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snowbenton 's review for:
If We Were Villains
by M.L. Rio
God I love some dark academia. This is definitely one that will need a re-read.
Spoilers for If We Were Villains and The Secret History below.
Yes, the comparison is obvious, but I think loving Secret History made me love this even more. Rio taps into the emotion that Tartt built, and plays upon it, like an electronic remix of a favorite old ballad. I loved that she turned it into a mystery -- all of the characters had to deal with the guilt of letting Richard die, but you also had to wonder who actually did it. Admittedly, I kept forgetting that I didn't know, because it almost didn't matter. The story was about their friendships and the guilt more than anything tangible. Rio did a great job of making you feel like everything was half a dream, as Oliver feels.
The first chapter was awkward; too many introductions too quickly. I wish we had had more time watching them interact as friends before Richard became the tyrant. It was an interesting choice; you watched them mourn him, but you were almost divorced from it because you didn't get to see him be a friend.
I loved the interactions between the characters, and the focus on Shakespeare. It was much more accessible than History's Greek obsession. I also liked that Oliver was actually part of the group, not an outsider.
I always hate stories written today set in the past, because it feels cheap, like the author is trying to avoid dealing with technology. This worked for me more than most, because Oliver being in jail for ten years means he really is out of the loop. But still. A little cheap.
Spoilers for If We Were Villains and The Secret History below.
Spoiler
Yes, the comparison is obvious, but I think loving Secret History made me love this even more. Rio taps into the emotion that Tartt built, and plays upon it, like an electronic remix of a favorite old ballad. I loved that she turned it into a mystery -- all of the characters had to deal with the guilt of letting Richard die, but you also had to wonder who actually did it. Admittedly, I kept forgetting that I didn't know, because it almost didn't matter. The story was about their friendships and the guilt more than anything tangible. Rio did a great job of making you feel like everything was half a dream, as Oliver feels.
The first chapter was awkward; too many introductions too quickly. I wish we had had more time watching them interact as friends before Richard became the tyrant. It was an interesting choice; you watched them mourn him, but you were almost divorced from it because you didn't get to see him be a friend.
I loved the interactions between the characters, and the focus on Shakespeare. It was much more accessible than History's Greek obsession. I also liked that Oliver was actually part of the group, not an outsider.
I always hate stories written today set in the past, because it feels cheap, like the author is trying to avoid dealing with technology. This worked for me more than most, because Oliver being in jail for ten years means he really is out of the loop. But still. A little cheap.