The Shadow and The Draw

Shadow Drawn #1

by R.D. Baker

When all hell breaks loose, their one chance for the truth will be their last. Cora is Fated to marry the next Alpha of her demon clan and become queen. But all the power in the world means nothing if she can’t have who she truly loves most of all—the Alpha’s Draw, Amryn. Even though the clan leaders forbid the relationship between ruler and bodyguard, they still can’t seem to keep themselves apart. But when angels ambush their clan, calling Cora the Shadow Queen and causing forgotten memories to resurface, she begins to question the hand Fate has dealt her. No one can be trusted. Nowhere is safe. While Cora and Amryn flee to find answers, they’ll realize the deception stretches further than they could’ve ever imagined. And with cosmic powers on both sides seeking their destruction, their love will either be their salvation…or their doom.

18+ Dark Fantasy Romance. This book contains scenes of graphic violence, sex scenes and abuse/assault that some readers may find distressing.

Genres: Fantasy, Romantasy, Romance, Fantasy Romance, Dark Romance, Dark, Angels

328 pages, Hardcover

First published May 25, 2023

About the author

Also writes under Rihannon Baker.

Reviews

[Samara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let me start by saying I do NOT like fantasy. I think it's because I can't picture anything that isn't real. Had I realized it was fantasy, I would have never read it. Luckily this book was located mainly on Earth. Anytime they spoke of another place, my mind drew a blank. Not the authors fault at all, I just can't make a picture in my head. I truly should have known it was fantasy by the name. That being said, I devoured this book. It had so many different things going on. It has forbidden love, action, a badass FMC, and more. It kept me needing more. This book had something going on majority of the book. There was hardly any downtime, which I love being mainly a thriller lover (this is not a thriller). I absolutely had to finish this book. If you decide to read this book, definitely check trigger warnings. I'll be attempting the next book too.

How I rate my books:

⭐️ wasted my time
⭐️⭐️ not terrible but not great
⭐️⭐️⭐️ good, but wouldn't read again.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ really liked it and recommend it!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ absolutely loved it! Move it up on your TBR

[Anna Nenna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not safe at all!

(Recently I was in a mood for exploring RD Baker’s books - since I DNF-ed her “best work” a HR, so I started several, safe to say I concluded that this author is not for me - and I will try to explain why. Almost every book had messy OP scene / Cheating or SA and that is not my jam!)

This is available on audio with few of my subscriptions Everand, Storytel, Spotify etc, with two narrators that I like Jacci and Francis…
I am going to say that narration is great, in duet, but story is not! Messy and shallow!
The list of TW is long… 😵‍💫the language and setting is way too modern for my liking in a fantasy setting…
The story starts with MMC ducking Cora (FMC) and her declaring her love for him (MMC was FMC’s first!) 🙄(she is alpha’s Finn fiancée but she has been “cheating”on him apparently for a while!) 😖 later immediately after MMC just “got out” of FMC, he kisses and tries to get with Saskia - Sas (OW don’t know if this is how her name is written since I listened to the story!) and Cora witnessed it all. Every chapter, main characters sneak around and have segs, although it is “forbidden”, until chapter 8 (when MMC ducks OW in detail!)

FMC is later graped, in public - because it is a public marriage ritual 🤦🏻‍♀️🤢. Prior to this grape scene MMC has smex with OW (Kaleigh?! - FMC’s cousin and he is very into it, it is detailed -AF, all night, no protection, in every single way possible, I repeat “in detail” because he needs to forget the FMC - yet he is not allowed to be with any woman whatsoever, he is supposed to remain celibate! So much for upholding any vows 🤮)Later when he and FMC fight, he compares the two experiences as being the same thing 🤦🏻‍♀️😖🤢
This is: not slow burn - there’s spice in almost every chapter, not friends to lovers - you are thrown in the middle of their relationship so not much development on the friend zone, not a fantasy similar to Outlander, only similarity is word “clan” and SA on MC! World and magic is underdeveloped and confusing!
Would not recommend this one!
At this point I can say I found some AO3 stories that were way better written and planned than many of the recent published and hyped over romance books! 🤷🏻‍♀️

[Mayooooo · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. Poorly written (and edited) erotica with gratuitous r*pe scenes, disguised as dark fantasy romance.
Calling this worse than Wattpad is an insult to the stories on Wattpad.

[Darlene Spears · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m speechless. This book was written so well and I read it in a day I was HOOKED!!!! one of my best reads of 2023

[daemyra, the realm's delight]

DNF at 73%. Review to come.

