Oh my God, I'm so mad I waited to read this book for so long because it was SO FREAKING GOOD!

Witch x witch hunter is such an underrated, under-explored romance trope, and "Heartless Hunter" filled that void so beautifully. This duology, as a whole, is absolutely a must-read!

I really enjoyed Heartless Hunter. I would have been a little confused at the beginning if I hadn’t known what the book was about already, but everything cleared up fairly quickly. Rune and Gideon had great chemistry and I am looking forward to Rebel Witch!

Why did I wait so long to read this. WHY DID I DO THAT?!

Listen, I am LAMENTING all of the wasted time before I got around to reading this book because I LOVED it. I ate this up and have been thinking about it non-stop since I finished it. Did I immediately go out and buy physical copies of both this and The Rebel Witch? Yes. Yes I did.

I mean, a witch/witch hunter dynamic is great anyway. But this novel made it sublime. The tension? sensational. The plot? Sucked me in from the beginning. The atmosphere? Moody, dark, and romantic all at the same time.

Sincerely, chef's kiss. I haven't recovered from this yet, it viscerally ripped me out of a reading slump and I am all in heading into The Rebel Witch.

Thank you whole heartedly to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for providing me with an eARC of this novel. It is my own eternal punishment that I did not read this sooner. It was amazing.

This book was a fun ride from start to finish! When I say i want enemies to lovers, this is what I'm talking about! I loved the witch/witch hunter dynamic and the chemistry between the 2 main characters were immaculate! I really enjoyed that we got both of their POVs in this! The end was gut wrenching and I cannot wait to see how this concludes in the sequel!

this was so good omg i needed that. i was yearning for gideon and rune the whole time. i was shocked by the ending and if they don’t turn into lovers im going to freak out!!

This was not for me. I'm not a fan of love triangles between brothers so this felt kinda icky to me.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my review copy, that I'm so late with!

This was an incredible enemies to lovers trope with fabulous description and characters. Highly recommend for readers who enjoy a little steam with witches and witch hunters!

First I want to say thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for approving me for this ARC . I know this review is late and I’m sorry. I finished this in a week and oh my god that ending. I really loved reading this book. The writing and characters pulled me in so easily. I did not want to put this book down. Honestly whenever ever I wasn’t reading I was thinking on what going to happen next and oh boy was I right on my guesses. This is my favorite read of the year that I have yet.i can’t wait to read the next book and see what happens with Gideon and Rune and the rest of the characters. I’m definitely recommending this book to my sisters.

I was hopeful I would at least have a decent time with this book, but it ended up exceeding my expectations. It's an enemies to lovers romantasy, but the way it's done is one I can get behind. Both Rune and Gideon make for compelling characters, and there are plenty of tension-filled moments as they try to outmaneuver one another, without falling for each other.

I've lost count of how often I've read a book where I keep getting told how clever the main character is, only to read one badly thought out decision after the other. In this case, the author never once says that Rune is smart, but it's obvious she is just from the events that take place. I loved all the moments where Rune and Gideon were headed towards confrontation—every time I thought Gideon had Rune trapped, something new would be revealed to change my perception of the events.

I was definitely more invested in their relationship as enemies, but the romance is pretty good as well. The only character I can't really get behind is Alex—his actions and motivations just don't make any sense to me.

Kicking myself for not reading this sooner! It was so good. Love an enemies to lovers but not lacking any of the drama or mystery. Rune has won my heart and rooting for her to free the witches! BRB while I got grab the second book in the series.

Thank you for this ARC!

This book suffers from a severely agitating case of telling instead of showing, and through the POVs of two idiot protagonists no less. Truly the only less believable plot than a man who has sworn to hunt down witches and take them down with no mercy willingly falling for the witch who he so obviously knows is the person freeing said witches, is said "intelligent and cunning" witch willingly falling for the dude actively trying to kill her at every waking moment.

The plot twists were predictable from ten thousand miles away, because of the aforementioned telling not showing where the author's info dumps about completely irrelevant information were all poorly disguised foreshadowing that was not subtle in the slightest.

The back and forth switching of the MCs POVs throughout the book made every sequence of events seem to drag in the most sluggish way, as if we needed to know the exact thoughts of Rune or Gideon every beat of the way even though it was just a constant back and forth of "he/she wants to kill me but at least they're hot!"

