A Nightmare Among Her Shadows

by Meg Eliza

I am Evangeline.

A perfectly normal girl, leading a perfectly normal life. A perfectly crafted illusion in a failed attempt to fit in to society.

Perfect. Perfect. Perfect.

Keeping these shadows at bay is an art that I thought I had mastered.

Until him.

Dax Sinclair.
A man whose shadows danced around him to a macabre little symphony that he tried to run from.
But that darkness he tries to exorcise? I want it.
Crave it in a way that awakens a part of me I thought I’d long since buried.
But what happens when the secrets bound within those shadows are given light?
Do I feed the demons that lurk there? Or let them starve?

*ANAHS is a fast-paced, fast-burn novellette that features new characters that will appear in the Killer’s Empire world (Adris, Odessa, Rune, and Calix). It does not contain spoilers and can be read as a standalone.

101 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 29, 2025

Reviews

[Lex Mak · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you’re looking for a fast paced spicy time this is it!

I was hooked from the first page. Im usually so impatient when trying to figure out the plot but this one didn’t disappoint. The pace was perfect. I love Evangeline - I swear she has no fear, she goes for what she wants and it’s so admirable.

The perfect novella for spooky season…😈 and a surprise factor at the end.

[Flora.Ncl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I need to be careful with what I say here, because this novelette is full of secrets and I can’t ruin the surprise! But buckle up y’all, this is a wild ride!!! This is a dark and very spicy novelette, that has some very yummy tropes (somno, spitting, why choose, choking, primal play just to mention a few) but the way Meg used these tropes and played with them was so refreshing! These tropes are pretty common in dark romance, but she did a UNO reverse on one of these tropes and THAT in itself was so refreshing and unique to read. Meg has a way with words. From her debut novel, Creed, that was a given. But her writing in this one outdid everything she wrote. She plays with words, threads them together in such a poetic way. She used a particular vocabulary surrounding the word “shadow” in this novelette that had me in awe of her talent.

“𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙪𝙧𝙮 𝙢𝙮𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣 𝙝𝙞𝙢 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙠𝙚 𝙤𝙣 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚'𝙨 𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚. 𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙄 𝙘𝙖𝙣'𝙩 𝙙𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙛 𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙣'𝙩 𝙪𝙣𝙫𝙚𝙞𝙡 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙝𝙚 𝙠𝙚𝙚𝙥𝙨 𝙝𝙞𝙙𝙙𝙚𝙣 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙢𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙨.”

Another thing Meg excels at : inner monologues. Her inner monologues are always flawless. I love her dialogue and the banter she creates between the characters, but inner monologue is her thing. But there’s banter there as well, and oh my, my, so freaking good!!!

“𝙒𝙝𝙤 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙𝙨 𝙖𝙞𝙧 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙄'𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙛𝙪𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙙𝙧𝙤𝙬𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙨 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙬𝙚 𝙘𝙧𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙙 𝙥𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙨.”

Here, we follow the story of Evangeline, a seamstress and “perfectly” normal girl, who's trying to unravel the secrets of her “perfectly" sweet boyfriend, Dax.

“𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙝𝙞𝙙𝙙𝙚𝙣, 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙥 𝙚𝙙𝙜𝙚𝙨 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨𝙣'𝙩 𝙨𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙚 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮. 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙨𝙚𝙙𝙪𝙘𝙚 𝙢𝙚. 𝘿𝙧𝙖𝙬 𝙢𝙚 𝙞𝙣.”

I can't say more about these two, because it would ruin the fun. As I said, lot's of secrets 🤭 But if Evie had a song it would be “Sweet but Psycho” by Ava Max!
And Dax… Meg definitely writes the best sweet boys 🥹​
I’m gonna keep it vague and stop here. But if you want a quick read, full of spice and perfect for the spooky season, ANAHS is for you! RUN.

[Kristen (IG: books.n.snakes) · Rating 5 out of 5]

🪡𝔸 ℕ𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕞𝕒𝕣𝕖 𝔸𝕞𝕠𝕟𝕘 ℍ𝕖𝕣 𝕊𝕙𝕒𝕕𝕠𝕨𝕤🪡

“𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙖 𝙛𝙪𝙘𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙣𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙚, 𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙣’𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪?”

