I was lucky enough to receive an advance copy of this book and while I am grateful… I’m also upset because I was ENTHRALLED and the wait for book two will be torturous 😭

This book has all the best elements of a fantasy romance:
- an interesting magic system
- well thought out characters that have interests/storylines beyond the romance
- an intriguing plot that sucks you in and makes you need to keep reading
- and of course, a heart-wrenching romance

I truly fell in love with these characters and their complex motivations and backstories… and read this in one sitting because I couldn’t put it down.

This book was fantastic! I loved this author’s writing because it pulled me in from the first page. The world building was great and flowed naturally. I didn’t feel confused like I normally do when I start a new fantasy book or series! Also, Rune is my new favorite character! I can’t wait for the next book!

I was attracted to this title for the cover, the fact it was by the same publisher that wrote Godly Heathens, and the premise itself is something that I normally look for in my books. Magic and revolution and questionable circumstances is always a hit for me.

I cannot currently provide a review due to the Saint Martin's Press Boycott as we await a public statement against racism and assurance of safety for reviewers information. I will gladly provide an in detail review once the boycott is over and hope to be able to do so.

I didn’t realize going into this that it was inspired by my all-time favorite book, The Scarlet Pimpernel, but picking up on it after a few easter eggs (and confirming it with Google) immediately endeared me to it. So, my rating may be a liiiittle biased by my love of all things Scarlet Pimpernel related. 😜

But honestly, even my love of TSP aside, this was an engaging page turner—a fun game of cat and mouse between a witch and witch-hunter, each trying to outsmart the other while also faking a courtship together. It featured a truly competent and clever vigilante heroine who wasn’t overly sassy or stabby, and the twists and ruses were clever, well thought out, and well executed. My only complaint was that I wish we’d gotten to see Rune in action as the Crimson Moth a bit more.

Also, for being a YA novel, the characters weren’t overly immature, the romance was still perfectly sensual, and there were several moments that I found to be surprisingly dark and violent. So I think this would work as an upper YA or crossover novel that even adults could enjoy.

Read if you like:
✨️Enemies to Lovers
✨️Best Friend's Brother
✨️Witch/Witch Hunter
✨️Interesting Magic
✨️Revolutions

(And you don't mind an unfinished series!)

I really enjoy retellings that are loosely based, so hearing that The Scarlet Pimpernel (which I loved as a younger person) was part of the impetus for this story, I was certainly intrigued. The politics in this world are Interesting, with the background of the Witch Queen Sisters and the hunting of the Witches. Our main characters both have a lot of trauma in their background, so while I occasionally wanted to shake them, the patterns they were playing out made sense. I was rooting for everyone to get to a happy place because I like people on both sides of the conflict.

Thank you to @stmartinspress via @netgalley for my #eARC.

Rating: 5/5 Stars
Genre: Romantic Fantasy

Under the New Republic, witches are evil and must be killed and anyone who sympathizes with them is just as bad. In an effort to save herself, Rune's grandmother forces Rune to expose her grandmother as a witch. Fulfilling her dying wish, Rune does just that, but promises to help witches. She plays the part of a ditzy socialite during the day, but by night she is known as the Crimson Moth, a witch herself as well as one who rescues other witches from being murdered or "purged". To rescue a specific witch, Rune decides to pretend to court Gideon Sharpe, a leader of the witch hunters (who has been seriously burned by loving a powerful witch in the past), in order to get more information. Gideon Sharpe has the same idea in order to see if Rune may in fact be the Crimson Moth he has been trying to catch. What neither of them realize is that they might just develop real feelings for each other, and that could also have some real consequences.

Wow I LOVED this one! I liked the world building (I can't wait to know more in the second book), the character development, the TRUE enemies to lovers plot, the dual POV, and the heartbreak!! I mean this book really had some devastating moments, but honestly the more a book makes me feel the better! I am really attached to all of the characters, so I'm mixed between not wanting to wait for the next book to come out vs. being sad it is only planned for a duology. Will definitely be following what this author does in the future and checking out the backlog!

