Very disappointed in the author's choice to normalize drinking in excess just to get through an event or deal with feelings that you would rather ignore. I recognize that this might not be an issue for most readers, but I think this is in poor taste. Unfortunately, this severely affected my enjoyment of this book.

Gideon Sharpe is determined to fulfill his duty to the Republic and hunt down Rune Winters, who is none other than The Crimson Moth. She also happens to be the girl he has complicated feelings for. To stay alive, Rune has made the impossible choice to ally herself with the dangerous and ruthless witch, Cressida Roseblood, who is determined to restore the Reign of Witches. She feels betrayed by the man she loves but knows he had no choice but to expose her as the elusive witch who has rescued countless others from the hands of the Republic. When they both realize the paths they chose are far more harmful and dangerous than they realized, they are forced together to work to stay alive. Will they be able to ignore their feelings for each other and beat the odds stacked against them to survive?

I really enjoyed Heartless Hunter (the first book in this duology) so I was beyond thrilled to be able to read Rebel Witch. There was so much action packed into this book and I found it so hard to put down. Gideon and Rune faced a lot of impossible situations and obstacles and I loved seeing even more depth from their characters. There was so much emotion written into this story and I could really feel it while reading. It was a stunning conclusion to this two-book series and wrapped up this story in a thrilling and beautiful way.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books (St. Martin's Press) for the ARC!

Rebel Witch by Kristen Ciccarelli

The Crimson Moth: Book Two

5 stars

Pub Date: February 18, 2025

Thank you St Martin's Press and Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book!

After finishing and LOVING Heartless Hunter, I couldn't wait to dive into my ARC of Rebel Witch with two of my friends. This was the perfect conclusion to the duology. The writing in both of these books is phenomenal, the short chapters make the content easy to digest, and it is super easy to binge. The author succeeded in making readers root for BOTH Rune and Gideon, despite their rivalry.

I did find it to be a bit predictable near the end, but I was enjoying it so much, it really didn't bother me. Rune made some questionable choices that didn't really mesh with what we know of her character, but I felt like her logic made sense and we can look past a momentary lapse in judgement. That being said, none of this resulted in lowering my star rating.

This is one of the best romantasy duologies I've ever read. This was absolutely fantastic.

The minute I finished Heartless Hunter I went straight to netgalley to get book two, Rebel Witch.

Book two picks up right where book one left off. Rune is caught between two evils and has to choose between following those who she knows are evil, and those who will kill her. The witch hunter, Gideon, has his mark.. and won't let her get away this time.

But when he finds her, will he be able to pull the trigger??

The enemies to lovers never gets old in this duology. It is full of adventure, tension and plot twists that have you saying "just one more chapter" . This is one of my favorite books I have read this year and will be pre-ordering it ASAP!

Read this if you like:
•witches
•witch hunter vs witch
•magic
•tension

This book was EVERYTHING. I binged this book so hard. Rune is an incredible witch (and person). Gideon, oh Gideon. The turmoil of following orders and ignoring the fact that he’s hunting someone he loves vs throwing his orders down the drain and letting his love live. I am so obsessed with this series. Please read this duology asap. Thank you Wednesday books for the eARC!

2/5

This might be an unpopular opinion but I hated everything about this book. It was so predictable, events kept repeating themselves, and the characters were so annoying. I did not like the love story. Honestly, I'm big disappointed.

Rebel Witch
By: Kristen Ciccarelli
4.5 stars

The conclusion to the Crimson Moth Duology was one of my most anticipated book of the year! I am so grateful to Netgalley & Wednesday Books for this eARC!

Jumping right in from where we left off in Heartless Hunter, Rune is on the arm of a wealthy prince in the new continent, manipulating him to give Cressida an army to take back her home country from the witch hunters. Gideon has infiltrated the new continent and has orders to kill Rune on sight. But a tale as old as time, he can’t seem to do it! As a series of events unfold, Gideon and Rune have to ally together, but both have plans of betraying the other.

I absolutely loved Gideon and Rune’s tension, banter, and chemistry. I however was so over their constant miscommunication and stubbornness. If these two just talked to one another, 75% of their problems would have disappeared!

The first half of the book was slowww, but each chapter leaves you on a cliffhanger and the fact that these chapters are so short had me speeding through this book. The second half was SO exciting, packed full of action and characters coming together for the greater good. While this was exciting to read, there were plenty of hints and foreshadowing throughout the book and I’m grateful I was buddy reading this because I was able to express these hints with friends! While I sort of knew what was going to happen, I was still heavily invested.

There comes a part in the story where Rune turns into a completely different character that I did not enjoy. In book one she is the Crimson Moth, strong, risking her life for others, taking all the risks. After an event hat shakes her up, she is withdrawn, scared, willing to run away from her problem and let her friends die. It just felt so off for this character and I wasn’t here for it.

I also expressed with my friends in the buddy read that for being a witch and having her grandmothers spell books for several years, Rune truly knows NOTHING about magic. She has 3 spells, ghost walker to hide herself, a spell to change her appearance, and a spell to pick locks. Otherwise, she is completely useless. At one point she needs to heal someone and doesn’t know the spell work to do so? That would be the first spell I learned if I was the Crimson Moth? Seemed like a missed plot point to me.

The ending was so quick and we had a reveal that was not so shocking but had me scratching my head wondering if we knew anything about this character and their role in the witch realm prior to book 2. I feel like I have to go back and skim book 1 to see if there was anything in there that would have lead me to understand this plot point. It was all neatly wrapped up and for a duology I think that’s totally fine. No room for any loose ends! I still loved it so much and had a great time with these insufferable idiots who are in love with one another.

