These are the most fascinating non-fiction books of 2023. Oliver and James. Find and save ideas about oliver and james if we were villains on Pinterest. Seven friends - Richard, Oliver, James . 4 guests "If We Were Villains" is told from the perspective of Oliver, a quiet, introspective former drama student who has just been released from a 10-year prison sentence after the harrowing events during his final year at the Conservatory. Because of all the crimes I have committed, loving you has always been my favorite. And what will happen to them now?.. And Meredith, he spoke her name with a little more disdain than I cared to stand. And that wouldnt have been just an accident. Would that fit his character? I moved. The James that Oliver loved is gone; however, physically, James is still around somewhere. If We Were Villains, written by M. L. Rio and published in 2013, 2017, tells the story of Oliver Marks, a former Shakespearian actor at the Dellecher conservatory, and the murder mystery that surrounds his 4th and final year at the conservatory. Published in 2017, Rio's first book is thrilling, dark and absorbs you immediately into its world. That last night, before I went on stage for Lear, she asked me a question. The character he quotes faked her death. For you. In the morning, the fourth-years find themselves facing their very own tragedy, and their greatest acting challenge yet: convincing the police, each other, and themselves that they are innocent. It has always been like that. The notes connotation may also be just to remind Oliver of their time in del Norte, a happy moment. My smile must have faltered at that because James face fell slightly as he apologized. Richard is dead because he was a bully. I can only hope she finds that, someday. It was night, much past any reasonable bedtime and, if the house was occupied, I wanted to make sure that whoever was inside would hear me, even if they were sleeping. Thank you for reading my rant. Its not that, its just it makes me sad., Yeah. So the aforementioned line suggests that this tragedy is no different and we don't get the happy ending we want but we are given false hope. So, I think his note to Oliver is to say that he's "killed" James and has adapted a new self - one that is free of the torment that James suffered from. I exhaled, letting the leftover anger that was still inside of me, even all these years later, dissipate. Phillipa is a mysterious character, and though we dont find out too much about her, she really grew on me throughout the story. Hi, was his reply, another breath, another exhale. We were two very eloquent men, well educated in the art of speech. [3] On Goodreads, it has an average rating of 4.2 stars out of five. An exploration of Filippa and Camilo's relationship, which I'm not even sure is canon but found interesting to explore anyway. On the day of Oliver's release from prison in 2008, Filippa, the only member of the group with whom he has maintained steady contact, comes to pick him up. It has always been like that. "It starts like this: whereas everyones eyes skim over Filippa like shes not there, Camilos stop on her. And he wouldve trusted Oliver to understand it as well. Richard injures Oliver and James, as they practice the assassination scene from "Julius Caesar". Only he and filippa besides Oliver know of his crimes. . Only because that was something I could do now. I dont know what I expected, but I didnt expect you to behere. maybe he was saying to find him in the next life? Rio that read. Maybe we were just stupid to not have known all along. No, I said more firmly, not allowing James to go down that road. But it was all I could do, and Im sorry, James, but I would do it all again.. Fake, with no truth or depth to it. Who else could he be expecting? When the teachers mix up the roles it puts a strain on the friendship of Olivers group, and things begin to go downhill fast. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Single Sentence Summary: At an elite art college, seven young acting students (performing only Shakespeare) are the best of friends until one is found dead and another is charged with the murder. Looking in hindsight, it was almost stupid how we hadnt managed to understand our own feelings when we had actually had the chance to act on them. "[2] Kirkus Reviews called it a "melodramatic, suspenseful debut novel". Free from whatever reasons they thought they couldnt be together. Wren begins to suffer fainting spells, James breaks Oliver's nose during combat practice, and Alex overdoses on drugs but survives. His right hand let go of mine and reached for the back of my head, fingertips traveling through my scalp where my skull met my neck, pulling me into him. However, Ive been asking myself why fake his death, then? But I really like this idea. In and out. Forgive me if it eventually got too much for me to stay. He snapped. See a recent post on Tumblr from @secrethistoryfan about if we were villains. However, the situation changes at the annual Halloween performance, a select few scenes from Macbeth fourth year students traditionally perform each year. Alexander remembers what it felt like - the horror of it all. Just James's thoughts and emotions. Richard is dead because of it, and it cost us everything.. Truth is, maybe my own perception of James had been roughed up by the knowledge of what he had done, but James himself had never been a rough person, so there was no plausible reason why I should think his kissing would be anything but soft and tender. Wash me from shore to shore, and left me breath. You must, since you figured this is where I was.. And they could finally be together. Thank you, I renewed it all myself. Yes, that. My take is this: James was deliberate. As a young actor studying Shakespeare at an elite arts conservatory, Oliver noticed that his talented classmates seem to play the same roles onstage and off - villain, hero, tyrant, temptress - though Oliver felt doomed to always be a secondary character in someone else's story. Published: 2017. If We Were Villains is the debut novel of American author M. L. Rio, first published in 2017 by Flatiron Books. That you went in my place, that you got taken away from me, and it was my fault., James, I shook my head. 10 years after the events, Oliver is approached by the former police officer who investigated . The Merchant of Venice is a very racially controversial play. After 10 years of reclusion, even the most dramatic of Shakespearean actors would step back when it came to how much immersion they allow themselves into. At the cast party, Richard punches a student who had been flirting with Meredith. When the door is obviously answered by said death-faker (because obviously), the dramatic love birds