Marriage Toxin, Vol. 1 | Manga Review (ARC)

Gero may be a master assassin, but he’s not exactly killing it in the romance department! Can marriage swindler Kinosaki help him find true love?

Poison Master Hikaru Gero is taking on his toughest assignment yet—getting married! Gero couldn’t be more clueless when it comes to the art of dating, but thankfully, marriage swindler Mei Kinosaki knows everything there is to know about love. Together, this unlikely pair will do whatever it takes to get Gero hitched—even if they have to take on the entire criminal underworld in the process!

As a deadly assassin from the poison clan, Gero swears he’ll never settle down—that is, until the family orders his sister to produce the poison clan’s next heir. Refusing to let his sister abandon her chance at true love with her girlfriend, Gero desperately turns to marriage swindler Mei Kinosaki for relationship advice. Can Kinosaki turn this trained killer into a charming husband-to-be?

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It’s definitely weird and explicit, but if you like dark humor, it’s very entertaining. It features the classic overpowered MC who struggles to communicate with girls. However, it approaches this in a cute? way, rather than in a pervy manner. Think less “oops, I’ve fallen and accidentally grabbed a breast” and more along the lines of not being able to smile properly—avoiding the usual weird fan service.

While it might not explode in popularity, it’s quite good and definitely worth a read.

The ending felt rushed and concluded on a significant cliffhanger. However, the second volume is available on Kindle, with the print version releasing on April 2nd, 2024.

*Spoilers*

The best character is arguably the bug master.

Now, about halfway through, we encounter a plot twist revealing that the marriage swindler he saved is actually a man.

I specifically chose this one because I wanted to explore more non-BL reviews. I mean the whole plot revolves around Gero’s need to find a wife and provide an heir.

While it’s not confirmed if this is actually a BL or not, Gero and Mei definitely have the best chemistry. If they don’t end up together, it could give this manga strong bromance/queerbaiting vibes without significant character and plot development. So, for now, I’ll leave it at four stars for being a quirky, fun read, but I suspect this might drop off hard depending on the number of volumes and how everything is handled in the future.

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