And of course, the enemies to lovers plot was incredibly forced to the point of driving out any other possibility for the FMC's happiness, even though throughout the book she is regarded as a highly desirable aristocrat who throws large parties and has new potential suitors every week. FMC (whose pale skin and light hair are constantly mentioned) also proudly owns servants in her estate, which also got a raised eyebrow from me.

Yeah, I hated this. 1.5 stars for Alex alone. The rest I could have done without.

This was amazing. It was everything I wanted and more. I loved The Last Namsara so I was very excited when I first learned Kristen Ciccarelli was coming out with a new duology. It did not disappoint. Highly recommend! This series is a new favorite staff recommends and hand-sell for me.

Heartless Hunter by Kristen Ciccarelli is an engaging fantasy with lush storytelling and clever, compelling characters. Ciccarelli expertly blends a unique magic system, fragile romance, and a fast-paced plot, which kept me hooked until the very end. Highly recommended for anyone seeking an immersive escape into a vividly crafted world.

This was a really enjoyable read! I loved the characters and the story so much. The tension between the FMC and MMC was great. I really enjoyed the magic system as well!

Let me start by saying this story is amazing. I love the characters, I love the world building. Rune has such depth. The slow burn between time and Gideon is stressful in a great way. My issue is that every once in a while a modern word is thrown in with the old time atmosphere. It pulls me out of the setting. Also for some reason I have a hard time imagining what the characters look like. I can’t imagine Gideon in particular. This has never happened to me. He lives a life of someone older but for some reason I think of him as very young. I can’t put my finger on it.

3.5 stars
🇨🇦 Author

Okay so I really wasn't into this for the first half but the last bit I was absolutely on the edge of my seat!! This sort of started feeling like it was the second in a series, like it just bam started and I had no clue what was going on. It took me a while to really get into,. But the ENDING gahhhhh so good and I need the next book now.

Book received for review.

This isn't my usual type of book, simply because of the centrality of the romance between the main, POV characters. And yes, it was a bit melodramatic and overwrought for my taste.

BUT--

I couldn't put it down. I HAD to know what would befall Rune and Gideon, and I just kept reading until that DEVASTATING climax wrenched me out of a reading trance and made me pause to allow the suspense to resonate.

I've already ordered the sequel so I can find out (no spoilers!) what happens after the innocent and the guilty are revealed as who they truly are.

***Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of this book to review.***

It’s been a while since I read this one, but the feeling of it hasn’t left me. There’s this undercurrent of tension running through the whole story that I still think about—and I loved that constant push and pull.

The romance had this delicious, aching quality to it. Forbidden in the best way, like they both knew how dangerous it was but couldn’t seem to help themselves. Even thinking back on it now, there’s a weight to their connection that lingers—it wasn’t just attraction, it was this slow, smoldering build that made every glance feel like it carried the weight of a thousand words.

And the pacing of the story matched that energy so well. It never really gave you time to settle, and I loved that. Just when you thought you could breathe, it threw another twist, another sharp turn that pulled you right back into the tension of it all. The world felt vivid too, without needing to drown you in details—it just worked, seamlessly.

Even now, when I think about this book, I still get that spark of excitement. Like it left an imprint, the kind you don’t forget easily.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

4.5⭐️

Absolute perfection. Can’t believe I have waited this long to read this book.

The politics? The perfect grumpy MC? The cunning and smart FMC? THE TENSION?? THE BENTER?? OMGG

Heartless Hunter is a thrilling fantasy romance set in a world where witches are hunted. The story follows Rune, a witch hiding in plain sight as a socialite, and Gideon, a witch hunter tasked with capturing her. As their paths cross, deadly attraction and dangerous secrets blur the lines between enemy and lover (which has me foaming at the mouth). With high stakes and simmering tension, this enemies-to-lovers tale explores betrayal, survival, and forbidden magic.

Rune is absolutely brilliant and so resilient, I adore her so much. On the edge of my seat and ready for book 2!

DNF @20%

I just kost interest in this story. The plot is honestly ridiculous and I don't like where it's headed. I also don't like the dual perspective.