Little Stranger: A Dark Taboo Romance (The Web of Silence Duet)

Let me just say, I was not ready for this book. From page one, Little Stranger had me completely hooked. Leigh Rivers takes dark, forbidden, and emotional to a whole new level, and I loved every messy, addictive second of it. This story is dark, emotional, twisted, and weirdly beautiful. It’s about Olivia and Malachi, just two broken kids from messed up backgrounds, adopted into the same loving family. Malachi hasn’t spoken since he was five, but the second he meets Olivia, something clicks. From that moment on, she’s his person. Their bond starts innocent but as they grow older, it shifts into something deeper, something they’re not supposed to feel. And oh my god… the slow burn, the guilt, the longing, the “we shouldn’t but we can’t help it” energy? Absolutely addictive. What I Loved * The dark and twisted plot: It’s intense, taboo, and impossible to put down. * Malachi and Olivia: Complex, broken, and so real. I felt everything with them. * The emotion: The tension, the angst, the heartbreak, it all hit hard. * Leigh Rivers’ writing: Sharp, addictive, and full of feeling. What I Didn’t Love * Literally nothing. Not one single thing. Final Thoughts Little Stranger is not your typical dark romance. It’s way deeper, way dirtier, and way more emotional than I expected. It’s uncomfortable in all the right ways and beautiful in the most unexpected ones. Should I be slightly ashamed of how much I loved it? Maybe. Am I? Absolutely not. This book is dark, filthy, and totally unhinged and I devoured every damn page.

3.5 (rounded up to 4) Little Stranger is a fast paced dark romance that I quite enjoyed. It didn’t take me long to read it. The story follows foster siblings (they’re not actually related) Olivia and Malachi although they don’t actually act like siblings. This is the first part of The Web Of Silence Duet and must be read in order. There are trigger warnings with this one so take heed of them. I liked Olivia but I found her character to be very naive and I felt that she manipulated Malachi. I didn’t like the way she either wouldn’t or couldn’t stand up to her parents who are just the worst. Malachi is hot and an absolute psychopath but at least he’s honest about it. He’s so dark, intense, unhinged and is utterly obsessed with Olivia, he has been since the moment they met as kids. The chemistry between them is intense and quite literally burns through the pages. Overall an intense and crazy ride that I recommend if you like your romances dark. I’m looking forward to reading part 2 especially after the ending of this one.

Hmmm..... Was this book spicy AF? Yes. Was it a good read? I'm not sure. I loved the characters but just felt the story didn't have much actual substance to it. if you have other dark romances on your tbr list, keep this for when your in a reading slump. Don't rush to read it.

*spoiler free review* olivia and malachi 100% won me over from reading their story literally in the first few pages,their story is so captivating & yet so deliciously dark,so morally grey and defintely V TABOO😈🌶️ this is my first of leigh's book & her writing style is truly incredible,there is just something about it,her dual pov & style with the internal dialogue does something to me!! malachi is mute so he doesn't nesscarily 'speak' per say but yet leigh captured his words & internal dialogue perfectly,it truly feels like he is actually talking to you when you read his parts!! & well he does speak towards the end.. that's all im saying.. it will have you kicking your feet like crazy! i fully was like all the emotions.. flushed & sweating like crazy reading the spice in this book🥹😈🌶️ there is many taboo areas of this book - it's M/F and you only really hear the MC's and no 'extras' which i love.. malachi is devilishly dark & delicious and so morally grey it's crazy! some of the spice scenes are up there leaving you like 😏😟🤨🫢🥵 & if you've read the book all imma say is 🕷️ & 🪛 there is some triggering pieces in this so please read your triggers before diving in,uo there in dark romance i'd say this is pretty dark but dark does mean different things to different people!! overall rating - 5⭐️ spice - 🌶️🌶️🌶️ chemistry & writing style sorta rating - chemistry is 5⭐️ i feel like the characters truly are so special & writing style is delicious! love leigh's writing!! i truly think this will be a favourite of mine for a very long time and in my head.. nobody has knocked malachi off the top spot.. and the audio🥵🌶️ oh & the little extra added bonuses of malachi's bonus pov at the end.. a suprise i LOVED! i have the old little stranger that is now out of print & the new one which is BEAUTIFUL! the pictures don't do it justice!!🕷️🪛😈🌶️🌟🖤 little liar is coming v soon & i can't wait to read more of olivia & malachi & leigh's books.. well imma buy every single one!!🫶🏻

I was completely and wholeheartedly hooked. The moment I met Malachi, I fell in love with his character and what surprised me was when you see who the real villain was. It was spicy, it was intense but it beautifully wrecked me in ways thats hard to describe. My heart went out to both main characters however Olivia did malachi dirty in a lot of ways and I was trying to make up reasons for her but in the end I was satisfied either way. There are many books that are overhyped but doesnt love up to its name but this one? Brilliant absolute star. Go and read this duet.

Best experience of a taboo book ever the amount of faces I made with this book around people made them look at me like I am crazy this was such a fun and unique idea for a dark romance

Älskar den här boken, rekommenderar starkt för de som älskar/gillar dark romance.

207 pages 📚 This book took the premise of A Dark Taboo Romance and sprinted with it full force. And I was completely okay with every moment of it. Diagnosed Psychopath Malachai is adopted into a family at 9 years old and immediately is obsessed with the other adopted child the couple has, 8 year old Olivia. Although Malachai can't talk due to the trauma he's experienced, he's able to make it known that he loves his new little sister, a little bit more than a big brother should, and would do anything for her, no matter the consequences. Definitely check the trigger warnings before you read this book 🗡 Dark, depraved, and spicy, this book, the first of a Duet, was so hot and so amazing to read, I was trying to get to the next page and the next page as fast as possible. I can't say too much without giving the plot away, but if you like dark, spicy, touch-her-and-die books, this is the one for you 🕷 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 🌶🌶🌶🌶🌶/5 The spice and depravity in this book was so 🥵🥵 Review also on Goodreads and Instagram (Court.Of.Literature) 📚✨️

Dieses Buch hat mich so sehr in seinen Bann gezogen, dass ich es innerhalb eines Tages durchgelesen habe. Die Geschichte handelt von Malachi und Olivia, zwei Adoptivgeschwistern, deren Beziehung weit über eine gewöhnliche Geschwisterlichkeit hinausgeht. Rivers schafft es meisterhaft, die Komplexität ihrer tiefen Bindung darzustellen, während beide Protagonisten mit schmerzhaften Herausforderungen und inneren Konflikten konfrontiert sind. Die eindrucksvolle Charakterzeichnung lässt den Leser tief in die Emotionen und die Gedankenwelt der beiden eintauchen, wodurch man sofort mit ihnen mitfühlt. Das Buch behandelt sensible Themen wie Verlust, Zugehörigkeit und die Suche nach Identität, und liefert dabei eine berührende Erzählung voller Hoffnung und Resilienz. Ich habe die Entwicklung von Olivia und Malachi geliebt und fand es inspirierend, wie sie gemeinsam an ihren Problemen wachsen. Insgesamt ist Little Stranger ein berührendes und packendes Buch, das den Leser auch nach dem letzten Seitenwechsel nicht loslässt. Die emotionalen Tiefen bleiben einem lange im Gedächtnis. Eine absolute Empfehlung für alle, die emotionale und tiefgründige Geschichten schätzen! TW unbedingt beachten!!

It’s taboo, it’s DARK, not the ideal to start with dark romance, but I love it no more words to express the roller coaster of emotions.