This book is perfect! It is so spicy, but also has so much heart! Everything from the setting and the lore to the magic system and the characters were all done to perfection! Definitely one of my contenders for my favorite book of the year! I literally could not put this down once I started reading it!

Thank you so much to Berkley and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest feedback!

2.5 rounded to 3

If you're into minotaurs, (and rutting and knotting) this book might be for you. Unfortunately, I'm really not, and the blurb stuff leaned into mythology rather than warning me about the real, *koff* thrust of the book. (I guess I ought to have clued into all the pink on the cover. My bad.)

The rest of the story is workmanlike: Aspeth, a spoiled rich girl, is forced into a marriage of convenience with Hawk, a nebbish who soon will Jekyll and Hyde into a super-horny minotaur. Her motivation is her desire to be a member of a special archaeological guild, which will enable her to find a Maguffin that will save her family. Kind of a generic setup for a book in which sex Must Happen. And it does. But their relationship, which I read for, was a trifle flat. I really think that these romances are sandwiches for the, er, hot dog, as it were. I that's your thing, you might really be into it.

Ruby Dixon pens us an elaborate tale of courage, sacrifice, purpose . . . and steamy minotaur nookie 😉

Do you like stories that are intricate?

Do you love strong and smart heroines that are underestimated?

Are you a fan of grumpy/stubborn MMCs?

Interested in slow burning chemistry that develops into fiery, all-consuming passion?

Supportive secondary characters?

True grit?

Self discovery?

Found family?

Humorous dialogue?

Have I got the read for you!

Bull Moon Rising is all of these things and so much more. I love how courageous Aspeth is and how much responsibility she takes on to save her home and keep their people employed and protected. Having been sheltered all her life, Aspeth gets several wake-up calls, including the one where some small-minded butthead mansplains why her apprenticeship application to the artifact guild is denied because of her gender–despite being more than qualified.

The story is relevant and relatable, the characters are expertly crafted and the dialogue is witty and oh so entertaining. I absolutely enjoyed it and I can’t wait for the next book!

This book is everything!

The second I finished this book I immediately wanted to start rereading it.

It's romance, combined with Laura croft, but make it monster romance with a minotaur that needs a wife before his rut starts.

Aspeth was such a refreshing heroine. She is not an epic badass. She would rather sit around reading and is not interested in fighting. Fate has other plans for her when her father gambles away their families fortune and Aspeth has to find a way to save herself, her family, and her people. The only way she can think of to do this is do join the artificers guild.

Hawke was such a man of patience and I love him so much. He was the perfect pairing to Aspeth. The tension and the banter were so perfect. I am usually not the biggest fan of "the woman who thinks the man isn't into her, meanwhile the man is obsessed" trope, but it was honestly perfect here. It worked so well and I ate it up.

Go read this book. Please. It is amazing

Thank you to the author and publisher for the advanced review copy.

How do I love Ruby Dixon? Let me count the ways. I am obsessed with the two main characters. They are both so real and relatable (even if one is a minotaur), and when real life problems are tackled by the two MCs, it's perfection. I can't wait to sell this book!

The story centers around Aspeth, the daughter of a nobleman whose estate has fallen on hard times. Desperate to bring in much-needed money without being forced into an unwanted marriage, Aspeth decides to pursue her lifelong dream—joining the Royal Artifactual Guild. However, the guild doesn’t welcome women without a chaperone, so she agrees to marry Hawk, a Taurian (think Minotaur) who also needs a wife for his own reasons (of the steamy variety).

Aspeth soon finds herself in a class filled with other misfits as she embarks on her journey at the guild, which becomes an architectural school adventure with some monster romance sprinkled in. Hawk, the classic cinnamon-roll hero, is a gentle giant who adores Aspeth's quirks and awkwardness. If you enjoy a solid plot mixed with a bit of spice, this book offers both in a fun and adventurous setting. I’d definitely be eager to explore more stories set in this unique universe!

It's an erotic romance between a "Taurean" (it's a minotaur, y'all) and a fat, bespectacled, nerdy human lady featuring the following tropes:

Marriage of convenience
Mating season
Teacher/student
Knotting

I liked this one, but honestly it was on the longer side than I prefer for my erotic monster romances IYKWIM.

This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the novel.

Happy release day and thank you berkley romance and netgalley for the arc!

