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The Lionheart's Bond
In the distant realm of Ilystra, where curses and secrets intertwine, Prince Judel bears a burden heavier than his royal lineage. By day, he transforms into a majestic mountain lion, cursed by an ancient magic. But when he strays too far from home, he stumbles into a neighbouring kingdom, where danger lurks in the shadows.
Isidore, a downtrodden servant in the Duke of Stonehollow’s household, knows the sting of mistreatment all too well. His days are spent caring for the Duke’s animals, his spirit crushed by years of neglect. When Isidore confronts the heartless Duke, he’s forced to flee, desperate for freedom.
Chased by the Duke’s relentless guards, Isidore’s path collides with destiny. In a desperate act of courage, he shields an innocent mountain lion from an arrow, sacrificing himself. But fate has other plans. Isidore awakens in Ilystra’s royal palace, bewildered and disoriented, with no memory of how he got there.
As the kingdom grapples with political turmoil and lost emissaries, Judel and Isidore find solace in each other’s company.
Their bond grows stronger, fuelled by shared secrets and forbidden desires. Yet, lurking shadows threaten to tear them apart—the curse that binds Judel, the mysteries shrouding Isidore’s past, and the fragile trust they’ve built.
In a world where magic and love collide, can Judel and Isidore break free from their chains and forge a bond that defies fate? Or will their secrets unravel the fragile threads of their hearts?
The Lionsheart’s Bond weaves a tale of sacrifice, redemption, and love against all odds—a bond that transcends kingdoms and dares to defy destiny itself. It is an explicit, grumpy x sunshine MM Fantasy Romance novel with a HEA. It is book 1 of the Bonds of Dusk and Dawn Series .
Isidore, a downtrodden servant in the Duke of Stonehollow’s household, knows the sting of mistreatment all too well. His days are spent caring for the Duke’s animals, his spirit crushed by years of neglect. When Isidore confronts the heartless Duke, he’s forced to flee, desperate for freedom.
Chased by the Duke’s relentless guards, Isidore’s path collides with destiny. In a desperate act of courage, he shields an innocent mountain lion from an arrow, sacrificing himself. But fate has other plans. Isidore awakens in Ilystra’s royal palace, bewildered and disoriented, with no memory of how he got there.
As the kingdom grapples with political turmoil and lost emissaries, Judel and Isidore find solace in each other’s company.
Their bond grows stronger, fuelled by shared secrets and forbidden desires. Yet, lurking shadows threaten to tear them apart—the curse that binds Judel, the mysteries shrouding Isidore’s past, and the fragile trust they’ve built.
In a world where magic and love collide, can Judel and Isidore break free from their chains and forge a bond that defies fate? Or will their secrets unravel the fragile threads of their hearts?
The Lionsheart’s Bond weaves a tale of sacrifice, redemption, and love against all odds—a bond that transcends kingdoms and dares to defy destiny itself. It is an explicit, grumpy x sunshine MM Fantasy Romance novel with a HEA. It is book 1 of the Bonds of Dusk and Dawn Series .
344 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 31, 2025
4 people are currently reading
80 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 22, 2025
4.5⭐️
The beginning was kind of confusing, I felt like I was thrown into a story with so many names and I had no idea who was who or what was going on. But when I figured it out I got sucked into the story and it had me hooked until the very end. I expected a little more romance between Judel and Isidore but the storyline itself was interesting enough to keep my focus the entire time. Can’t wait to read the next parts!
The beginning was kind of confusing, I felt like I was thrown into a story with so many names and I had no idea who was who or what was going on. But when I figured it out I got sucked into the story and it had me hooked until the very end. I expected a little more romance between Judel and Isidore but the storyline itself was interesting enough to keep my focus the entire time. Can’t wait to read the next parts!
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March 31, 2025 Some good characters and an interesting plot - just wasn’t quite my style.
I was lucky enough to receive an ARC copy of The Lionheart's Bond from the author in return for an honest review.
The Lionheart’s Bond follows the story of a cursed prince, Judel, and Isidore, a mistreated servant from a neighboring kingdom.
Judel is cursed to spend his days as a mountain lion, wandering the lands of Ilystra, driven by the mind of a beast – but one day he strays too far, and finds himself across the border and in a kingdom where danger lurks.
Isidore’s time is spent looking after his only friends, the wild animals which are held in captivity by the Duke of Stonehollow. When he is forced to flee after a confrontation, he finds himself chased by guards and desperate to escape. But then they stumble upon a lion in the forest and Isidore, in a moment of bravery, protects it from his pursuers, sacrificing himself to do so.
When he wakes he finds himself in Ilystra’s royal palace, surrounded by people he doesn’t know, with no idea how he got there.
I really liked the concept of the Lionheart’s bond - it has romance, magic and political struggles, all things which I look for in a fantasy book. I thought that the relationship between Judel and his siblings was well done. I especially loved the parts where he and one of his brothers, Nel, had the chance to talk to each other as I found their personalities balanced each other out really well. I think that the variety of the cast of characters was handled well - although there were quite a few of them and it did get a little confusing at times keeping up with how many siblings there actually were. I liked how Isodore was shown to care for those around him and how that carried through the book and became one of his biggest strengths when it came to the bond between him and Judel and him and the other members of the palace. There were some great scenes where he got to interact with some of Judel's brothers which were sweet.
