This is a dystopian retelling of Tristan & Isolde that had a lot of potential & a really interesting premise. Unfortunately I just struggled to enjoy it. It read more like historical fiction & didn’t really touch upon the topics and themes I expected to see in a dystopian.
It was especially jarring as there was people alive from before the world became what it is now so surely there would be more knowledge and information than what we saw.
There also wasn’t a lot of worldbuilding to understand how the world became what it is. We do get more much later in the story but it left me frustrated for a lot of the book.
The romance itself felt very insta love and I wish there had been more build up to truly believe they loved each other especially because of the lengths they go to, to keep each other alive.
I did like Isadora’s character arc as she had to unlearn a lot of what she had believed as truth & learn to stand up for herself.
I do wish that there had been more to Tristan than just helping Isadora see there’s more than what she had been told.
I did enjoy the second half of the story more especially as we started to see more of the world and get some answers as why the world is this way.

The Enemy’s Daughter. 4.5 /5

I DNF at 65% but I would recommend it anyway. Let me explain. I liked this book. I really enjoyed the worldbuilding, loved how the main character’s met and how the author put some details that would be clarified later on about their real intentions when that encounter took place. I also think that the narration and pace is good, and I loved how we discover what’s going on slowly.
It was captivating to learn more about how the life where the MMC (Tristan) lives was, the origin and his motivations. I also loved the way FMC (Isadora) is. She would get too carried away from time to time but her showing strength was not overpowering the story, which I LOVED.
The reason why I DNF is because I think that personally I may be getting over YA books. I enjoyed a lot the beginning of the book and I think it’s amazing, but I just got to a point where the way the romance is portrayed is not for me anymore. But as that’s a personal preference, I will make the review without it, so overall I can say it’s an amazing book, great written, with a well developed story and interesting characters. I would recommend it to anyone who loves enemies-to-lovers, young adult and fantasy. I am sure it would be a solid 4/5 or 5/5 for them,

Thank you to netgalley for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

An absolutely unique way of reimagining Tristan and Isolde's love set in a dystopian world, fused with magic!
A very outstanding debut that kept me turning page after page, not getting enough of these cursed enemies to lovers dynamic! The cat and mouse game added tension to the already heavy world and narrative, which I loved!

I think both romantasy and dystopian fantasy lovers will equally enjoy this story!

The Enemy’s Daughter had an intriguing concept, but ultimately, it fell flat for me. While I generally enjoy stories that dive straight into the action, this one lacked the depth needed to make its world and characters truly compelling. The clans felt underdeveloped, leaving me struggling to understand their dynamics and motivations. The characters themselves came across as one-dimensional, making it difficult to feel invested in their journey. Additionally, I was hoping for more dystopian elements to really shape the atmosphere, but the book didn’t quite deliver on that front.

Enemies to lovers every time make me weak at the knees. Sometimes, about that fine line between hate and love, that has me racing to read a book quicker than you say, enemies! As soon as I saw The Enemy's Daughter being marketed, I was stalking NetGalley like a predator looking for my eARC prey to request.

The Enemy's Daughter is a captivating, page-turning retelling of the Tristan and Isolde tale with a light touch of fantasy elements and an amazing dystopian twist. Melissa Poett's storytelling is immersive and addictive, with a fast-paced plot full of twists and turns that have you questioning the intentions and motivations of each side. Her world-building is richly staged around an intriguing political tension, with rivalries and conflict raging between two very different factions in a post-apocalyptic civilisation that embraces opposite ideologies towards technology and civil rights.

Melissa Poett has sculpted something beautiful in her memorable characters, Isadora and Tristan. Their complex relationship was intense, messy, and a delightful rollercoaster between love and hate, which had me giggling and kicking my feet as I read. I loved how their weaknesses brought out their strength of character – Isodora's strength in her kindness and mercy in the morally grey choices in her vocation as a healer and Tristan's struggle to step up to be a dutiful leader who puts the interests of his people first as he battles his heart's yearning for a forbidden love.

