Tuesday Review: Little Stranger and Little Liar by Leigh Rivers

Little Stranger:

OWNING HER IS ALL HE EVER WANTED

She betrayed him, and now he wants revenge against the foster sister who became his forbidden obsession the second he laid eyes on her. After she sends him to prison for years, he’s free and ready to haunt her.

Everything about Olivia belongs to Malachi Vize.

Her mind

Her body

Her soul

Her fear

Her pain

On Halloween night, he can no longer lurk in the shadows. All he has left to own is her heart, even if he needs to take it.

Little Liar:

Malachi Vize has always had one desire in life.

One goal. One deep obsession he could never give up on.

His foster sister Olivia.

For the first time, she’s chosen him over the entire world, and he intends to keep her in his firm grasp forever – but his happiness is soon shattered by powerful enemies who want to claim Olivia for themselves.

He had her.

But then he lost her.

Wounded and still wrestling with his own demons, Malachi is forced into unexpected alliances to hunt them down, but he won’t stop fighting until he gets her back.

No matter what it takes.

I don’t even know how to rate this one. The Web of Silence Duet is twisted, unholy, chaotic, and somehow still completely addictive. I was confused half the time, disturbed the other half, and yet I couldn’t stop reading. It’s the kind of book that makes you want to schedule a therapy appointment when you’re done.

The story kept me engaged, but the writing was all over the place. The pacing swung wildly, the tone shifted constantly, and there were definitely more plot holes than plotlines. Still, for all its chaos, it hooked me enough to see it through. Leigh Rivers knows how to create atmosphere and tension, even when the story makes zero sense.

The first half was fine, nothing special, but it set the tone. I really could have done without an entire recap of book one from Malachi’s POV though. It felt repetitive and dragged on way too long. The second half, though, that’s where things picked up. It was sick, twisted, and completely taboo, but also weirdly entertaining. I’m not proud to admit it, but I did have fun. I’m going to hell, and that’s fine.

Malachi, as always, is an absolute menace. Psychotic, obsessive, and yet somehow soft and broken in a way that makes you ache for him. I fear he has me in a chokehold. He’s one of those characters who should be irredeemable, but you can’t help rooting for anyway. My heart hurt for him, even when I was screaming “what are you doing?” every few pages.

Honestly, the best part of this duet was the Tobias and Base crumbs from The Edge of Darkness trilogy. Every time they showed up, I was giggling and kicking my feet. They completely stole the spotlight and made me a million times more feral for their upcoming books.

I will say that most people I know who loved this duet listened to the audiobook version. I read the ebook, and I think that’s where I went wrong. Had I gone the audio route, with all the intensity and atmosphere that brings, I probably would have enjoyed it more.

In the end, this series is nothing if not memorable. It’s messy, dark, and unhinged, but it owns every bit of that chaos.