Thank you for this arc ! I love ice planet barbarians so was so excited to get this! If you enjoy that series I think you will like this. It’s pretty smutty in ruby Dixon fashion ! I liked it !

I wasn't sure what to expect from Ruby "Ice Planet Barbarians" Dixon, but this romantasy was played out with a lot of character development for the two main characters. Opposites attract with these two who are basically stuck together for the next 7 years when it becomes apparent that Princess Candra unexpectedly needs to be the family sacrifice to live in the tower. She must share the space with Nemeth, a Fellian Prince, who was always meant to go. I love the complexity of the characters, which helps with continuing with the story, as Canada does come off quite spoiled and haughty, and needing to figure out how to do things on her own. Nemeth on the other hand, is so sheltered and a bit gruff. The story has a lot of twists and turns that keep you guessing or wondering what the heck is going on. I would say from a pacing standpoint, there were parts that seemed to drag on, but overall I enjoyed the story, and how it was a bit of a twist in how the "chosen one" trope plays out .

Steam: 🔥🔥
Heart Flutters: ❤️❤️

I want to start off saying that I love Ruby Dixon’s writing…usually. This one just wasn’t a hit for me. I’m not sure if it was the branching into fantasy over her typical sci-fi romance, or if there is something else that is factoring into it., but it didn’t seem up to her typical standards. There are good parts of the story! In fact, the second half of the book was incredibly entertaining. But you had to push through the first half to get there. I can completely understand why some readers decided to set it aside.

The book is centered around Candra, one of three princess of the kingdom of Lios. She is, unfortunately, a pretty bratty and unlikeable main lead. I don’t mind leads that have some unlikeable traits, but there a has to be someway to connect to them that gives you a hint of a “good person” inside. I think we were supposed to feel some sympathy because of a blood disorder that can kill her if she doesn’t receive constant care, but the lack of gratitude for those who keep her healthy negates it for me.

The inciting incident of the story is that she’s suddenly thrust into an centuries old tradition that requires one of the princesses of Lios to be locked into a tower for seven years to appease a goddess and bring prosperity to the nation. Her younger sister was supposed to be that sacrifice, but when she dies in an accident, Candra is expected to step in. She initially refuses but eventually relents when it becomes clear that the only other option is her heavily pregnant older sister.

She won’t be alone, though. There is another sacrifice from a rival nation who will be stuck with her for seven years: Nemeth. They are initially antagonistic towards one another, but you can imagine what eventually happens when a girl and guy are stuck together all alone in a romance novel.

Like Dixon’s other novels, the spice was on point. There were also some of my favorite tropes in here, including forced proximity and “nurse them back to health.” However, there was also a whole bunch of back and forth with the “do you actually like me?” sort of thing that became tiring.

I don’t want to give much more of the story away, but if you’re willing to trudge through the first half and deal with an unlikable heroine who eventually learns empathy and selflessness, then things really pick up in the second half. There’s more action, character development, and plenty of plot twists to keep you hooked. I just really wish that the story was either a) shorter or b) had a better balance of excitement spread throughout.

Overall, I’d say if you are expecting something akin to Ice Planet Barbarians or some of Ruby Dixon’s other works, you aren’t going to find it here. If you’re looking for a change of pace and are patient, then feel free to give it a try. Personally, I’ll stick to her other series.

Thank you to NetGalley and W by Webtoon/Wattpad Books for providing an ARC of Bound to the Shadow Prince by Ruby Dixon. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

*Thank you NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review*

Rating: 2.5
Spice: 3.5
Tropes: forbidden romance, forced proximity, enemies-to-lovers, paranormal romance

I was so excited to dive into a Ruby Dixon book that wasn't Ice Planet Barbarians or Icehome... but I was really disappointed in this book.

The premise and summary sounded super cool and interesting which initially drew me to it, but it fell super flat around the 50% mark - leading to me ultimately not finishing (DNF)

Mainly it was the flat/one-dimensional characters, and the poor pacing of the plot. Was I going to read about their entire seven-year imprisonment?! I couldn't handle it, especially if it continued with just the two of them galavanting in that tower. Also the romance and relationship buildup was poor. How did they go from hating and avoiding each other to doing a mating ceremony... all while never getting to know each other (that we've seen)...

Overall, did not enjoy and did not finish

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Spice 3/5🌶️
Half 1 - 4⭐️, Half 2 - 3⭐️

Something from Ruby Dixon that wasn’t ice planet barbarians, and I was not disappointed!!

This book is similar to a Rapunzel retelling but was largely based on the Trojan War according to Dixon’s author note.

