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kamrynkoble 's review for:
Heartless Hunter
by Kristen Ciccarelli
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
I don't know why this took me SO LONG to finish. (Am I still going through a book hangover from The Favorites? Maybe). I'd read a few pages every night but would catch myself not paying attention and I couldn't get sucked in enough to read 100 pages at a time. I finally switched to the audiobook so I could listen while doing other tasks, and that seemed to work better for me—I finally binged the end. But I missed a super important reveal and had to go back to find it in my Kindle version anyway, lol.
What worked for me:
- Truly enjoyed the complicated concept of the romance here
- Rune felt unique to me and I enjoyed her arc
- The ending was strong and makes me excited to read the second book
What didn’t work for me:
- I wasn't super emotionally invested. I always hope to have a stronger reaction to what's happening, especially all the drama in the end
- The time period. Oh my word. So we don't have cars. We do have telegrams (that are SUPER verbose and written like text messages, not telegrams). Main character wears gowns but lace bralette underneath. Like she was ALWAYS wearing a lace bralette specifically. I can vibe with a fantasy world, but this one really took me out of it. I also apologize to the Book Huddle group because I asked about Heartless Hunter's setting in a thread about a modern rom com. Some of them thought they'd missed the telegrams in that one. NOPE! But I just need more of a commitment to a time period to really submerge myself in the atmosphere.
Recommendation:
If you like complicated romantic relationships mixed with strategy, and you're a romantic fantasy fan (note I'm not calling this romantasy because it's not a capital-R Romance). I will definitely read the sequel even with the issues I had.
For more bookish content like this, check out my Instagram @kamrynkoblebooks.
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⚠️ Content Warnings ⚠️
Spice level: There is very obvious sex happening here even though body parts aren't all spelled out graphically. We have on-page making out, nudity, and touching, with actual sex fading to black at the last minute. I'd probably say 16+ for this one but maybe I'm a prude.
Graphic: Witchcraft, blood (seriously, all the blood), violence, murder, gun violence, toxic relationship
Moderate: Sexual assault (off page but discussed, and forced undressing on page), sexual content
Minor: Does drop a few F-bombs. Even if this is YA, I'd consider it upper high school. All of the above was fine for me as an adult.
What worked for me:
- Truly enjoyed the complicated concept of the romance here
- Rune felt unique to me and I enjoyed her arc
- The ending was strong and makes me excited to read the second book
What didn’t work for me:
- I wasn't super emotionally invested. I always hope to have a stronger reaction to what's happening, especially all the drama in the end
- The time period. Oh my word. So we don't have cars. We do have telegrams (that are SUPER verbose and written like text messages, not telegrams). Main character wears gowns but lace bralette underneath. Like she was ALWAYS wearing a lace bralette specifically. I can vibe with a fantasy world, but this one really took me out of it. I also apologize to the Book Huddle group because I asked about Heartless Hunter's setting in a thread about a modern rom com. Some of them thought they'd missed the telegrams in that one. NOPE! But I just need more of a commitment to a time period to really submerge myself in the atmosphere.
Recommendation:
If you like complicated romantic relationships mixed with strategy, and you're a romantic fantasy fan (note I'm not calling this romantasy because it's not a capital-R Romance). I will definitely read the sequel even with the issues I had.
For more bookish content like this, check out my Instagram @kamrynkoblebooks.
---
⚠️ Content Warnings ⚠️
Spice level: There is very obvious sex happening here even though body parts aren't all spelled out graphically. We have on-page making out, nudity, and touching, with actual sex fading to black at the last minute. I'd probably say 16+ for this one but maybe I'm a prude.
Graphic: Witchcraft, blood (seriously, all the blood), violence, murder, gun violence, toxic relationship
Moderate: Sexual assault (off page but discussed, and forced undressing on page), sexual content
Minor: Does drop a few F-bombs. Even if this is YA, I'd consider it upper high school. All of the above was fine for me as an adult.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Murder
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Death of parent