3.5⭐️

I enjoyed the Crimson Moth so I was really looking forward to this one, and while it didn’t disappoint, I think I still liked book one just a little more.

The Rebel Witch felt a little slower and more drawn out but I do think it was a satisfying ending to the duology and I will definitely read more from this author.

The rebel witch is the first al book to the crimson moth which i loved one of my top reads of the year and in my opinion this was better this puts you right back into the action so fast paced I couldn't stop reading the found family in this was amazing the love between the main characters was epic what a fantastic duology

A fun conclusion to The Crimson Moth Duology. Action packed, tension filled and heavy on the yearning. Constantly keeping you on your toes with the cat and mouse vibes and wondering who will eventually outwit the other. The ending did feel a bit rushed, but nevertheless I enjoyed it more than the first one.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for providing me an eARC to review!

Unfortunately like many series where I found the first book 'fun' rather than 'good', the charm didn't stick around for the sequel :/

It felt like a lot of plot points were being shoehorned in to justify a sequel, so they felt predictable and clunky. I mean are we really revealing the secret relative thing this late in the book???? I wouldn't mind if we were having fun along the way but I found the Gideon/Rune dynamic in this book extremely annoying and it felt like we were constantly grinding the (barely there) plot to a halt for relationship drama. And when the 'plot' involves genocide and persecution it feels like an especially egregious choice to make.

Gideon's witch hunter friends are laughably bad at their jobs and give him way too many chances even though he demonstrably sucks and will never kill Rune so all tension was gone from that storyline. It just felt like everyone was being dumb to keep things moving, and when 'things' are just the protagonists making out, arguing over something stupid, and one of them getting captured briefly before being easily freed by the other, over and over again...it gets old pretty quick. I also hate when the threat of sexual violence is used in the place of good villain character development - it feels so cheap and doesn't treat the subject matter with the respect it deserves.

I think fans of Once Upon a Broken Heart might enjoy this there are a lot of the same elements. For me, though, this was a very disappointing end to what could have been a fun series :/

After a frustratingly repetitive first act The Rebel Witch comes into it own with more magic filled tension and action as the characters come together to fight against a common enemy.

An interesting conclusion for Rune and Gideon

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

“The Rebel Witch” by Kristen Ciccarelli is probably one of the books I was most looking forward to this year. “The Crimson Moth“ was an absolute highlight for me and I couldn't wait to find out what happens next with Rune and Gideon's ill-fated love.

It took me a moment to find my way back into the story, but then I was immediately hooked.

The tension between Rune and Gideon is superb and their story is enemies-to-lovers at its best. And the story was intriguing too. I was really excited and was afraid that the two of them would get caught.

Unfortunately, it was the middle part of “The Rebel Witch” that didn't convince me. Even though the actual story was exciting, it dragged on a bit here. I also found Rune's and Gideon's behavior mostly illogical and couldn't understand their decisions.

The ending was exciting again, even though I thought it was going to be like this.

I give “The Rebel Witch” 4 out of 5 stars.

The Crimson Moth was among my favourite books of 2024, so my expectations for The Rebel Witch were high. I love it when a book not only meets, but exceeds expectations1 The conclusion to Rune and Gideon's story was action-packed and full of angst and yearning. It's a slow-burn as the two main characters have to learn to trust each other again and have to overcome their own beliefs in order to be together.

I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys the witch x witchhunter trope, beautiful settings, rich lore and high stakes with strong emotional development for the characters. If you haven't yet started reading this duology, you should definitely pick it up. And perhaps set aside a weekend, as I reckon you won't want to put the books down!

It took me way too long to get around to this book, and then I ironically finished it in one sitting at work (oops).
I don't even know why I've been putting it off, I just never felt like I was in the mood for it, and even when I started it today on a whim, I wasn't sure if this is what I wanted to read right now.

Well, turns out it was.
I love a good romantasy and I love well-executed enemies to lovers, and this duology hit the spot for both of these.
The tension between Rune and Gideon is so good and the pacing of the romance in this sequel was excellent. The author did an amazing job at keeping the dynamic from book 1 throughout the entire second book as well and it helped establish this as one of my favorite romances in fantasy in quite some time.

The plot was also great, as you can tell from my opening sentence, I got sucked in and quite literally could not stop reading.
It was quite fast-paced for the most part, sprinkled with some revelations, twists, and turns, and I found it to be very addictive.

Overall, I had the best time and wholeheartedly recommend this duology.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC.

What a finale!
Rune and Gideon’s story concludes beautifully in this second and last book of the Crimson Moth duology.
Political intrigue, angst and action driven plot, this book kept me on the edge as I was devouring the pages.
Enemies to lovers at its finest and forbidden love, Rune and Gideon’s story balanced between duty, morals and trust with a lot of pining on both sides.
Seeing Gideon’s character development was very satisfying, how he struggled between his morals and his growing feelings for Rune.
This has officially entered my favorite duologies of all time. It’s bittersweet to leave this world and I just wish there was more to it!

Thank you so so much to Harper Collins and Netgalley for this ARC!

