American
Sheila Masterson is a #1 New York Times bestselling author of dark romantasy and fantasy romance. She built her readership through independently published series before her breakout, including the gothic fairy tale romance Song of the Dark Wood and its sequel Ballad of the Heartless, and the four-book Lost God series, later followed by the standalone spinoff A Legacy of Stars. Her 2025 novel The Poison Daughter, a dark enemies-to-lovers romantasy about a woman whose kiss kills anyone she touches, became a breakout bestseller and has been translated into multiple languages, including Spanish. Masterson's books combine high-fantasy world-building with forced-proximity romance tropes -- arranged marriages, hidden identities, morally complicated heroines -- aimed at readers of Sarah J. Maas and Rebecca Yarros. She lives outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with what she describes as a small army of underwatered houseplants that survive out of spite.