I loved R.D. Baker's Unseen so as soon as I finished it, I went through their back catalogue. I was into the set-up, a bit of the bodyguard/knight with the queen forbidden romance. The world-building is interesting, and it reminded me a tad of an episode of Buffy where magical creatures, young adults, outlandish revelations, and action preoccupy the day. When I framed the book in this way, I was able to settle in for the ride.

However, I did get bored and I was unable to finish this, mostly due to how YA it felt. I'm not interested in YA Wattpad, so when anything resembles too closely to that genre or vibe, I tend to dip. I did get to an interesting part of the action, but will not continue. Maybe good for other readers!

If you wanted something like Unseen, I wouldn't try this book.

[Isabelle Reynolds · Rating 1 out of 5]

Updated Review:
I would love to give this more stars because I liked the story. It felt very rushed in some areas though. I cared about the main characters, but I just wish some things had been drawn out more to give us more information, more tension, more angst.

I feel confused by the world we are in. We didn’t get any kind of information other than magic (that’s kind of explained) and clothes. But like, are people farmers, what jobs do they have, how are the settlements different from each other, why were there no shifters involved in the major battle after mentioning them being allied and being spies, how many people actually live in these locations (we have a very small cast and basically nobody else gets introduced as legitimate throw away characters to give us some ideas of the variety of people living in the settlements), what time period are we even in????

I also feel like this book kind of suffers from the Outlander syndrome: when things feel like they can’t get worse, a main character gets SA’ed to create more drama. I understand people wanting to use this in novels to bring awareness to it, but I feel like using it as a plot device is not great 🤷🏼‍♀️.

I cannot give this a better review mainly because of the lack of editing. I don’t know if it is better in the physical copies, but the ebook is full of grammatical errors. Wrong punctuation around dialogue (comma vs period, it is inconsistent too, sometimes it is correct, and mostly it is wrong, all while using the same verb for speaking), missing commas where they are needed, commas placed where they don’t make any sense, backwards quotation marks, misspelled words (things like knowing when something is two words and not one), missing spaces between words, capitalization is not consistent (is Amryn’s nickname Runt or runt? It is written both ways). I started to make notes of it when I saw it, but gave up because it was so plentiful, unless something really egregious stood out to me. They are in the highlights section of this book. Hopefully the author will see this and do a second sweep of the book to see the inconsistencies, or hire an editor to do it for them. It’s better to have someone else read it to find those things, and not a family member.

Bottom line: this needs an editor to find all the inconsistencies and to fix really simple mistakes throughout the novel that should not be there. I cannot give an author who does not use an editor to make their work the best it can possibly be a good rating, no matter how much I like the concept of their story. 🤷🏼‍♀️

I probably won’t be reading the second book.



Progress Review: So I am only 3% into this book (borrowed eBook from my library) and this thing is LITTERED with punctuation issues. It is very clear this did not have an editor. I even went to the acknowledgements at the end to see if the author mentioned one, and they did not.

I plan to continue reading because of the other reviews, but this needs more work by the author by sending it to an editor. Things like backwards quotation marks, dialogue punctuation is wrong, commas are sprinkled everywhere where they aren’t needed or are legitimately grammatically incorrect. An editor would have caught all of this. I have not encountered any misspelled words, but editing is more than catching things with spellcheck. 🤷🏼‍♀️

And yes. I do know that the author is from Australia. But that doesn’t mean that punctuation inside of dialogue is different than American English when it comes to a comma vs. a period. I did my research.

[Kelsey Rhodes · Rating 2 out of 5]

2/5 stars! The only reason this book did not receive 1 star, is because I reserve that rating for books that have huge grammatical errors or openly endorse messages of hate against any minority community of individuals. This book did neither, therefore it has been relegated to my next lowest rating. I am so utterly disappointed by this story. The premise was there and it could have been such a strong story. However, the FMC was a horrid human being and the author played around with non-consent far too much. We watch the MMC f*ck the FMC cousin the ENTIRE night and then watch as the FMC gets r*ped and later the MMC compares that as being the same and how can she be mad at him for f*cking her cousin!?!?! Like NO! That is not even a little bit ok. And then later the FMC slips a tonic into the MMC's tea to help him get over being r*ped by a witch and believing he is impotent... AGAIN without any consent because "it won't work if he knows about it." It was disgusting. This is honestly an example of two horrible people who didn't deserve to succeed and certainly need to grow up and understand selflessness and consent boundaries before they should ever be the focus of a story. I'm all for broken characters learning and doing better, but there is ZERO growth in this story. It literally mids and ends with non-consent being excused.

[anna]

dnf at 30%

my sanity and time is more important.

i didn’t get the hype of the book. it seemed like a cult with made up rules. i was pushing through, waiting for it to become good, to maybe meet new and smarter characters.

i hoped amryn and cora weren’t the final romantic couple. it’s like they wanted to get caught.

love it when parents sexualize their children.