📖 𝗔 𝗡𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗔𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗱𝗼𝘄𝘀
✍🏼 𝗠𝗲𝗴 𝗘𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗮
#️⃣ 𝟭𝟬𝟭 𝗣𝗮𝗴𝗲𝘀
🗓️ 𝟭𝟬.𝟮𝟵.𝟮𝟱

𝗧𝗥𝗢𝗣𝗘𝗦
🔪 ꜱʜᴏʀᴛ & ꜱᴘɪᴄʏ
🔪 ᴏʙꜱᴇꜱꜱɪᴠᴇ ᴍᴍᴄ'ꜱ
🔪 ᴜɴʀᴀᴠᴇʟɪɴɢ ꜰᴍᴄ
🔪 ᴇᴠᴇʀʏᴏɴᴇ ʜᴀꜱ ꜱᴇᴄʀᴇᴛꜱ
🔪 ꜱᴏᴍɴᴏ
🔪 ꜱᴘɪᴛᴛɪɴɢ
🔪 ᴅᴠ/ᴅᴠᴘ
🔪 ᴄ*ᴄᴋᴡᴀʀᴍɪɴɢ
🔪 ᴅᴜʙ-ᴄᴏɴ
🔪 ᴄʜ*ᴋɪɴɢ

📖𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗜𝗘𝗪📖
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I loved this novelette so freaking much!!! I enjoyed how this story was set up, because it’s not like your general dark romances. ALL of the characters were harboring secrets. And I am fully aware that this is in fact a dark romances, but y’all — I was laughing so much throughout.

I won’t say anything else on this because it’s short and sweet and I don’t want to give away any spoilers, but I really enjoyed this read!

*𝘼𝙉𝘼𝙃𝙎 𝙞𝙨 𝙖 𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙠 𝙈𝙁𝙈 𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚.

[Nyx (Nikki) · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's safe to say by now, if Meg Eliza writes it, I'm gonna be reading it...

Correction - DEVOURING IT.

Whew - What. A. Ride. Being a novelette, ANAHS is obviously on the shorter side, but don't let that fool you. Meg really knows how to make every word count. Her writing always has such an impact, and Dax & Evangelines story was no different. It was just such a fun read.
Evangeline is lethal. Dax is simply delicious. Together? HAAAAAAWT. Prepare yourself for a good time. The spice was spicing, the plot was plotting, and the secrets....well I'll leave those for you to find out for yourself....

[Missi · Rating 5 out of 5]

🪡 𝐀 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐀𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐇𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐬 🪡
ᴀ ᴋɪʟʟᴇʀ’ꜱ ᴇᴍᴘɪʀᴇ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟʟᴇᴛᴛᴇ
✍🏼 ᴍᴇɢ ᴇʟɪᴢᴀ | @author.megeliza

“𝙔𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙤 𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙛𝙪𝙡 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙛𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙖𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙢𝙚.”

This was such a fun little novelette packed with secrets and spice, and let me tell you, the spice was SPICING. 🔥😮‍💨

I don’t want to spoil anything, but it definitely delivers and makes the perfect quick read to squeeze in before Halloween.

🪡ꜱʜᴏʀᴛ & ꜱᴘɪᴄʏ
🔪ᴏʙꜱᴇꜱꜱɪᴠᴇ ᴍᴍᴄ’ꜱ
🪡ᴜɴʀᴀᴠᴇʟɪɴɢ ꜰᴍᴄ
🔪ᴇᴠᴇʀʏᴏɴᴇ ʜᴀꜱ ꜱᴇᴄʀᴇᴛꜱ
🪡ꜱᴏᴍɴᴏ
🔪ꜱᴘɪᴛᴛɪɴɢ
🪡ᴅᴘ/ᴅᴠᴘ
🔪ᴄ*ᴄᴋᴡᴀʀᴍɪɴɢ
🪡ᴅᴜʙ-ᴄᴏɴ
🔪ᴄʜ*ᴋɪɴɢ
🪡ꜱɴᴏᴡʙᴀʟʟɪɴɢ

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Evangeline, Dax & 👀
Short & Spicy
MFM Dark Romance
Obsessed MMCs
Secrets
Novella

Omg Meg has done it once again!

I absolutely loved this one!

It's super short but it's sooo hot and spicy and the plot twists and revelations in this one will keep you on your toes for sure 👀

I'm purposely keeping my review vague because I don't want to give any spoilers, but just trust me when I say you need to read this one!!

