If We Were Villains: Rio’s Portrayal of Revenge Tragedy
Rich Unique Captivating Vivid Original Enthralling
If We Were Villains by: M.L. Rio
“This is the excellent foppery of the world, that, when we are sick in fortune-- often the surfeit of our own behavior-- we make guilty of our disasters the sun, the moon, and the stars… as if we were villains on necessity; fools by heavenly compulsion; knaves, thieves, and treachers by spherical predominance; drunkards, liars and adulterers by an enforc’d obedience of planetary influence and all that we are evil in, by a divine thrusting on” (325)!
Summary:
Oliver Marks has just served ten years in jail – for a murder he may or may not have committed. On the day he’s released, he’s greeted by the man who put him in prison. Detective Colborne is retiring, but before he does, he wants to know what really happened a decade ago. As one of seven young actors studying Shakespeare at an elite arts college, Oliver and his friends play the same roles onstage and off: hero, villain, tyrant, temptress. But when the casting changes, and the secondary characters usurp the stars, the plays spill dangerously over into life, and one of them is found dead. The rest face their greatest acting challenge yet: convincing the police, and themselves, that they are blameless.
Free Reading Guide:
Meet the Seven Thespians:
Oliver - the martyr
James - the tragic hero
Wren - the ingenue
Filippa - The protector
Alexander - The Addict
Richard - The King
Meredith- The Seductress
Our Thoughts:
In this most accurate representation of life imitating art, this truly unique, captivating and enthralling novel has revived our love for reading. The writing was refreshingly unique and creative. The overall setup is the truly best example, instead of chapters, readers were guided by acts, prologues and scenes. Characteristically, the same theme was continued when Rio added in script dialogue along with regular writing dialogue between characters. Additionally, for someone to lace Shakespeare (and literal lines) so eloquently into a story, is incredible. We hope these characters and storyline would be back by popular demand in a second novel. With that said, there is a substantial parallelism between these characters and the ones in Shakespeare's writing. At points, it seemed like these characters were over exaggerated, though I am not one to be around the theatre and have no place to judge their mannerisms or outlook. Ultimately, this book is about the light and darkness in everyone, including the consequences when the darkness wins. Everyone had a part to play in the murder and everyone had secrets. The immense power of guilt destroys these characters, until the once strong group of individuals crack and crumble across the world.
Warning to our Readers:
You may get confused by the unloading of all the characters at the beginning of the novel. We must say that it was difficult for us to keep track of all seven, but once we got past the first couple scenes, we had it down pat.
If you are not somewhat familiar with Shakespeare's work such as with: King Lear, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Caesar, Hamlet, etc. you may or may not absorb fully the text in this novel. There are many subtle details that can be easily missed through the consistent allusions at play.
Notable Quotes:
“Actors are by nature volatile– alchemic creatures composed of incendiary elements, emotion and ego and envy. Heat them up, stir them together, and sometimes you get gold. Sometimes disaster”(53).
“There is no comfort like complicity” (154).
“You can’t quantify humanity… People are passionate and flawed and fallible. They make mistakes. Their memories fade. Their eyes deceive them” (269).
Delecher Motto - "Per aspera ad astra" - Through the thorns, to the stars.
In exchange for a fair and impartial review we were provided with an advanced reading copy of the novel by Flatiron Books. Big thanks to Flatiron and their Senior Publicist and we look forward to working with you in the future!
Exeunt Omnes,
Geneva and Addie