“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.”

If We Were Villains is M. L. Rio’s debut, and a fantastic one at that. It follows a cast of 7 fourth-year theatre students at the prestigious Dellecher Classical Conservatory. Told in alternating perspectives of the past and present, it follows the fatal fourth year of these 7 students and the aftermath of one fateful November night.

It’s been a few months since I’ve read this book now and the story still sticks so strongly with me. This is more than just a murder mystery, an investigation of a friend group and how it all goes so wrong one night. It’s an exploration of emotion and identity, of the effect of playing a stereotype has on a character’s perception of themselves. It shows how volatile change can be, how upsets in power and hierarchy can cause even the tightest of bonds to crumble, the most innocuous of people to snap. It is utterly glorious and the addition of drama, both from the Shakespearean aesthetic and the setting of the characters, only heightens the study of these characters and emotions.

But this story is fantastic beyond the intriguing aspect of the story, it is more than just an investigation, more than just a peek into the world. You are immersed in the stories and characters as well, you become part of their world and their drama. Things stop seeming overdramatic, exaggerated, and you come to understand why these people act and why they talk mainly in Shakespeare. You create a bond with them, especially Oliver and James, and it will surprise you how strong this bond will be. The characters are far from perfect, they are utterly flawed and fragile, yet you will come to understand these flaws and love them more for it. This book is fantastic at transferring the emotions of the characters to the reader almost directly.

This is a book that I devoured in very few hours on a very long flight. I can’t usually read well on flights, always distracted by checking the time remaining or games on my phone. This book seems to have changed that in me. Never have I been so utterly absorbed and lost in a story while flying, and this story has stuck with me beyond that travel. I was lost in my thoughts while walking along security, waiting in lines, buying food. It was a book that I frantically texted to my friends about in the few hours I had for a flight transfer. It was a book that astounded me, and honestly still does.

It feels wrong to break the book down into its parts, as I feel that won’t do it any true justice. But I feel I must mention more than just the characters, as the plot, setting, and writing were all fantastic as well. While some might think they can figure out the plot quite quickly, the ramifications of these truths, of this answer, keeps you always second-guessing yourself on whether you actually believe this is possible, that this is the answer. The setting, an elite, competitive school, only enhances the drama and shines a light on the fractures happening the story, both between people and deep inside them. And lastly, the writing style wraps all of these parts up in a beautiful package, leaving you hooked even if you didn’t care about the rest.

All in all, If We Were Villains is a book that I will forever highly recommend. It’s great for fans of Shakespeare, for fans of thrillers/murder mysteries, for fans of flawed characters, and for fans of so much more. If this isn’t on your tbr, it definitely should be.