Take a photo of a barcode or cover
isabellehendo 's review for:
The Crimson Moth
by Kristen Ciccarelli
medium-paced
Every time I read a book from BookTok, one that is raved about to no end, I am reminded that books, and book reviews, are a subjective thing. Heartless Hunter by Kristen Ciccarelli was simply one of those books for me, one that reminded me just how different opinions can be.
I heard countless positive reviews about Heartless Hunter, most of which the book was rated 4-5 stars and raved about. This is not the first time that BookTok has gotten my hopes very high, only to let me down with reality.
My Thoughts and Opinions
My Thoughts and Opinions
The plot sounds interesting, which is why I picked up the book in the first place. A slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers YA Romance novel is so often my bread and butter (Legendborn remains one of my favorite [unfinished] novels to date). But by the time I finished this book, I felt incredibly let down.
The characters were okay. I felt as if the book lacked a tremendous amount of depth with the characters.
Rune was not the most compelling FMC that I have read, but she was certainly not the worst. I enjoyed her inner monologue for the most part and could appreciate her motivations and backstory. What was truly lacking, though, was action. The most interesting part of this book was Rune’s moonlighting as the Crimson Moth. Being a witch, one who had evaded the Blood Guard for two years and saved the lives of witches, was easily the most interesting thing about Rune (as it should be, that’s badass). But as a reader, you never really feel her badassery. A few times in the book you glimpse her in action, but never truly doing anything that seems all that exceptional. You are witness to her failing in her task not once, but twice. After seeing her fail the first time, you then must watch her do something so naive and foolish, that you simply cannot grasp how she has evaded the Blood Guard for this long. For me, it was very hard to put the image of Rune that Ciccarelli was trying to paint (a strong, powerful, badass), with the Rune she was showing us (naive and a bit stupid).
Gideon was one of the better characters, but his development suffered in much the same way Rune's did. Although his backstory was compelling, and he fit much of the “ideal MMC” vibes, I just couldn’t reconcile the picture that Ciccarelli was painting of Gideon, with the picture that formed. He is supposed to be dangerous and cunning. And while you might’ve gotten glimpses of that in the book, it never seemed to develop into anything that had me believing it. To put it plainly, the two never felt enough like enemies for me to believe it before they became lovers.
The main supporting characters, Alex and Verity were fine. They did their jobs as supporting characters and were interesting enough.
Final Thoughts
This book was not bad, it was not particularly good either. There is much that could be improved, and I surely hope that it will be improved in the second book (Rebel Witch).
I rated this book ⅗ stars when it came down to it. It is above average, but not by much. I would recommend it to someone looking for an easy read, one that is quick to get through and takes very little brain power. It would be a good “pallet cleanser,” if you need a break in between more complicated, detailed books (maybe some books with some depth?). I might also recommend this book to someone who would not consider themselves an advanced reader, or someone who is just beginning to take up reading for pleasure (everyone has to start somewhere!).