The Poison Daughter ♥ Sheila Masterson

Published October 2025 ♥ Independently Published by Sheila Masterson

❥ Enemies to Lovers

❥ Magic

❥ Vampires

❥ Arranged Marriage

❥ Vigilante FMC

Every person Harlow Carrenwell kisses dies immediately, and that’s the way she likes it.

Here I was scrolling Bookstagram one day when I come across a call for arc readers. I was immediately intrigued by The Poison Daughter and quickly signed myself up for an arc. Huge thank you to the author Sheila Masterson for supplying me with a copy. As always with arcs, these are my honest thoughts and opinions.

Spoilers Sweetie : Jump down to my Final Thoughts to avoid them.

1. The sister’s husband is a loser. 
2. Nine kids! 
3. I can’t wait to meet the new husband. 
4. Pay it forward girl. 
5. What in the mistaken identity is this. 
6. It was not the ring. 
7. So who set them up?
8. I’m digging the ten year anniversary equaling revenge. 
9. I wonder how many times she’s going to try. 
10. I knew I didn’t like the brother in law. And not just because he’s an abusive pos. 
11. I love when the fmc isn’t a damsel. Girl can wield a weapon. 
12. Sent the horde!
13. I love the banter between Harlow and Henry. 
14. Fucking Harlow is amazing. 
15. Oh you’ll be seeing colors soon enough Henry. 
16. I’ve been wondering about the Mother’s magic. 
17. So many questions..
18. I feel like they are going to be like extra blessed. Some extra divine marriage. 
19. Girl. It’s not just a kiss. Plus it’s only like your second real kiss. Ever. 
20. Mental murder list. I’m dead. 
21. Oh, it’s more than just his culture. Boy is in love. Both you are.
22. That’s some wedding gift. 
23. Gaven knows some shit. 
24. This won’t end well for Brennan. 
25. Oh it’s a line they’ll cross. 
26. Harlow’s parents suck. Team Havenwood. 
27. Fucking Stefan. 
28. I’m sitting…
29. So close. So close. 
30. Here’s a twist. There’s a twist. Everywhere a twist. 
31. It was definitely her ancestors. 
32. I love that she tells him the colors. 
33. This is so fucking good. So satisfying. 

The Poison Daughter by Sheila Masterson Review

Is this not my best behavior? I haven’t even murdered anyone.

The Poison Daughter by Sheila Masterson is a standalone dark fantasy romance and I will take no criticism on it. I loved every damn second of this book. I am so glad I received an arc and was bound to a commitment to read it in a timely fashion. Who knows how long it would have taken me to get to otherwise and that my friends, would have been a travesty.

The Poison Daughter is told through the dual perspectives of Harlow & Henry. Harlow is a widow and her parents, head of the ruling magical family in Lunameade, are forcing her into another arranged marriage. Harlow is their own personal assassin. Why, you may ask? Harlow’s lips are literally poison-one kiss and you’re dead. Just like her previous husband, her new fiance is her latest target. Listen, Harlow’s parents are the worst-basically selling their daughters to the highest bidder and standing idly by as one of them is abused by her sniveling husband. The Worst with a capital W.

But the merry widow has a secret. When she’s not acting as an assassin at her parents’ whims, she moonlights as a vigilante for abused women in their walled-off city.

The Poison Vixen

Harlow may very well be my favorite fmc of the year. She can’t save her sister from her abusive husband and she doesn’t stand a chance of escaping her parents’ tyrannical clutches. Where would she go anyway? What with the vampire hordes wandering the woods. What she can do is put an end to every miserable pos in town who lays a finger on their wife. And we love a vigilante fmc over here.

Meet a man. Lure him in. Kill him with a kiss. Until one night Harlow kisses a mark and he doesn’t die.

Enter Henry-The Poison Vixen’s next target. Unbeknownst to my dear Harlow, both her and Henry are being set up. When she kisses him, much to her surprise, nothing happens. He doesn’t die. A first for Harlow. But it gets worse when she discovers Henry is her new fiance. His magical ability? He cannot die the same way twice, and his parents already killed him with poison. My dear Harlow promptly starts coming up with creative ways to get the job done. Her parents have given their word after all, one last job and she can be free.

In the absence of a conscience, men need something to fear. I’ve made myself their monster.

The Poison Daughter is true to the enemies to lovers trope. It takes a long time for Harlow and Henry to become friendly and even longer for them to trust each other. I loved the banter and tension between them. They slowly chipped away at each other’s hardened trauma built exteriors. Softening towards each other and finding common ground. The twists at the end were so well done. It’s rare for a twist to knock me off my feet and Masterson had my gaster’s flabbered.

You can bet your last dollar that when the end of the year comes, The Poison Daughter will be one of my top reads. Masterson’s writing was beautiful. The plot and setting was top tier. I cannot recommend The Poison Daughter enough.

I can’t believe I’ve done the one thing I thought impossible. I fell in love with my wife.

❥ Sheila Mssterson : Webpage ♥ Instagram ♥ Threads ♥ Goodreads

❥ Purchase : Amazon ♥ Barnes&Noble ♥ Indigo/Chapters ♥ Bookshop