Reviews with content warning for Physical abuse - If We Were Villains

I should’ve DNFd it. None of it felt believable. Hated every character. The whole act of devotion was wasted. And everyone, including Colborne was complicit. Also, given Shakespeare is the one often credited with creating the concept of racism, and he having been terribly sexist, I deplore him. So there was nothing about this book that appealed to me. Really should’ve DNFd it.

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readingsitaaras's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Picture The Secret History but with Shakespeare theatre nerds and a tragic tone and you get If We Were Villains.

This book truly had a hook in me, I could not stop reading at any point. Gasps were gasped and questions were had. The tragic and gothic setting of the book is perfect for the story and I loved how elements of Shakespeare's texts were woven into the plot. Was the constant quoting of his plays a little annoying after a certain point? Yes. But it had its uses and reading between the lines quoted was an additional intrigue.

Importantly, this is a character-focused book that really tries to examine each member of the cast. We see their struggles and what leads to the tragic downfall of each and every one of them. The characters are what carry this book when the plot weakens here and there. That being said, I do think that Wren, and maybe even Richard, could have used more development. For much of the time, Wren is kind of just there. Grieving and guilty, but not entirely involved. Maybe I'm underestimating her, but on a first read that's simply how she came off. Richard was a fairly substantial character but I would've liked just a little bit more exploration in why he is the way he is in their fourth year. Maybe there was some foreshadowing I missed but it felt really sudden to me.

The frame narrative of the story being told through Oliver and Detective Colborne's conversation was interesting and the ending itself, though devastating, was well done. I swear

James is still alive and no one can tell me otherwise because that would be too sad

.

Overall, I think if you enjoyed the tone and mystery of The Secret History, you might like If We Were Villains. It has a sufficiently dramatic and tense mood that fully envelops you into this little secluded world of a small group of characters. Finishing the book is like coming up for water when you didn't even realize you were underwater to begin with. Definitely a book that I'll come back to for a re-read.

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jaimc's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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iane_reads's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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augustrogue's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

I was so hyped for this book and truly wanted to love it - unfortunately, while it had a few fleeting moments of some very lovely prose, it ended up feeling like a bit of a pretentious mess. Multiple, long scenes that were basically play-by-plays of Shakespearean stage productions. Inexplicable switches into script-style dialogue that disrupts the flow terribly: (not from the book, just an example)

Meredith: "Where did Alexander go?"
Me: "I don’t know."
Wren: "I'm worried about him."

...and then switches back just as abruptly, like it forgot it wasn't a screenplay for a second. Scenes that end abruptly for poetic/dramatic effect and then don't adequately explain what happened next. And I wanted a lot *more* of a relationship dynamic that was only lightly explored in the last 10% or so of the book.

The thing is, I actually *like* Shakespeare, quite a bit. The course I took on his plays was one of my favorites in university, and I still have a Complete Works anthology on my bookshelf. But I don't know, this book just made me roll my eyes a lot. At least the author acknowledges that the characters talking to each other in rapid-fire Shakespeare quotes about mundane things like they're ye olde Gilmore Girls (my own analogy, not hers) *is* super pretentious, in her ending notes. This book is for someone, maybe, but for the most part, it's not for me.

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