I love a story with found family. Throw in an obsessed and sweet Minotaur mmc and a marriage of convenience and I was hooked!

This book was fun. There was action and some of Ruby’s beloved spice, but this book was a bit too long for me. I found myself getting slightly bored and wanting to skim.

But I’ll forever be down for some knotting.

Thank you to Ace Books, Berkley Pub and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚃𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝
After reading Ice Planet Barbarians, I honestly went into reading BMR expecting an Er
otica and minimal but enjoyable plot. Now don’t get me wrong, there was plenty of SPICE, but there was also a really good plot.
30-year-old Aspeth Honori has left home with her maid to try and join the Artifacts Guild. She plans to join to find enough artifacts to save her father’s hold and protect those who reside there. Despite never even bathing herself, she feels a lot of pressure to fix her father's mistakes. They hit many bumps along the way, but one she definitely wasn’t expecting was marrying the Taurian named Hawk.

“Now Aspeth just has to pass the guild tests, thwart a fortune hunter, and save her hold—oh, and survive a rut with her monstrous, horned husband, whom she might be falling in love with.”

Honestly, I just loved the characters in the book, they were just a misfit group of people. They were quirky and problematic, but that all made for some great found family moments. Hawk, our brooding minotaur, was the perfect balance of rude to all, but nice to her…sometimes. It was just an overall entertaining crew of people

There was so much misogyny, especially at the beginning, but it only made me root for Aspeth and crew extra hard. If you love the energy of archeology and are a fan of monster romances, seriously give this a read.

♡︎ Marriage of Convenience
♡︎ Monster Romance
♡︎ Artifact Hunting & Magic
♡︎ Student/Teacher
♡︎ Hidden Identity.

This story was so fun!
Found family ✅
Plus sized FMC ✅
Monster smut ✅✅
Rooting for the underdog ✅
Fantasy light ✅
Marriage of convenience ✅✅✅
The plot was so thought out and all parts had a reason! I loved the adventure and characters!
I laughed so many times and rooted for sparrow and hawk the whole time! The twist and turns got me!
The ending was great and I can’t wait to read the next book in the series

I had such a fun time with this book! I'm a monster lover through and through and Hawk was so swoony. I also really loved Aspeth, I think she was so fun and and funny and determined. I found the plot super intriguing, too. Once I pushed through not understanding what was going on in the first chapter, I realized how approachable Ruby Dixon made this fantasy world, I just had to get into it.

Ruby really is the master at her craft. She can create stories that are interesting, charming, spicy, and that have fabulous world-building. Now, a heads up for those new to Ruby's writing: Ruby's books are SPICY and very romantic. There is definitely a fantasy element to this story, but the growing relationship between Aspeth and Hawk really takes center stage in this story. I enjoyed the world that Ruby created. Ruby does a fabulous job weaving in all these world-building elements (its history, political system, magic, etc.) in an interesting and cohesive manner. I adored all the archaeology vibes this story was giving off. The story itself has a little bit of everything in it. There is humour, charm, adventure, unexpected twists and turns, and, of course, spice.

I've read a few of Ruby's books now, and the one thing I notice is that she knows how to write a female MC that is just so damn unforgettable. Aspeth is a force to be reckoned with when she wants something. She is bookish, smart, sassy, brave, and rash. At the beginning of this book, we meet Aspeth, who is determined to enter the Royal Artifactual Guild. She wants to live and save her family from ruin. The problem is the Guild won't let her join because she is a woman. It was entertaining watching as Aspeth tried and tried again to join the Guild. There was just something so great about Aspeth's character. Watching her spread her wings and learning about artifacts and the spicier things in life was wonderful. Hawk is a Minotaur who is in a sticky position. He knows that soon he is going to go into a rut, a.k.a in heat, and that he needs a willing partner to go into heat with, or things will get messy. Hawk is this delightful blend of broody, gruff hero, and a cinnamon roll. I loved watching him and Aspeth interact with each other. They constantly kept each other on their toes.

The romance is a real slow-burn spice. What I mean by that is there is a lot of foreplay… very risky, spicy foreplay. We don't get to the actual banging until near the end of the book. This is a monster romance, so this book has some knotting, but it's not overly crazy in the spice department. Besides all the spice in this story, there are a lot of quiet moments between Aspeth and Hawk. It blows me away how Ruby was able to make it feel like Aspeth and Hawk were in their own little world. It was interesting watching these two strangers enter this marriage of convincing with little trust for each other. The journey they go on is full of bumps and miscommunications but also full of physical and emotional exploration. It was surprisingly sweet at times.