After falling head over heels for Heartless Hunter I feared that the second instalment could never live up to my love of the first. Rebel Witch was, however, everything I could have wanted and more. An absolutely epic adventure filled with so much heart…

I am still shaking from how amazing this story was. This truly was the perfect end to the duology. The characters had such great arcs, the plot was a breakneck speed, and it had plenty of twists and turns. I loved how real the love story and romance felt and how it wasn't perfect or a fairytale but instead felt very real and full of emotion. The witches had so much range and so much history, and we got to learn more. Everything was simply perfect.

Ever read a first book, love the mess out of it, start the second and put it off for as long as possible? That’s exactly what I did with Rebel Witch and while I don’t regret making it last as long as possible, I absolutely regret not reading it all immediately. You can see my dilemma here.

Wow, being back in the story with Rune and Gideon, especially with the way things were left in Heartless Hunter, was such a treat. I’m so glad that we dove right back in rather than beating around the bush and introducing too many new elements. It was everything I needed the second book to be and more.

This duet is ultimately going to be hard to know out of my top three witchy reads. It blew me away in so many ways that I’ll probably reread before the witchy season is up.

That was a lot of talking around the book, but in order not to spoil anything that happens…it has to be this way.

Of course I loved this one, I’m sure no one is surprised after me obsessing over the first one! I honestly wouldn’t mind going back to the beginning and starting it all over again. I’m obsessed with Gideon. I’m obsessed with Rune. I’m obsessed with what they were accomplishing within this story. I loved seeing all of the characters returning and not only seeing where the story took Rune and Gideon but also all of their friends too. Everything truly came together in this story.

I really enjoyed how this second book started and immediately gripped me right back up. It was action packed from the start until the end and the epilogue was a must. It really felt true to the characters.

Did I guess some key aspects of this second book? I did and I honestly never mind it when that happens, it makes me feel smart 😂. I feel like some things were rushed but honestly I don’t care lmao. I loved this story start to finish, I’m actually devastated to see it go.

Ciccarelli’s writing style is easy to digest and pretty much exactly what I’m looking for from ya fantasy authors. I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next!

**I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review**

5 beautiful, amazing stars! This conclusion to the Crimson Moth duology had me on the edge of my seat, my heart racing and desperate to keep turning the pages.

The author really took everything we loved from book 1 and amplified the tensions 10 fold. The push and pull of the characters, the way it's not an easy HEA. I stayed up late in the night just to keep reading. I even contemplated calling into work just because I didn't want to stop.

I hope there are spin-off's from this series because I want to be back in this world, I want to know more about some of the side characters. I plan on reading this duology again closer to the release date of this book in February!

this is definitely one of my new favorite duologies
EVER!
this series will have my heart always - the banter, the adventure, the pining.... all just too good!!
seeing this epic conclusion of Rune & Gideon's story play out was everything that i needed, & was beyond grateful to receive this ARC! (thanks @netgalley & @wednesdaybooks!!!!)
i have literally no notes on this one as it was THAT perfect. to try to avoid spoilers as this is a sequel, dm me if you want to hear more thoughts!

I was so looking forward to the sequel to The Crimson Moth, but unfortunately, this one fell short. While the characters are still rich, so many were missing after the ending of the last book that the story came up unbelievably short. Half the plot is spent on a ship over the course of 3 days, which was frustrating. I skimmed through a lot of it because I found myself so bored with the entire thing, especially when it did not really add to the plot or characters in any meaningful way. As good as the first book was, this one is disappointing.

This was everything I wanted!!
The tension built and stayed through the end.
Ciccarrlli knows how to crush you in the best way!
I think everyone is going to love this conclusion ❤️
It’s FULLY immersive and action packed. You may hurt your neck from all the back and forth 😂
So well done!!

4.5 ⭑ this series is so incredibly addicting!!! rune and gideon have me by the throat!!!!

this book was sooo angsty to the point I was on the verge of tears for a good chunk of my time spent reading. gideon and rune are a couple you want to root for even when they tear one another down and fight against their love. it’s heartbreaking yet addicting!!

as I said in my review for heartless hunter, I found this to be very predictable. I guessed every single plot twist, which I really didn’t mind because I find these two and the overarching plot to be so entertaining, but I would keep the predictability of this series in mind if you are searching for a complex romantasy. I would 1000% recommend this series either way, though!

YES!
Fans of Heartless Hunter will NOT be disappointed with this exciting sequel! I loved revisiting these characters and after being left with THAT CLIFFHANGER in book one I absolutely ate this one UP. I NEEDED to see where the characters and the story were going and how it would all play out, and boy did Ciccarelli keep my attention. Absolutely would recommend. Heartless Hunter was one of my top fave books of 2024 and everyone NEEDS to read this incredible sequel when it releases in the new year!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and SMP for the chance to read and review my most anticipated read this year!

After loving Heartless Hunter, I was so excited to get into this sequel and it didn’t disappoint. I loved it.

This was such a great conclusion to the story. The ending did feel a bit rushed, and I wish the climax had been written in a bit more detail, and that we had gotten to see a bit more of the aftermath.

This is how a sequel is done!!! I loved the first book so much so I was very nervous that this would not live up to my expectations. I should not have worried, it blew them out of the water. The book was filled with so much tension and chemistry between Rune and Gideon. There was nonstop action in this book that it kept me entertained throughout the whole book. My one critique is the very ending felt a bit rushed. We had such a good leadup to it, but then the big reveals and everything happened in the last 10%. At one point I even questioned if there was going to be a conclusion to the book since I knew it was going to be a duology. I also wish we got more from the epilogue. Overall though I loved this series, and this sequel. I can not wait to read what this author writes next.