“When I turn eight, I don’t get any birthday cards or a cake like the other kids in the orphanage—I sit under the bed with a drawing of my spider and imagine a crowd of people singing happy birthday to me, and we blow out candles that I draw.

I close my eyes and make a wish.

I wish someone would choose me.”

By the time Malachi is eight, his narrative voice is already different from that of his younger self—having undergone neglect and trauma, Malachi is more subdued and wistful, feeling isolated from the world of birthday cards and cakes. His wish to be chosen by a family reflects his need to belong, one of the reasons why he develops such a quick, close relationship with Olivia.

“‘I told you not to be trouble!’ he yells at her, and I want to stamp my foot and tell him to back off, but then he turns to me. ‘And you. You’re on a strike, little man. Two more, and your ass is going to another new home. You’re Malachi Vize now, and the Vizes don’t step out of line, so get used to it.’

He’s not sending me back? He’s giving me another chance? I can stay?”

While these lines foreshadow the conflict between Jamieson and Malachi, they also contain the seeds of the reunion between the two. Jamieson may be scolding Malachi for walking off with Olivia, but in the same breath, he reminds Malachi that he is a Vize, a permanent part of the family. Malachi notices this, which is why the most important takeaway for him is that he is not being sent back. Malachi’s understanding foreshadows the novel’s end, in which he and Jamieson repair their relationship.

“I can’t stop looking at her. I haven’t felt this content since I had Rex, before he was taken from me.

She won’t be taken from me. I’ll make sure of it…

Olivia.

My new little sister. I couldn’t protect my mom or Rex, but I think I could protect her.

I will protect her.

Because she’s mine.”

Malachi’s narrative is often arranged as short, declarative lines to reflect his singularly focused, decisive state of mind. The passage also provides a glimpse of the reason why Malachi becomes so attached to Olivia. He sees her as someone whose love and purity will save him, as well as the person he must protect to make up for not being able to protect his mother and Rex.

“There’s a boundary that society created, stopping me from falling in love with my sister, and I want to tear that boundary to fucking shreds and keep her. I’ll set fire to it and everyone who stands in my way.”

For Malachi, the taboo around dating Olivia, his adoptive sister, is a meaningless social boundary. Ignoring or destroying this taboo becomes a way of asserting his selfhood. Further, these lines show Malachi’s violent tendencies through his assertion that he will tear the boundary apart and set it on fire; further, he broadens the threat to include not just societal mores but also people who might try to uphold them, illustrating that he is willing to perform violence on people who stand in his way.

“A fist misses me by an inch, and the guy squeals like a pig as I shove the handle of my bat down his throat, jerking it to break his jaw in several places.

Warm blood splatters over my face and down my clothes. He vomits crimson on the floor by my feet, mixed with cries and snot. If he doesn’t get to a hospital right away, he’s screwed. I don’t care enough right now to bother with the repercussions of my actions. They were going to hurt her, so I’m going to make sure they never even breathe in the same direction as her again.”

This passage is an example of the text’s use of graphic violence to build thrill and tension in the plot. Though the violence is extreme, Malachi frames it as righteous since he is beating someone who intended to rape Olivia. Throughout the novel, Malachi’s violence is often framed as extreme but justified; coupled with The Impact of Past Trauma on Present Behaviors, the narrative rationalizes and contextualizes Malachi’s behavior so that his character still fits the parameters of a dark romance hero.

“Because I can’t talk? Because I can’t tell you how fucking breathtaking you are every second of every day? Because I can’t breathe without being near you? Someone like me…I’m different—I can’t be normal for you. I can’t defend you without using my fists or my bat, and I can’t touch you at the same time as telling you that you’re everything to me. I can’t whisper sweet nothings into your mouth, and I can’t fucking marry you because not only am I your brother, but I’m defective.”

