amberimagines's review
4.5
The beginning is a bit confusing, but after I got into this I couldn't put it down!!! What a story!!!
bubblewombat's review
4.0
In a world where female children are born witches and male children born werewolves, a pair of them falls in love and tries their best to make it work.
Oriana isn't just a witch but also a Matriarch ruler and a Crimson Hunter. Marrok is her chosen mate and a black wrewolf. No one is very optimistic about their union as werewolves have an intense hunger for the blood and magic of witches and ultimately end up leaving their mates to protect them...or worse.
It's Oriana's mission to make witches and werewolves equal but there's people on both sides who aren't making it easy for her. After all, in the past it was werewolves who ruled over witches and now that the tables have turned why would anyone life a hand to help?
One of the ways the werewolves are subdued is by wearing special collars that trigger a calming effect when the wolf starts to get riled up. Occasionally, those who couldn't control their hunger and tasted a witch's blood got turned into feral white werewolves who lost all sense of who they were before. They're mostly isolated from everyone else...until they aren't.
The book took me a while to get into, but it got much more interesting after 35% or so. I didn't get immediately attached to the characters like I did in some other N. D. Jones books I read but they eventually grew on me. Keira is my favourite and Zed the most annoying.
I liked the metal inclusion, that was a nice touch. And the glossary, the map and the illustrations were awesome too. It didn't feel very Little Red Riding Hood-ish but that's fine.
The ending was very satisfying, I almost thought it wouldn't work but it did. I'd like to think all the relationships got repaired post ending though.
I enjoyed this story, it was a welcome escape from the real world.
*Thank you to Booksirens for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*
Oriana isn't just a witch but also a Matriarch ruler and a Crimson Hunter. Marrok is her chosen mate and a black wrewolf. No one is very optimistic about their union as werewolves have an intense hunger for the blood and magic of witches and ultimately end up leaving their mates to protect them...or worse.
It's Oriana's mission to make witches and werewolves equal but there's people on both sides who aren't making it easy for her. After all, in the past it was werewolves who ruled over witches and now that the tables have turned why would anyone life a hand to help?
One of the ways the werewolves are subdued is by wearing special collars that trigger a calming effect when the wolf starts to get riled up. Occasionally, those who couldn't control their hunger and tasted a witch's blood got turned into feral white werewolves who lost all sense of who they were before. They're mostly isolated from everyone else...until they aren't.
The book took me a while to get into, but it got much more interesting after 35% or so. I didn't get immediately attached to the characters like I did in some other N. D. Jones books I read but they eventually grew on me. Keira is my favourite and Zed the most annoying.
I liked the metal inclusion, that was a nice touch. And the glossary, the map and the illustrations were awesome too. It didn't feel very Little Red Riding Hood-ish but that's fine.
The ending was very satisfying, I almost thought it wouldn't work but it did. I'd like to think all the relationships got repaired post ending though.
I enjoyed this story, it was a welcome escape from the real world.
*Thank you to Booksirens for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*
fuyunoumi's review
4.0
I'll start by saying that I recieved an arc this book, via BookSirens, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. I was so excited to read it and I am so happy it met my expectations. You see, Crimsn Hunter is marketed as a retelling of the classic story of red riding hood, a story close to my heart since it holds the nostalgia of me growing up with one of its versions. But the thing is, calling it a retelling is an understatement.
Our main protagonists are Oriana, a witch matriarch and her werewolve mate and husband, Marrok. N.D. Jones has created a whole new world, with its own history, lore and rules. There are a lot of things that make stand out for the millions of other stories with a similar theme. It is the second universe I read where werewolve do not overpower the rest of the population. They are in fact being controled in a way. The story focuses around this, how the witches are in charge and how they could swift the rules so both, werewolves and witches, can live equaly, share the same fredom.
Something I loved is the character dynamics and the complexity of most relationships. I didn;t get to just readthe protagonists' story but also follow evryone else around them. And that is what made it feel real and relatable, even if it is a fantasy book.
With all that been said, there is somethig I missed from the book. Fight scenes. One part of the plot is about the years long war between witches and werewolves, so I would have liked to see more of that as well. Espacially since Oriana isn't just a Queen, she's a warrior.
I can't wait to see how the author will expand the story in the book that will follow. She has setted the bar high and I know she'll continue raising it.
Our main protagonists are Oriana, a witch matriarch and her werewolve mate and husband, Marrok. N.D. Jones has created a whole new world, with its own history, lore and rules. There are a lot of things that make stand out for the millions of other stories with a similar theme. It is the second universe I read where werewolve do not overpower the rest of the population. They are in fact being controled in a way. The story focuses around this, how the witches are in charge and how they could swift the rules so both, werewolves and witches, can live equaly, share the same fredom.
Something I loved is the character dynamics and the complexity of most relationships. I didn;t get to just readthe protagonists' story but also follow evryone else around them. And that is what made it feel real and relatable, even if it is a fantasy book.
With all that been said, there is somethig I missed from the book. Fight scenes. One part of the plot is about the years long war between witches and werewolves, so I would have liked to see more of that as well. Espacially since Oriana isn't just a Queen, she's a warrior.
I can't wait to see how the author will expand the story in the book that will follow. She has setted the bar high and I know she'll continue raising it.
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