I just starting getting back into Fantasy and I absolutely devoured this read.

Reading about a witch vs witch hunter was just a fun read.

Since this book had to deal with witches and magic, I thought it was a nice touch that the spells and definition was put at the beginning of some chapters to get a better grasp on what was being used and what was it meant for. Gideon and Rune's complicated relationship was interesting to see it blossom and how difficult it was to navigate between their evil plans. Also I loved reading Alex and Rune's friendship and how he was everything she needed, but wouldn't let herself have what she thinks she doesn't deserve. I wish this was a why choose book because I loved both of these men for her. One was dangerous and the other was more like home.

The one thing I didn't really like was the insta-love in the story. I think there should of been more character building and angst. They were enemies for a long time and should of acted like it for a little longer. Also I don't like ending on a cliffhanger when I don't have the next book to read right after lol. I can't wait to read the second book in the series. I will be anxiously waiting.

Thank you Netgalley, Kristen Ciccarelli, and Publisher for letting me read an early arc, in exchange for leaving an honest review.

HEARTLESS HUNTER was a wild ride of a novel that got me out of my reading slump. This book is like Mr. and Mrs. Smith but written for a young adult audience and instead of spies, you have a witch and a witch hunter who equally need to use one another to achieve their goals. The novel was fun, angsty, and an absolutely great story.

I really enjoyed every part of this novel. I found myself invested in the story almost immediately. It started with action right away and hooked me. The characters were complex and multifaceted and the magic system that the author utilized was pretty fleshed out and made sense. There was a balance to the narrative and no part dragged. I think the author did an incredible job.

I will say that I felt some parts of the story to be predictable, but I think you have to keep in mind that it’s a YA novel. I saw some things coming a mile away, but it didn’t dampen my enjoyment of the story. I think it’s just something to keep in mind if YA isn’t 100% your thing.

I loved this story and I am itching to read the second book, even though it’s not even out yet. I think this is a book that’s going to be talked about and the hype it’s sure to get is worth it.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I choose this because of its’ recent popularity and hype. This isn’t the genre I’m attracted to, but, thought I’d give it a try. It captured my curiosity and I found some of it uniquely entertaining. I probably won’t continue with the series, yet I am thankful for the ARC for my honest review.

I am writing this review from my desk at work, trying my hardest not to fall asleep because I stayed up all night reading this book. You too should read this book so you too can have lower work productively the next day.

I'm often somewhat disappointed by The Next Big Thing. Very occasionally, I'll find That Next Big Thing that delivers. Heartless Hunter by Kristin Ciccarelli is just such a book.

We follow along with Rune as she leads her double life. By day, she's the rich socialite that turned on her own grandmother two years ago during the uprising. By night, she's saving as many witches as she can as the Crimson Moth. She's been working with her friends Alex and Verity to help save those who are being killed simply for being born witches. The Blood Guard hunts witches and is led by Gideon Sharp, Alex's brother. He suspects Rune is involved in who he's hunting, and she knows he's a source of information on the witch hunters.

What follows is a twisted tail of lies, deceit, love, second chances, and hate.

The magic system in the book is very interesting as it's blood based. This results in cutting references and therefore could be triggering to some.

I was transported into this story and cannot wait for the ending to this duology!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced reader copy!

I think witch/witch hunter may be one of my new favorite fantasy tropes!
Heartless Hunter was completely captivating from start to finish. It was dark, fast-paced and has a unique magic system that I loved and am excited to learn more about.

Rune was a TERRIFIC main character. She’s clever, deceptive, and compassionate.
Gideon is a complex, morally grey character and I loved him. He has good reasons to hate witches but his inner turmoil as he gets closer to Rune is SO GOOD.

This right here is a true enemies-to-lovers story. I loved the game of cat and mouse they had going on as they both pretended to pursue the other for their own agendas. The push and pull of the romance was executed wonderfully.

The ending has me so excited for whatever comes next. Give me more vengeance and betrayal but Rune and Gideon better be endgame!

Heartless Hunter releases on February 20th and is a must read if you’re a romantasy lover ♥️

Kristen Ciccarelli's Heartless Hunter is the first installment in the authors' The Crimson Moth duology. Heartless Hunter is loosely based on Baroness Orczy's The Scarlet Pimpernel. The book alternates between Rune Winter, the witch known as The Crimson Moth, and Gideon Sharpe, the most dangerous witch hunter around. Rune lives in a world where witches are hunted and purged. It has been 2 years since the streets ran red with the blood of witches.

It has been that long since Rune made the fateful decision to listen to her grandmother and betray her to save her own life. As the story opens, Rune is searching for the witch called Seraphine who her grandmother wanted her to find so she could learn about her magical abilities. Unfortunately, Rune discovers Seraphine's hiding place too late and learns that the Blood Guard has captured her. Rune spends her days pretending to be a vapid young socialite.

