This review post is all about Rebel Witch by Kristen Ciccarelli.
CATEGORIES: BOOK BLOG POSTS, BOOK REVIEWS, FANTASY, ROMANCE
ABOUT THE BOOK
title: REBEL WITCH, CRIMSON MOTH #2
AUTHOR: KRISTEN CICCARELLI
GENRES: ROMANCE, FANTASY, YOUNG ADULT
PUBLISHER: ST. MARTIN’S PUBLISHING GROUP
PUBLISHING DATE: 2/18/2025
FORMAT: HARDCOPY
PAGE COUNT: 464 PAGES
SOURCE: SELF-PURCHASHED
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A CRIMSON MOTH DRAWN TO THE FLAME
MY THOUGHTS ABOUT “rebel witch”
I couldn’t put down Kristen Ciccarelli’s Heartless Hunter, the first installment of The Crimson Moth Duology, and I’ve been dying to dive back into the world of Rune Winters and Gideon Sharpe in Rebel Witch.
If you haven’t discovered this gem yet, you can catch my full thoughts on book one right here. And let me tell you — if you’re someone who lives for romantasy (that’s romance plus fantasy, for the uninitiated) and gets weak in the knees for enemies-to-lovers storylines, this duology might just be your next obsession.
Book one stole my heart, but did the sequel bring the HEAT? Let’s spill the tea.
this review post is all about rebel witch by kristen ciccarelli.
goodreads: rebel witch book summary
A WITCH…
Rune Winters is on the run. Ever since the boy she loved, Gideon Sharpe, revealed who she was and delivered her into enemy hands, everyone wants her dead. If Rune hopes to survive, she must ally herself with the cruel and dangerous Cressida Roseblood, who’s planning to take back the Republic and reinstate a Reign of Witches—something Cressida needs Rune to accomplish.
A WITCH HUNTER…
Apparently it wasn’t enough for Rune to deceive Gideon; she’s now betrayed him by allying herself with the witch who made his life a living hell. Gideon won’t allow the Republic to fall to the witches and be plunged back into the nightmares of the past. In order to protect this new world he fought for, every last witch must die—especially Rune Winters.
AN IMPOSSIBLE CHOICE…
When Rune makes Gideon an offer he can’t refuse, the two must pair up to accomplish dangerous goals. The more they’re forced into each other’s company, the more Gideon realizes the feelings he had for Rune aren’t as dead and buried as he thought. Now he’s faced with a terrible choice: sacrifice the girl he loves to stop a monster taking back power, or let Rune live and watch the world he fought so hard for burn.
In Kristen Ciccarelli’s Rebel Witch, the exciting conclusion to The Crimson Moth duology, love has never been so deadly.
REBEL WITCH BOOK REVIEW
THE PLOT OF “rebel witch”
(SPOILER ALERT: If you haven’t read the first book in The Crimson Moth series, proceed with caution!)
In book one, Heartless Hunter, left us with Rune Winters fleeing with Cressida Roseblood, former witch Queen who everyone thought Alex Sharpe had killed.
Reeling from Gideon’s betrayal and Alex’s death, Rune chooses what she believes is the lesser evil—helping restore Cressida to the throne.
As the Crimson Moth, Rune’s duty is to protect witches at all cost. The plan? Marry a prince and use his army to reinstate the Reign of Witches. (I’ll admit, this part threw me for a loop. Sure, Rune is described as stunning, but gorgeous enough to convince a prince to rally his troops before they’re even married?
Helen of Troy ain’t got nothing on Rune Winters!
But when Gideon and the dangerous Cressida Roseblood cross paths again, everything changes. Rune can’t keep ignoring just how corrupt the former witch queen truly is, and Gideon can’t deny his lingering feelings for Rune.
Suddenly, Rune faces an impossible choice: the man she loves or the survival of the witches remaining in the Republic.
The book grabs you from page one and doesn’t let go. Like most enemies-to-lovers stories, the plot runs on miscommunication—though sometimes it ventures into eye-rolling territory.
Take Gideon, for instance, who seems perpetually confused about why Rune would side with Cressida. Hello? You literally handed her over to be executed! Connect the dots, my guy!
Romance drives this story forward. When they’re not at each other’s throats, Rune and Gideon’s chemistry is explosive. Their quiet moments will melt your heart, and the spicier scenes sizzle.
At its core, this is a story about overthrowing evil—the catch is, both sides think they’re fighting the good fight.
The ending? Pure perfection. It’s simple yet sweet, with a twist I never saw coming. Best of all, it matches the electric energy of the opening chapters—something rare in most books.
"I wish Alex never stepped in front of that bullet," she said. It should be you who's dead. I wish it was you!"
THE CHARACTERS THAT BROUGHT “REBEL WITCH” TO LIFE
RUNE WINTERS
I love her character. What’s not to like about the Rebel Witch? She’s a gorgeous girl who is kind, crafty, and self-sacrificing. She’s perfect. Dare I say a little too perfect?
I struggle to connect with characters that are too good to be true. Her only flaw was that she was a pampered rich girl and didn’t know how to do domestic things. She kind of reminded me of Rose from Titanic. Just an observation.
GIDEON SHAPRE
Gideon had a little more complexity to him. He’s blinded by his loyalty to the Blood Guard and by his rage toward Cressida. Because of his physical, sexual, and emotional abuse at the hands of Cressida, he’s painted all witches with the same broad brush.
Though his inability to see Rune’s point-of-view is frustrating, given his trauma, it’s understandable.
"He wouldn't fall prey to her again. He needed to be impenetrable if he was going to stay ahead of her. He needed to keep his distance."
CRESSIDA ROSEBLOOD
Just pure evil. In this world, using blood from an unwilling victim corrupts your soul. I think a small part of Cressida loves Gideon, but her soul is so corrupted she can’t express anything towards him but cruelty.
Her eyes flashed like shards of ice. "You can have my love, Gideon. Or you can have my wrath."
WRITING STYLE OF “REBEL WITCH”
I love the short chapters that nearly all end on cliffhangers. While the plot twists kept me on the edge of my seat, the frequent introspective passages—where characters spent entire chapters mulling over past events—sometimes slowed the momentum.
These passages sometimes grew a little tiresome, and I became impatient waiting for the next plot point. Aside from that, there was a truly stellar plot.
The stakes were high and the tension was intense as both main characters navigated a witch-hating regime, a psycho witch queen, and other former/current love interests. So much drama!
I would say the pacing is medium, only dragging a little in the middle.
“Rebel Witch” SPICE RATING
There was a handful of spicy scenes, but the author kept it PG. I give it one chili pepper 🌶️.
“Rebel Witch” Age Rating
Due to mature themes such as violence, murder, torture, sexual harassment, and self-harm, this book is rated for ages 14 and older.
So was Rebel Witch as good as book one? Heck yeah it was! The start of it was phenomenal, hoooking me right from chapter one. I haven’t had a book do that in ages, especially in fantasy. Then, the ending blew me away too.
I could’t wait to review it and tell you all about it. Have you read either book from The Crimson Moth duology? Let me know in the comments.
If you haven’t read this one yet, click one of the links so you can get your copy.
If you’d like books similar to “Rebel Witch” check out this post here about enemies-to-lovers books.
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