Candra and Nemeth are enemies forced to reside together for the good of their respective kingdoms. Neither is who or what they appear to be.

Candra is an abrasive, good time loving princess. Nemeth is a studious, gargoyle academic prince. Both are selected as sacrifices to the gods to avoid the death and destruction of their kingdoms. They clash personalities, but in the end, will they do what they need to save their peoples? And maybe kiss a little along the way?

This book is a stand alone from Ruby’s other series but is so very much worth reading. I’ve read it three times because I love it so much. Did I mention Nemeth has WINGS? Read it now, again, and then again because it’s one of Ruby’s best books!!!

Bound to the Shadow Prince, a monster romance by Ruby Dixon-
My rating is 3.5 stars (rounded up due to the rule of halves!)

I’ve read a few novels by Ruby Dixon, admittedly, all from the Ice Planet Barbarian series and I was looking forward to reading something outside of that world.

Candra is a spoiled princess with a rare blood disease. She’s one of three girls, her older sister is Queen and her younger sister was supposed to be the sacrifice that would spend seven years of her life, locked up in a tower with a royal from the enemy kingdom, to appease the Gods. As Fate would have it, Candra ends up having to the one who enters the tower, having only three days to prepare for this seven year stint. She’s been coddled her entire life, how will she ever survive seven years fending for herself…with a Royal enemy accompanying her? Nemeth is a Fellian (a monster race,) and has spent his entire life preparing for the tower. How will he handle being locked up with a sickly, spoiled princess?

Tropes:
Enemies to Lovers
Forced Proximity
He Falls First
Touch Her and Die
Virgin MMC
Curvy FMC

This novel had an incredibly intriguing plot. I loved how clues and tidbits of information are dropped throughout the story but you don’t fully realize it until the end. Once the plot twist is revealed, you can go back through the story and see things a little bit differently than when you first read them. This is a slowly paced story, a true slow burn romance, for sure. There were times when I felt like the story was dragging on but I stuck with it and eventually the momentum picks up. I didn’t care for Candra, in the beginning. I found her to be a bit insufferable but then again, she WAS a spoiled princess. She really evolved in this story though and experienced tremendous growth towards the end. I feel like Dixon writes wonderful MMC’s and Nemeth is no different. He was a trained scholar and warrior but also a kind and loving man. He really took care of Candra and did his best to keep her safe. I wish there would have been more backstory but there was enough to keep the story interesting. There was mystery and magic and plenty of spice (as there always is in Dixon novels.) The first two thirds of the novel were pretty slow and then the last third felt extremely rushed *shrugs*

Overall I liked this story. I liked how the forced proximity romance developed, the magic made sense and even though the plot twist was a bit predictable, the story felt pretty well rounded.

I received an advance reader copy and am leaving my review voluntarily.

I felt compelled to read this book because of its cover. As I read the story, I had a difficult time getting invested in the characters. Fantasy isn't my usual genre, so that's probably why. I wanted to give this author a try. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

I’d give this a 3.5-4 ⭐️

I really liked the plot, the environment, and the overall premise of the story. The MMC was very likable. The magic system made sense. There were twists, betrayal, secrets, plots, friendship, love, and spice.

The FMC was a bit insufferable at times, but I believe that was the point. I wouldn’t expect a princess who no one expected anything else from other than to do what they say to act otherwise. Given her condition too. She did grow in the story and I feel that’s important.


Where I feel like this fell a bit flat, there were many times the story seemed to drag on. I was SO excited when they emerged from the tower to find what happened within the kingdoms, but it took so long to gain any viable info even when they crossed paths with others. They also had this super useful knife that I feel like the squandered. Okay yes, the spicy-esque questions were good, it made me laugh and didn’t blame the princess for dwelling. But there were countless other questions she could have had answered if she had dared to ask instead.

Overall, I did enjoy reading this book.

Themes/Tropes:
Enemies to lovers
Forced proximity
Virgin MMC
Curvy FMC


Thank you NetGalley and Wattpad Webtoon for the digital arc!

I am absolutely feral for anything Ruby Dixon. So not only did this book hit all the right Ruby notes but it introduced an entirely different world for her readers. Candra is an amazing MFC and her tenacity and humor in a less than ideal situation were a perfect addition to this. Add in cinnamon roll Nameth and you have a match in Ruby heaven. It was so good!