After all, she inherited all of her grandmother's wealth. By night, she spends her nights as the Crimson Moth, a vigilante witch who rescues other witches when they are caught by the Blood Guard. When Seraphine's rescue goes wrong, she decides to throw the witch hunters off her scent and gain the intel she desperately needs by courting the handsome Gideon Sharpe - a notorious and unforgiving witch hunter loyal to the revolution - who she can't help but find herself falling for.

Gideon loathes the decadence and superficiality Rune represents, but when he learns the Crimson Moth has been using Rune’s merchant ships to smuggle renegade witches out of the republic, he inserts himself into her social circles by pretending to court her right back. He soon realizes that beneath her beauty and shallow façade, is someone fiercely intelligent and tender who feels like his perfect match. Except, what if she’s the very villain he’s been hunting?

The fact that both Rune and Gideon are lying to the other, but are also suspicious of the other’s true intention means that there are a lot of lies, scheming, and pretending to be what they think the other wants them to be. To add even more intrigue, the author throws Gideon's brother Alex Sharpe into the mix. Alex has been helping Rune for the past several years. And, if he is found out, he will be purged just like the witches Gideon hunts. Except, there is yet another mystery that you better pay close attention to, otherwise you won't see the end coming.

This story is a cat vs mouse game of intrigue with some romance kicked in to make the story more entertaining. Sadly though, we don’t see much of her doing actual Crimson Moth work. It’s mostly about her planning, and trying to ensnare Gideon to gain intel on the witch she is trying to save. Giden is a character who has had a very traumatic past when it comes to witches. His experience spurred him to take part in the revolution which allegedly killed the Witch Queens, and created the Republic.

The book also ends on a heartbreaking cliffhanger ending. It's a good thing this is only a duology so that we don't have to wait several years to see how the game between Rune and Gideon plays out.

Heartless Hunter is a magical game of a cat and mouse chase between a witch and a witch hunter and I am absolutely here for ittttt!!!

This is my first Kristen Ciccarelli novel and it has far exceeded any expectations I had, I am utterly obsessed with our Love Interest characters, their chemistry and the way they can’t help being vulnerable and open with each other as they develop feelings despite the fact they are trying with all their might to play one another in a tense game of hide and seek.

In the past books about witchy romance have been very much a miss for me as I find them to modern and cheesy giving me the ick, but this book is absolutely perfection. It has a historic timeless vibe to it, but everything is easy to follow, dialogue included and it feels fun and fresh, a new voice that we have been missing in this genre until now.

I have nothing but high praise for this book. I love all the characters, the games of misdirection had me on the edge of my seat just waiting for somebody to get caught out.

The pacing of the chapters flowed perfectly, I loved the swap between his and hers POV, getting more information into the history of each LI whilst watching their clever plots play out in real time.

This is an easy 5⭐️ for me, an absolute must read, I cannot wait for the rest of the books to come in the series!!

Thank you to the author, st martins press and NetGalley for an advanced copy. This book is available for purchase now on BOTM website; or is released on Feb 20th 2024! You absolutely must get your hands on this one, don’t miss out!

YOU GUYS i did expect this to be that good. now, is it the greatest piece of american literature? no, but it served a delicious lil enemies to lovers moment and was exactly what serpent & dove was trying to accomplish (but much, MUCH better). it also had the tiniest sprinkles of acotar in there but what fantasy these days doesn’t- it doesn’t effect the plot or reading experience whatsoever so don’t getcha panties in a twist and get them in this book instead 😌 (i heard it too and i’m proceeding with it)

february 20th y’all!!! i better see this flooding my page!!!!

Language: R (18+ swears, 7+ "f" + British swears); Mature Content: R; Violence: PG13+
Basically, the story is that the main characters are attempting to seduce each other in order to further their own purposes. I wanted more of their magic and solving the mystery, but no. So I stopped reading.
The mature content rating is for alcohol use, innuendo, mentions of drugs and menstruation, nudity, groping, and sex. The violence rating is for blood, assault, gun use, suicide, and mentions of torture and murder.

Honestly I really struggled getting into this book. I felt like a lot of the plot was a stretch and the characters weren't very likable. I found myself hoping both of them would fail. The magic system seemed a bit confusing for me, it seemed inconsistent and I feel like there were a lot of options for how to obtain the blood needed. I don't know that this book was for me ultimately, so take my review with a grain of salt.

One of my favorite tropes is enemies to lovers, throw a little magic, fantasy, and witches in there and you’ve got me completely hooked. I will admit I was nervous going into this one because it was more on the YA side than the other fantasies I’ve read in the past, but that didn’t deter me at all. I couldn’t stop reading. The pacing was on point, fast and never feeling like it was dragging on or too slow. The world building wasn’t too complicated and I loved the uniqueness of the magic. And the spice & tension was definitely there! I really enjoyed it and can’t wait for the 2nd one.

A huge thank you to the publisher, Netgalley, and Kristen Ciccarelli for this e-arc!

