A review by megmei
If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

God do I love a college setting dark-academia with a cast of characters where each person has an archetype. I just eat these up like crazy. 

I see a lot of people dislike this book because they can’t stand the characters. I hate to say it, but as someone who has been friends with actors and theatre people… this is what they’re like. They never turn off, they are just constantly ‘in it’ and honestly props to the author for capturing that so well. 

Rio writes with skill, weaving Shakespeare in and out of her tale to create an evocative and compelling atmosphere. To these characters, embroiled in a murder mystery as they are, there is NOTHING more important than Shakespeare. And honestly, if I lived like them, I’d get it. Everyone is alluring and beautiful, and made to be on stage, and the whole time they’re quoting these heavy lines of dialogue from Hamlet, Macbeth, Caesar. There’s constant emotional manipulation because everyone is forced to keep their emotions on the surface in order to act. They live like this for years in close proximity. Coupled with the unhealthy coping mechanisms, it is not shocking that everyone is whipped up into cult-like levels of heightened tension; everything must feel like life or death, even when it’s just Shakespeare to the rest of us. 

While I felt that the Shakespearean elements were a strength, I am sure that for many readers, the frequent quotations and references might feel overwhelming and cringey. The dialogue can seem a bit much which I can sympathise with. While I feel like the characters were perfect for the narrative, it does feel that some of the characters were slightly less developed, or fell into their trope a little too much, which left them feeling a little under-utilised. 

There is also the subject of the books rather subtle approach to the implied LGBTQ representation. I personally felt that that the author approached the delicate complexities of identity and attraction within this already dramatic story with a lot of subtlety. It’s not a dark academia if there isn’t something a little gay going on, but it’s not the focus of the story, and as such I appreciated the vagueness and ephemeral nature of this subplot. It didn’t need to be explicit for me, but it was enough that the elements we got really did add to the final story and weren’t just there for flavour. Some readers will feel that these themes should have been more at the forefront, so be aware that a gay romance subplot is not the focus of this story. 

I found ‘If We Were Villains’ to be a captivating study on the darkest parts of ambition and it lingered with me long after I finished it. It will resonate with anyone who enjoys a dark, tense, tale with seduction, violence and betrayal with a beautiful and tragic tale of friendship at its core. 


Expand filter menu Content Warnings