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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Lots of tension. Definitely taboo. Spice was great
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Blood
Minor: Addiction, Child abuse, Emotional abuse
BDSM, dubious consent, manipulative family, sold virginity
I usually don’t write reviews. I just wish that I could go back to the person I was before this book. What the heck was that.
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
SPOILERS!!! Malachi carried this book for me. He’s a little out there, but I loved being in his head and hearing his thoughts. Olivia drove me crazy. I didn’t like the way she silenced him by grabbing his hands. I didn’t like the way he dropped to his knees crying for her begging her to stay just for her to walk out on him. I didn’t like the way she let his spider be killed or the way she testified against him. I don’t see him as the victim in this situation, more like the villain I wholeheartedly rooted for. However, I LOVE a HEA, and I was thrilled they ended up together. I hope the next book expands on his childhood, her childhood, and the new life they’re sharing together.
I was told that this would make Haunting Adeline look like a children’s book. But I caught my self seeing that the writing when it was Olivia’s voice was so innocent throughout the entire book as if we she was young like “that’s was brothers and sisters do right” after just letting her brother practice sexual acts on her.
I caught myself wanting to throw this book at how bad it was and how much I am getting tired of reading books like this or “smut” books as they’re called.
Then the ending where the dad tells Olivia on her wedding day “well if Malachi is who you want to be with go ahead” as if he didn’t just have his life almost taken from him by his adopted son who he caught performing sexual acts on his foster daughter then getting his head beaten to a pulp while that foster son continues to have sex with his foster daughter over his dying body.
I can’t believe I even just wrote that. Awful book, and it appears there is a book two which I WILL NOT be reading.
Ugh.
I caught myself wanting to throw this book at how bad it was and how much I am getting tired of reading books like this or “smut” books as they’re called.
Then the ending where the dad tells Olivia on her wedding day “well if Malachi is who you want to be with go ahead” as if he didn’t just have his life almost taken from him by his adopted son who he caught performing sexual acts on his foster daughter then getting his head beaten to a pulp while that foster son continues to have sex with his foster daughter over his dying body.
I can’t believe I even just wrote that. Awful book, and it appears there is a book two which I WILL NOT be reading.
Ugh.
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
challenging
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I’m no quitter. I finished the book. and this… literally hits the “DARK ROMANCE” category because Malachi and Olivia are insane (more emphasis on the dark part of it LMAO). If you want crazy, obsessive and possessive male characters, you know… one that is borderline insane and deranged (or maybe literally insane and deranged), well, Malachi’s there for you.
I was in for the drama and their weird attachment to each other. Sure, adoptive sibling romance is taboo, but you know what you are reading… or atleast I know. LOL The book is hinting incest at the very beginning, but they aren’t blood related in any way so I consider them as two kids living in the same household instead lol I’m just not that shocked that they got THAT attached to each other. Malachi is insane, period.
I hate the parents more though, okay, maybe I like the father more than the mother; but that doesn’t remove the fact that the parents’ actions somehow elevated Malachi’s insanity. Their parents also insisted that they are siblings a lot of times so that’s how casual not casual it is for them to call each other brother and sister.
There are also moments in the book where I find Malachi and Olivia funny, like Olivia saying profanities to Malachi for buying a spider. Malachi being jealous to Kai as if Kai and Malachi aren’t the same person. Whenever Malachi thinks he wanna beat up Olivia or something, I cope for it as Malachi’s “cuteness aggression” 😭
I’m so wrong for enjoying this book LOL I am so used to yandere male leads that maybe… Malachi isn’t that bad when he left Olivia instead of trapping her somewhere. Japanese yanderes do worse, especially in stepcest contents too 💀 And the fact that… Aside from Olivia and Malachi’s dad… Malachi looked like the LESSER EVIL due to how bad each characters are in here. Also not me giggling over malachi writing “mine” on a piece of paper when they were still kids… I just knew Malachi is going to be bad to worst from that. Loved that he beat up the a-holes that tried to do something to Olivia and how their dad commended Malachi for it LMAO
Will I recommend this to anyone? hell no. This goes to my deepest secret vault for all I know. The book lived to my expectations and I expected worse from Malachi, maybe because I thought of Joe Goldberg from You on the last chapter 💀 If you are into yanderes, obsessed non-related sibling relationships, eerr noncon, somno, spiders, idk screwdrivers 😭, piercings (i hate them, i want to unimagine their existence in this book but I can’t, it’s not Malachi without it for some weird reason), maybe forbidden romances and whatnot, Little Stranger touched all of it.
It was… it was deranged. Insane. Unspeakable. Unfathomable. Incomprehensible. But it did emphasize the book being a dark romance because you wouldn’t want to touch it in real life.
Malachi belongs to my “locked in the basement” category for fictional men. He’s scary, but I also see him as a bit of a cutie patootie or handsome idk 😭 But of course, deranged.
Quotes (are there even ones?)
“Promise me you won’t beat anyone else up. ”No, he signs.”
“I flatten my lips and lie back. “Do you see me as your sister?” Without looking at me, he lifts his free hand and signs one last thing before falling asleep. You’re mine.”
“I got them, Dad, Malachi signs, and my eyes widen. He never talks to him. Ever. Never mind calling him Dad. It hits my father, and I can tell he wants to hug my brother, but he won’t. “Good one, son”
I want to take my time and be mesmerized on how they bond even for just one chapter. This is like my roman empire by now.
“Maybe I am a little insane.”
Malachi saying “little” as if he has sanity in the first place 💀
No-Context Scenes engraved in my mind:
🕷️ Itsy-bitsy Spider
🕷️ Don’t interrupt Malachi’s meal
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment
Have you ever read about a psychopathic sociopathic mute character that would do anything for his lady and to his lady but is also an insecure cute little patootie with a heart of gold who's still learning how to speak? Well worry not. Because that's Malachi Vize for you
dark