While Malachi often tells Olivia that he is incapable of being soft or romantic, the heartfelt confession he signs to Olivia proves that he can be the impassioned romantic hero when required. After Olivia tells Malachi that she hates him for having sex with Anna, Malachi asks her if the hate arises from his inability to form words and fit in with society. Malachi’s speech again works to balance his violent actions by offering insight into his emotional state.

“He launches himself at me, and everything I’ve been holding in erupts from my mind—like a dark storm soaking me in nothing but evil…

The second my fist drives into my dad’s face, I feel it happen. The mental slip. The void drawing me in. I try to stop hitting him, but I can’t. I want to tell him that he needs to get the fuck away from me, that I can’t control the darkness taking over me, to shoot me if he can…

But then…

Everything within me snaps completely.

The void in my mind grows.

Dragging me down until I’m trapped.”

Malachi’s description of hitting Jamieson repeatedly shows that he dissociates during the violence, slipping into an automaton-like state. The words he uses to describe this state—“dark storm,” “void,” and “mental slip”—indicate the all-consuming nature of his altered mental state. Unable to cope with his violent emotions, Malachi cracks under the pressure in a moment that will have profound repercussions on his life.

“Olivia really is in my bed, clinging to me like I’m going to disappear. She’s not running from me. No parents are knocking at the door and making us break away and hide. Society isn’t keeping us apart and telling us it’s wrong to be together. We’re just two adults, cuddling, happy, and I’m fucking terrified something bad is going to happen, putting an end to the joy I feel swelling in my chest.

I want to be happy so fucking much, but I don’t know how to be.”

Malachi’s fear of losing Olivia is so great that he cannot be happy even after her return to him. Though he is overjoyed that she is with him, her presence also means that he again has everything to lose. The description of Malachi’s complicated emotions adds psychological realism to the tropes of dark romance to deepen his characterization.

“We’ve never dated. We’ve never tested whether we’re compatible. What if we’re trauma bonding? Two adopted siblings with shitty backgrounds, forced to grow up together. What if you don’t really love me and we’ve just been latching on to one another since we were kids?”

Olivia’s sharp and insightful observations here show her self-awareness. Realizing that part of her closeness with Malachi could be due to circumstances, she wants to test their relationship by placing it under the pressure of a regular date. Her comments illustrate her own developing understanding of the impact of past trauma on present behavior.

“She flattens her lips and looks away. ‘Every date I’ve been on has been arranged by Mom. I’ve never had any control. If I said no, she threw it in my face that I owed her for saving me. She even forced me to have a boyfriend while you were locked up…I’m not asking to end things. I just want to go back to the start. Not as Malachi and Olivia Vize, two people who ended up falling for each other. I want to be Malachi and Olivia, two people who have chemistry and compatibility and love and everything we missed growing up.’”

Asking Malachi for a date is Olivia’s way of asserting her agency, developing the theme of The Dynamics of Power and Control in Relationships. Not only have her dates been arranged by Jennifer, but Malachi has also imposed his vision of their relationship on Olivia. Malachi sees their relationship as destined and primal, something beyond the “regular” ritual of a date. However, Olivia reminds him that she wants to build a fresh version of their relationship, based on healthier values.

“Malachi’s arms are tight around my waist while I stare into the mirror and apply mascara to my lashes. The side of his face is pressed to my back while I sit between his parted legs. I keep thinking he’s fallen asleep, but then he tightens around me some more and groans with moodiness.

His fingers play with the waistband of the sleep shorts I threw on after the shower because apparently sitting in a towel makes him feral. I slap his hand away when he tries to slide it between my legs. He lifts his head to glare at me in the mirror from over my shoulder.

‘Learn to be told no.’

He sighs and buries his head into my back again. ‘You don’t love me.’”

This passage is an example of how the dark romance genre pushes the boundary between loving and toxic behavior. While Malachi’s clinginess and passion toward Olivia is portrayed as sweet in a fictional context, in a real-world scenario, they could be problematic. Malachi makes Olivia late for work, touches her sexually when she does not want him, and considers her “no” a rejection.

My delusional self knew, deep down, that it was Malachi.

It excited me.

