Ruby has grown so much as an author over the years and it shows in Bound to the Shadow Prince! I enjoyed myself the entire time. This is such a great standalone novel, though you wouldn't need to twist my arm to get me to read another story from this world in the future. Well done!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to review this book. All opinions are my own.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this ebook.

Ruby Dixon created yet another totally unique, rich fantasy setting. I continue to be in awe of her ability to write female lead who starts out hard to love (like I start these books sure I could never possibly like this chick) and ends up being a favorite character, along with a brooding, enigmatic monster hero. Her world-building is, as always, particularly impressive, with a dark atmosphere that immerses readers in a realm filled with magic, intrigue, and peril.

The plot is expertly paced initially then takes a turn (just over half-way through), which is really my only complaint.

PS if you ever had a weird feeling for a gargoyle this book is probably for you

Spice: 3/5 - open door, repeated, explicit language
CW: <spoiler> chronic illness, war, slavery, fatphobia, rape/attempted rape, child death </spoiler>

I loved Ice Planet Barbarians so I was excited to read this but it just didn’t work for me. The writing style was cheesy and I found the plot predictable.

This was my first book by this author and i absolutely loved it! I can not wait to read more by her!

Ruby Dixon has a unique gift for fantasy world building and developing interesting "monster" characters. This story brings you into a forbidden romance between Candra, a Vestalin princess of Lios with a blood disease, and Nemeth, a winged Fellian prince from the rival kingdom of Darkfell. They are both sacrifices for their respective people, staying in the Tower of Balance for seven years, to serve as Royal Offerings to the gods in order to appease them and avoid angering the Golden Moon Goddess and cursing their Kingdoms.

Candra is a bold and flirty female who knows what she wants and will do what is necessary to get it. Nemeth is reserved and observant, falling first and fast for the princess. When their annual supplies are not delivered after the second year, they are forced to leave in order to survive and risk angering the gods. They must learn to trust each other and their love in order to get through the obstacles faced once they leave the tower.

I really enjoyed this enemy to lovers romance, and I thought the character development was well written. Ruby always does such a good job with the world building that even though this is a fantasy world, I can picture it like I've seen it before. There were some twists to the story that I had guessed at early on, but it did not take away from the ending.

It's official.... I love Ruby Dixon! 4.25 stars!
This was my first Monster Romance novel, and I couldn't be happier. I will officially be purchasing more Ruby Dixon books and monster romances!

Ruby Dixon has done it again!!! I loved this book!

Tropes I loved!
Enemies to lovers
Forced proximity
Hero saves her

Tropes I didn't love!
Pregnancy

Ruby really took her time with the slow-burn romance but the enemies-to-lovers arc was so well done! Quite a bit more violence and death than she normally does but I enjoyed reading a darker side to her work. The world-building was fantastic!

absolutely obsessed with Ruby, Dixon, and this enemies to lovers romance was fun and action packed! I thought the main characters were extremely relatable and had amazing chemistry

Thank you NetGalley and Wattpad books for providing an eARC in exchange for my honest review!

I soft DNFd this book, I would like to revisit at a later date! I’m giving 4 stars, rounded up from my 3.5, just because I know I’ll like it more when I revisit.

This is a SLOW BURN, especially since I’m used to Ruby Dixon’s Ice Planet Barbarian’s series, where we usually don’t have to wait too long for the spice! Bound to the Shadow Prince is also quite long, and I’ve been having a hard time getting through longer, slower paced novels.

I loved Candra, our party princess forced into dedicating seven years of her life to being unexpectedly trapped in a tower. I also loved Nemeth, a Fellian and supposed-to-be enemy to Candra. Definitely lovable characters, and if you love political intrigue and a slow burn that will most certainly have payoff, this is for you!

I was obsessed from start to finish. I love the Ice Planet Barbarians series by this author and this book was no exception. I give it a solid four stars. The reason is isn't higher is because I do think it could be a little bit shorter. This book has so many gothic elements and at times was giving the hunch back of notre dam. I usually an not a huge slow burn girly, but WOW the slow burn in this book ate, and the spice, let's just say was so good. I mean, I am not surprised considering Ruby is known for her spice.