“Finn’s so handsome, and that body, well, I know he’s my son, but -“ She raises her eyebrows and chuckles. “I’ve seen him naked and I can tell you the package won’t disappoint.”

i was getting annoyed with fmc. she just was so flimsy. she just couldn’t “stop herself from throwing herself at amryn”. 🙄🙄🙄

fmc got publicity raped on her wedding ceremony. “loved” it.

really how could amryn sleep with anyone except cora, even though they couldn’t be together and had no future whatsoever. what an asshole right? 🙄🙄🙄

“How could I?” He asks incredulously. “How could I what?”
“Sleep with somebody!” I cry. “How could you sleep with somebody that wasn’t me?”

that dialogue between main characters was my final straw. fmc frustrated me to no end.

[Bonnie Minatra · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gripping demon fantasy from start to finish. If you are a fan of spice, addictive world building, and powerful character development that will keep you up all night reading…. RUN to your nearest device and order this book!

[Book.Wolf · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

PLEASE READ THE TRIGGER WARNINGS!!!

This book is full with everything, smut, action, emotional, characters you hate and characters you like.
The storyline is very interesting to. The heavy topics are insane. The pack is just disgusting and they behave disgusting.
I loved the strong fmc and the more sensitive mmc. The relationship is already there when you start the book so that was a good different. And because of that I was a bit scared that the book was going to be more smut than plot. Thankfully this was not the case.

This book was just insane, in a good way!

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

HOLYYYY WOWZA!! Well this book is right up there, sitting at the top of my favourite reads this year with Fourth Wing 🥰 I just came across the author on tiktok the other day saying how excited she was that she'd almost sold 100 books and I thought okay I'll take a look... I downloaded the sample chapters on Amazon and after reading just 10 pages I purchased it SO FAST!! I wanted to devour this book, but I also didn't want it to end! The whole childhood friends to forbidden lovers had me sooo hooked!!! Plus I loved the angels and demons aspect!!... and the spice!! 🥵

Can I pretty please have book 2 now?? 😁

[Hannah Nichelle · Rating 1 out of 5]

There is so much potential for this book. I found personally the fantasy world fell flat and it wasn’t expanded on enough, I didn’t get much of a picture painted of it. Also the overuse of the F world in multiple sentences felt unneeded.

[Sabrina · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF at 35%. I figured since I skimmed the last 20 pages, I should just probably put it out of its misery. Interesting premise, pretty bad writing. The drama started to ramp up, and it all felt so disingenuous that I did not care what was happening.

[KP · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loooooved it. One of my top reads this far this year. It's action packed, and have you going through all the emotions. Make sure to read the trigger warnings because it can be triggering at moments.

[Nikki - Nikki's Bookshelf · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. It was quite heavy on the romance, I would have liked a bit more fantasy in there but still enjoyed it.
Definitely check the CWs as there is some heavy scenes in the book.

[Blair Wynters · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book!! I’ve been waiting for the opportunity to read this. Lately, I’ve been going through a really bad reading slump. While reading good books, it was still a struggle to pick them up, and to finish them. After all that, I couldn’t put this book down. I had to force myself to stop just to get a few hours of sleep, just to start up again as soon as I woke up.
Please read the trigger warnings before starting this book!
The setting and world building was pretty cool. I enjoyed how the author combined different fantasy aspects. I love that the author started the book with a spicy scene. And had plenty more where that comes from. I usually do not read books with heterosexual spice, but this was still a good time! Forgive me if I have a crush on the main male protagonist and possibly his brother. 😂
Again, read the trigger warning. The author took a bit of a risk to include sexual assault scenes. Especially to the degree it was written in. However. Something we hardly ever see is when a man experiences sexual assault. I feel the author really did a good job at navigating how it affects him and destigmatizing the assumption of the male sex drive. It was risky. But the author did well with it. While I do not condone rape, I applaud the authors risk. I must include that this author actually presented the men in the story with actual emotional maturity. How often do we see men, especially heterosexual cis men, actually able to express their emotional needs and feelings?!? I was shocked, truly. It was refreshing. Again, I applaud the author.
I liked the range of characters presented. And I absolutely loved most of their names. I’m so tired of reading a fantasy based book and the characters having a basic name. Or a slightly different spelling of a basic name. I especially loved the main male protagonist and his brother having non typical creative names.
I docked one star in the end because I felt some of the dialog was rather awkward. That we have all of these characters with specific roles and personalities, but the way they interact and the things they say are not the same as the personality we’ve been presented with. Along that same note I felt the author used general pet-names way too often. (Ex: babe. Baby. Honey. Sweetie. Sweetheart. Baby boy etc etc etc) they were used to often and during the most inappropriate times. This comes back to the personalities of the characters using these pet names. Lastly, if my brother ever called my significant other “honey” I’d never speak to him again. 😂
Overall I really enjoyed the book and I’m so excited for the second book to come out! It brings me joy to see this author thriving. I can’t wait to see what else she brings forward!

[Taryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Shadow and the Draw" by R.D. Baker is a spellbinding fantasy romance that weaves a dark but intriguing tale of angels and demons with the haunting echoes of forbidden love. From the first page, we are plunged into a war between benevolent beings, where secrets, betrayal, and forgotten memories unfold. Nowhere is safe, and trust is a scarce commodity. The burning question echoes: Will their love be salvation or destruction?

This book is a rollercoaster of emotions, leaving readers breathless and yearning for more. The connection with the characters is immediate and intense, amplified by the forbidden love between Cora and Amryn. The author masterfully spins a tale of spice and heartbreak, with each turn of the page evoking anxiety and anticipation.

The characters endure trials that kept me guessing about their fate, and even with a cliffhanger, the uncertainty lingered, leaving me eager for the next installment. The story and characters will undoubtedly stay with me for a long time, a testament to R.D. Baker's storytelling talent.

The blend of angels and demons, childhood friends to lovers, forbidden love, found family, and that enticing spice on the very first page creates a rich tapestry that caters to both dark and spicy fantasy enthusiasts. This book delivers an emotional wrecking ball wrapped in a fantasy package, making it a must-read for those seeking a riveting and unforgettable experience.

As always, a word of caution to check trigger warnings before delving into this mesmerizing world crafted by R.D. Baker. The journey may be intense, but the payoff is undoubtedly worth it. "The Shadow and the Draw" is a solid 5-star read that has been a wonderful way to help kick off my 2024 reads.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

✨𝒜𝐿𝒞 𝑅𝑒𝓋𝒾𝑒𝓌✨
🎧: The Shadow and The Draw (The Shadow Drawn Series Book 1)
🎙️ Narrators: Jacci Prior, Brandon Francis

The time has come for Cora’s Ascension. The Fates determined that she is to marry the future Alpha of their demon clan while her best friend Amryn is to be the Alpha’s draw, destined to be alone.

But longstanding betrayals and the war against the angels come to a head and what Cora learns changes everything.

Tropes:
🎙️Duet narration
🚫Forbidden romance
💍Arranged marriage
👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨Friends to lovers
😈Angels vs Demons
💫Elemental magic
❤️‍🩹Trauma healing
🌶️: open door
⚠️Check CW/TW

The narrators deliver charged performances in this engrossing and steamy forbidden romance. The chemistry was searing between these best friends who can’t stay away from each other. I felt the anguish and raw emotions from the brutal twists and betrayals.

The Shadow and The Draw is a fast-paced, heart wrenching, and gripping paranormal fantasy.

So grateful to the author for the audio listening copy. This is my honest and voluntary review.

[Jorgiagood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Omggg I absolutely ate this book up!! I cried, laughed, got frustrated and happy it got all the emotions going I’ll tell ya that! This has to be one of my favourite books this year seriously insane! The characters and plot was bullet proof. It’s a forbidden romance, finding family, fantasy romance that will tear your heart out and put it back again. I really felt for these characters and felt like I was there battling with them, celebrating with them and growing with them. This book and writing was honestly amazing! I was hooked from the first sentence and couldn’t put it down! It’s everything I want in a fantasy romance and more! R. D. Baker you really did amazing! And I’m so thrilled that you didn’t let other peoples opinions stop you from producing this book and giving up because girl you created a master piece! I need to be in this book that’s how much I love it!

[Liz | ᥫ᭡reakawayreads · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Shadow and The Draw by RD Baker
•
•
Ratings: 4.5/5 ⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
•
Trope(s):
🖤 Forbidden Love
🖤 Secret Relationship
🖤 Friends to Lovers
🖤 Touch Her and Die
🖤 SPICE
🖤 Dual POV
🖤 Magic

This is the first book I have read from Ms. R.D. Baker. Probably the first angels and demons books I have read. To be honest, the beginning of the book threw me for a loop. I was expecting a normal fantasy world picture in my head. Castles, etc. However it was more modernized, from what I gathered. Cars, jeans and t-shirts, etc. It was a very interesting twist. And I enjoyed that, it always kept me guessing what’s next. I was HOOKED.
Their story is of a forbidden love and they would do just about anything to be with one another, and I admire their passion for a happy ending. This book is a roller coaster of emotions. CHECK THE TRIGGER WARNINGS!! The ending of the book almost had me in tears.
Cora is simply put, a badass. She started out unsure of herself, determined to find love and her place with Amryn. However, she found out she was destined to be so much more. I loved watching her character build throughout the book. Her and Amryn both. There was love, lots of spice, laughter, loss, betrayal, rebuilding and found family.

