This is absolutely not for everyone. It is Dark romance with a capital D, but there is a reason Malachi is so beloved by the dark romance community: he will break your heart. He is a psychopath, we know this but that doesn’t change the emotional charge in the writing. Olivia, the narrator of the first half, loves him (right or wrong) and Malachi himself? Oh, Malachi is hurt, angry and oh so desperate to get his his girl back. There were times I wanted to cry, times I wanted to scream and times I found myself laughing and smiling for reasons I couldn’t quite understand. It’s a plot unlike any other, perfectly executed.

It has a very limited support cast. You will probably have feelings about the parental units. Jennifer Vize deserves anything and everything she has coming to her. Please b!tch come into the 21st century and stop taking lessons from Alva Vanderbilt (IYKYK). Jamison Vize is something else. I have so much respect for him, though. I love Olivia’s bestie, Abbi. She is so supportive and understanding of Olivia’s unorthodox (to say the least) situation.

Before you decide to read this, I really suggest listening to the audiobook version of Little Stranger if you are an audiobook listener. While I think reading would still be enjoyable, the narrators Heather Firth and, particularly, Joe Arden bring the characters to life. Joe Arden does a stunning job as the voluntarily mute Malachi; you can feel the anger and his frustration when he can’t speak, when he can’t enunciate Olivia’s name. He was a perfect casting choice. Heather Firth does a fantastic job as Olivia; you can sense her conflict and need. Her voice matches Arden’s well.

This is definitely not the first dark romance you should be reading; you need to build up to it and mind your trigger warnings, but it’s well worth reading.