If We Were Villains

"Much like Donna Tartts The Secret History, M. L. Rios sparkling debut is a richly layered story of love, friendship, and obsession...

If We Were Villains will keep you riveted through its final, electrifying moments." -Cynthia DAprix Sweeney, New York Times bestselling author of The Nest 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.

Intelligent, thrilling, and richly detailed, If We Were Villains is a captivating story of the enduring power and passion of words.

L. Rio has worked in bookstores and theatres for years, and holds a master's in Shakespeare studies from Kings College London. If We Were Villains is her debut novel.