This was my first “Monster Romance” and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. I figured it would be mostly romance, but it had a fantastic story. I loved the characters, the world building, and the fact that I wasn’t inundated with the to MC’s constant boning. Not to say that it’s not choc full of spicy scenes, but it was a good balance. Can’t wait to see where this series goes in the future.

Actual rating: 4.5/5 stars.

In a shocking turn of events, this is my #1 Ruby Dixon book!

While I was surprised at the amount of plot and world-building in this book when I began, I really loved this entire thing. The world was interesting, and the whole "tomb-excavating" aspect was really interesting and something I haven't seen before. I had a blast reading it, and will be interested to see where the series goes from here.

And the romance aspect was incredible, but that's to be expected from Ruby Dixon! She always manages to keep a book romantic and hot at the same time, and knows how to pepper in the smutty scenes to keep us reading.

I remember seeing an email from @netgalley about this and they showed the cover of it and I had never seen anything like it. It sort of resembled what I would imagine a unicorn exploding would look like... In a good way. 😂 I requested it immediately.

To replace her holder father's fortune and keep their family's home and legacy intact, Lady Aspeth Honori is bound and determined to become a member of the Royal Artifact Guild where she can dig artifacts and hopefully build back what her father has squandered. She doesn't expect to need a chaperone when the notoriously sexist group rejects her. Who better than a Taurian (yep, a minotaur... You know hot bod and bull head.) who needs a partner before the Conquest Moon? For his part, Hawk is desperate to find a mate that will stay with him through the duration of the Conquest Moon so that he's not having to use sex workers to quench his insatiable need to rut. Over and over and over again. Aspeth proposes a marriage of convenience for the two and doesn't fill Hawk in on her title or background, but how long can she keep the secret? And how long until these two find themselves deciding whether or not to stay married?

This was a tad too long I felt but I did enjoy it very much. I admired Aspeth's drive and love how open she was to new everything. Not an easy feat, especially as nobility. This had me laughing and swooning, which I did not expect. Again, BULL MAN. 😂

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Ruby Dixon is a legend who never disappoints! Such a sweet and lusty romance. Please be sure to check TWs before reading!!!

Ruby Dixon never disappoints me! This book has my whole heart and was fantastic! The cover blew me away and the story that followed had me swooning! A must read!!!!!

A lonely noble's daughter enters a short term marriage with a minotaur so that she can join a treasure hunting guild to restore the riches that her father has squandered and protect her people. Her new husband Hawk who happens to be a member of the guild more suited to teaching students and rescuing guild members, has no idea that his wife/most challenging student is a noble in disguise. Aspeth and her fellow outcast group of guild novices bond tightly together along with Hawk as they face the challenges from other students, guild masters, and the ruins themselves.
This steamy, erotic, paranormal, fantasy romance is filled with found family and sweet characters.

. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁.Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for providing me with an e-ARC for early review.. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁.

Bull Moon Rising is my first Dixon book outside of the Ice Planet Barbarians series and has an absolutely gorgeous deluxe hardcover edition that immediately caught my attention. While it has a bumpy start, this story eventually smooths itself out and becomes really quite enjoyable and sweet.

Here is a brief breakdown of vibes/tropes.
- thirty year old virgin nerd gives no shits
- teacher / student but they're both fully adults and there's not really a power imbalance
- marriage of convenience becomes marriage of extreme pleasure
- archaeology for capitalism is a corrupt system and sucks
- wildly open sexual communication
- women kicking ass
- one absolutely precious lizard man
- relatively low breeding kink and *no* mention of the cervix
- happily ever after
- Dual POV

While it's a very adult book, I can't help but recommend this to people who enjoyed A Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson. Aspeth (our main character) has that same sort of love for Prellian art and history and artifacts that Elisabeth Scrivener has for grimoires. And they both feature *really* sweet romances. Some of this chemistry was genuinely tooth-rottingly fluffy. I did especially enjoy getting to read a fantasy romance through the eyes of a self-proclaimed spinster, whose virginity is not a virtue she really cares about protecting anymore when she's got bigger things on her plate. Mainly, another holder family waging war against her father.

Like I mentioned, this book has a rough start, with far too much exposition and flumpy dialogue in the first five chapters or so, but once Hawk (our other main character) starts interacting with Aspeth, it's immediately better. They just have such a strong natural drive towards each other. The plot is serviceable as a driving force; Aspeth needs to join the Royal Artefact Guild in order to procure artefacts to rescue her father's estate since he gambled away all of their own magical items and left them protectionless. And by running away to join the guild, she's left behind a suitor who wasn't really that interested in marrying her for anything but her inheritance. And then, by marrying Hawk without telling him that she's secretly the heir to a holder estate, she's gotten herself in even deeper trouble, and that's without mentioning the fact that the Taurian "Conquest Moon" is approaching swiftly, during which Hawk will lose his composure and rut the nearest thing in sight for a lengthy period of time. Oh, and also, Aspeth and her four friends are struggling to pass muster as a team of Five under the tutelidge of Magpie, who is not the epic female idol that Aspeth always imagined, but a rude, apathetic drunk.

