The Poison Daughter by Sheila Masterson
Deadly. Delicious. Downright to die for.
Sheila Masterson’s viral standalone romantasy The Poison Daughter receives an all-new, exclusive edition this summer, and it’s a title you won’t want to miss.
Every person Harlow Carrenwell kisses receives a dose of poison — lethal, painful or paralyzing — fresh from her lips. The youngest daughter of Lunameade’s magical Carrenwell family, she has been tasked with taking out opponents at her parents’ direction, and she’s never met a mark she can’t remove from the board, until now…
Enter Henry Havenwood, Harlow’s new betrothed, the son of the mysterious ruling family of a fortress thought lost in an attack years before. He’s handsome, he’s infuriating and unfortunately for Harlow, he seems to be immune to her particular brand of poison.
As the Carrenwell family faces a looming threat to their rule from without, they also wrestle amongst themselves within, in the shadows of their own home. Ghosts of past trauma, shared pain, and an oncoming madness threaten to sink their teeth in, and Harlow can’t wait to rid herself of her family’s horrors — though perhaps she is walking right into a new den of wolves with the Havenwoods.
Packed with political machinations, fascinating magic and an interesting twist on vampires, The Poison Daughter not only gives us action, fantasy and high-spice romance but also provides a powerful lens through which to tell a story of abuse, trauma, chronic pain, grief and so much more.
A Romance With Bite
Harlow and Henry are about to become your new favorite enemies-to-lovers romantasy duo. The tension? The banter? The spice? Masterson gives us everything and more in this dark, gothic tale. The arc that these two share, both in their personal journeys and in their relationship together, will pull at your heartstrings, all the while reminding you what it truly means to be loved by someone who sees you — every part of you, exactly as you are — and that you can allow yourself to be loved like that.
This is a story that tackles some very heavy themes, woven among the magic and vampires, and Masterson does an excellent job at lifting up those experiences, those memories, and those feelings, and he does not shy away from them. This is a book that will make you feel, deeply, in wonderful and surprising ways. Harlow is someone who experiences chronic pain and is also dealing with intense trauma from her past, and the way that Masterson reveals her story, unpacking her experiences as she confronts them and as Henry learns more about her past, is striking. Henry has his own share of trauma, and going on the journey with these two characters as they grow to understand each other on a very intimate level is incredibly powerful.
Poison Kisses and Holy Fire
The narrative is set against a wonderfully vivid world, with Masterson effortlessly bringing us into the bustling streets of Lunameade, the vampire-filled forests and the lively bars. From Harlow’s poison kiss to the glamours of her sister and the holy fire of her father, the magic system is creative and clever. I also found this version of vampires — the Drained — to be an interesting, new take.
Perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas and Carissa Broadbent, if you love a book filled with high-spice romance, a fierce female lead, enemies-to-lovers tropes, vampires and a plot filled to the brim with suspense and political intrigue, then The Poison Daughter is for you!
About Sheila Masterson:
When Sheila Masterson is not busy stabbing beloved side characters and dreaming up new ways to make readers cry, you can find her practicing yoga, drinking fancy cocktails with friends, or curled up reading books or tarot. She lives outside Philadelphia with a small army of underwatered houseplants that survive out of spite.