The first half of the book, our 2 MCs are locked in a tower together, where they are supposed to stay locked up for 7 years. We watch their journey together & honestly for a human x bat boy moment, it was pretty 🔥🔥🔥.

In the second half of the book, we follow our MCs as they enter a political war zone. This was the book started to lose a bit of my interest. I found the main conflict too easily resolved, and most of the book to be too lengthy for what it achieved. I also found that the FMC was much too forgiving throughout the second half, her man continuously disappears and lets her get captured. Bro, man up! He was sadly a wimp often, especially when it came to his homeland.

However with all of that said, it was still an easy and captivating read that I would recommend to fans of Dixon’s writing.

I love Ruby Dixon and her tales of large blue people with spurs. Boundto the Shadow Prince lacked the lighthearted aspect that the Ice Planet series succeeded at. The book had a strong theme of dispair, and was very long-winded at times.

I received this book as an ARC. It has an interesting premise but lacked the finishing touches. So much of the story focuses on the tower that I feel like the rest of the story is rushed. There isn’t much depth to the side characters and their stories are jumbled into a conclusion without any emphasis on what happened.

I’m beginning to wonder if Ruby Dixon can do no wrong. Bound to the Shadow Prince is quite different from Dixon’s other series, and I frankly loved that. It features Dixon’s beloved first-person perspective, but the world she creates here is startling, perhaps closest in tone to her Fireblood Dragons books. But while that series shows people living in the aftermath of a destructive time, Bound to the Shadow Prince depicts a period when the destruction is happening.

I loved how our narrator Chandra starts as one of the most self-serving characters you could imagine. She is a selfish princess to the max. Her evolution over the course of this book was one of my favorite things about it. Nemeth, her antagonist and hero, is more elusive because we see him entirely from Chandra’s perspective, but he is a wonderful character as well.

My other favorite things in Bound to the Shadow Prince? The worldbuilding is impressive, with its split, diametrically opposed populations and its cyclic storms that seem like a salute to McCaffrey’s Pern and its Threads. And Nemeth and Chandra never back away from their love from one another. So many times in romance, you see the protagonists pull back from love—and Chandra and Nemeth have those opportunities. But they take a different path.

It's rare for me to be close to the end of a book and not be sure at all how it’s going to end. Bound to the Shadow Prince was one of those rarities, and it’s another smash hit out of the ballpark by Ruby Dixon.

Dnf @ 15%/ 10 chapters

I’m bored and really dislike the main character. Also whytf would they send her with a shit ton of clothing but not enough food besides the obvious... 🔪. And why hasn't she considered this? I’m also confused as to how she’ll get new supplies every year when I was under the impression that they wouldn’t get to contact anyone for 7 years. Which also… humans actually need to get sunlight to survive???? I had kinda assumed this would be a tower with a courtyard in the middle for them to grow crops or whatever. So yeah, I just keep poking at little things which is making reading this more annoying for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book has a bit of everything:
- 2 strangers/enemies are to be locked in a tower together for 7 years to please the Gods
- enemies to lovers
- surprise pregnancy
- after leaving the tower 2 years into their 7 year lock in, they find their people at war

There were a ton of twists and turns, lots of open door steam, knotting, and so much more. Recommended if you're looking for a steamy read with a lot more to it!

I had so much fun reading this one! I've enjoyed Ruby Dixon prior writings. Yes, this book is long, which may not be everyone's cup of tea, however, Dixon worked her skills into world-building and slow romancing.
The flow of the narrative helped the love story to take its time. While outside the tower to constantly heighten tension and anticipation.

Thank you to NetGalley and W for Wattpad for the ARC. I love Ruby Dixon. Her writing always has a lot of spice but it also hits all the right notes for its romance and Bound to the Shadow Prince didn’t disappoint.

Candra is the middle daughter, born with the blood curse that means she needs daily injections she’s the cursed member of her family and nothing is expected of her but when her younger sister suddenly dies Candra must take her place. As sacrifice to to the Moon Goddess one of the Vestalin bloodline and one of the Darkfell bloodline must spend seven years locked in a tower, but Nemeth turns out not to be the enemy Candra had anticipated.

If you have read Ruby Dixon’s Ice Planet Barbians you may be expecting something short and fast paced but this book takes the time to really get to know the characters. For a large part of the book they are alone in a tower with no other characters and I loved watching them together. Their relationship seemed to struggle once they got outside the confines of the tower and were forced to deal with others.

I’m usually a huge fan of Ruby Dixon’s writing, but this immediately fell far below her usual standard. The writing felt sloppy and a little bit juvenile at times.

I’m sad to say it because Ice Planet Barbarians is one of my favorites when it comes to romance, but I think this one might be a miss for me.