[…] I still have his initials burned into my skin. He kisses them when his mouth travels down over my breasts, on his way between my legs to fuck me with his tongue.

He won’t apologize for the burns. It’s his way of claiming me. A brand that tells everyone who I belong to.

And I belong to Malachi Vize.

As this passage indicates, Olivia and Malachi’s dynamic features elements of BDSM (bondage, domination, sadism, and masochism), but sometimes without the explicit consent that must accompany such a scenario. Olivia notes that Malachi abducted, chained, and tortured her without her prior approval or even her knowledge that he was her kidnapper. Though she asserts that she enjoyed the actions on some level, her admission does not resolve the problematic nature of what Malachi did. With situations like these, the novel engages in what is known in dark romance fiction as “dubious consent,” a space in which rape or assault are presented as more of a gray area in their fictional context.

“I blink, staring at myself in the mirror. I should stop calling him that too. We aren’t siblings anymore. We’re boyfriend and girlfriend. I know he likes it though, and a depraved part of me does too. Does that make us sick to crave such a taboo and forbidden connection?

When he’s inside me, and I call his name, he groans and fucks me faster, but when I call him my big brother? He grows within me, thicker, longer, pulsing against my sweet spot while we both find our release.”

Olivia’s lines show the complicated workings of her taboo-related kink. Though she knows she shouldn’t think of herself and Malachi as siblings, she admits that the conflation between siblings and lovers excites her as well. The sibling kink allows her and Malachi to express the dual aspects of their relationship and also gives them the thrill of breaking societal norms, developing the theme of The Ethics of Taboo Romance.

“She was the perfect mother growing up. The mom I always wanted. Needed. But when she first mentioned to me that it was perfectly normal for rich families to marry other rich families to combine their wealth, she told me I’d be marrying a prince, and I’d be treated like a princess.”

Olivia’s realization that the fairytale Jennifer fed her when she was growing up is a nightmare is crucial for her growth as a person. Understanding that the fairy tale was a cover for a forced, degrading arrangement makes Olivia realize that she has to create her own version of a romance, however flawed it may seem. Olivia’s character arc involves developing healthy boundaries with her mother, a process that begins with realizations like these.

“‘You took me from one abusive home and put me into another!’

Her eyes go wide, choking on her next word. ‘Abusive? The only abuse you went through was from your brother.’

‘I was sixteen,’ I say, trying to stay as calm as possible. My body is shaking. I don’t want to hurt her feelings. She’s done so much for me. Gave me a better life, but this I cannot do. ‘I was sixteen when you started forcing me to sleep with people who were older than me. You would do my hair and put makeup on me, tell me to shave. When I got my period, you were excited, not because I was becoming a woman, but because you saw dollar signs. You could finally marry me off.’”

An example of the text’s use of psychological realism, this conversation between Olivia and Jennifer captures Jennifer’s manipulative tactics. Jennifer first tries to make Olivia feel indebted to her for adopting her and then denies the reality of her grooming and abuse. This passage also draws attention to the fact that abuse comes in many forms: Jennifer may not have abused Olivia physically, but she has groomed and trafficked her.

“Did I choose my obsession with my sister over a loving family? I made them the way they are. Dad hates me because of me. Mom hates me because of me. We’re broken because of me. Olivia is going to leave me because of me…

Olivia might realize she can do way better than me—I’m an ex-convict, jobless, can barely speak, not to mention the backlash from our parents. Has she told her friends about us? Is she embarrassed by me?

Fuck, my head hurts thinking about this constantly.”

Malachi’s circular thoughts during speech therapy show how he has yet to make peace with his past and present; though he does not yet know it, his unease also arises from the fact that he is estranged from the larger Vize family. It is only when he forms relationships with Jamieson and Molly that he can fully relax into his life with Olivia.

“I’m going to destroy his face, so all the girls I’ve seen him partying with online will be terrified of him. I’ll carve my initials into his skin, stick his cock in acid, and then I’ll feed his brother his half-melted balls and slap him across the face with Xander’s liver.”

