I adore this book. We love a smart, curvy woman. We love a smart monster hunk. What's not to love here? The historical feel to it all was also nice, and I hope that Ruby continues to write in this world, because I found it truly fascinating!

I'm not a fan of too much spice in fantasy novel being the Queen-of-Skipping-Sex-Scenes (they bore me) but I enjoy this novel as there's a mix of different tropes and never read a novel featuring a minotaur as love interest
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

I love Ruby Dixon's IPB books (well, the ones I’ve read so far, I still haven’t finished the series). But this book didn’t hold my interest the same way. A main plot point is the lead up to the MMC’s rut/heat, but when it happened it felt anticlimactic to me. Maybe I’ve read too many omegaverses, but I was expecting more lol.

However, you might still like this book! It's worth considering if you enjoy monster romances, slowburn but still open door, marriage of convenience, and found family.

Thank you Berkeley, NetGalley, and Ruby Dixon for a free copy of Bull Moon Rising in exchange for an honest review.



For 2024, I’ll be using this rating scale:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I mourned the ending of this journey 🥹
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ really enjoyed and would recommend
⭐️⭐️⭐️ it was fine
⭐️⭐️ I didn’t enjoy this journey
⭐️ I dnf’d or wish I’d dnf’d
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ this is smutty smutty erotica 🥵
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ a lot of spice
🌶️🌶️🌶️ some spice
🌶️🌶️ romantic b plot / closed door / YA romance
🌶️ no romance / nonfiction

Hmmm - this was my first time reading a Minotaur romance - I didn’t know what I was getting myself into. I’m not sure these types of romances are for me. The characters and cast were interesting and I thought the plot was fairly interesting but I just don’t think the story as a whole resonated with me.

Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was such a fun romance. I loved the adventure and archeology vibes, mixed in with the fantasy world. I really liked the characters and thought that Hawk and Aspeth's dynamic was great. I love seeing a new side to Ruby Dixon after reading all of the Ice Planet Barbarian books, it's really fun seeing a fantasy from her! I'm excited to read more!

I absolutely adore IPB and Ruby Dixon, so I knew I had to get my hands on Bull Moon Rising!!
It took me some chapters to really get into it, because it does have more plot and world building than IPB, but once I did I ate it up!

It was a cozy, spicy slowburn with Indiana Jones/Lara Croft vibes.
My only complaint is the ending felt a tad bit rushed.

Thank you @NetGalley and @Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC.

Ruby Dixon’s Bull Moon Rising is a departure from her outer space-set Ice Planet Barbarians series and thrusts the reader into a medieval fantasy world complete with mythical creatures and magic. It’s got the scorching heat one expects from this author’s books, but combined with some new, endearing characters, and intriguing worldbuilding, it’s a highly enjoyable romp.

In the land of Mithas, Lady Alspeth Honori, heir to the Honori Hold, fears for the future of her birthright. Her father is broke and it’s only a matter of time before other Holds find out and wage war. Her lifelong dream has been to join the Royal Artifactual Guild and train to become an arificer, seeking out magical artifacts underground. Finding such a thing would allow her to add it to the Hold’s wealth, saving her family and their honor. As such, she’s diligently studied Old Prell, the ancient magical society whose city collapsed and where artifacts are still being found. She sneaks out with her maid Gwenna and they travel to Vastwarren City, built on top of the ruins of Old Prell. To join the guild as a fledgling (from which one must graduate from training to become an artificer) and because she’s female, she’ll need a chaperone. It’s just her luck that one of the first beings she meets is a Taurian named Hawk.

Hawk is a minotaur (head, tail and hooves of a bull, body of a man). The Taurian people who live in Vastwarren city most often work for the artificers due to their strength and ability to dig out people who get lost or stuck in rockfalls in the tunnels of Old Prell. Hawk works for Magpie, the only female artificer and Alspeth’s idol. As a Taurian, the most important season is that of the Conquest Moon, which happens once every five years and lasts for a few days. When it does, the females go into heat and the males go into rut. That’s fine when one has a partner, but Hawk is not married and with the upcoming Conquest Moon just under a month away, he’s trying to come up with a plan. Once the moon is upon them, he’ll have no choice but to go to a brothel if he hasn’t an alternative in place.

When Alspeth proposes a marriage of convenience to Hawk, he reluctantly agrees. It’s an answer to both of their problems, including Hawk’s task of rounding up enough students to find a “Five” – a group of five students to train under Magpie and himself. But Alspeth is keeping the secret of her true identity from Hawk who thinks she’s just the daughter of a well-off merchant. When he finds out who he’s married, and what her motivation for becoming an artificer really is, will it ruin their relationship just as it’s barely begun?

