Overall: 3.5 stars

Very interesting premise and world—Ciccarelli has certainly built a lush and thoughtful magical world, with a history teeming with more to be discovered and many rules around witchcraft to be uncovered. And the writing is very engrossing—our two narrator voices seamlessly move between one another—and the last few moments/ending leaves one wanting more while also tugging at the heartstrings.

What was missing, however, was that up until the ending, the plot was rather predictable. I further wish there was more build-up and exploration surrounding the characters to give them more depth. Rune is a textbook heroine with a double identity—that double identity perhaps being her most interesting feature, but I always found myself wanting more. Gideon has a tragic backstory, but I would have loved to see more of him at work as the apparent Heartless Hunter to understand the duality. And Alex had so much potential but got delegated to the devoted second lead role. All to say, I had a lovely time with this book and it was a fun read—it certainly does the job well for a fantasy romance—but I did find myself yearning for more.