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and author Kristen Ciccarelli for the opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was an enjoyable read, but honestly felt very similar to all the other forbidden love/magical romantasy books. It is possible that I am just a bit fatigued of the genre, but it just felt like I’ve read a version of this book numerous times before. Many of the plot points seemed tired and the “unexpected” twists and turns were highly predictable and overly convenient.

Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!
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Holy moly this book!! Y’all like. Let’s start this this gorgeous ass cover!! Like i immediately requested this ARC as soon as i saw the cover because it is just so flipping gorgeous. Words cannot describe how OBSESSED i am with this book. I read this within like a day because I didn’t want to put it down and it just might be one of my top reads this year! I loved the magic systems in this book, it just seemed so well thought out and organized!

The characters. What can I even say about them other than how much I loved them and loved their interactions. I loved the trope cat and mouse, especially when the mouse is legit right under the cats nose. I do have to warn y’all that it does end on a cliffhanger, which I was NOT expecting! I didn’t realize it was going to be part of a biology/series (not sure which one) and I was devastated by this news because I cannot wait to get my hands on the next book! One that I would HIGHLY recommend!!

thank you to the publisher and netgalley for access to the eARC

This was a surprisingly good read! I'll start by saying that although the description gives off major romantasy vibes, I would say it actually reads more of a magical realism historical fantasy, if that makes sense. There are witches and witch hunts, royal guards and ballroom dances, and all of these aspects combined lend me to make that suggestion.

The writing was good, the setting well established and framed so that I could easily imagine the world in which these characters lived. The various dynamics between the core group of friends surrounding our main girl was refreshing, and I loved the magic system in place.

I will admit that I was very much not a fan of the main male character. He is very whiny and woe-is-me, and after about a chapter or two in his POV with him constantly dogging on himself, I was completely over this man. The main female character however, was a delight. Young but headstrong and confident, she had agency outside of the romance and struggled to achieve her goals, which I appreciated that not everything was handed to her / made convenient for her.

altogether very good and i am excited for the sequel.

I’ll be honest: I could not bring myself to finish this. I wanted to like it, and at the beginning, the world-building and magic system drew me in. As I got further in, though, I couldn’t help but be annoyed by the main characters, to say the least, and come to think that this is one of those romantasy romances (if you can even call it that in this case) that really shouldn’t happen.

First, Rune. I definitely liked her better out of the two, and found her rescue efforts admirable. However, I found it annoying when she basically admits to wanting to martyr herself for the cause, or thinking she deserves to die, or something, because she feels responsible for her grandma’s death at the hands of the witch hunters (even though it was clearly her grandma’s decision to give herself up). I understand her depression, but I find the whole “I deserve to die because these guys did” thing a very highly annoying schtick, and I hate whenever it gets employed. Then there’s her attraction to Gideon, a man who would literally hand her a death sentence if he knew she is a witch. And she goes for him anyway because why exactly? Because he’s attractive, or is it the whole “feeling like she deserves to die” thing? I honestly don’t understand.

Second, Gideon. He is hands-down the most toxic male lead in a book I think I’ve ever seen. He is so blinded by his trauma, anger, and hatred that he will send up all these women and girls to die just because they happen to possess magic, and the one person who hurt him the most also happened to have magic. He is condemning literal children to death, and we’re all supposed to believe Rune would go for this? I was hoping he’d get a bit of a redemption arc, but he displayed absolutely no growth, still being the same toxic scumbag at the end that he was as the beginning.

In short, none of this should have happened. The only things that kept this from being a one-star read were the world-building and magic.

This was a very entertaining read.

I enjoyed the back and forth between the FMC and the MMC and I am 100% rooting for them.

Ending on a cliff hanger, this book will leave you needing to know how this story is going to end.

It is being listed as YA but definitely has some NA themes. A few TW, so be sure to check them first.

Heartless hunter

We’ll start at the beginning, it sucked me right in. The intrigue starts immediately and the world building whisks you away in a whirlwind.

I’m not going to lie, it grossed me out at times but I can’t denied that the writing is excellent and the story is addictive.

I was instantly drawn in by the characters and I wanted a casting of each and every one of them. They were so vivid and full of life.

The romance was tender and sweet at times while being raw and angry at others. The emotions were high with past trauma and current life or death situations.