Bound to the Shadow Prince

Need another shadow daddy in your life? Ruby Dixon has got you covered!

This is an epic roller coaster of spice and rockstar world-building. I’ve always been interested in the basic structure of the Rapunzel story, specifically the locked-in-the-tower part. Mix that with the stuck-together trope and you get this gem of a book.

The female main character is zero percent self-sacrificing, and it’s honestly pretty refreshing. It’s an area of growth we don’t often see. Like all her heroes, the male main character is a cinnamon roll through and through (even if he looks a little scary with the backward knees and wings). Their communication is... messy, but it didn’t drive me completely nuts.

I do feel the need to mention that this is a lengthy read. I kept thinking, “How can there be more?! Oh! Wow! Okay, that’s a new plot point!” But somehow it all makes sense and works.

—

Thank you Ruby Dixon, W by Wattpad Books, and NetGalley for my advanced review copy!

Out in July!

Plot - 4
Writing and Editing - 4
Character Development - 4
Personal Bias - 4
Final Score - 4

I cant remember where I ended this book, but it hadn't even gotten to the sex part. The female was not likeable at all, although at least she didn't send her pregnant sister in. Not having his POV from the beginning is something I would've preferred to see, because she was not carrying the story forward for me at all.

Love love anything Ruby Dixon writes, and this book was no exception! Great main characters, a cool and unique world, and a story I loved reading.

I really loved the concept of Bound to the Shadow Prince, but the pacing of the story was way too slow for my liking and everything just felt too drawn out. Still a really solid read though!

I had not read Ruby Dixon before, but I had heard great things about Ice Planet Barbarians (spice wise anyway). Overall, this was a good read for me, but I did not feel particularly emotionally invested in the leads (that's what takes something from good to great for me). I did like seeing the main female character as someone sex positive and owning up to her initial selfishness and reliance on others but still doing her best, even when discouraged. I do not like the (lack of/mis) communication trope. I could see two of twists coming pretty easily. It ends with a nice HEA & no cliffhanger, so that's appreciated. With the name "Shadow Prince" in the title - I thought I would have seen more of that in action (not complaining, just an observation - especially since Shadow Daddies are so "in" right now). Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

This is the most intriguing book I have read this year. Ruby Dixon, you're a genius. Yes, it's long, but holds your interest. Well written, very creative, and great world building. You can pick up on several mythologies, old world religion, civil wars, war, and class differences just because your culture, and how you look are different. The Vikings, and the RH- factor comes through in the blood disease affecting some of the royalty. This book fits in with old work (time) differences, and todays world seamlessly. Very impressive writing, and the ton of research involved. So worth the read. BRILLIANT

Bound to the Shadow Prince is a book that will definitely call to the monster romance girlies of the world but at the same time be considered a gateway for romantasy readers to the monster romance realm.

We’ve got a not-your-average FMC with a deadly medical condition having to last minute take the place of her younger sister as sacrifice to the Tower for 7 years to keep the peace between humans and the Fellian race. And of course, she won’t be spending those 7 years alone: a Fellian must also be trapped in the tower to keep the peace. Stuck in the darkness without much access to light with a broody Fellian Prince was definitely not what Candra planned after having been used to being slightly pampered due to her bloodline and the curse she’s lived with her entire life thus far. Watching her learn to fend for herself and gain independence (albeit forced to do so to survive) was fascinating to read. Add that into her other plans to keep herself alive which include seducing her fellow Fellian prisoner and then subsequently developing feelings for him, made this an intriguing monster romance read.

I truly enjoyed reading about an FMC with a medical condition that seemed almost like diabetes in a way. It required daily treatment, could be deadly if ignored, though it dealt with a curse of the blood rather than sugars produced (or not produced) by the body. Still a super fascinating take for the FMC. And then learning it had a purpose beyond just being a character trait for Candra and a hurdle she had to overcome while in the Tower made it even more interesting to read.

The characters’ time in the tower was my favorite part. Even some of the traveling was fascinating and when things started to be revealed in the end. But the journey to get from tower to mountain seemed a bit lengthy to get through. Could just be me being nitpicky about things.

Do not get me wrong, I did enjoy the story. It’s just that the beginning took a while for me to settle into and the bit from exiting the tower to getting to the mountain seemed a bit long. Like it seemed as if ending the book at the decision to exit the tower and then making their journey and discovery of the new world outside a second story would have worked. Yet at the same time, I know what came afterward wouldn’t have felt complete enough for a full second story. It’s a strange middle ground for standalone and duology. Again, it could’ve just been a me thing and potential burnout/slump from reading so much.

Overall, it was an enjoyable new fantasy blending together much beloved elements while introducing a new world, not-your-average heroine, and some monster-loving moments.