She proved herself by being forced to betray her grandmother, the woman who raised her and a powerful witch to the new regime in exchange for her own life and safety.

Rune has taken up the mantle of The Crimson Moth, a vigilante attempting to save witches from persecution and death on their island, sending them away to hide in safety. In order to further her goals of saving witches in her land, Rune is pushed to seduce Gideon, the captain of the Blood Guard witch hunters for information.

Gideon and Rune make a perfect enemies to lovers couple, with secret motivations and a fast paced, dangerous game of cat and mouse. I loved the twists when they were so close to finding the other, but they were able to evade just enough to stay safe. This is 100% a romance forward book, plot takes a mild secondary spot in my eyes. If you're looking for something very plot-heavy, this isn't it.

The mild love triangle of (Gideon's brother) Alex x Rune x Gideon was alright. I just don't think I care for "best friend has been in love with me forever" trope.

The cliffhanger at the end destroyed all of the trust and emotions that Rune and Gideon had built for each other. So I'm definitely excited to see how they deal with that tension in the next installment.

🟥 Witch x Witch Hunter
🟥 Creative Magic System
🟥 Slow Burn
🟥 Dual POV
🟥 Enemies to Lovers
🟥 Very Mild love triangle
🟥 Both Main characters dealing with different ✨trauma✨
🟥 Cliffhanger ending 🙈

US Heartless Hunter = UK The Crimson Moth - still very confused about the decision to rename the US release and I don't quite care for that.

Thank you to NetGalley & Wednesday books for an eARC of Heartless Hunter by Kristen Ciccarelli.

super fun and intriguing read with a plot jam packed with twists, betrayal, secret identities and forbidden romance. I really enjoyed this one and can’t wait for the sequel!

I really enjoyed this book. I finished it in 4 hrs, I couldn’t put it down! I really like the tension between the fmc and mmc. I did have a point towards the end of the book that I didn’t like the choice/choices the fmc, which made me want to put the book down. Overall I really liked the book and can’t wait to read the second book. #Netgalley

3.5 stars rounded up! Full review coming soon to YouTube with book clubs questions :)

I really liked this book and the dynamic even though it was a little more young adult than I hoped for!
The plot was great, easy to follow, had fun twists and turns.
Characters were phenomenal IMO. there weren't too many and each character was described, developed really well

Kristens writing was really good too! I didn't plow through this book like I thought I would, but it was just such a great easy read with still so much drama. I will absolutely be reading this whole series.

Thank you to Kristen, NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for a review!

The last 100 pages of this were WILD.

I thoroughly enjoyed the writing style and the depth of each character! I found Rune to be really inspirational as she balanced being both powerful and vicious while also being extremely feminine and often seen as a mindless socialite but she’s rarely consciously using this societal contradiction to manipulate people.

The magic system in this was a great balance of familiar and original! It felt easy to adapt to and follow while still causing me to gasp every so often!

There were plot twists and points that I had anticipated early on and others that completely caught me off guard and keep me turning the page last into the night! The ending had me feeling a bit uncomfortable with everything Rune knows and the choices she has made in the cliffhanger but I’m eager to see how everything comes together and moves forward in the next addition!

So good! This is the type of YA that I would re-read over and over again when I was a youngin and YA was at its peak. It's an addictive fast paced read that is impossible to put down. Alex is such a sweetheart 🥺 and I love that Gideon is badass and strong but is also a fashion designer at heart-what a cutie (I swooned over the dress scene). And holy cannoli that ending!!!
The romantic tension was palpable, and even though I wasn't a huge fan of the love triangle (and wished Alex stayed a friend) it was still so evocative. Which is honestly so impressive that even though it's obvious who she's going to end up with, the tension with both is still amazing and made me hold my breath. This book had me in my feels- eyes teary (against my will! I was holding it back but Alex's death got me), chest aching, and heart pounding. It's the kind of book that changes your whole mood and I was genuinely walking around happier whenever I was able to pull myself away for a break to eat. And I mean pull myself away literally because it was so hard to stop. It was just so fast past and addictive that I found it hard to even take a breath. I was legit hot and sweating from how much my heart was racing and how invested I was.
I give extra kudos when books are exceptions to things I typically don't like (the way the love triangle was portrayed and especially the way it was resolved) so bonus points for Kristen Ciccarelli for pulling this one off so well I can't even be mad.
The twists were predictable (but still fun) and yes, the confession was a bit much but I am so here for it. I also actually liked the idea of period blood magic. Because why is menstrual blood seen as "dirtier" than normal blood? It feels like a reclaiming that she's able to harness its power for magic. I’m assuming it doesn’t coagulate bc of *magic* lol

Heartless Hunter is the first book in a new YA fantasy series. There are some romantic elements, but relatively tame and virtually clean. I originally had this tagged as romantasy, but I'm backtracking on that now. I'll go with dark fantasy as there are definitely violent and dark themes involving witches and those who pursue and kill witches.

The worldbuilding is sound, with plenty of room for further development and reveals. The complexity is in line with an intended YA audience. I would have enjoyed it more with some deeper characterization and backstory; however I felt the writing style was sound and easy to read. I figured out the where it was going about halfway in. Minor plot resolution at the end, but for sure this story carries over into further books. 3.5 stars rounded up. Gorgeous cover art.

Thank you to Wednesday Books via Netgalley for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.

If you love the forbidden romances, like Serpent and Dove, Heartless Hunter is definitely a book for you. Very interesting and new magic system revolving around the ones powerful and ruling witches unravel in this book, love to learning how the magic system worked and getting more and more details throughout the story.
Rune is a witch, but no one knows it. She’s hiding in plain sight, pretending to despise which is and their magic after she turned in her grandmother. By night she’s the Crimson moth trying to save her fellow witches. Hot on her trail are the winch hunters - lead by Gideon, who absolutely despises witches. Absolutely loved the forbidden romance and their chemistry. Some great twists and turns I wasnt expecting that really makes me itch for book 2!
Don’t want to give too much away about the characters and their motivations because learning what causes them to act the way, they are, was some of the best parts of the story. Definitely recommend!

Thank you netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I have a feeling that this is going to be one of the top fantasy romances of 2024. This had every element a romantasy reader loves. The tension, the slow-burn, the enemies-to-lovers storyline. This is going to be a new favorite for many, including myself.