And then, there is heartache. That’s all I’ll say about that.

If witches and fast past fantasy is your jam, don’t miss this one.

Content: f-words, gore, death of loved ones, violence, off page torture, off page sexual abuse, low explicit bedroom encounters

WOW. THIS BOOK!!!!!

What a book. Seriously. Days later and I’m still shook at its contents and THAT ending.

When I read the synopsis about this being a book about a witch and a witch hunter falling in love I was like “Yes please!” But when I actually started reading it? Wow. It was so much more than I was expecting and then some.
To say I loved it is an understatement because there are no words to describe my love for it. All I can say is that no wonder this book is being hyped up so much, it deserves all the hype and more. Heartless Hunter was unlike any other witch book I’ve read before containing a form of magic casting that is both creepy and awe inspiring. This world is one that will hook you from beginning to end and I already cannot wait to read more about it!

I really enjoyed this book. There was a typo with Sharpes last name at one spot.

The ending was confusing to me. Why did Rune follow along with Cressida? I felt like we missed a Rune perspective chapter somewhere between the stage and the shooting. I so badly wanted this to wrap up with a happy ending and not lead to a sequel but now we have to wait to find out what will happen with Rune and Gideon. I feel horrible for Alex but I will say I really enjoyed the scene where we hear Alex’s perspective of the events of the New Dawn. It added so much depth to his character. I wish we had just a tiny bit more of his character fleshed out.

I am very anxious for the sequel. The author took this first book down a path that I wasn’t expecting and I can’t wait to see what they do next.

Overall I would recommend this book! I thought the use of cycle blood was creative and normalizing to something that’s normal for all women. So I appreciated that.
I really hope to see this series end with Rune and Gideon married with children running a clothing shop. Please bring that to life in the next book!

Thank you NetGalley and St Martin's Press for this e-copy in exchange for an honest review. Okay, I'll come out and say it: I did not find this steamy at all. I found this to be more YA-level spice, which is fine, because I think it's marketed as YA. Just don't pick it up expecting Maas-level spice. As for the story itself, I found it to be a bit like Serpent & Dove, but with more twists and turns. Overall I really enjoyed it, and I'll almost certainly be picking up the second in the duology. (I really love this recent duology trend!)

I truly adored this book, from the cast to the magic system it was incredible. I especially loved the use of magic and scars of beauty and power.

What a ride! A fast paced fantasy book.
Obsessed with the story and plot. The characters were so interesting. Some of it a bit predictable. But it’s been a while since I read a “romantasy” that completely captured my attention. I can’t wait for the next book.

Thanks NetGalley for the arc

Thank you to St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books and NetGalley for an electronic ARC of this novel.

Rune has been hiding who she is when she discovered she was a witch as a teenager. Forced to turn in her beloved grandmother for being a witch, she has held the facade of a witch hater. Secretly, she has been freeing captured witches and bringing them to freedom with the help of her friends Verity and Alex while playing the part of a vapid socialite.

Enter Gideon, Alex's brother, who has a hatred of witches and will stop at nothing to bring them in. Rune pretends to be interested in him to try to get him to reveal where a prominent witch is being held prisoner. Meanwhile, Gideon suspects that she is the Crimson Moth, the witch who has been freeing imprisoned witches. Who will win?

Heartless Hunter by Kristen Ciccarelli is a suspenseful and entertaining fantasy novel. I enjoyed reading it - it's Book #1, so I'll be on the lookout for the sequel!

