M. L. Rio

Oliver Marks has just served ten years for the murder of one of his closest friends - a murder he may or may not have committed. On the day he's released, he's greeted by the detective who put him in prison. Detective Colborne is retiring, but before he does, he wants to know what really happened ten years ago. As a young actor studying Shakespeare at an elite arts conservatory, Oliver noticed that his talented classmates seem to play the same roles onstage and off - villain, hero, tyrant, temptress - though Oliver felt doomed to always be a secondary character in someone else's story. But when the teachers change up the casting, a good-natured rivalry turns ugly, and the plays spill dangerously over into life. When tragedy strikes, one of the seven friends is found dead. The rest face their greatest acting challenge yet: convincing the police, and themselves, that they are blameless.

If We Were Villains

Entreated to tell his side of the story to a detective who put him in prison a decade earlier for a murder he may not have committed, Oliver Marks describes his past as a Shakespearean actor in college whose rivalry with a castmate escalated in dangerous ways.

A Novel

hana

Nothing about her had ever seemed simple, but she was, then. Simple and close and beautiful. A little tousled, a little damaged. 

"I think you understand it perfectly. Nothing makes sense to him either. His whole world is falling apart, and once he realizes he can't stop it or fix it or change it, there's only one thing left to do.” 

My eyes adjusted slowly, maddeningly. “What’s that?”

His shadow shrugged in the gloom. “Absolve yourself, blame it on fate.”

Izzy 

“He was as much a bully in death as he was in life, a giant who left behind not an empty space so much as a black hole, a huge crushing void that swallowed up all of our comforts, sooner or later.“

 Whatever we did-or, more crucially, did not do-it seemed that so long as we did it together, our individual sins might be abated. 

I am all too aware of my own desperate need to find a message in the madness, and as it takes shape I am suspicious, afraid to hope.

The whole truth is, I'm in love with him still.

"I never wanted you to look at me the way you're looking at me right now."

"I don't know, it's like I look at you and suddenly the sonnets make sense. The good ones, anyway."

"A good Shakespearean actor— a good actor of any stripe, really— doesn't just 

 them. We felt all the passions of the characters we played as if they were our own. But a character's emotions don't cancel out the actor's— instead you feel both at once. Imagine having all your own thoughts and feelings tangled up with all the thoughts and feelings of a whole other person. It can be hard, sometimes, to sort out which is which."

That strange possessive pride washed over me again. Everyone in the room was watching James— how could they not?— but I was the only one who really knew him, every inch.

I wanted to hug her, squeeze her hand, something— but as a family, we'd never been so physically demonstrative, and I was afraid she'd find it strange.

I was seized by the strange unfounded idea that she was debating whether or not to say 

. But the difference between us was that she assumed people just knew those sorts of things, while I was always worried that they didn't.

Nothing mattered much after that morning. Our two souls— if not all six— were forfeit.

But what was her weakness for me, tame and inconsequential as I was? A thing of mystery.

One thing I'm sure Colbourne will never understand is that inneed language to live, like food— lexemes and morphemes and morsels of meaning nourish me with the knowledge that, yes, there is a word for this. Someone else has felt it before.

"God bless the filthy hedonist. Where is he now?"

"On the dance floor," I said, "prowling for first-years who don't know they're gay yet."

James: "You're both of you going to hell."

How could we explain that standing on a stage and speaking someone else's words as if they are your own is less an act of bravery than a desperate lunge at mutual understanding? An attempt to forge that tenuous link between speaker and listener and communicate something, anything, of substance. 

"You know," James said, "for a boy who likes other boys, you provide a lot of heterosexual commentary."

I looked sideways at him. "Anything interesting?"

He gave me a quick once-over and said, "Oh, you have 

"There was so much innuendo in that sentence I don't even know where to start."

Previously, I'd thought of myself as attractive only in a forgettable, inoffensive way—

Actors are by nature volatile—alchemical creatures composed of incendiary elements, emotion and ego and envy. Heat them up, stir them together, and sometimes you get gold. Sometimes disaster.