I recommend this book 10/10 and I can’t wait to dive into The Earth and the Flame, the second book in this series!

[Marquette Bolden · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book was good! I’m hoping the author makes a second. The epilogue gave way that there may be a second. A lot happened in the story. I think if it was a little longer so more details could have been put in it I would have given it that extra star. But overall I enjoyed it. Beware there is a rape scene in the story. It’s not graphic but it’s still there if that is a trigger warning,

[MyNeverEndingTBRList · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this fantasy romance. However, I did find it heavy on the romance in the beginning and forgot it was about demons and angels some of the time. But the last 20% was super fast paced and I’m eager to see what happens in book 2.

Please check trigger warnings before reading.

[Jennifer Wycech · Rating 5 out of 5]

Demons
Magical
Romantasy slightly modern
Forbidden love
Sneaking around
Dark
Spicy

Duet narration- Brandon Francis & Jacci Prior
Holy moly these two were fabulous. Brandon with his accents was great.
Truly gave each character distinct differences

This was really freaking good. I knew from the sample I read that it was going to be good.

Starts with a bang. These two characters are forbidden to be together. She is promised to someone else but she loves our MMC even before she was fated to be with her soon to be husband.

Despite these two sneaking around while she is technically involved with another man I was rooting for them to find a way to be together. It wasn’t their fault they were dealt the crappy situation they found themselves in.

This is a bit twisty and dark. You get heartbreak, emotional, and action.
Please check your trigger warnings

DNABC verified

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finished it in less than a day, I really enjoyed the story it kept me on my toes. And I absolutely love Ameryn 💕 the spice was 👌🏾👌🏾👌🏾👌🏾

[Christina's Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this! Demons are the good guys and angels are the bad guys! This spicy forbidden romance has it all! FATE isn't always what ppl think it is!

[Stories | With | Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

* REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS *

Genre(s) : Fantasy Romance, Dark Romance

Trope(s):
🖤 Forbidden Love
🖤 Secret Relationship
🖤 Friends to Lovers
🖤 Touch Her and Die

Point of View (POV): Dual

The following are ratings out of 5:
Spice: 5.0
World-Building: 4.0
Character Development: 4.0
Story/Plot: 4.0

C.A.W. P. I. L. E. - These are ratings out of 10:
Characters: 8.0
Atmosphere: 8.0
Writing: 8.0
Plot: 8.0
Intrigue: 7.5
Logic: 7.5
Entertainment: 8.0

OVERALL RATING: 4.5

Pace: Fast
Diverse Cast of Characters? Yes
Flaws of characters are a main focus? No

The Story/Plot: Cora and Amryn are members of a demon clan, and have had a strong connection since they were children, but unfortunately they are also not fated to be together as Cora is betrothed to the next Alpha King. Their love could also mean their demise.

This book has a new spin on angels and demons, but Baker's warning is valid. There are quite a few triggers and scenes that will certainly be difficult for some to read. Take heed.

Strengths: This concept/plot is a refreshing new spin. Baker literally hits you with the spice right from the start. I feel like these characters were developed quite well, and you can't help but root for the FMC and MMC. Their strife pulls at your heartstrings, and you feel the torment they are faced with, especially as they uncover various lies and deceit.

This is the first book I have read by this author, and I definitely intend on reading more of her work!

Weaknesses: Honesty, I can not think of any, which also reflected in my overall rating.

[Nataleep · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book! Cannot wait to read book 2! I don’t know why I waited so long

[Megan Fay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book in less than 24 hours! From the first jaw dropping page I was hooked. I sighed, gasped and laughed, this book had it all.

Please check the trigger warnings before reading, it's a great book but look after yourself ❤️

[Citra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Is there a book 2? I need it immediately.

The Shadow and The Draw had me interested IMMEDIATELY. I love starting books with spice!

I loved the characters, the world they were in and the character growth! I enjoyed the side characters and how fleshed out they were which meant moments had more impact and hit harder than if they didn't.

I can't wait to read book two!!

[brittneyshianne · Rating 1 out of 5]

If tik tok tricks me into thinking I’m about to read a literary masterpiece and delivers me THIS s*** again. So help me God I’m taking it out on everyone.