I think for me, personally, I would have liked to see the relationship between Judel and Isidore grow a little more slowly. There was quite a lot to the plot in this and liked the way it went, but I did feel at times it went a little too fast for my tastes and I found that some parts in particular (such as bits surrounding a past relationship of Judel’s and certain important information) could have been expanded a little more to have a deeper emotional impact. I really like character driven stories that tend to like a bit more internal push and pull on the main character’s part and for me this didn’t quite get that itch.
I thought the way the plot played out was interesting, there were certainly twists that I wasn’t expecting which upped the drama and made me want to find out how they were going to solve everything and make it all work to get to that promised HEA. There were moments where I felt that some characters were a little trigger happy with their reactions and bits where I would have liked more conflict between the main characters vs others, but it was overall quite well balanced when it came to what the conflicts were and how they got resolved (fighting their way out vs thinking their way out) which is alway nice.
Overall I did like the plot and I thought the way the sibling relationships were written were well done (especially Nel - loved that guy – and the youngest of the brothers). I liked how each of the siblings built a different relationship with Isadore throughout the story and had their own personalities. The plot was good, though a bit fast paced in parts for my personal preference, and I think some moments could have been given a bit more time to allow them to deepen the connection between the characters. There were moments of confusion due to how some sentences were worded (and surrounding how many siblings there were - I wasn’t sure if it was 11 or 12), but it was overall an easy writing style to read and there were some interesting moments of conflict and character dialogue. It wasn’t quite my style, but there were high points which kept me reading, so I can see others really liking this book.
I was lucky enough to receive an ARC copy of The Lionheart's Bond from the author in return for an honest review.
The Lionheart’s Bond follows the story of a cursed prince, Judel, and Isidore, a mistreated servant from a neighboring kingdom.
Judel is cursed to spend his days as a mountain lion, wandering the lands of Ilystra, driven by the mind of a beast – but one day he strays too far, and finds himself across the border and in a kingdom where danger lurks.
Isidore’s time is spent looking after his only friends, the wild animals which are held in captivity by the Duke of Stonehollow. When he is forced to flee after a confrontation, he finds himself chased by guards and desperate to escape. But then they stumble upon a lion in the forest and Isidore, in a moment of bravery, protects it from his pursuers, sacrificing himself to do so.
When he wakes he finds himself in Ilystra’s royal palace, surrounded by people he doesn’t know, with no idea how he got there.
I really liked the concept of the Lionheart’s bond - it has romance, magic and political struggles, all things which I look for in a fantasy book. I thought that the relationship between Judel and his siblings was well done. I especially loved the parts where he and one of his brothers, Nel, had the chance to talk to each other as I found their personalities balanced each other out really well. I think that the variety of the cast of characters was handled well - although there were quite a few of them and it did get a little confusing at times keeping up with how many siblings there actually were. I liked how Isodore was shown to care for those around him and how that carried through the book and became one of his biggest strengths when it came to the bond between him and Judel and him and the other members of the palace. There were some great scenes where he got to interact with some of Judel's brothers which were sweet.
I think for me, personally, I would have liked to see the relationship between Judel and Isidore grow a little more slowly. There was quite a lot to the plot in this and liked the way it went, but I did feel at times it went a little too fast for my tastes and I found that some parts in particular (such as bits surrounding a past relationship of Judel’s and certain important information) could have been expanded a little more to have a deeper emotional impact. I really like character driven stories that tend to like a bit more internal push and pull on the main character’s part and for me this didn’t quite get that itch.
I thought the way the plot played out was interesting, there were certainly twists that I wasn’t expecting which upped the drama and made me want to find out how they were going to solve everything and make it all work to get to that promised HEA. There were moments where I felt that some characters were a little trigger happy with their reactions and bits where I would have liked more conflict between the main characters vs others, but it was overall quite well balanced when it came to what the conflicts were and how they got resolved (fighting their way out vs thinking their way out) which is alway nice.
Overall I did like the plot and I thought the way the sibling relationships were written were well done (especially Nel - loved that guy – and the youngest of the brothers). I liked how each of the siblings built a different relationship with Isadore throughout the story and had their own personalities. The plot was good, though a bit fast paced in parts for my personal preference, and I think some moments could have been given a bit more time to allow them to deepen the connection between the characters. There were moments of confusion due to how some sentences were worded (and surrounding how many siblings there were - I wasn’t sure if it was 11 or 12), but it was overall an easy writing style to read and there were some interesting moments of conflict and character dialogue. It wasn’t quite my style, but there were high points which kept me reading, so I can see others really liking this book.
April 20, 2025
Needs another edit for typos and the like, but it was a pretty good book. I just wish there was more grovelling (as always).
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May 27, 2025I picked this up twice and couldn't finish. It didn't hold my interest. I won t rate it since it might be just my personal taste
August 31, 2025
3.5
This book really devoured me, took me out if a reading slump. The retelling is a great idea, since I haven't since many retelling of that story.
Honestly, this book could be longer, but I like it as it is!
This book really devoured me, took me out if a reading slump. The retelling is a great idea, since I haven't since many retelling of that story.
Honestly, this book could be longer, but I like it as it is!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews