Book Review: Heartless Hunter by Kristen Ciccarelli

Title: Heartless Hunter
Series: The Crimson Moth #1
Pages: 411
Publication Date: February 20, 2024
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Genres: Fiction / Romance / Fantasy / Romantasy
Synopsis:

On the night Rune’s life changed forever, blood ran in the streets. Now, in the aftermath of a devastating revolution, witches have been diminished from powerful rulers to outcasts ruthlessly hunted due to their waning magic, and Rune must hide what she is.

Spending her days pretending to be nothing more than a vapid young socialite, Rune spends her nights as the Crimson Moth, a witch vigilante who rescues her kind from being purged. When a 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?

Kristen Ciccarelli’s Heartless Hunter is the thrilling start to The Crimson Moth duology, a romantic fantasy series where the only thing more treacherous than being a witch...is falling in love.

LINKS: Goodreads | BookBub | Amazon | Bookshop.org

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A witch and a witch hunter enemies-to-lovers romantasy? Yes, please! I wanted to read this book from the minute I heard the premise, and it is a wild ride. It left me stunned and so emotionally invested in the story, and I’m still thinking about THAT ENDING days after I finished the book.

The setting is dark and ominous, and there are certain parts that reminded me of the Salem Witch Trials. It is a bleak place for witches to hide, and Rune has to hide who she is or face death like her grandmother and others. The story is told from dual perspectives, so you get to understand both Rune and Gideon’s points of view. I thought this was really important to the story, and it highlighted the many layers to both of their characters.

Rune lives with a lot of guilt over the past, and though she is a popular socialite, she spends her other time trying to save witches from the clutches of the republic. Gideon adds to the ominous and bleak feel of the story, as he is a ruthless witch hunter. I didn’t expect to like him as much as I did considering his job, but once his story is told, I definitely understood his motivations.

Gideon and Rune have a slow–building, slow-burning enemies-to-lovers romance, and I ate it up! Rune and Gideon sound like they make a bad pair – she’s a witch, and he’s a witch hunter. Plus, Gideon’s brother is in love with Rune. There’s so much standing in their way, yet the pull these two feel toward each other is undeniable. Their relationship is built on secrets and lies, but their chemistry and sexual tension are off the charts! There is a bit of a love triangle, which made sense for the story, though it’s not my favorite trope. I could see why Rune was torn between these two men, and my heart broke for more than one of them as their stories played out.

This is the kind of story that is very easy to get pulled into, and I found it hard to put down. It’s immersive and interesting, and I loved the characters and themes. Plus, the plot is super suspenseful! I was on the edge of my seat, worried that Gideon would figure out all of Rune’s secrets, and I was invested in their stories as well as many of the secondary characters, especially Rune’s two closest friends. With so many secrets, lies, betrayals, and more, Rune’s life is in constant jeopardy, and her heart is too. Then I got to the final chapters, and I tell you my jaw dropped. There were a few twists that completely surprised me. Talk about gasp out loud! I can’t wait to find out what happens next!!

Special thanks to Wednesday Books for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

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

Quaint is a word polite people use when they don’t want to be insulting.

You are not the things that happened to you.

• enemies to lovers
• best friends brother
• secret identity
• fake dating

Kristen Ciccarelli is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Crimson Moth duology, A Dark Forgetting, and the Iskari series. Before writing stories for a living, she dropped out of college and worked as a baker, a potter, and a bookseller. She currently resides in the Niagara region of Ontario, Canada with her husband and daughters.

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