By the Horns (Royal Artifactual Guild)
by Ruby DixonAbout this book
In a world of magical artifacts and fantastical beings, a woman with a deadly magic secret needs the help of the minotaur she’s trying to forget in the sizzling sequel to Ruby Dixon's New York Times bestseller Bull Moon Rising. The special first edition hardcover will include a gorgeous, shimmering jacket with effects, brilliantly illustrated four-color endpapers, striking and detailed-stained edges, and a beautiful foil-stamped case. Gwenna has always considered herself a normal person. A former servant, she wants nothing more than to land a steady job with the Royal Artifactual Guild so she can make some steady coin to send home to her mother. She's not special. She's certainly not a necromancer. That would be impossible, given how necromancing (or any 'mancing) is forbidden upon penalty of death. So if the dead keep talking to her? Well, she's going to keep on ignoring them. They're not going to stand in the way of her dreams. Also standing in her way? One big, arrogant, far-too-flirty Taurian named Raptor. They slept together once, and now he wants more . . . but she doesn’t have time for that. Her focus is on being a fledgling, a trainee for the Royal Artifactual Guild. But Raptor won't go away. He's on a secret mission for the guild to find an artifact thief. Problem is, he thinks the thief is Gwenna. How can she convince Raptor that he's got the wrong girl when all the signs point to her? And how do you tell a Taurian you can't date him because you hear dead people and it might cost you your life?
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What readers are saying
Jon Coffmanthe best Fairy Smut ever
"This series was the first so called “Fairy Smut” I read. When some one told me what the genre was called, I said “there’s a genre called Fairy Smut?” Now I’ve read others, and enjoyed them all. I had thought that they’d all be rated X like this one. They’ve mostly been PG-13. They are all good fantasy, though, though the smut makes it much more enjoyable. Any way, this book is entirely wholesome smut among consenting magical creatures. ["
May 17, 2026 Verified Purchase
ChristiReadsALotFun minotaur romance with secret identity!
"By the Horns was so much fun! The 2nd monster romance in Ruby Dixon’s Royal Artifactual Guild. I had a fun time with the first book in the series last year and another great time with this 2nd release. Gwenna is a former servant, a repeater at the guild who desperately wants to land a job with the Royal Artifactual Guild so she can make a steady income and be able to help her mother. She has realized she can “feel” the presence of the dead…but necromancers were outlawed centuries ago and no one has had personal magic since. So she’s been keeping that secret! On top of that one day while she’s cleaning the healer’s rooms, she stumbles across Raptor there recouping with his eyes bandaged up. He can’t see Gwenna when she enters his room and he mistakes her for someone there to help with a release (he’s ’god-touched’ and always ready to go). They end up hooking up and she leaves him what a fake name. But once he’s healed up, he becomes obsessed with finding this mystery woman and starts searching for her! With the guild he’s also tasked with finding out who has been stealing artifacts and is very suspicious of Gwenna, who of course is hiding secrets from him but not quite the one he’s imagining! This was just so fun, I loved the secret identity she has going on for a bit and him desperate to find her (not knowing it’s her). The couple of book 1 makes appearances, she’s friends with the heroine x he’s friends with the hero. This world is just fun overall. Similar to the first book, this was just a tad bit on the longer side but all in all a fun one! I always love this authors book. ["
October 21, 2025 Verified Purchase