Despite the physical similarities between the author’s sa-khui aliens and this book’s Taurians (horns and tails and generously endowed privates), this really is a wholly different place and time, and the worldbuilding reflects that. I really enjoyed the idea of a medieval-esque society doing archeological work to understand their ancestors. The magical artifacts range from the silly (a horn that produces onions, a mirror that always reflects the bearer with dark lustrous hair) to the practical (a coach that doesn’t require any horses to pull it) to the powerful (an artifact that can produce something out of thin air). The artifacts also need a power phrase to be used, or have only a certain number of charges, or can recharge in sunlight. There is a King who is all powerful, and his nobility live in Holds, and then there are the rest of the regular folk – humans, Taurians, and Slitherskins (a lizard like creature who carries its home on its back, like a turtle shell). Then, because the magical artifacts are only found in Old Prell, there is the guild responsible for the digging and the archivists who catalogue the finds and study the old culture. Magic practiced by the inhabitants themselves has been forbidden ever since a magic war three hundred years earlier, but magic performed through the use of the artifacts is acceptable as it is the artifact itself that contains the magic.

Alspeth ends up in a team with Gwenna, formerly her maid but now her equal as a student, Lark (Magpie’s niece), Mereden (a Priestess who ran away from a convent) and Kipp (a slitherskin). Their Five is the only student team with any women in it, and four women plus a slitherskin puts them at the bottom of the pecking order. To top it off, Magpie, Alspeth’s idol, is a drunk and mostly incapable of teaching them anything. So it falls to Hawk to train his bunch of misfits into a coherent team. They are all clearly in over their heads at the start, so watching them grow over the course of the book, developing friendships and loyalty to each other is heartening.

While their team is coalescing, Alspeth and Hawk are finding their marriage is growing on them. Each chapter begins with a time reference to the coming Conquest Moon (28 days to the Conquest Moon, and so on) and as the days get closer, Hawk gets friskier. Thus begins Alspeth’s sexual education as they prepare for the coming five-day sex frenzy. But they get emotionally involved too, which gets riskier as the days go on since Alspeth knows she is lying to Hawk about who she is, and she makes some decisions that will have serious consequences for everyone. There is plenty of action and drama to go with the sex and romance, and the ending works out quite nicely for all. Bull Moon Rising is book one in the Royal Artifactual Guild series, and I’m looking forward to more!

This book is a captivating and immersive read that hooks you from the first page. The writing is beautifully crafted, with vivid descriptions and strong character development that makes the story come alive. The plot is well-paced, balancing moments of tension with quieter, reflective scenes that allow the characters to grow. The themes explored are deep and thought-provoking, resonating long after the final page. Whether it's the emotional depth, the twists and turns of the plot, or the unforgettable characters, this book is a must-read for anyone who enjoys rich, engaging stories. Highly recommended for fans of fantasy.

Thank you @NetGalley and @Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC. Ruby Dixon is wonderful author and her Barbarian series is a favorite of mine. I enjoyed this book but felt at times was to wordy and long. I was intrigued of the Guild and how they felt about women joining the team and all the obstacles that came up. The supporting characters were fun and the spice between Aspeth and Hawk was top notch. I will read the second book as soon as it comes out.

I just can't say no to minotaur smut and luckily this delivered! It was charming and smutty, a great start to a new romantasy series. I really enjoyed the worldbuilding and all the adventure. Aspeth is a strong-willed lady that does not take no for an answer and I loved her. Hawk was closed off and grumpy but SUPER obsessed with Aspeth and literally was feral for her! I loved their romance and the build up. The secondary characters were fantastic, I loved their chemistry and how they built themselves a little family. A very unique romantasy that's sure to get anyone out of their slump!

Bull Moon Rising- Ruby Dixon
Narrated by Felicity Munroe and Hiro Diaz

Rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Narration 🎧🎧🎧🎧🎧

This was my first Ruby Dixon book and is was so comical. I honestly had no idea what to expect going in, and I was not disappointed to say the least. There were so many laugh out loud moments. The banter between the two mains was great and the camaraderie between the friendship group that formed with the side characters was beautiful. I hope this world expands and we get to see more this group of friends and their love stories.

This narration was so good. There were many different accents used and they were so seamless when they were switching, it was incredible. Felicity and Hiro did an absolutely stunning job!

⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
🌶️🌶️

Overall I liked this book. This book had the same Ruby Dixon vibe as IPB but more fantasy vibes. I loved the FMC. She was easily likable. I loved the banter and the Tension.

There was still spice in Bull Moon Rising but obviously not the same as IPB.

I read fantasy mostly and I loved this version of Ruby’s writing. I would recommend this book fantasy readers that are wanting to get into IPB.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book was amazing! I saw someone describe it as Lara Croft meets Pride and Prejudice and I absolutely loved that description! As someone who loved books like Morning Glory Milking Farm, Bride, and monster romance books in general, I knew Bull Moon Rising was going to be a win for me.

The slow burn was done beautifully. Then the down-to-earth, nerdy, FMC was so sweet and I was rooting for her from the beginning. When the spice started happening, I loved every second of it. Then there was the banter and connection between the FMC and MMC was adorable to read.

I want more books in this world. Ruby Dixon will always be one of my favorite monster/alien romance authors. Forever an auto-buy author for me.

What to expect:
Dual POV
Lara Croft type FMC
He's her instructor
Marriage of convenience
Forced proximity

I really enjoyed this blend of historical, paranormal, and rom-com. The characters were sweet, the story was spicy, the plot was fun.

As an Ice Planet Barbarian fan, I was a bit nervous that Bull Moon Rising wouldn't live up to its predecessor. But all my fears were put away in just a few chapters once the topics of a female in a male-dominating workplace and marriage of convenience were introduced. I found Aspeth to be a highly likable character because of her drive and ability to form strong friendships.

This mythical world will have your imagination running wild and wishing that you also had a hot minotaur teacher/husband. I highly recommend this novel for fans of paranormal/fantasy/monster romance who like a little suspense!

Thank you Berkley & NetGalley for the ARC for review!

Ruby Dixon has a hit or miss reputation for me, and Bull Moon Rising lands squarely in the middle. With a rather slow start, I really didn't hit my stride until about 30% in. That being said, this is overall a really cozy and spicy slow burn that gave me The Mummy/adventurous vibes (positive). I think this could have been a lot shorter, but I did appreciate the attention to detail for the worldbuilding overall.

yo wut? I'm sure a lot of others would like this, but it felt like too much animal smut to me. I'm fine with the shifting, but this one was like true animal. It wasn't for me, But I know some people who loved it.

Steaming hot open door NY Times instant bestseller & USA Today bestseller.

As a Holder’s daughter, Aspeth Honori knows the importance of magical artifacts . . . which is why it’s a disaster that her father has gambled all theirs away. Now that her family is in danger of losing their hold—and their heads—if anyone finds out the truth, Aspeth decides to do something about it. She’ll join the Royal Artifactual Guild and the adventurers who explore ancient underground ruins to retrieve the coveted arcane items.

It’s a great plan—with one big problem. The guild won’t let her train because she’s a woman. Aspeth needs a chaperone of some kind. The best way to get around this problem? Marry someone who will let her become an apprentice. Who better than a surly guild member who requires a favor of his own? He’s a minotaur (it’s fine) who is her teacher (also fine) . . . and he’s about to go into rut (which is where it gets tricky). He also has no idea she’s a noble (oops), and he’ll want nothing to do with her if he discovers her real identity.

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.
It’s time to dig deep. Literally.

The author has become a cult favorite with her romance erotica series Ice Planet Barbarians and readers of that series and fans of hot and erotic fiction will be fast fans of Aspeth and Hawk and their adventures in the Royal Artifactual Guild. I do love romantasy, and a fun world to live - this one was simply sizzling hot and I could not put it down. Looking for that hot read that has a great MC with a heart of gold who meets her perfectly loyal and simmeringly sexy Minotaur mate? Look no further. This was my first book by this author, and I think I will delve into the cult favorite series Ice Planet Barbarian very soon.
Don’t read if you can’t handle super spice - this is 🌶️🌶️
I loved the underdog to champion storyline and would read the next - see the author notes for the inspiration behind the story (cool).
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

QOTD: What’s your favorite spicy book?
#romantasy #arcreader #spicybooks lol

Thank you to Ace and Berkeley Publishing Group for the eARC approval through Netgalley.

I do judge a book by its cover, although it has bitten me in the past (TGUWG I’m looking at you). The main lure of this book for me was the beautiful first edition which will have special endpapers, stained edges, foiled case and a shimmering jacket. A book with all these things shows publisher confidence and in a sucker for the color pink.

The writing is good and you are thrown into the world immediately as things happen and bits are explained as we go. At times it did drag with the info drops, but it wasn’t the worst I’ve read, it was decent enough.

The characters are interesting and keep you entertained enough. The main character has gusto and kick to her, so you don’t mind following her journey.

The Minotaur love? It didn’t seem to really play a huge role…

The part I don’t like is relationships that start out with huge secrets… and there is one, which when revealed might mess everything up. But it does bring drama and suspense so I can’t fault the use of this trope either.

This seems like it will be the first in a series and I am interested in the characters enough to read the next installment!

I enjoy Ruby Dixon's Ice Planet Barbarians series but I had a hard time getting into this book and dnf'd at 30%.