A review by millie
If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio

dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

not a bad book, just a very frustrating book. 

it's also a very hard book to read due to its shakespearean nature, the author spend a lot of times quoting shakespear's play (entire paragraph), so if you're not familiar with old english, shakespeare, tragedy as genre or all of the above, it become very tedious to get through. it also mean a lot of subtilities goes over your head.

(the ending especially but also the ending doesn't make much so you don't lose much, i guess?)

i was unaware book had a lgbtq+ tag attached with it when i first started it and upon learning it had one? yeah, it doesn't deserve it one bit. no book where the author spend a weirdly long amount of time spewing vague transphobia, biphobia and homophobia deserve to have this label or at the very least not without some sort of warning. (also, your book is set in an art school in the 90's and 80% of your protagonists are straight and vaguely homophobic? girl, that's sus.)

objectively, i think this book lack many things but if personally you were satisfied with that this book had to offer, good for you. it probably suit people who like shakespeare better.

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