I listened to this on audiobook, which was a wonderful experience. The narrator, Robert Petkoff, was absolutely amazing, and pulled off sections of the book that sounded like they were written in a unique format. I can’t confirm for sure, since I don’t have the physical book, but I feel as though the lengthy Shakespeare excerpts might not have been as enjoyable to me personally if I didn’t have Petkoff reading them out to me. It was like listening to a radio play, which was engaging.

I can say that I absolutely loved this book, while I recognize it won’t be for everyone. The dark, shadowy, slightly surreal atmosphere really set a specific mood that was right up my alley. The characters, while absolutely pretentious and not exactly likable, were full of drama and compelling, fitting for a bunch of theater kids. I got very attached to them to the point where I was getting emotional as the plot unfolded. While all of the characters were larger than life, and made every wrong decision possible, their motivations and feelings were relatable. I would never want to be friends with these people, but they were definitely interesting to read about. And that ending? Threw me through a loop.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys dark academia, because those vibes were IMMACULATE. If you enjoy character-driven stories and immoral characters, this is also absolutely for you. I would NOT recommend this if characters making the obviously wrong decisions frustrates you. I can’t think of a single moment where someone made what I would consider the right decision. I loved that in this case, since it fit the theme of it being like a Shakespearean tragedy, but I can see it getting on someone’s nerves.