I stole furtive glanced at my classmates as they wrote and listened and occasionally posed questions, struck by how lucky I was to be among them.

rating 4 dulu. ⚠️⚠️⚠️ insya Allah ini spoiler free review (not really a review karena ini bakalan kayak gw yapping experience gw baca buku ini).

first two act, gw sangat suka world buildingnya. ditambah di akhir act selalu ada tension yg bikin gw mau baca part setelahnya!!! awalnya gw pikir bakalan dnf ini buku karena banyak bgt shakespeare references dan gw kagak ngerti apa apa (ditambah bahasanya susah bgt brengsek), tapi lama lama ngerti ngerti aja karena quote yang dipake kadang berhubungan sm apa yg mereka lakuin/obrolin saat itu. TP TETEP AJA YA NAMANYA JG PEMALAS ada kalanya kayak mereka quote shakespeare/reenact shakespear play trs gw baca (obviously not understanding a single shit and wtv was going on) trs kayak YAUDAH gt ok cukup tau aj. tp kalo kayak gt apa YANG GW PAHAM!!! cerita mereka seputar itu, ended up ke chatgpt trs baca rangkuman acts dan tiap scenenya (sedikit membantu walaupun nggak paham sepenuhnya)

lanjut ke act III dmn gw udh mulai bisa adaptasi sm penulisan dan segala shakespeare references tsb. di act III banyak bgt yg terjadi (babak paling panjang jg) tp kagak ada yg resep gt adegannya di gw 😭😭😭 ini jadi babak yg paling membosankan (hufttt). act IV super forgettable (pendek dan flat bgt) dan act V lumayan shocking DAN SGT SEDIH (gak nangis tp tetep SEDIH). 

walaupun sinopsis ini novel nunjukin hint adanya murder mystery (jg yg bikin gw baca ni buku) tp main pointnya bukan itu, malah ini cuma jd kayak latarnya aja. main point di buku ini mostly ttg keadaan karakter-karakter ini setelah kematian salah satu temen deket mereka (bukan spoiler) (ada di sinopsis), their inner conflict and how their friendship (and them) is slowly falling apart. yang gw sayangkan, gw nggak begitu bisa merasakan jalinan persahabatan mereka (BAHASA GW). tp gw apresiasi, ini kayaknya jadi satu satunya buku yg gw baca di tahun ini dmn gw grow fond of the characters (nggak semuanya, tp biasanya di buku buku lain gw ke karakternya YAUDAH AJA) mungkin karena pacenya slow dan ceritanya lebih fokus ke karakter dibandingkan alur. 

i left so many tabs and highlights karena gw kayaknya bakal baca lagi to understand it better. sementara masih gw rating 4 dan mungkin berpontensi jadi 5 kl gw baca lagi dan lebih ngerti banyak, karena jujur baca ini SGT FUN walaupun susah, gw jd banyak belajar jg ttg englit. yah udh gt aja bingung jg gw mau nulis apa lg

rating 4 dulu. ⚠️⚠️⚠️ insya Allah ini spoiler free review (not really a review karena ini bakalan kayak gw yapping experience gw baca buku ini).

first two act, gw sangat suka world buildingnya. ditambah di akhir act selalu ada tension yg bikin gw mau baca part setelahnya!!! awalnya gw pikir bakalan dnf ini buku karena banyak bgt shakespeare references dan gw kagak ngerti apa apa (ditambah bahasanya susah bgt brengsek), tapi lama lama ngerti ngerti aja karena quote yang dipake kadang berhubungan sm apa yg mereka lakuin/obrolin saat itu. TP TETEP AJA YA NAMANYA JG PEMALAS ada kalanya kayak mereka quote shakespeare/reenact shakespear play trs gw baca (obviously not understanding a single shit and wtv was going on) trs kayak YAUDAH gt ok cukup tau aj. tp kalo kayak gt apa YANG GW PAHAM!!! cerita mereka seputar itu, ended up ke chatgpt trs baca rangkuman acts dan tiap scenenya (sedikit membantu walaupun nggak paham sepenuhnya)

lanjut ke act III dmn gw udh mulai bisa adaptasi sm penulisan dan segala shakespeare references tsb. di act III banyak bgt yg terjadi (babak paling panjang jg) tp kagak ada yg resep gt adegannya di gw 😭😭😭 ini jadi babak yg paling membosankan (hufttt). act IV super forgettable (pendek dan flat bgt) dan act V lumayan shocking DAN SGT SEDIH (gak nangis tp tetep SEDIH). 