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book. I absolutely love the author so I knew typically where the stories go etc but the first 40% of this book had me hooked. I couldn’t go to sleep I had to keep reading. Once it got to the point where they left the castle the story just went meh for me. I finished to know the outcome but didn’t keep the hold on me that she built up in the castle. It was too predictable with an easy to guess HEA.

3.5 stars.

Overall 3/5
Steam 5/5

Review: I am a huge Ruby Dixon fan and I’d liken this book to be similar to the aspect and anchor world in many respects, although it is inspired by the fairy tale of Maid Maleen. It is steamy just as is her fabulous style and shows beautiful character development and transformations. Unlike some other reviewers I actually enjoyed how the FMC is written because it makes the transformation that much stark, but also believable, because Dixon doesn’t let you down in that department. The shadow prince is such a cinnamon roll hero!
So what’s the reason for a low rating? I felt the story dragged a lot. It could have been tightened and told in half the pages. I felt myself skipping passages after about halfway through the book. So the overall pace of the book was a huge letdown for me and were it not for the fact that I was reading a book by a loved author I might have ditched it midway through because it was so exceedingly slow.

I was provided an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a fun escape- but it was long. So, so long. The world building was easy to swallow, and the main characters were interesting. It's Trojan-horse inspired, which was different (but well executed).

Enemies-to-lovers with a twist- this was another enjoyable book by Ruby Dixon. It's a wonderful standalone, and the story wraps up nicely.

I’ll admit this isn’t my favorite from Ruby Dixon, but I still enjoyed it. There were definitely parts where it dragged and I skimmed, but this was a long book - it didn’t need to be. The heroine wasn’t my cup of tea either. She just rubbed me the wrong way. I really liked the hero though. He was a sweet bookworm who knew how to push the heroine’s buttons. 3.5 stars

“I would rather you be yourself. Pay no mind to me. I am just a blushing, bookish sort and not the type to go toe to toe with a court lady.” “So you are blushing?” I tease. “Excellent!”

Bookish and shy MMC monster...sassy and flirty FMC...sign me up! I loved the progression of Nemeth and Candra's relationship from enemies-friends-lovers. Only thing I had a hard time with this book was the all the world building and war parts. Which not to say that I didn't like them there was just a lot of it for me personally. I always love everything Ruby puts out though, this series reminded me of the Aspect and Anchor series which I adore. Will definitely be recommending this book to all fantasy romance lovers!

I throughly enjoyed this novel. Bound to the Shadow Prince features Nemeth and Candra, two members of different royal families. Nemeth is a Fellian, a somewhat gargoyle like species (horns/wings/grey) and Candra is a regular ol’ human. Because of reasons (gods/the moon/a curse) the two opposing species each have to send a member of their royal line to a tower to live for seven years.

Nemeth is trained for the tower and has been preparing all his life for it. Candra… not so much. She learns three days before the curse is set to start that she will be the royal ‘sacrifice.’ Once both Nemeth and Candra are within the tower, they are locked in and a wall is built in front of the door. From there, a fun forced proximity romance story develops.

I am such a fan of Ruby Dixon’s writing style - I find it throughly entertaining. Perhaps because this, too, was a serial (like Ice Planet Barbarians before it.) I loved both characters, although Candra took slightly longer to grow on me, but she got there with her inner dialogue about when she was allowed to cry. I also loved Nemeth, a giant nerdy almost monk.

Minor spoiler: <spoiler> I’m totally down for more traditionally published knotting stories. I wrote in my notes about this book: “make 2024 the year of the knot” </spoiler>

I received this book as an ARC through Netgalley and read all 500 pages in less than 24 hours (and could have finished earlier if it wasn’t work work!)

Leaving five stars. The formatting of the kindle version was broken, so I did not read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wattpad for the ARC.

This was a fun, sexy fantasy that kept me engaged despite the length. I found the world building to be enjoyable and the main characters really compelling.