Ruby Dixon’s Bound to the Shadow Prince is a mesmerizing blend of dark fantasy and romance, weaving together elements of forbidden love, sacrifice, and the haunting allure of the unknown. This novel takes readers on a journey into a world where love blooms in the most unlikely of places—inside a tower meant to be both a prison and a sanctuary.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC. I usually really like fantasy romance books where romance is the plot but I just found this one to be too much. I also felt that it was unnecessarily long winded. It was ok but not something I would search out.

To protect her kingdom, Princess Candra must remain locked in a tower for seven years with her kingdom's enemy - a Fellian. Nemeth is enormous with his wings, claws, and fangs. But, could he be more than an enemy? Princess Candra soon finds it hard to be isolated after having such a no-strings attached lifestlye of drama and romance before the tower.

This book was easy to consume in a very short amount of time; great for a quick weekend read to distract yourself in a fantasy world with a questionable romance. Is this hybrow, intrecate fantasy, no. Did I have fun reading it and did I wonder if there would be more titles to make it a series, yes. Did I also read a few other of the author's titles after this, also yes. I would recommend this to anyone who wants a quick, soft erotica fantasy.

Great book! New concept with original ideas and still keeping true to the romantsy genre. I had no idea who to trust or what was going on the entire time! I will definitely keep reading this series.

One star removed because it started to drag a little in the middle.

Pros: I love this cover art. Honestly, if I didn’t already know Ruby Dixon, the cover art alone would draw me to pick up this book. I love the monster romance genre and forced proximity trope. I love how we get a strong MMC that loves our FMC unconditionally.

Cons: the beginning of the book didn’t initially hook me. I would have liked for the FMC’s curse to be explained in more depth. This book is so long, it really felt like 3 stories pushed into one. And the biggest con for me was the use of modern language for people that don’t even have plumbing. Why would we be referencing a school dance for someone that probably never even left her castle for lessons. And the amount of times she said dragon shite made me want to throw the book across the room.

I lovedddd Ice Planet Barbarians. This book just didn’t hit it. It was a dnf for me. It seemed so long winded and like nothing was happening. I enjoy fantasy romance but nothinnggggg was happening. I didn’t care for the heroine, she was annoying. Maybe she got better as the story went along but it was too long for me to care to finish.

Could not stand the FMC from beginning to end. Plus it was just weird pacing and felt like it went on for way too long. Still love me some Ruby Dixon though. This just wasn’t for me.

Enemies to lovers, she’s beauty he’s beast (literally) Forced proximity? Check. Spice? Check. Adventure? Check.

I love Ruby Dixon and originally became a fan during the Ice Planet Barbarians TikTok era IYKYK. In Bound to the Shadow Prince we have our spoiled seemingly ill princess and our gruff nerdy prince from two different warring kingdoms. The character development was probably my favorite aspect of this story. Seeing both MC’s come into their own, overcome the obstacles thrown at them, and stand up against those they love for each other was *chefs kiss*

I have mixed emotions because I really enjoyed this story and I know that so much was necessary to the world building…. I just felt at times that there was a little too much filler. It felt drug out and then the end felt rushed.

I really hope that this is going to be a series as I just feel like there is so much more to this story. I need to know what happens *after* even if it’s from a different characters POV.

Why.

That's what I need to know - Why. Why on EARTH was this book as long as it was? There is no conceivable reason this book needed to take as long as it did. I literally almost starting skipping lines and whole chapters because it felt so redundant. At least...the first 75% of the book felt redundant. The last 25% was fantastic, and much more of what I expect from a Ruby Dixon book. I was the entire book had been that way, but here we are.

If you've got time, it wouldn't hurt to read it. But if you're looking for something quick? Keep looking.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and Ruby Dixon for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Bound to the Shadow Prince by Ruby Dixon promises a steamy monster romance between two members of enemy lands. Steamy it was, however, the plot fell short for me. For most of the story the romance drags on and on and not much is happening but in the end it is filled with too much action and too many twists that could’ve been better dispersed throughout the novel. Overall, this book was definitely not for me.