walaupun sinopsis ini novel nunjukin hint adanya murder mystery (jg yg bikin gw baca ni buku) tp main pointnya bukan itu, malah ini cuma jd kayak latarnya aja. main point di buku ini mostly ttg keadaan karakter-karakter ini setelah kematian salah satu temen deket mereka (bukan spoiler) (ada di sinopsis), their inner conflict and how their friendship (and them) is slowly falling apart. yang gw sayangkan, gw nggak begitu bisa merasakan jalinan persahabatan mereka (BAHASA GW). tp gw apresiasi, ini kayaknya jadi satu satunya buku yg gw baca di tahun ini dmn gw grow fond of the characters (nggak semuanya, tp biasanya di buku buku lain gw ke karakternya YAUDAH AJA) mungkin karena pacenya slow dan ceritanya lebih fokus ke karakter dibandingkan alur. 

i left so many tabs and highlights karena gw kayaknya bakal baca lagi to understand it better. sementara masih gw rating 4 dan mungkin berpontensi jadi 5 kl gw baca lagi dan lebih ngerti banyak, karena jujur baca ini SGT FUN walaupun susah, gw jd banyak belajar jg ttg englit. yah udh gt aja bingung jg gw mau nulis apa lg

Welcome to October and Welcome to the month of trying to read the books that fit the season a little better than the summer romance and what a book to kick start October then with a book that pulled me in and kept me guessing throughout! This is a book that has bene on my TBR for several years and I always get close to picking this one up but never got there but I finally decided that 2024 was the year to do it. 

A small elite school, a theatre program that is only about Shakespeare, seven friends, seniors, together from the beginning, strong, intense friendships formed. Oliver, our narrator, one of the seven, just released from spending tempers in prison. How did something so special, so promising, go so wrong?

Despite not being the biggest fan of Shakespeare as I always struggle with the language it was lovely to enjoy this one alongside the Shakespeare and truly this is a novel about love, obsession, friendship passion and betrayal. This group of people becomes more important to each other than their real families, than the real world. Shakespeare takes over their lives, the plays they perform, always having to be on, the intense study, rehearsals, they even speak to each other in Shakespearean quotes.

The Author does an awesome job at weaving al the quote into the book and often provided clues and foreshadowing into what has happened and I despite not getting each of the clues I was still able to enjoy the book and just get lost in this Dark Academia book.

Ian Brakspear

Welcome to October and Welcome to the month of trying to read the books that fit the season a little better than the summer romance and what a book to kick start October then with a book that pulled me in and kept me guessing throughout! This is a book that has bene on my TBR for several years and I always get close to picking this one up but never got there but I finally decided that 2024 was the year to do it. 

A small elite school, a theatre program that is only about Shakespeare, seven friends, seniors, together from the beginning, strong, intense friendships formed. Oliver, our narrator, one of the seven, just released from spending tempers in prison. How did something so special, so promising, go so wrong?

Despite not being the biggest fan of Shakespeare as I always struggle with the language it was lovely to enjoy this one alongside the Shakespeare and truly this is a novel about love, obsession, friendship passion and betrayal. This group of people becomes more important to each other than their real families, than the real world. Shakespeare takes over their lives, the plays they perform, always having to be on, the intense study, rehearsals, they even speak to each other in Shakespearean quotes.

 

The Author does an awesome job at weaving al the quote into the book and often provided clues and foreshadowing into what has happened and I despite not getting each of the clues I was still able to enjoy the book and just get lost in this Dark Academia book.

River 

I just felt so empty as Oliver as he found out about James "passing", after finishing If We Were Villains. 

The characters were so well written and i just fell in love with every single one of them. (Tho James my boy owned my heart the most xD) 

Nate Mason

I just felt so empty as Oliver as he found out about James "passing", after finishing If We Were Villains. 