Heartless Hunter by Kristen Ciccarelli ♥️
The Crimson Moth, Book 1
Duet

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
♾️♾️♾️♾️♾️
NA • Fantasy Romance
ARC Review
411 pages
🗓️ February 20th

🦋 romantasy
♥️ enemies to lovers
🦋 witch/witch hunter
♥️ cat/mouse game
🦋 best friend’s brother
♥️ barely-there love triangle (you know me so you know this had to be exquisite for me to be praising a love triangle 🤌🏼)
🦋 dual POV

📍“I want all of you, Rune. Not just tonight, but every moment from now on.”

Please, read this book.

Please, read this book.

Please, read this book.

📍“What if we fight all the time?”
“I’d rather fight with you than do most other things.”

Please, read this book.

Please, read this book.

Please, read this book.

📍“I’m afraid you’ll be the end of me, Gideon. Maybe you already are.”

Please, read this book.

Please, read this book.

Please, read this book.

*That’s the review.

P.S.: He played her. She played him. Love played them both.

This was a much anticipated read for me and I am so happy I snagged the BOTM copy for my shelf. I love enemies to lovers so much and the trope was strong with this one. A witch and witch hunter with some forbidden romance 😍 There were some plot twists in this one that I did not expect but loved. I think there was a brief moment when I found myself asking if this was going to be YA but it quickly turned into an adult fantasy again. It was very fast paced and I loved that. The world building was simple and the magic system was very intriguing. I love witches casting spells! Now I just need to know when we can expect the sequel because I need to know more about Gideon and the Crimson Moth!

This is a unique true enemies to lovers, best friend's older brother slow burn romance. The Witch and Witch Hunter both trying to seduce the others deepest secrets out of each other. Rune trying to save as many witches from their death as she can and Gideon trying to discover who is the Crimson Moth who keeps stealing criminals out from under the Blood Guard's nose.

Well, if it has witches, you can bet I am going to read it. I was so excited for this one and it did not disappoint!! Thank you for the arc, Netgalley!!

If you love enemies to loves and slow burn, put this one on your TBR immediately!

I had the opportunity to read Heartless Hunter by Kristen Ciccarelli thanks to NetGalley and I really enjoyed it. This story is a fantasy with a 'will they or wont they' romance mixed in. In this world Witches are outcasts and hunted, our main character goes to great lengths to save any remaining witches with the constant threat of being caught herself. Is there anything she will not to do save her kind? The infamous witch hunter suspects her and he happens to be the brother of her best friend.

Ciccarelli does a great job at depicting the intricacies of the relationships in this story without drawing it out- she does a lot with he 400 pages and the story is always pushing forward. As someone who reads high fantasy often I wish there was more world building and additional historical context. Ciccarelli is a fantastic writer (no overused phrases that one usually encounters in romantic fantasy) and put out a story that leaves me wanting more. I look forward to book 2.

PARDON???

literally crying and furious at the same time because how dare you kristen! break our hearts and then just end the book on that? i’m not emotionally okay

anyways, this book was amazing and i did not expect to be this head over heels for it. i loved rune and alex’s friendship and i loved the actual enemies to lovers tension between rune and gideon.

this book has actual stakes that made me have goosebumps while reading and tender moments that made me blush and swoon.

well done. now i need the next book soon okay?

**Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. This review is my opinion**

Bruh... There's something about the enemies-to-lovers trope, especially with a witch and witch hunter, that gets me. I was so excited when I got this book early, and it did not disappoint! It has a smooth slow burn romance, which just makes things seem more realistic. Insta-love is a one-way ticket to me DNFing a book. Rune, our main gal, is a witch who must hide because her kind is hunted. I love that by day, she is one thing, but at night, she becomes this badass vigilante that rescues other witches from the hunters. When a woman fights back, it just hits me in the heart. I cannot stand wallflower or weak little damsel in distresses. Gideon, our hunter and love interest, is just as compelling as Rune. When they get entangled, the book takes off.

I look forward to Kristen Ciccarelli's next book!

I feel like many of the more mainstream and "hyped" books have been falling very flat for me recently, especially in the romantasy genre. This book sounds like something I would have been absolutely thrilled to read when I was college-aged, but now, at almost 34, I feel like I've read this book before, and it was better written the first time. Loosely based on The Scarlet Pimpernel (a book I absolutely loved in high school), this novel follows a witch undercover, sneaking persecuted witches out from under the nose of a (hot and sexy) witch hunter. In order to gain insider information on where incarcerated witches are kept, Rune (our heroine) decides to court Gideon (our morally grey hero). In order to follow a lead on the Crimson Moth (our Scarlet Pimpernel, see what they did there?), Gideon decides to court Rune. Everything a reader could possibly expect to happen, happens; both characters are irresistibly sexy, they are suspicious of each other but decide to get naked and make increasingly stupid decisions. The writing style was fine, but I never really got a sense of the world or the plot. The characters were poor portrayals of Pimpernel characters, and everything felt too easily figured out. The ending read so rushed, I almost couldn't believe the last few chapters were all we got. I didn't hate this book, exactly, but I was disappointed because there was a lot of potential here. Also, was this YA or NA? I was actually having a hard time figuring it out.