2.12.2024

ARC Review: Heartless Hunter (The Crimson Moth, #1)

I received this book for free from Goodreads and Wednesday Books in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Expected Publication Date: February 20, 2024


Heartless Hunter The Crimson Moth, #1 by Kristen Ciccarelli
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Page Count: 404
Format: paperback
Genre: Fantasy & Romance
Source: Goodreads

Content Warnings: graphic blood, murder, death; moderate violence, death of a parent, genocide; minor addiction, alcoholism, child death, sexual content

A steamy game of cat and mouse between witch and witch-hunter, played out against a backdrop of opulence, secrets, and bloody history.

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 a romantic fantasy duology where the only thing more treacherous than being a witch...is falling in love.


★★★★★ — obsessed
🥵🥵🥵 — sweltering

A Victorian Scarlet Pimpernel but with witches and a dash of Sherlock Holmes.

This story was everything I hoped it would be and more. I will be chomping at the bit until I get my hands on the next book. I’ve read a lot of good books this year, but I think this one might take the cake.

The Scarlet Pimpernel is one of my all-time favorite stories, so when I read the synopsis for this book, I was really excited, and I was not disappointed. The tension, the heartbreak, the mystery. Everything was so excellently executed that I’m obsessed.

The pacing had me tearing through this 400 page book in a day. Rune is my new favorite heroine, and I want a Crimson Moth tattoo.

The overarching mystery was a great twist, and when I connected the dots, I couldn’t believe it. It was so cleverly twisted that I had to set the book down for a second to fully absorb the truth of it.

I would recommend this for fans of The Unmarked Witch, Whimbrel House, and The Scarlet Pimpernel as well as anyone who enjoys stories of witches, magic, enemies-to-lovers, slow burns, and having your heart ripped out of your chest.



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