A fierce and subtle poison

Name: A fierce and subtle poison
Author: Samantha Mabry
ISBN: 9781616205218

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

by Samantha Mabry

Reading Level 5-6 ME · Moderate · Emotional Ages 13+ Matched

The text is written at a 5th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for teens (ages 13+), and the content has moderate intensity with some emotionally heavy themes. Its HootRating code, ME, means moderate content, mostly emotional.

Find on Amazon Listen on Audible

We may earn a commission from these links.

About This Book

The salty breeze carries whispers of a girl with grass-green hair and skin like the island leaves. Her touch is said to be both magical and deadly, and mysterious letters start arriving just as Lucas’s summer takes a strange turn. Can he unravel the secrets before it's too late?

Themes

RomanceParanormal fictionFriendship MysteryMagical RealismComing of Age

Quick Assessment

Seventeen-year-old Lucas spends his summers in Puerto Rico and is drawn into the legend of Isabel, a girl said to feed on poisonous plants, after his new girlfriend disappears the same day mysterious letters arrive. The book blends magical realism, a missing-person mystery, and a dark, star-crossed romance, with recurring danger to life from poison and a lingering threat to Lucas himself. Expect romantic tension and an emotionally heavy atmosphere that suits older teen readers.

Why we rated A fierce and subtle poison ME (Moderate)

A fierce and subtle poison is written at a Level 5-6 reading level across 279 pages. Upper Grades (Ages 13+) is the typical interest range for this book — readers in that age band have the maturity and attention span suited to the story, separate from whether they can decode the words.

We rate A fierce and subtle poison as ME (Moderate, mostly emotional) because the content sits in the "Moderate" range — moderate conflict that may involve loss, scary scenes, or interpersonal stakes. The strongest signals come from emotional weight, thematic difficulty — these are the dimensions parents should evaluate against their reader's tolerance.

No specific content flags were raised by community reviewers, which is consistent with the moderate intensity score.

Thematically, A fierce and subtle poison explores romance, paranormal fiction, friendship, mystery, and magical realism — these threads give the book room to mean different things to different readers.

Good fit for

✓ Children in the Ages 13+ range — the maturity and attention span match the story's pacing.
✓ Kids drawn to stories about romance, paranormal fiction, friendship.

Maybe not for

! Readers who get easily upset by emotional or moderately dark scenes — the conflict here is real, not just background flavor.

For Parents

Content Intensity

ME · Moderate · Emotional

Emotional

Moderate ←

Physical

Mild

Social

Gentle

Thematic

Moderate

Reading the HootRating code: the first letter is the content intensity (C = Gentle · L = Mild · M = Moderate · I = Intense · V = Very Intense); the second, when there is one, is the kind of content that drives it (E = Emotional · P = Physical · S = Social · T = Thematic). Reading level and age range are rated separately. How we rate

Real stakes and emotional weight. May include sustained danger, loss, or bullying.

Data confidence: high

Was our "Moderate" content intensity rating accurate for this book?