✨ Grumpy x Sunshine
✨ Enemies to friends to lovers
✨ Forced Proximity
✨ Touch her and die
✨ Virgin MMC
🌶️ SMUTTY 🌶️

I love a curvy, cheeky princess; and a grumpy, not-quite-human, softy, prince was a fun change from what I usually read. I also loved the chronic illness representation. I was invested very early on and didn’t want to put it down. I enjoyed the enemies-to friends-to lovers progression and I thought Nemeth was just freaking adorable. The spice was very spicy but it got a little repetitive and the “knot” talk was a little cringe for me sometimes 😆 I went into this expecting a smut fest, and while the smut was plentiful, the story itself was also very interesting. There were times I was on the edge of my seat dying to know what was coming next. I liked the sense of mystery and the little twists and turns. Overall, a very enjoyable read.

If you like creature smut with a funny, sassy, shamelessly promiscuous FMC and a well thought out storyline - this one’s for you!

I absolutely love everything Ruby Dixon writes and this was no exception. While different than many of her other titles - no space, no aliens, etc - it still has all her wit, humor and to die for romance. A cannot miss for any fans.

Let me preface this by mentioning this is the first book I've read from Ruby Dixon, and while I have heard some amazing things when it comes to her storytelling, Bound to the Shadow Prince fell a little flat for me.

The pacing is ridiculously slow, especially at the beginning, and the FMC is such an illogical spoiled brat that she's extremely hard to love - which I get was the whole point, but when the book is told from first person POV and you can't stand who your protagonist is, reading feels like a struggle! I want to say there's a more authentic way to create an entitled princess but make them still somewhat lovable to your audience, (because it's been done many times), but Dixon just did not do that.

The spice was nice, and I think that's what saved this book. I think readers who are more familiar and consistent with following Dixon's writing will probably still enjoy this one, and I would still suggest to this someone who appreciates a dark romance.

Thank you Netgalley and Wattpad Webtoon for the digital ARC!

I love you Ruby Dixon!

I have been reading Ruby for nine years, and she just keeps getting better!

Bound to the Shadow Prince (3.5/4)

What a wild journey! It was steamy, it was thrilling, it was entertaining, and it was unpredictable.
When I first started the book, I’ll admit I almost put it down. The FMC wasn’t my cup of tea. It took a long time for her to grow on me. The MMC was mysterious and far more easy for me to enjoy and root for.
I ended up enjoying their story in the end and I’m glad I stuck with it. The last half of the book really picked up and I loved the unpredictable little twists throughout.

Some trope in the story are:

-enemies to lovers
-forced proximity
-healer/sick
-touch her and ☠️
-monster/human
-magic
-steamy
-they save each other
-adventure
-curses
-possessive MMC

Thank you W by Wattpad Books for inviting me and allowing me to read and review this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A spoiled princess and enemy prince are locked in a tower of darkness for seven years as sacrifices for their Goddess.

Bound to the Shadow Prince was originally published on an app named Yonder. This is my review for the eARC of the exclusive print edition.

I adore the Ice Planet Barbarians series. The story is entertaining, the spice is hot, the characters are fun to follow, and it made me want a big blue alien of my own.

While I did like Nemeth, the scholar virgin monster, and the spice is detailed and hot like Barbarians, I did not enjoy the story or Candra as much as I wanted to.

I've never used the Yonder app. What I can gather is it's like Webtoon. You read the story on a chapter by chapter basis. So I can understand why this book is long. But it's too long. The pacing is slow, everything gets a description that probably doesn't need it, and there's a lot of information that felt almost useless to me. In my opinion I think the story needs to be edited. It might have worked with the app but the way it translates into a full printed book doesn't. There's just too much for a simple concept that doesn't get executed well either.

I wasn't a fan of Candra. I do appreciate her transformation from spoiled entitled princess to being able to survive and become a little more independent. Her personality is tough to get passed, and her constant use of 'dragon shite' and sex crazed thoughts became annoying after a while.

I didn't mind the spice at first. I mean, I knew what I was getting into reading a Ruby Dixon book lol but the sex is overdone. It felt like there were some copy and paste moments. The sex is very hot though. The tension, hunger, and desire between Candra and Nemeth is great at first. And then they just keep doing it and it began to feel old and stale.

The story suffered from not being edited. If it had been way shorter this might have been a different review.

2.5 stars