The characters were so well written and i just fell in love with every single one of them. (Tho James my boy owned my heart the most xD) 

These mad, mad method actors. Thoroughly enjoyed this one,

Note to self: you found Alexander and James basically interchangeable until maybe the 300-pagd mark.

These mad, mad method actors. Thoroughly enjoyed this one,

Note to self: you found Alexander and James basically interchangeable until maybe the 300-pagd mark.

 

** spoiler alert **
           *enter the players

As a stage manager in my school i fell in love on how the character narrates the story and the use of "scenes" as a chapter of the book. 

As I was reading it, i knew that each characters has their own dark secrets. I was building my own theory, who is the killer among the 6 characters. I was getting scared as the story goes. Since Richard died, the 4th years ecperienced a lot of things, you can really sense their secrets and that they're scared that somebody may find out. And my theory was right that James killed Richard that night but I was shocked that Filippa knew what happened. 

Love, lies and regrets. The ending is so heart breaking, that i felt sorry and sad for Oliver... it's a tragic story 33

*exeunt omnes

I have not had a book keep me on the edge of my seat in an anxious, yet desperate to know what happens next, way ever before. The way the narrative grips you from moment one of introductions to the ensemble cast, to you slowly discovering something deeply personal to the perspective character along side him, is so uniquely genius. I will immediately devour any thing else this author publishes in the future. LOVED IT

Ghofran Mustafa 

I always expect more and end up being disappointed..

On the day Oliver Marks is released from jail, the man who put him there is waiting at the door. Detective Colborne wants to know the thruth, and after ten years, Olver is finally ready to tell it. 
A decade ago: Oliver is one of seven young Shakespearean actors at Dellecher Classical Conservatory, a place of keen ambition and fierce competition. In this secluded world of firelight and leather-bound books, Oliver and his friends play the same roles onstage and off: hero, villain, tyrant, temptress, ingénue, extra.
But in their fourth and final year, good-natured rivalries turn ugly, and on opening night real violence invades the students' world of make-believe. In the morning, the fourth-years find themselves facing their very own tragedy, and their greatest acting challenge yet: convince the police, each other, and themselves that they are innocent.

Kiran Aftab

4.5/5 i really skipped over all of the shakespeare quotes but that shit was INTENSE

prawnie

I don’t think they were awards to even justify how I feel about this book. A masterpiece.

Andrea Morales

okay it's been a few days here are my thoughts (spoilers ahead though they're kinda vague)

as a 'the secret history' stan, I was very excited to read this book since I'd heard it's similar to donna tartt's novel and had amazing reviews.
but, sadly, as doja cat infamously proclaimed: 
"it was supposed to give, but it did not give what needed to be gave to the highest of giving."

maybe it was a mistake to compare it to tsh, maybe it's just not as good. 
i did like some of the characters (shout out to Wren and James), but the rest of the cast (including them, to some extent) felt stereotypical and shallow, they really were just as deep as an archetype can be. 
the constant shakespeare quoting was fun at first but got old real quick, and unless you have an extensive knowledge of shakespearean plays and texts, you'll miss quite a lot of stuff that could make the book interesting. 

also SLIGHT SPOILERS AHEAD but if the endgame relationship was going to be James and Oliver, I think they did Meredith specially dirty since they didn't really give her any substantial development beyond being someone's romantic interest. also the CONSTANT remarks of her body made me super uncomfortable, poor girl. 
the biggest thing that really put me off was the lack of regret or real consequences after the murder. yes, they did spiral into some kind of chaos in the aftermath, but the lack of remorse made the whole murder feel pointless?? like yes they died and that was it, no one felt particularly bad about killing them and it really annoyed me.

I do want to talk about what I did enjoy, the scenes where they were acting on stage were some of the best moments in the book (the romeo and juliet scene... if yk yk). some of the interactions between the main characters were really heart warming, and the 'two best friends in a room they might kiss' between J and O was chef's kiss. 

in a nutshell, this book is like the less cooler and slighly annoying younger sibling of 'the secret history', and though it had some truly great moments, I'd have to read it again and see if I like it better after I become a shakespeare stan.