Thank you to HarperCollins UK, Harper Fire, and Melissa Poett for approving my request for a Netgalley eARc for The Enemy's Daughter. Published on the 14th of August 2025 in the UK.

I loved the dystopian vibes of this book with it being set 30 years after the destruction of the republic.

It really was so interesting to see Kingsland and the clans with how different they are in every way.

Tristan and Isolde whilst not in my opinion being true enemies to lovers had amazing tension and their romance had me kicking my feet, I couldn’t put this book down because of them. I did just wish it was a bit more slower.

I really liked how there was some fantasy events involved and how it’s used really did have me kicking my feet more.

Tristan is a golden retriever, I loved him so much. He’s so patient with helping Isolde learn about his home as well as their history between both their homes. Both him and Isolde prefer to heal rather than hurt, I loved seeing Isolde heal and learn more about healing to help her people.

DNF at 38%

Nothing pains me more than DNF’ing a book, if anything it’s not something I normally do. However, I just cannot keep going with this book at the moment. I might pick it up again at some point but right now I’m finding it boring to be completely honest.

I was initially really intrigued by this book especially as it’s Irish folklore in a dystopian world. What didn’t work for me with this book was the lack of depth. Everything felt very superficial in terms of world building, character relationships, even the plot. I had no idea how things had gotten to be how they were because there was no backstory or history. Even the romance was bland.

Would I recommend this book? Probably not. But this doesn’t mean that others won’t enjoy this book, it just wasn’t for me.

Thank you to netgalley for an ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

Unfortunately I did not get on with this one as much as I had hoped. This could be down to the genre of being YA and maybe I’m a little too familiar and comfortable with more of the complex romantasy reads. For a new YA looking to explore fantasy I think this might be ticking your box but for me I didn’t make it to the end unfortunately.

Thankyou xx

Thank you to HarperCollins Quill Tree Books and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy

unfortunately this book wasn’t for me. I dnf at the middle of the book.

I really liked the idea of the story and I see potential in it. Unfortunately, the circumstances of the clans were explained far too little and the background story of the old republic remained rather open.
Unfortunately, the love story also went far too quickly for me

The idea was good, but the realisation needs work

Enemies to Lovers trope at it's best. I couldn't put it down and had to slow my reading down as I could't turn the pages fast enough to read the next page, or chapter!

“𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞 𝙘𝙖𝙣’𝙩 𝙙𝙤 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙘𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙢𝙚, 𝙞𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩”

it’s been nearly four decades since the republic crumbled, and now the five clans and the kingsland are locked in a struggle for power. isadora, daughter of the clans’ leader, risks her life healing injured soldiers on the frontlines. when she intervenes during an attack led by tristan, a deadly kingsland assassin, she’s struck by a poisoned arrow. to her surprise, tristan offers to save her using a rare kind of magic. but survival comes at a cost a a bond is formed between them, one that ties their minds and emotions in ways neither of them fully understands… and it might just lead to the downfall of everything isadora holds dear

what a cosy whimsical read! isadora and tristan had a cute chemistry going on but i wish their romance unraveled a little slower. i’m a sucker for a slow burn, and i feel like the relationship just ignited way too quickly for my liking. tristan is a walking green flag – the way he treats her from day one didn’t go unnoticed

the other thing i struggled with is the world building – i needed MORE! the characters had a good description but i struggled to grasp the surroundings – i didn’t get that this was supposed to be a dystopian setting until almost half way through the book

overall, this was a cosy fun read but i just wanted a little more – more world depth, more tension, and a little more time for the romance to breathe

“𝙙𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙬𝙝𝙮 𝙞 𝙬𝙖𝙡𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙧? 𝙞𝙩’𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙞 𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙩 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙣. 𝙢𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙞𝙚𝙙, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙩 𝙝𝙞𝙩 𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙛 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚, 𝙞 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙𝙣’𝙩. 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙞𝙛 𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙙𝙞𝙚𝙙… 𝙞 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪”

This book was really good. It was short and fast paced. I would recommend it for getting out of a reading slump. It was a perfect balance between romance and plot. This book was mostly clean except for a few kiss scenes.