A witch crusading as a socialite plays a deadly game of cat and mouse with a witch hunter... yet when pretending to woo each other they might find themselves falling for one another, but their romance is doomed from the start and where do the lines between truth and lie begin to blue? Rune is a witch who was forced to turn in her own grandmother to the Blood Guard (humans who were part of purging witches). Rune spends her days pretending to be a vapid socialite but at night she is the Crimson Moth, a witch vigilante who rescues witches from being purged. Rune knows that she has to agree to a suitor... but she wants one that will help her get intel on the Blood Guard and who better than Gideon Sharpe, the notorious witchhunter himself. Gideon hates the decadence and superficiality Rune represents and he wants nothing more than to capture the Crimson Moth, so when he learns that the Crimson Moth has been using Rune's merchant ships to smuggle renegade witches out of the republic, he decides that the best way to find out what her connection is and whether or not she is actually the Crimson Moth is to woo her, albeit faking it..... Yet the more time Rune and Gideon pretend to woo each other and seduce each other the more they actually begin to open up to each other and what started off as pretend is beginning to feel like real love. Though things are only more complicated as Alex ( Gideon's brother and Rune's best friend who has been secretly helping her cause) wants Rune to come away with him and marry him... yet she is falling for Gideon, despite Gideon also wanting to hunt her down. When the truth is finally revealed there will be blood shed and pain, but what awaits these two? First of all , this is a fantastic first book in the duology and keeps you completely gripped until the end!!( and oh boy what an ending that was). There is also something I should mention, TRIGGER WARNINGS: including cutting ( witches used blood and cutting to perform magic), sexual assault ( past mention), and death. This book is truly enemies to lovers with so much cat and mouse (definitely think along the lines of Mr. and Mrs. Smith), but so far it's been enemies to fake lovers to real lovers to enemies again. I can't wait to see how everything plays out in the next book, especially with how this first book sets up everything. The drama, the angst, the romance, and I truly TRULY want the romance to work out for these two so badly after everything.

*Spoier: Rune's grandmother tasked her with finding Seraphine, another witch, to help mentor Rune. Rune's body doesn't have any scars so no one has detected that she is a witch. She's been using her period blood as the blood conduit rather than fresh blood. Alex and Verity are her two best friends who have been helping her. When she fails at rescuing Seraphine, she decides to try and seduce Alex's brother Gideon to get the info since he is higher up in the command at the blood guard. Rune begins actually falling for Gideon. Gideon was the ex lover of Cressida, one of the young queen witches, whom Alex said he had killed but he faked it and let her go saying he hoped that Gideon would heal if he thought she was dead ( puh leeeassseee alex im begging you). Gideon started off as her lover but she became crazy, she murdered his sister, she sexually assaulted and tortured him constantly, she drowned his mother and had his father killed. Gideon protected Alex from her. Gideon thought that Rune was the Crimson Moth so he faked wooing her but fell in love with her instead. They fall for each other and do sleep together. Then Gideon discovers Cressida is still alive after he finds the spell signature that was meant to kill Rune was Cressida ( she had branded him with the same signature). When he goes to Rune's to apologize after she overheard him telling Laila ( his comrade ) that he slept with her to check that she was a witch or not ( he meant all his feelings he was trying to protect her from suspicion) he overhears her talking with Alex about being a witch and her plans. Alex convinces Rune to marry him and go away with him out of the country (she was fresh from her heartbreak with Gideon and she said yes). Alex has always been in love with Rune but she always thought of him as a brother. Both Rune and Gideon were crushing on each other when they were younger but completely misunderstood the other and ended up having a bad first interaction. Rune thinks that Gideon is rude while Gideon thinks that Rune is vapid and rich. Yet when they get to know each other they realize how alike and perfect they are for each other. However Gideon overhears and then when the blood guard comes and figures out that Verity was the one doing magic and then they arrest Rune however Alex confesses to being a Witch sympathizer since he doesn't want rune to die alone. In the prison Cressida gets both Rune and Seraphine out as she has a witch army... aka all the witches that Rune had rescued. Cressida practices Arcana (ancient forbidden blood powerful magic that comes from taking blood from unwilling victims and she has been the one leaving dead bodies around the republic and mutilating people). Cressida practiced this magic by forcing Gideon to be tortured by her. When Cressida wants Gideon to come with her and he refuses she tries to shoot him however Alex takes the bullet instead and dies (he tells Rune to use his blood and escape). Rune ends up going with Cressida as she has nowhere else to go and she asks Seraphine to train her (despite how much Rune is disgusted by Cressida). Gideon vows to hunt down Rune.

*Thanks Netgalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press!!!

I cannot wait until book two. I flew through this! One of my bookstagram/facebook friends told me about this one after I said I was in a Sarah J Maas world hangover and couldn't get into anything. THANK GOD I GOT A COPY OF THIS. I pre-ordered it too. I cannot wait to see where this series takes me!