While Malachi sounds perplexed when engaging in introspection, his voice becomes surer and more declarative when focused on violence. This confidence indicates that Malachi instinctively goes to violence as the first answer because it gives him a clear direction and plan of action. Imagining torturing Xander helps Malachi feel like he has control over a spiraling situation.

“While Olivia still talks on the phone—to Abigail I think—I push Molly from my left to my right when I realize she’s walking on the curb side. It’s an automatic thing I always do with Olivia. For some reason, I feel uncomfortable having Molly close to the busy road. One swerving car could hurt her.”

As the novel enters its last third, the signs of Malachi’s redemption start becoming clearer. One of these signs is his protectiveness toward Molly, whom he was convinced he would never like. Here, he instantly places Molly in the same inner circle as Olivia, showing that he is capable of love, especially for people he considers family.

“Clear as day, he speaks. ‘I’m your partner. Your lover. Your brother. Your everything, Olivia.’ Then he lifts his slightly stained hands to sign, But what you are to me is something more than any words can explain. If someone found a way to remove you from existence, I would burn the world before making sure my soul found yours in the afterlife.”

Malachi’s clear oral speech constitutes a breakthrough moment, even if he reverts to signing in the next sentence. The impassioned lines are delivered in Malachi’s usual extreme language, with his love for Olivia framed as embattled by the world and existential threats. Malachi’s growth along his character arc is shown in this passage as he articulates intimate and vulnerable emotions, although his indication that he would “burn the world” shows that he still thinks in violent terms.

“‘A little time? My son has been in a coma for three weeks after being shot in the goddamn chest! This is the first sign of life he’s had and you’re telling us to leave the room?’

Eight years ago, he was the one in a hospital bed. I wasn’t with him; I was behind bars for putting him there. I hurt him, and he shouldn’t be here with me now, trying to make me wake up.

Yet here he is, his hand still on my face, refusing to leave my side.

Did I wake up in a different body? Does he know I’m Malachi?”

Illustrating the power of forgiveness, this full-circle moment between Jamieson and Malachi signals a peaceful resolution for most of the Vizes. While Jamieson’s protectiveness toward him may seem sudden to Malachi, it was foreshadowed early on in the novel when Jamieson stayed with Malachi in the forest during his panic attack.

“‘I’m taking the car.’ Base points to the car I just fucked my sister in. ‘It’s faster than mine. There better not be any leftover incesty sex juice in the backseat, Kai.’”

A late addition to the novel, Sebastien’s character infuses irreverent humor into the novel’s tense climax. Olivia and Malachi’s inability to stop themselves from having sex after being reunited is a dark romance trope, but Sebastien’s concern about his seats getting dirty brings the narrative back to the realm of normal life.

“Malachi’s speech has come on, but me, Isaac, Molly, and sometimes our dad are the only ones who get to hear his voice. Not because he struggles with others, but because not having a voice was his way of protecting himself, so it’s saved purely for the ones who mean the most to him.”

Olivia’s observation unpacks the text’s key symbol of silence. Malachi’s silence, as well as his refusal to sign, is a symbol of self-defense and protectiveness; he uses his verbal and physical silence to shut out a world bound to misunderstand him. The fact that Malachi feels comfortable sharing his voice with more people now indicates that his walls have lowered since the beginning of the novel.

“He said if he was going to become a father, the kid needed the best version of himself, and he thought no one had ever met that person. But he was wrong. No one truly has a ‘best’ version of themselves—it’s just one of life’s learning curves, a feeling, an emotion, and Malachi is overflowing with them.”

Highlighting the important motif of father-son relationships, this passage shows how being a good father to Isaac repairs Malachi’s relationship with his own self. Olivia astutely notes that no one can really become the best version of themselves, but the desire to be this version itself triggers transformation. Her statement also illustrates her confidence in Malachi’s ability to connect with his son; though he may seem withdrawn and reserved to others, she understands the deep emotion he feels.