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A review by benedettal
If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio
3.5
Overall, I liked this book, but I also thought it was far from perfect. Maybe it was so jarring because I started this literally within an hour of finishing Proust, but still.
Just to make it simple, I’ll put down a bullet point overview of my thoughts:
• the writing style was pretty weak, idk why but especially at the beginning, the dialogue was a bit cringy and forced. It got better eventually, maybe I got used to it. But much like it was hard for me to buy the kids speaking greek and latin in the secret history, the obsessive Shakespearean line drop kinda broke my immersion. But maybe it’s just me, cause I’ve never met people like that, so of course I’d find it hard to believe. Once again though, it gets better later in the book, when I feel like the lines used make more sense in context and actually make the scenes stronger. Also despised the use of brackets all the time, that was one of the biggest general issues with the writing.
• the gimmick with the characters being Shakespearean archetypes works fine for me, but I felt at times that the group was too crowded and two characters in particular, Wren and Alexander, were severely underdeveloped. But the most glaring problem was Richard. I didn’t get why he was so unhinged, while also being well respected by his peers and mentors. I also don’t buy this thing about talent being the reason. Maybe we didn’t get enough time with him, so of course it’s not like Bunny in the Secret History for example. Richard is portrayed as the leader, but that doesn’t make sense when he’s literally violent and none of his charm comes through in any other way. Another issue is that, again, unlike in the secret history, there is nothing binding these kids together. There is no underlying exclusivity to their supposed friends group other than being the only ones in their class, but they don’t really have a dark secret or anything. Of course, they decide to let Richard die, but idk even that decision is so questionable, like they must have assumed it was one of them that did it and wanted to protect that person, but they rather framed it as wanting to get rid of Richard while they had the chance. That’s absurd. No need to escalate the situation to that point.
• everything else was pretty fun though. The mystery and its resolution is both unexpected and satisfying. I don’t even care about the logic, but over the novel I really appreciated the bond between Oliver and James and its climax had me hooked. Loved the bisexual horniness and platonic love of it all.
• Meredith was also an interesting character, I did think dialogue about her was v cringy, but idk, I didn’t mind her relationship with Oliver and the sort of twist on the temptress archetype. I only don’t buy that she’d wait around for 10 years, like we have no real indication of why she should love Oliver that much, all of a sudden. Good for him though.
• the ending is genuinely inspired. It’s gut wrenching and then it’s hopeful, so unexpected, just perfect. Not necessarily a huge fan of open endings, but this nailed it.
To sum up, this is not high literature by any means, and even within its genre, it’s kinda clumsy here and there. However, it has a big heart. You can see how theatre would make people more in touch with their emotions, and how friendships in a tight knit community would develop into deeper and more obsessive feelings. I think it’s rightfully placed next to the secret history as the second biggest dark academia novel, even though I didn’t like it as much. And the concept of a Shakespeare theme is super fun.
Just to make it simple, I’ll put down a bullet point overview of my thoughts:
• the writing style was pretty weak, idk why but especially at the beginning, the dialogue was a bit cringy and forced. It got better eventually, maybe I got used to it. But much like it was hard for me to buy the kids speaking greek and latin in the secret history, the obsessive Shakespearean line drop kinda broke my immersion. But maybe it’s just me, cause I’ve never met people like that, so of course I’d find it hard to believe. Once again though, it gets better later in the book, when I feel like the lines used make more sense in context and actually make the scenes stronger. Also despised the use of brackets all the time, that was one of the biggest general issues with the writing.
• the gimmick with the characters being Shakespearean archetypes works fine for me, but I felt at times that the group was too crowded and two characters in particular, Wren and Alexander, were severely underdeveloped. But the most glaring problem was Richard. I didn’t get why he was so unhinged, while also being well respected by his peers and mentors. I also don’t buy this thing about talent being the reason. Maybe we didn’t get enough time with him, so of course it’s not like Bunny in the Secret History for example. Richard is portrayed as the leader, but that doesn’t make sense when he’s literally violent and none of his charm comes through in any other way. Another issue is that, again, unlike in the secret history, there is nothing binding these kids together. There is no underlying exclusivity to their supposed friends group other than being the only ones in their class, but they don’t really have a dark secret or anything. Of course, they decide to let Richard die, but idk even that decision is so questionable, like they must have assumed it was one of them that did it and wanted to protect that person, but they rather framed it as wanting to get rid of Richard while they had the chance. That’s absurd. No need to escalate the situation to that point.
• everything else was pretty fun though. The mystery and its resolution is both unexpected and satisfying. I don’t even care about the logic, but over the novel I really appreciated the bond between Oliver and James and its climax had me hooked. Loved the bisexual horniness and platonic love of it all.
• Meredith was also an interesting character, I did think dialogue about her was v cringy, but idk, I didn’t mind her relationship with Oliver and the sort of twist on the temptress archetype. I only don’t buy that she’d wait around for 10 years, like we have no real indication of why she should love Oliver that much, all of a sudden. Good for him though.
• the ending is genuinely inspired. It’s gut wrenching and then it’s hopeful, so unexpected, just perfect. Not necessarily a huge fan of open endings, but this nailed it.
To sum up, this is not high literature by any means, and even within its genre, it’s kinda clumsy here and there. However, it has a big heart. You can see how theatre would make people more in touch with their emotions, and how friendships in a tight knit community would develop into deeper and more obsessive feelings. I think it’s rightfully placed next to the secret history as the second biggest dark academia novel, even though I didn’t like it as much. And the concept of a Shakespeare theme is super fun.