Review: The Shadow Bound Chronicles Series

Deadly Vows (The Shadow Bound Chronicles, #1) by Nichole Heydenburg
Series: The Shadow Bound Chronicles #1
Published by Poisoned Ink Press LLC on June 17, 2025
Genres: Paranormal, Young Adult
Pages: 300
Format: eARC
Source: Provided as part of book tour
Goodreads

Enter the shadows. Unleash your power. Embrace your fate.
Taylor Windsor is only fifteen when her parents die in a tragic fire. During her grieving, she’s sent to live with her Aunt Mel in the small town of Grimwood, North Carolina. Taylor struggles to adjust to her new reality, and strange occurrences unfold.
After being forbidden from entering a locked room, Taylor’s curiosity leads her and her new friend Kylie to an ancient steamer trunk filled with dark secrets. She soon uncovers a shocking Aunt Mel made a deadly pact with a demon. The demon has come to collect a soul, and Taylor is the only one who can stop him.
As Taylor pieces her family’s past together, she realizes she can’t escape her destiny. Determined to save Mel and confront the demon who tricked her aunt, Taylor steps into her parents’ world, embracing the role they sought to deny her. With time running out, Taylor must master her newfound abilities and navigate a treacherous path to break the deadly vow.

Thanks to Iris Influencer Society for the chance to read this series in preparation for the ARC of book 3.

 

 Julie’s Review of Deadly Vows (The Shadow Bound Chronicles Book 1)

This first book starts off with Taylor’s parents dying in a tragic fire and her losing everything just like that. She’s 15 and so goes to live with her Aunt Mel who she hasn’t seen in years, as her mother and aunt had a falling out but she doesn’t know the details. The plot of the story is pretty straightforward, girl moves to a spooky house with a spooky aunt and discovers a hidden locked room with a magical book of spells. As it turns out, demons are real, and her Aunt had made a deal with one and the whole family is now paying the price for it. Oops?

The plot isn’t unique or original, and I was really hoping for something different here, but it’s a tried and true trope I suppose. It’s written as lower YA, you know, easy to read, but not a lot of depth of character or emotions. The grief and rage Taylor is going through is mentioned, but not really felt by me as the reader. Somehow, she’s a bit special, and her rage unlocks powers she shouldn’t have yet, and she manages to pull some surprises at the end. Again, pretty tropey of this type of book.

I did really enjoy the instant found family with the neighbor friend and her daughter. I loved that they consulted the books, which really gave me a warm and fuzzy especially since Anthony Head just passed and it was a very Giles and the scooby gang thing to do.

The book ended with setting up the next, so can be a standalone but also makes me curious about the rest of the series. If we’re being honest, if I hadn’t agreed to read all 3 urban fantasy novels with the third being part of the book tour, I might not be compelled to continue. But it was a quick read and I appreciated that, and enjoyable enough to see what happens next. The storytelling can only improve from here, right? The premise of the next books sounds a lot more exciting.

Deadly Betrayal (The Shadow Bound Chronicles #2) by Nichole Heydenburg
Series: The Shadow Bound Chronicles #2
on September 17, 2025
Genres: Paranormal, Young Adult
Pages: 301
Format: eARC
Source: Provided as part of book tour
Goodreads

A cursed emerald, a relentless foe, and a destiny intertwined with danger…

After the dramatic rescue of her Aunt Mel from the demon hunter’s council, Taylor is thrust into a world of rigorous training and unexpected alliances. Her mentor, Julian Cromwell, is a handsome demon hunter who becomes both a guide and a friend in her quest to master her powers. As Taylor steps into her new life at Grimwood Magical Academy, she faces a whirlwind of challenges and secrets.

Nothing is what it seems. Their next-door-neighbor’s new boyfriend is hiding something. And Brody, their newly adopted dog, is acting strange. It’s almost as if he’s trying to warn Taylor of an approaching danger.

While Taylor does her best to fit in at the academy, Mel’s struggles are far from over. Stripped of her powers by a ruthless demon hunter, Mel seeks help from an old friend, Vanessa Ellis. A sinister curse is affecting Vanessa’s son. Vanessa wants to make a deal with Mel, forcing Mel to face her most challenging predicament so far.