[bailey · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/5 ⭐️ (rounded up)

Another stunning installment in the Meg Eliza Universe! I love how the books are starting to connect and create a bigger story outside of each individual novel. I just wish this book was longer so we got more background about Evangeline and the twins(!) to know them better. And you know I always enjoy spending as much time as possible in any book written by Meg. Anyways, once again I can’t wait until we get more!! 🖤

[ashlee ❤ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Evangeline, Dax, + Draven

-mf dark ft
-mfm (identical twins)
-hidden identity
-obsessive mmcs
-everyone has secrets

this was such a quick & spicy read but sets up so much for the rest of the series i can’t wait!! these three are freaky af!!

kinky lost:
-somno
-spitting
-dp/dvp
-cock warming
-dubcon
-choking

[Shanna Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't know how Meg does it but this novella was short, sweet, and so full of spice I couldn't contain my excitement of the plot. Just when you think you have figured it out you are thrown a new twist and things just get better and better. You can not fall in love with the main characters and let me tell you, you are not ready for just how unhinged they are and in a really, really good way. I am on pins and needles for what happens next.

This review was left pretty vague because you will need to go read The Wraith & Her Killer and then you will get it. Now go...go and read what might be the best unhinged dark romance novella this year!!!

[H.L. Munn · Rating 5 out of 5]

“You never have to hide from me. Give me the shadows you run from.”

I don’t even have words for how much I loved this story! Meg was able to create the perfect spicy novella that I’ll be able to read again and again!

And it was the perfect story to introduce Evangeline to the k✨llers Empire World

[Megan Glatt · Rating 5 out of 5]

welllll that was quite the spicy little teaser of a book 🥵

damn, I was not expecting the one surprise we got in this book but it was so EFFFFING hot I was panting. Evie and Dax, ugh heart melt. They are both dark and twisty, it was great. Shadows and secrets are revealed.

needless to say I am beyond excited for more books in this world 😍

[Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was absolutely delicious. I always know going into a Meg book how much her words grip me every time, and this little novelette was no exception. What a fun read honestly. Fast paced, spice that'll make your toes curl and MMC's thatll have you WEAK.

Evangaline is a weapon, a black cat in every sense of the word, shes feral and fiesty, and just the absolute best type of FMC.

Dax?! What a babe honestly... I loved him so much. AND HE WEARS GLASSES. PLEASE.

The plot was heavy, the spice was on point, in true Meg style.

I am SO EXCITED for whats to come for these characters.

Amazing read, Loved it.

[Megan Moser · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was fantastic!! For 101 pages I was IN IT the whole time. The spice was hot hot hot but then throw in a huge plot twist, masked men, a little chase action, and some deep dark secrets that will keep you questioning everything and voila, a delish book!

[Elizabeth Appolloni · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so damn good!! I couldn’t read it fast enough! The twists were great, the characters were perfection, the spice was HAWWWT, the story was so good!! I can’t wait for more on this universe!!

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novella did not come to play. The emotions and spice hit right from chapter one, and by the end of chapter two I was feral. Nothing is as it seems, and everyone’s hiding something. Then Meg hits you with a twist, follows it with an epic lengthy spice chapter, and somehow tops it all off with that epilogue?! Run and read this immediately. It’s the perfect quick read for us dark romancers.

[Kyra ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

𝗔 𝗡𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗔𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗱𝗼𝘄𝘀 | 𝗠𝗲𝗴 𝗘𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗮

𝙍𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
𝙎𝙥𝙞𝙘𝙚: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

𝙇𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙩𝙝: 101 pages

𝙋𝙊𝙑: First Person, Dual

𝙏𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨/𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙨:
MFM
Serial unaliver
Obsessive MMC’s
Sl*tty little glasses
Unraveling FMC
Somno
Morally grey characters

💀 𝗠𝗬 𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗜𝗘𝗪 💀

This was quick and dirty (literally) and gave me exactly what I needed. I don’t think I’ll ever love anything more than a bada** female who may or may not have huge secrets.

“𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙢𝙚. 𝙂𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙧𝙪𝙣 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢.”

When we meet Evangeline, we’re entering the middle of her story. She’s got a secret life and she’s in a relationship with Dax, who seems sweet and mild mannered (with his sl*tty little glasses) but he has secrets too. Some secrets were meant to stay hidden but these come to light in the most delicious of ways.

𝙁𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨…

I enjoyed this for the quick and spicy read it is. I loved the dynamic between these three characters and can’t wait to jump into this world some more!