This one is for us, pretentious girls, I'm so serious.

"For someone who loved words as much as I did, it was amazing how often they failed me."

follows the story of seven Shakespearean fanatics. You can't blame me for calling them fanatics! They lived Shakespeare, they breathed Shakespeare. And they preferred each other's company over the world. Well, at least, in the beginning.

I hate this book actually. This book tore me apart and I suffered through the entirety. Truly a page turner. The plot was immaculate, the writing wonderful and the characters so deeply flawed you know they're going down and taking you along themselves. Sometimes, it feels like you're not just a reader but the eighth person in the group and if that's not truly one of the best reading experiences, then I don't know what it is.

“You can take the boy out of the theatre, or something like that.”

Oliver's entire life turns into one of those Shakespearean plays, a tragedy and I can't forgive the author for it. From the beginning, he's got this feeling that he's not as talented as the rest of his friends and lo and behold, he's the one who actually breathed Shakespearean.

One of the things that I did dislike were the casual misogyny. The objectification and treatment of Meredith were a sore point in my eyes, something that I did not like at all. But in some regards, it's slightly more passable than 

where the female characters barely served any importance, aside from being a plot object, of course.

now that I've read both the books, I can assure you they're not. While one book obsesses over Greek, the other prefers Shakespeare. Surely, there are obsessed students in both 

WHAT WAS THE ENDING? What do you mean James is dead? This is just cruel. Imagine spending ten years in a prison, just waiting for the person you love and boom, you find out that he had drowned himself. I HATE IT SO MUCH. Also, you've to love Filippa so much. She cared so much about everyone 

 Also, I can't be the only one who finds Richard's possessiveness over his cousin, Wren, weird? I mean, let the girl breathe? That was so off putting

sani

This one is for us, pretentious girls, I'm so serious.

"For someone who loved words as much as I did, it was amazing how often they failed me."

If We Were Villains follows the story of seven Shakespearean fanatics. You can't blame me for calling them fanatics! They lived Shakespeare, they breathed Shakespeare. And they preferred each other's company over the world. Well, at least, in the beginning.

I hate this book actually. This book tore me apart and I suffered through the entirety. Truly a page turner. The plot was immaculate, the writing wonderful and the characters so deeply flawed you know they're going down and taking you along themselves. Sometimes, it feels like you're not just a reader but the eighth person in the group and if that's not truly one of the best reading experiences, then I don't know what it is.

“You can take the boy out of the theatre, or something like that.”

Oliver's entire life turns into one of those Shakespearean plays, a tragedy and I can't forgive the author for it. From the beginning, he's got this feeling that he's not as talented as the rest of his friends and lo and behold, he's the one who actually breathed Shakespearean.

One of the things that I did dislike were the casual misogyny. The objectification and treatment of Meredith were a sore point in my eyes, something that I did not like at all. But in some regards, it's slightly more passable than The Secret History where the female characters barely served any importance, aside from being a plot object, of course.

Having seen so many discourses on how If We Were Villains is just a duplicated copy of The Secret History, now that I've read both the books, I can assure you they're not. While one book obsesses over Greek, the other prefers Shakespeare. Surely, there are obsessed students in both and a murder but that's where it ends.

SPOILER‼️

WHAT WAS THE ENDING? What do you mean James is dead? This is just cruel. Imagine spending ten years in a prison, just waiting for the person you love and boom, you find out that he had drowned himself. I HATE IT SO MUCH. Also, you've to love Filippa so much. She cared so much about everyone sobs Also, I can't be the only one who finds Richard's possessiveness over his cousin, Wren, weird? I mean, let the girl breathe? That was so off putting

Liyah 🤎

Enjoyed this book much more than I thought I would! Read it for book club where the theme was dark academia. I liked that we didn't start out the book knowing who was dead, really added to the sense that anyone could have done it or had a reason to kill someone else. The book was fast-paced and so easy to get through I rarely wanted to put it down!