Between trying to keep her identity a secret from not only her friends and new husband, struggling through training for the guild, and being introduced to the wonders of fingering by Hawk, Aspeth really gets time to shine as a character. She's honestly a bit dumb when it comes to anything other than Prellian artefacts--- she doesn't think through having a shotgun wedding to a man she met that same week (a Taurian man, at that), she is terrible at trying to hide her true identity (why are you telling people you're named after the holder heir Aspeth??? You're THE SAME AGE AS HER!), and refusing to wear her glasses, going around half blind for most of the story, because "only rich people have glasses." Honey, if anything's going to give away your identity, it's not the glasses. But she's likeable and funny and naive, and she pairs really well with Hawk's sarcasm, exasperation, and genuine interest and care for her well-being.

Hawk is a FANTASTIC character, and I wish we got more POV chapters for him. He's smart as a whip and fast as one too, shouldering the burden of a group of Five that are woefully unprepared for the guild training and taking on the brunt of the teaching duties that Magpie is too drunk to fulfill. He owes a debt to the guild and wants to become a master some day, which no Taurian has ever done. He goes on rescue missions whenever asked because he's got a good heart, even if he's rescuing idiots. And he agreed to marry Aspeth and become her chaperone after she offers to help him through the Conquest Moon in exchange. And what he thought was a marriage of convenience becomes much more. Because holy shit, these two talk through *everything." They're both so up front about their sexuality and feelings that it's like a refreshing gulp of... water. Aspeth is a virgin with some light kissing and fanciful erotica novels under her belt, and Hawk has a monster under his. There's none of that "purity" crap here--- Aspeth *loves* spending time with Hawk in the bedroom, and he loves it just as much. Watching them fall in love so easily and openly is really wonderful.

And finally, the background characters. The rest of the Five are entertaining and lovely. Gwenna, Aspeth's former maid, is a grumpy, moody, and sarcastic wingman who cares really deeply about her airheaded mistress's livelihood, even if she wants nothing to do with the Royal Artefact Guild. Lark, Magpie's niece, is crass, brash, and bold, and livens up all scenes she's in. Mereden is soft spoken, sweet, and smarter than she seems, and Kipp--- KIPP. My beloved slitherskin. I would die for him. Kipp gives zero shits and is good at everything and never says a single word. S tier. Magpie is horrid and a perfect example of "never meet your heroes." And Barnabus... Aspeth's ex-suitor is genuinely such a hateable sack of manure.

Overall, I find the only shortcomings of Bull Moon Rising to be the slow, rough start, but it ties everything together in a neat, happy bow at the end. Though this is planned to be a series, readers can happily leave off at the end of this book with a complete story arc and full character developments. A great introduction for romance and fantasy readers looking to learn the Monster Smash, even if I wish Hawk's horns were a little more present.

It takes a reader who knows what they are getting into to read and enjoy Ruby Dixon's latest release. Set in a magical realm, our lusty characters are all hiding secrets; drunkenness, poverty, family troubles, emotional feelings. It's a lot of action from beginning to end. As usual Ruby manages to pull the story together around two reluctant lovers, both needing each other but both ignoring the sparks that fly when they let loose and get spicy.

I received a free copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group; all opinions expressed are exclusively my own.

Here is a very simple way to describe whether or knot this book is for you: if you got that joke and liked it, it's for you. If you didn't get it, or got it and didn't like it, you will probably want to pick something else. If you fell into the first group, this book is pretty much exactly the experience you signed up for, and a well done version at that. I really loved the world created here, and am looking forward to more stories in this setting!

For sensitive readers, there are instances of violence and danger, racism, and misogyny. There is also graphic sexuality and some instances where consent is implied but not overtly stated.

~3.5 stars, rounded up to 4

i was heavily influenced by the cover and the plethora of bookstagram friends who wanted to read this one. though i have to say, while the cover shows both aspeth and hawk, it is a lot more colorful than some of the themes of this book.

this book contains a lot of misogyny towards the female characters, judgment over inter-species relationships, and alcohol abuse. it *also* contains found family, strong female empowerment, and fun side characters characters.

i found some of the parts in the mining scenes to be kind of slow (maybe that was the point?) and i wasn't a fan of the specific nouns (folds, channel, not my thing) used during the spicy scenes.

this was my first ruby dixon book and first monster romance book. i loved hawk, the broody taurian. aspeth got on my nerves sometimes (because of reasons you'll find out when you read this book) but she grew a lot by the end of the book and i couldn't help but root for her.

not sure if i would read this again, though i'd be willing to read another ruby dixon book if i came across one!

Bull Moon Rising by Ruby Dixon is an absolutely deliciously addicting story that is a must reads for fans of romantasy!

Consider me converted. I absolutely devoured this book and loved it! I have never read a marriage of convenience with a minotaur. I loved Aspeth because she was such a fun main character that took her choices unapologetic to marry him to secure her future. I loved the dynamic that their relationship developed. It was a mix of a strangers to friends to lovers with a mix of grumpy sunshine. The plot moved quickly and I loved the relationship that formed. The book was funny, whimsical and straight up fun. Ruby Dixon always makes reading fantasy books so fun and easy to read and with a hint of humor. Bull Moon Rising is a must read this fall.