Bull Moon Rising is a fun romance fantasy, perfect for those who want to add a little spice to their reading life.

I had never read anything by Ruby Dixon before so I was thrilled to get the opportunity to review Bull Moon Rising. I am so happy to say it did not disappoint in any way! I absolutely loved the characters, the story, and the writing. This read was fun from start to finish. Can't wait to read more!!

4.5 Give Me All The Minotaur Rutting✨'s

In a world where magic used to be plentiful, Lady Aspeth is determined to bring her family back to its glory as she runs away to become an artificer, an adventurer who explores ancient underground ruins to find magical artifacts. Wanting to join the only artifactual guild, Aspeth puts all of her hope into becoming a member. However, when she is rejected for simply being a woman, Aspeth agrees to marry Hawk, one of the teachers, if he will vouch for her, and in return she will help him through his upcoming heat. Despite their obvious distrust in one another, as Aspeth and Hawk begin training and get to know each other, Aspeth must decide if she can be fully honest with Hawk about herself and her family.

This was an amazing start to a new romantasy series! It was completely unlike anything from Ruby Dixon I've read before, but still had her signature charm and smut. I loved all the worldbuilding and adventure in the plot, and I cannot wait to explore more of this magical world. The romance was so sweet, Hawk was so very grumpy and obsessed with Aspeth, the minotaur was just completely feral for her. The secondary characters had so much personality, and the found family was everything, I loved how everyone bonded with each other and were willing to put themselves at risk for Aspeth. I absolutely recommend this unique romantasy to enjoyers of magical adventures, horny monsters, quirky characters, all the foreplay, and a captivating plot!

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley and once again Ruby Dixon has given us another series to obsess over.

I loved everything about this, from the plot to the characters and all in between. The stakes were high but the story was still light and enjoyable thanks to the bonds formed between characters, comedic moments, and one very fluffy cat.

I can’t wait to read more from this series!

Ruby Dixon doesn’t usually disappoint but this time she did. I had the hardest time getting into this book and once I did it took me two weeks to finish it. As the kind of reader that can’t put a good book down until it’s done this is unheard of for me. I will still be a loyal reader of ruby dixon but maybe I need to skip this series.

This book surprised me. I really loved the world building and all the fun and quirky misfit characters. I can't wait for the next one. This is going to be a fun series!

“How am I supposed to seduce someone? Sit on them and recite Old Prellian poetry until they give in? I don’t know the first thing about being appealing to men.”
You’re absolutely going to need this slow burn Minotaur romance by Ruby Dixon. Bull Moon Rising is set in a historical fantasy world where magical artifacts power strongholds, Taurians save the humans behinds daily, and a powerful rut season only happens once every 5 years on the rise of the Conquest Moon.

Aspeth is our plus-size heroine. Not only is she determined to salvage her home and father’s reputation by joining the Royal Artifactual Guild to obtain artifacts from Old Prell that will secure her family’s hold, Aspeth is also an obsessive scholar in her own right, knows how to read ancient runes, and can spot a fake artifact like a professional. I adore Aspeth. She’s intellectual, she’s got gumption in spades, and when her family has let her down countless times, her determination is stalwart.


The Mummy Rachel Weisz via Tenor
“You’re not seriously offering to have sex with me just to get into the guild school?”
After being laughed out of a male-dominated Guild meeting, Aspeth makes a bargain with Hawk, a Taurian who is currently attempting to help out his friend and Guild Master, Magpie, by teaching her class of fledglings. If you’re wondering what a Taurian might be: it’s a Minotaur descendant who hold just higher standing in the Guild than that of women. Every 5 years, a Conquest Moon rises and causes the Taurians to go into a red-eyed rut. If Hawk marries Aspeth, she can become a fledgling in the Guild and Hawk has himself a mate for the rut. Wins for everyone, right?