I loved this sequel so much! The tension and angst between them was so good! The slow build up to them learning to trust each other after everything that’s happened and wanting to build a new world where both can be safe. I loved the side characters and the found family in this too, how people on both sides realised there has to be a better way. How both sides are essentially two sides of the same coin and nothing will change & there will be no peace unless they find a different way. I just loved it! The romance was so great too, the way they helped each other through the trauma that still affects them, accepting each other for who they are, I just loved everything about them.

I thought this was the perfect sequel to one of my new favorite duologies. Rune and Gideon are such great characters, I loved their chemistry! There were definitely a lot of twists and parts that had me on the edge of my seat! The ending was great and I look forward to reading more books from this author in the future!

I really enjoyed The rebel witch by Kristen Ciccarelli, which is the sequel to The crimson moth / Heartless hunter. This book wraps up the duology nicely. While I wasn't amazed by it as much as I was by the first book, I had a good time reading this book!

I would recommend this duology to all romantasy readers!

*Many thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins for an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion

“𝘐𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴, 𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘬. 𝘐𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘪𝘯, 𝘭𝘦𝘵 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘣𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘮𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘭”

I will accept no criticism of this book 👀 because it has my heart. I freaking LOVED IT. The year long wait for this was torture but it was well worth it for this conclusion. I will recommend this duology for all time because it deserves all the freaking stars!

This had banter for days, the tension and YEARNING between Rune and Gideon was literally everything. It was full of action and super fast paced with high stakes and just utter perfection. I loved it even more than the crimson moth. I just adored it and will definitely see myself rereading these books in the future!

✨romantasy
✨enemies to lovers
✨witch and witch hunter

“𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘳 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦, “𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘬𝘯𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵.”

The sequel we wanted! The sequel we deserved!! I'd like to thank this duology for restoring my faith in romantasy. While not perfect, it still hit the romantasy spot and I thought this was a great conclusion to the duology.

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Rebel Witch by Kristen Ciccarelli
Rebel Witch (The Crimson Moth, #2)
by Kristen Ciccarelli (Goodreads Author)
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Rebel Witch by Kristen Ciccarelli is a captivating and satisfying conclusion to The Crimson Moth duology. The story picks up with Rune, a fugitive witch, and her uneasy alliance with Cressida Roseblood, as they work together to reclaim the Republic. Their path crosses once again with Gideon Sharpe, a determined witch hunter, and their complex relationship evolves in unexpected and intriguing ways.

Ciccarelli does an excellent job of balancing high-stakes action with emotional depth. The tension between Rune and Gideon is palpable, making their slow-burn enemies-to-lovers romance both gripping and heartfelt. The character development shines, with both protagonists confronting their pasts and evolving as the plot unfolds.

The world-building is solid, with a richly developed magical system and political intrigue that keeps things fresh. The pacing is quick, and the twists and turns throughout the book will keep you hooked.

Overall, Rebel Witch delivers a thrilling and emotional conclusion to the series. It’s a must-read for fans of romantic fantasy, and its strong character-driven story and intense action make it a standout.

DNF @ 44%
I am SO sad, but this just didn’t hid the spot for me. Unfortunately I am just underwhelmed, it didn’t feel like anything was really happening - and when it was, it felt so unnecessarily slow and repetitive. I loved the first book but unfortunately the series will end there for me in my mind 😩💗

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the complimentary e-arc in exchange for an honest review. All opinions in this review are my own.

Thank you so much NetGalley for this arc! You know I LOVE me some enemies to lovers and this hit the SPOT.

I am literally in love with this book - I think I may actually prefer it to the first, which I did enjoy also. I absolutely loved the ending and although I did guess some of the things that were going to happen I was very happy that they did!

I loved all the characters and that the side characters did so much for the story line at the end. I love a happy ending for a duology where everything is wrapped up neatly.

Thanks so much for the arc!

This book wraps the duology in a nice little bow. There are twists and turns, heartbreak and romance. Rune is just as amazing a character in this book as she was in the first and I really enjoyed this one a lot more as the characters felt like they had a lot more agency in their situation.

Rating: 4.5⭐️

This is the second book in the Crimson Moth duology. We follow witch Rune and witch Hunter Gideon as Rune is on the run, having allied herself with the evil witch queen Cressida.

💚 Likes 💚
- I love Rune and Gideon as characters! As with the first book, their chemistry and connection was very convincing and they worked well together.
- Loved the plot! Great twists and turns throughout the story.
- Subtle foreshadowing and clues, it was fun trying to connect the dots and guess what was going to happen throughout the book.
- Cressida is a great villain! She’s the perfect vicious, evil queen
- I loved the new characters we got to know.

💔 Dislikes 💔
- The inner monologues were a little repetitive in the first 50%
- The epilogue was unnecessary and I’m not sure it necessarily fit with the character?

Overall I thought this was an incredibly strong conclusion to the duology! I think this is a definitely a series I will be rereading again in the future!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

thank you to netgalley and kristen ciccarelli for granting my wish for this e-book arc!!

this was amazing. i absolutely loved every single second of it. when i began to read this i was in a bit of a reading slump so it took me quite a while to get hooked. but as soon as i did, i finished it within two seconds.
i loved how we got an insight on the actual magical spells (in my opinion, a bit like harry potter) and it was really interesting.
seeing the tension between gideon and rune- outstanding.
i really did love this book!
thanks again!