I am often mixed on this writer- clearly, she's had great success with Ice Planet Barbarians, but the issues that series has have carried over to this book for me. There were some things about it I quite liked, but a lot that didn't work for me and I can't recommend it as unreservedly enjoyable.

What I liked: the world-building is cool and interesting. The society is stratified in an interesting way, and I like the historical details within the world. I also liked that the heroine is brainy and has interests in weird topics! Aspeth is an interesting character with some real depth. She wants something, which is important.

This does lead to what I didn't love: Aspeth is deeply naive and totally clueless about the real world. That just kind of annoyed me? She has valid fears for her life and the security of her family's control over their land, but her solutions are fully brainless and the fact that it kind of works out and she gets everything she wants is nuts.

I REALLY didn't like the weird racial elements we see here, similarly to the IPB series. The Taurians are wayyy too close to an allegory for real life race stuff for me to be comfy with it. I like fantasy races being included in books like this, but you've got to go out of your way to make it explicitly not racist, and this felt very weird to me! Maybe I'm reading too much into it, I don't know.

I think the pacing was BAD bad- the whole conceit of Aspeth and her crew training to be in the guild by doing manual labor and working in terrible conditions was boring and I don't know why it had to exist. In general, it doesn't pass the smell test that Aspeth has wanted this her whole adult life, to explore the ruins of Old Prell and she had no idea what it actually entails. I like that Aspeth gets her own career with the guild scholars, and gets to have the future of her choice without responsibility to her house, but it felt too neat and rather unearned to me.

The writing is fine, so I was able to finish it, and the plot didn't bore me entirely. I just found this to be full of holes. The gender stuff bothered me too, and I thought there was a lot of potential for it to be interesting, like women entering the guild and having something to contribute, but it fell flat for me. I did enjoy the female friendships in the book.

You'll notice I haven't mentioned the romance- it's because it was unremarkable. It was just fine, I like a marriage of convenience and this one has a solid reason for existing. I just felt like the relationship doesn't really build much.

All I knew before going into this book was “Ruby Dixon” and “Minotaur” and honestly that was enough for me to be intrigued.

If anyone possibly needs more than those two terms, this is an archaeology fantasy romance with deep lore, incredible world building, really well fleshed out characters, and a sweet love story.

I really enjoyed this book. Ruby Dixon is very quickly becoming an auto-buy author for me.

Honestly, I really thought I would like this book, but mostly I was just bored. The world is interesting and the dynamics between the characters could be fun, but nothing gripped me. I found myself putting the book down and not caring about picking it up again.

Look, we should all be embarrassed by having read this. It's is more or less a plucky piece of R-rated fanfiction. That said, it was a pretty great read. The writing is better than it needs to be. The world-building is fascinating (even if you can see the ending coming from a mile away). I really think this was a strong book, in the tradition of a Naomi Novak. My only quibble is that there could have been even more to the world-building and the status of magic, but the author was there for the beast romance.

Ruby Dixon does an amazing job bringing you into new worlds. I enjoyed the dynamic between the main character and her maid/ best friend. The motley crew that teams up with their own goals to succeed in becoming part of the guild was what I thought was a driving force in the story. I enjoyed seeing these individuals come together and become their own small family. The love interest was sweet and spicy as I love a marriage of convenience. There was a lot of build up where I wish there was more action in connecting and more, if you catch my drift.

All in all I had fun and enjoyed it.

This is the best Ruby Dixon in ages. Aspeth and Gwenna are fantastic characters with a wonderful friendship. Aspeth runs away from home to join an archeological guild, bringing her maid Gwenna along. Circumstances force Aspeth into an arrangement with a guild employee, who needs a willing and committed bed partner. It's a fantasy, so the MMC is a Minotaur, and the artifacts are magical... it's hot, fun, and a great story.

If you like monster romance, with a dash of historical fantasy mixed in, I highly recommend this. Aspeth (what a fantastic name) is the daughter of an irresponsible aristocrat. She runs away from home to try to help bring in money to her father's estate. Hawk is a Minotaur, working for the very business Aspeth wants to be part of. The two make a deal to help each other out, and that's when the shenanigans begin. There is a lot of fascinating world building, with amazing side characters and very hot monster sex. There's a marriage of convenience, and lots of miscommunication between the lovers.

Overall, a fantastic addition to the genre mash up and I hope there are more to come in this world.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

I would recommend iif you're looking for (SPOILERS)

-m/f monster romance
-minotaur romance
-workplace romance
-marriage of convenience
-forbidden relationship elements

Another propulsive Ruby read. I loved all of the marraige of convenience elements as these two were in major denial of their feelings of each other. I had so much fun with this one.

I loved this story so much! The characters were great - interesting, well written and compelling. I can't wait to read the next book in this series and find out more about this world.