It’s not as easy as that. Aspeth’s fellow fledglings consist of a motley crew of misfits: A slitherskin, Magpie’s drunkard of a niece, Aspeth’s friend and maid in her household, and a woman who desperately doesn’t want to be sent to their world equivalent of a convent. Magpie, the actual guild master, is on the brink of being cast out due to her own drunken actions. Nearly all the other teams work against Aspeth’s team in order to better their own chances. Aspeth is also in danger of showing her cards to her husband whom she just can’t seem to stay away from.


Minotaur gif via Tenor
“I’d rather take an honest man with no kisses than a liar with a sweet tongue.”
I loved the storyline of Bull Moon Rising. I loved that I never knew what would happen as Aspeth and Hawk fell slowly for each other. While their relationship stems from convenience, both show each other equal amounts of tenderness and affection. These two idiots are my favorite kind of romance. While their horniness is apparent, the way Ruby Dixon approaches their inevitable coupling during the rut was both sweet and romantic. I wish I could describe it better, but I’m here for the vibes, and the vibes are immaculate.

With every wrong turn in Aspeth’s journey to helping her father, it only cements the bond with Hawk even further. Bull Moon Rising is a historical fantasy, it’s an ode to Victorian Archaeology, full of feminist themes (yes, Queen!), and it’s a slow burn romance that is so horny you’re not going to miss out on any of the spice while Aspeth and Hawk figure out their situation.

“Before leaving home, I had no friends. Now I have four of them, and it feels like I’m the richest person in all of Vastwarren.”
Bull Moon Rising is out soon, and if you haven’t seen the gorgeous hardcover special edition, then you better hippity hop over to your favorite retailer and get in on the action before the opportunity is over. Ruby Dixon, I cannot wait to experience more of this world with you! Aspeth and Hawk won me over (and Squeaker too), and I know they will win over other readers as well. Happy Release, Ruby!

do you want to go on an adventure?? bc if there’s one thing you can count on with Ruby, it’s an epic journey from page one. 🤩 I had the *best* time falling into the world she created for Aspeth & Hawk & co!

it’s a Romantasy with Indiana Jones meets Tomb Raider vibes where an adorably curvy and bookish heroine sets her stubborn sights on righting the wrongs of her father by joining a special guild who procures magical artifacts. but in order for her to even start this mission, she must find a chaperone aka husband to gain entry. enter her reluctant accomplice and off-limits *teacher* —the broody & grumpy Taurean who goes by Hawk. 😏 and you may think you know what happens next, but spoiler alert: he’s also going into rut so you probs don’t. trust me. 🤭

SO. MUCH. HAPPENS! which made it entirely unputdownable and insanely immersive. a band of misfits as side characters and a furry feline companion that turns Hawk into a cat daddy had me cackling into my fist. and those “teach me “ moments when the spice was spoicinggg?! sweaty and wetty, y’all. 😮‍💨🫠 I cannot wait to relive this when it goes to audio! such a fun time!

𝘁 𝗿 𝗼 𝗽 𝗲 𝘀 :
📖 curvy & bookish FMC
🐂 minotaur MMC
💫 he’s her teacher
💖 romantasy
💍 marriage of convenience
🪢 “teach me” + knotting
🌙 adventure & spice!

Thank you to @prhaudio, @author.ruby.dixon, @berkleypub, and @netgalley for the gifted copy 🩷

💭t͜͡h͜͡o͜͡u͜͡g͜͡h͜͡t͜͡s͜͡ 💭

Full Moon Rising was a fun read! 😍 I loved Asbeth’s accent, Hawk’s deep voice 😌, the dual narration, and the pacing. I came for the monster romance, but the plot was plotting!! Asbeth, an emotionally neglected holder's daughter wants to join the Artifacts guild and is getting shut down because she's a woman. The only way to solve this problem? Marry the strong, Minotaur guild teacher to be her chaperone in exchange for companionship during the Bull Moon. 😁

I feel like this book was more fantasy than romance, which I enjoyed. There was a lot more world-building and detail than I expected, and the romance and spice were on point. If I have one complaint it would be to grab Asbeth by the shoulders and say, “Girl! Put your dang glasses on!” 🤣 I get why she chose to walk around blind for 80% of the book but, man! I felt blind just watching her. She gets it together eventually, so all's well that ends well. 🩷

💍 Marriage of Convenience
♉️ Human/Minotaur
💫Forced Proximity
👓 Found Family
🐂Curvy FMC
🩷 HEA