This book was from Isadora's perspective. Isadora (the FMC) works as a healer for the clans and is also the clan leader's daughter. After being fatally injured by an enemy soldier of the Kingsland, she is taken prisoner and unable to escape. In order to survive, Isadora must enter into a marriage with Tristan - the handsome acting mayor of Kingsland.

The chemistry between Isadora and Tristan was amazing. The plot was interesting and there were lots of twists and turns. The world building had dystopian vibes and was quite unique.

This was a really great YA dystopian fantasy straight from the start I found myself so invested in the characters storyline that I devoured it rather quickly as I just couldn't put it down.

I loved that it had a unique magic system based on bonds between two people and I feel like this helped the insta love feeling you see developing between Tristan and Isolde though as the story unfolds it becomes a little more easier to understand and except.

Some parts did feel a little too repetitive and I would of liked just a little more world building at the start as I found it a little hard to fully understand the world and how it became like it was until the end, though I will say it has one of the best endings I've read in a very long time.

Overall it was a really enjoyable read that was so easy to loose yourself in.

Thank you so much to the publisher for the opportunity to read and review before publication. These are my honest thoughts and opinions.

I absolutely love the premise of this book. The writing is simple but i feel like that fits the dystopian genre fine. Unfortunately I had to DNF at 40% because it feels like none of the characters are very 3D except for Tristain. As well, the world isn't described very clearly so its almost white-room syndrome.

Thank you for my review copy.

The enemy’s daughter
By Melissa Poett

Thanks @harpercollinsuk @indie_thinking indiethinking for this one!

This was a great YA set in a dystopian world with magic between those who fall in love . It was easy to read and I devoured it in a day.
In the future, after the world as we know it has been destroyed by nuclear bombs, two settlements are at war. One, the five clans, and the other - The kingsland.
After the leader of the Kingsland is killed, Isadora- a healer for the clans, is captured by the kingsland. What continues is a story of betrayal by those she thought she knew and loved, and loved that burns deeply with a magical connection.
Isadora battles to save all those she loves from both sides of the war and find a way to bring peace.

Thanks also to @netgalley !

3.5 stars

This book surprised me honestly, I went into it completely blind and I devoured it in one night. I hope we get a sequel to it to develop their relationship more and the towns. I would’ve preferred more world building and I do think the angst and tension could’ve lasted more than a few chapters but I honestly did enjoy the book.

i don’t think they should’ve called this dystopian when it was mostly just fantasy romance.. i was trying really hard to find dystopian-ish elements. i guess it is a post apocalyptic work, but how we got there is never explored, and no one seems concerned about it either. it’s mostly just white men fighting over our fmc, Isadora.

the romance is a huge part of the book, but i didn’t like it much because it’s insta-love and i couldn’t really care how they ended up together.

the writing itself is good, no complaints there, but the plot just didn’t pull me in.

an okay read, i don’t know what else to say. if you like insta-love romance and a bit of political drama, then go for it!

Unfortunately this story fell flat for me, I just couldn't get immersed in the world and the characters were predictable and one dimensional.

Thank you to Harper Collins and Netgalley for approving me to read this book early, I’m rating it 4.5 stars.

I’m obsessed with the setting of the story, the unique plot and the enemies to lovers doing its thingggg.

The author definitely did hurt my heart and points, but I lowkey loved it. The story flows really well in this dystopian/post apocalyptic world as we meet two warring groups, the story follows the FMC and we get to see where she fits in this world and how her future changes from one moment to the next with catastrophic consequences.

A retelling of the famous play. The cover is beautiful. It's enemies to lovers where it's petty or they banter a lot. They're sworn enemies to the point of forbidden love. I am obsessed.