My track record with Ciccarelli’s books has been a bit hit or miss lately, as I loved the Last Namsara trilogy, but didn’t enjoy Edgewood at all. The Crimson Moth or Heartless Hunter didn’t seem like it would lean one way or the other since the premise was extremely different from her previous works. In the end, I went in with lots of hope and excitement, especially after seeing some positive reviews online!

Overall, I liked aspects of this book but I don’t think I loved it. It had some strong features, especially in some characters and how attached I became to them. I liked Rune and her motivations, how loyal she was to her cause, and how her actions in the past seemed to drive her heavily. I also really liked Gideon, and the nuance he and his story seemed to add to the main struggle in the book. His brother was also a great character, and I enjoyed his friendship with Rune immensely.

However, for most of the book, the plot, and setting felt a bit generic, and like something I’d read quite a few times before in YA fantasy. There wasn’t a lot to make it stand out at first. This changed with the ending, and I do like where the story was left off because of everything that happened! I also had trouble with the romance for most of the book, not due to any lack of chemistry or passion between Rune and Gideon, but for other plot reasons that I won’t explain fully due to spoilers. I do think this latter issue won’t really trouble me in the sequel though, so hopefully I’ll be able to enjoy the romance more then!

In the end, I did enjoy my time with this story and I do like where the series seems to be heading, so I’ll anxiously be awaiting the sequel until it releases!