As Mel battles to reclaim her magic, Taylor must navigate the complexities of friendship, trust, and an emerging threat that could tear their world apart. In a tale of loyalty and courage, can Taylor and her new friends defeat the enemy before it's too late?

Deadly Betrayal is Book 2 in The Shadow Bound Chronicles.

 Julie’s Review of  Deadly Betrayal (The Shadow Bound Chronicles Book 2)

In this book our girl Taylor finds out she has to go to the Magic Academy and take beginners classes with other 12 year olds (remember, she’s 15) to catch up on her gap in knowledge of their demon hunters world. She has no control over her powers, and others are whispering that she’s the Chosen One, a child of two strong demon hunter families with especially strong powers. So she gets a mentor to help train her, and there are some sparks.

Julian is all green flags for much of the book and I think he’s sweet, though I really wanted to get to know our characters better. The book still reads like lower YA, with not much emotion or character depth development, and the events mostly being told via conversation. Taylor is still volatile with her emotions, which makes sense for a 15 year old, and it triggers her magical outbursts.

There were some unexpected plot flows in this book that I appreciated and enjoyed, like the troubles Aunt Mel got into, though it felt kind of abruptly resolved. I enjoyed the friendships between Taylor and her new roommate, and the little sister, but again I didn’t feel like I got to know these new characters very well.

The ending, well, that was abrupt and I get it was meant for shock value. But I struggle with the motivation. Usually there’s more of a revelation that triggers such a betrayal flip/flop and based on how the character behaved the rest of the book, it feels unbelievable. But maybe we’re not being told the entire story. Guess it’s time to read book 3 and find out where it all goes next!

Deadly Portals (The Shadow Bound Chronicles, #3) by Nichole Heydenburg
Series: The Shadow Bound Chronicles #3
Published by Poisoned Ink Press LLC on June 16, 2026
Genres: Paranormal, Young Adult
Format: ARC
Source: Provided as part of book tour
Goodreads

A cursed demon hunter. A deadly countdown. A love worth crossing realms.
With Julian trapped in another realm, Taylor will risk everything to bring him home. But when a failed spell leaves her cursed with dark magic, the cost of her power becomes deadly. Each time she uses magic, the shadow creeping across her body grows. When it reaches her heart, she’ll die.
Desperate to save her, Grace and Molly scramble for a cure. Meanwhile, Kylie unearths a chilling secret about her biological father—one that forces her to confront the dangerous legacy hidden in her bloodline.
As the Demon Queen grows more ruthless, she unleashes her forces to hunt Taylor down. But Mel is determined to protect her niece at all costs.
Time is running out. Can Taylor break the curse before it consumes her? Or will the demons finally claim what they’ve been waiting for?

 Julie’s Review of Deadly Portals (The Shadow Bound Chronicles Book 3)

Not sure why I thought this was a trilogy, it’s not. Woo this book really got into it with the plot. Taylor, girlie, you gotta make better choices. You do everything that people tell you not to do, and then you find yourself in such a pickle. Dark curses that are life-threatening, everyone around you having to work their butts off to try to save the day. What kind of hero are you? Girlie better step it up in future books.

I enjoyed the new plot lines here, especially the scene with the Griffin to barter for magic to save Taylor. Wow, her aunt really goes above and beyond as a guardian here.  And there are some interesting family bombshells with another family that is expanding the plot. I love that the neighbor friend is getting more involved in the plot, I liked her in previous books. I’m really curious where this will end up and how it will all be resolved.

The writing and plotting style are still lower-YA. As an adult, it all still feels undercooked to me, especially with the plot told in conversation or straightforward sentences but not very deep descriptions or emotions. But it would be a perfect read for a young reader. 12-year-old me would have devoured this series, and as there is zero spice (I mean, we get one chaste kiss), it’s great for the younger MG/YA readers who love magic, especially magical creatures, strong female characters, and found family.

 

Genre Tags: YA, YA Thriller, YA Paranormal Fantasy, YA Fantasy, YA Urban Fantasy

Tropes: Demon hunters, found family, magical academy, immortal dog companion, The Chosen One, no spice romance, vampires, griffins, and more!

Content Warnings: Murder, swearing, kidnapping

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