Overall I enjoyed the book. The enemies to lovers plot was engaging. I am not normally one to read any sort of monster romance but I do love fantasy and romance. I know Ruby Dixon is well known in the monster romance scene so I thought this might be a good intro into the genre but I was underwhelmed. The book felt far too long and could have done with some editing down. I enjoyed the experience but it just felt very average to me.

I'd recommend this to fans of the author. I enjoyed the Rapunzel-esk tropes and the plot overall, I just wish it was a bit shorter as it did seem o drag on at times. Maybe could have been split into two books.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️.5/5

Bound to the Shadow Prince by Ruby Dixon is a fun story that is inspired by Greek Tales loosely but provides an interesting fantasy plot that gives a unique fantasy tale that many folks might enjoy when looking for their next Romantasy read. I don't know what I was expecting when I picked up this book, but when I saw the author of Ice Planet Barbarians, I couldn't help but start diving into this story.

This is more fantastical compared to her other tales, but something I love about Ruby is the world building that occurs within the story. This is more of a standalone story though I can definitely see some spin offs of this tale that can happen. Overall this story follows Princess Candra as she is unexpectedly supposed to go into a tower in order to prevent the gods from being upset with the human race for 7 years. They are also joined by Nemeth from a race called Fellians who are bat-like humanoid creatures. A part of the story includes Candra being sick and having to take medicine. Being in such close quarters also means that the two will run into each other, and they will learn and survive together.

The plot of this story is so fun, and I enjoyed reading Ruby's author note afterwards because it made this book go from 4.5 to 5 stars for me. If you also read this book make sure to read that afterwards because there were details I didn't even notice until the end. I loved how this book presented itself as a simple stay in the tower, but then there were many twists and turns. I would encourage folks to keep reading this because it is not what you expect at the end.

Of course the characters are lovable too. I love Nemeth as he is just an introverted guy who just wanted to read War Poetry, but is always trying to do right by his people and the people he loves. There was a moment where I wanted to kill him, but all was forgiven by the end, but I love that I can still feel so many emotions. I will say though Candra was not my favorite. I think she annoyed me more because her mind was very much, "Woe is me, I am sick, I am screwed, I hate it here" for the first half of the book. I get it, but in the end, I think Nemeth makes up for her poor attitude.

So at the end of the day, if you are looking for a spicy romantasy with another bat boy who is more bat then boy who is super endearing I think this one is a good choice for you. I loved this story and really enjoyed it, and I think that more people would enjoy it too, especially if you love Ruby Dixon in general.

After reading this book, I discovered it was originally a pay to read story that has been bound together. That explained so much about my issues with it. I have read and enjoyed Ruby Dixon before. I see many things I like about her writing in this book. Our monster hero is a grumpy cinnamon roll, the relationship between the two is overall sweet, and the monster smut is top tier. The problem was world building and pacing. Probably 60% of the book takes place in the tower. Here the story is almost entirely character (and smut) driven. Once they leave the tower, we are plunged into a world of war and politics that I never fully understood. Things begin to move so quickly that it felt like Dixon was just trying to wrap up the story. To be fair to her, it’s a 600 page book, so it’s plenty long enough. I just thing the time in the tower should have been shortened to focus on the world outside.

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.

Actual Rating - 3.5 (for the spice)

“Then you know, in a world without freedoms, those that we have are more precious than ever.”

I don’t know if it was me, but the second half of this book really dropped off for me. I enjoyed the story u til about 65% not sure what happened, I was actually very confused by the way act 3 played out. I won’t spoil anything. It I feel like it ended so abruptly & so unbelieveably that it just kind of killed the whole book for me. But really the first 65% was so good I loved it very much

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.