armoni mayes

honestly not sure why this book is compared to the secret history-but i guess they are both in a college setting with a group of friends but that is where the comparison stops. i did enjoy this book but i would’ve enjoyed it more if i didn’t go in with preconceived notions that it would be like the secret history. def no offense to the author but the writing styles are wildly different for one. it was also kinda hard to get into this book but it got easier as it went along thankfully. the “plot twist” was pretty mediocre but i did care about the characters so 4 stars.

lala

I heard that this book is one of dark academia staples. I wasn’t too hooked on the beginning of the novel, and there was a heck lot of Shakespeare content in this book, given that the main characters are actors who exclusively perform Shakespeare. I had to admit that after reading this book I was a little enticed to get to know more about Shakespeare. Out of every aspects, I think Rio did a splendid job on the characters, all of them are interesting and complex, and Rio successfully delved into the characters on the right amount. Personally I think the main conflict of the book is easy to guess, but the same did not apply to the resolution which I will not reveal as spoilers. I love how you get to imagine a mysterious castle/campus as the setting without it being “too old time-y”. Overall it was a great read.

I give IWWV 4 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Anjorin Molayo 

this book carried with the actual homoerotic friendship in which both james and oliver are so deeply enamoured by each other. i’d say this is the only thing i liked more in this book than secret history, that it’s actually queer.

i haven't read most of Shakespeares play that this book touches on like Macbeth and King Lear. i felt like these additions and components were often times lost on me but it was a nice vessel to move the plot along. it seemed particularly fitting for thespians who are desperately trying to out-run the roles they are always given.

i liked the fact that it was broken up into different acts which made it easier to follow. 

my brain hurts, and i’m sad.

GOOD GOD. This book is so beautiful it's borderline painful, or should I say the otherwise? IDEK if beautiful is the right word to describe it but it's def tragically beautiful, starting from the Act I when they're just a bunch of 'best-friend', when it's "They're just a seven of us", and turning into an hearth-wrecking situation, when it slowly makes you understand that they're falling apart.. that just HURT so much.

There's so much things that fucked up and it's really frustrating. Especially for my boy Oliver and James, oh you're FOOL FOOL IN LOVE. The truth that they're realizing it too late makes it even more depressing, but the things that people would do for love that's what I said beautiful, but sometimes the things you do don't even work out and at the end you still have to lost him other way (I'm literally CRYING).

Moreover this book is very beautiful, it's fun to read because it makes me know more about theater, Shakespeare, poet, and else. But because of my not-so-great comprehension in English it took me a while to read this.

Elio

GOOD GOD. This book is so beautiful it's borderline painful, or should I say the otherwise? IDEK if beautiful is the right word to describe it but it's def tragically beautiful, starting from the Act I when they're just a bunch of 'best-friend', when it's "They're just a seven of us", and turning into an hearth-wrecking situation, when it slowly makes you understand that they're falling apart.. that just HURT so much.

There's so much things that fucked up and it's really frustrating. Especially for my boy Oliver and James, oh you're FOOL FOOL IN LOVE. The truth that they're realizing it too late makes it even more depressing, but the things that people would do for love that's what I said beautiful, but sometimes the things you do don't even work out and at the end you still have to lost him other way (I'm literally CRYING).

Moreover this book is very beautiful, it's fun to read because it makes me know more about theater, Shakespeare, poet, and else. But because of my not-so-great comprehension in English it took me a while to read this.

Moonchild

I couldn’t put it down, I love everything related with Shakespeare. If you ever watched the movie Death poets club and you liked I 200% recommend.

kelsey

to me this was a more interesting version of the secret history just if they were thespians. 

also just the relationships between the other 6 is crazy and intricate and I love it.

would any of you go to jail for someone you were in love with?

Elisavet Rozaki 

Wow, this book... I was completely immersed. But I wish I could understand Shakespeare - it would've been even better.

1000/5 stars 
This book is my roman empire. I love it so much and cried a lot at the end. The end where Oliver just wanted to see James broke my heart 3. I felt every emotion at once 🥲 
Dont think I'll ever have such an experience with a book 👀

If We Were Villains

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