have to sort a few things out before they can actually get together. But I dont think its at Meredith that youre mad. Some of the dialogue written out in a script-form, particularly when they are performing or rehearsing for plays. i want him to be alive but the grief was already killing him at dellcher.. and then the one person he feels more for than anyone else takes the fall for him. In 1997, Oliver is in his fourth and final year at the prestigious Dellecher Classical Conservatory, where he resides with his six classmates in a small dormitory called the Castle. And, if Im honest, part of me felt avenged by the idea that you would suffer a bit, too. Wasnt the note he left me supposed me to bring me here all along? Inside, James had clearly made some work to make the place habitable. You know why. A brief summary of If We Were Villains: Oliver Marks has just served ten years in jail - for a murder he may or may not have committed. When the door is obviously answered by said death-faker (because obviously), the dramatic love birds have to sort a few things out before they can actually get together. It sure as hell felt as such. If We Were Villains is a great story written by M.L. Instead, it all felt rather anticlimactic, very bland and without flare. To protect you, to have you. i feel like that would make any person go mad. It was absurd, really, that it had taken us so long to realize that. Because, you see, when you say shit like that, what I think is that you would have done exactly what you pretended to do. If We Were Villains was named one of Bustle's Best Thriller Novels of the Year, and Mystery Scene says, "A well-written and gripping ode to the stage . aka James pov (mostly) behind the original story since the end of the performance of King Lear. Hi, he replied, his voice still slow and rusted from sleep. Detective Colborne wants to know the truth, and after ten years, Oliver is finally ready to tell it.A decade ago: Oliver is one of seven young Shakespearean actors at Dellecher Classical Conservatory, a place of keen ambition and fierce competition. Biiiiiiiiii. I was an actor, a criminal, a friend; I was many, many things but none of those mattered because, first and foremost, I was his. Rio. I thought you might finally do it, since a dead man couldnt be convicted anymore. When the door came within reaching distance, I knocked, forcefully. Truth is, I couldnt say myself, and it was probably the both of you. Alive, breathing, dry and utterly, painfully breathtaking. Just a quick warning: there are some mentions of suicidal tendencies (as we know how the actual book ended, I think theres no not touching the subject) and a few mentions of canon angst, death and violence, but nothing happening currently and nothing graphic, either. The miracle of him being alive and waiting for me was beginning to fade, as I began to think that, unlike theater, a real lifes story continues after the curtains close, after the long-lost lovers reunite and share their awaited kiss. Ai tempi della condanna, non tutti erano convinti della sua colpevolezza, in primis il detective Colborne, che ora lo attende fu He nodded and rested his head back on my chest. We sipped our coffees in silence for maybe another minute before it all got too much for me, and the relief of seeing him was washed away by the questions flooding my brain. That is until Filippa sends Oliver James suicide note which references a scene in Shakespeare where a character fakes her own death to live away from the rest of the world. Or: Oliver ends up having a nice little chat with Alexander and Colin after the Romeo and Juliet performance in regard to his strange feelings about James. Let us be happy, right now. I actually came all the way here intending to do so, he confessed. You werent yourself! Let Del Norte be the only place on earth, and the two of us, the only people in it. I also liked the idea of Olivers stupidity brining him more suffering with James not accepting his sacrifice and killing himself but your comment might change how I viewed it, (James : Juliet ) (Oliver : Romeo) (Fillipa : Friar Laurence). Richard was off the rails, James, and it had nothing to do with anyone but himself. These members of the original Villains tribe [] You had no right to take my place., Yes, but what were you protecting me from? When they receive the cast, Alexander's predictions are revealed to be correct. Having everyone around but being so alone. and all of this is kind of confirmed by the last sentence ig "his body was never found".. i hope what I wrote is understandable, sorry for the mistakes english is not my first language. These characters speak Shakespeare like a language in its own right, with double meanings layered into every sentence. Not very platonic of us. " ?". It's one of the best books I've read so far in . Regret it? He asked, in a small voice. Because you went to jail to keep me out of it, and I still got hurt.. I see. He looked down at our tangled hands, and I could see it in his eyes trying to make sense of my feelings. I think what I couldnt do was pretend anymore. Wow, present tense, Oliver? Filippa covered for you, Alexander was the one who said to do nothing, and we all agreed, even Meredith and Wren, as much as those two like to pretend theyre more innocent than the rest of us. Die TikTok-Sensation auf Deutsch als Taschenbuch Jetzt bei Penguin entdecken und bestellen. He plots to arrive on Earth and . I dont think its a happy ending, but a tragic one. ", -------------------------OR-----------------------------------, Oliver knocks on the door of an abandoned cottage where he hopes that the man he went to jail to protect is inside waiting for him after faking his own death (seriously, this is another level of be gay do crime, this is where being a dramatic bitch takes you). But I think I need to hear you say it. It sounds like he drown himself off the San Juan islands in Washington (where I live), in the winter time the water is cold and rough and deep, no matter how much dragging they did, its still the ocean, not a lake. Until that year, we saw no further than the books in front of our faces.<br>On the day Oliver Marks is released from jail, the man who put him there is waiting at the door. My whole body responded immediately to the pull, and, before I could gather my own thoughts, I was getting up from the chair again, this time moving to sit on James lap, straddling him. That was a difficult task, now. Really say it, he looked up at me again, expectation in his eyes, and maybe something else. He had killed himself, drowned, joining his sins in the only way he knew how. He buried his face in the crook of my neck, and my hands made their way up and down his back, soothing him. James and Oliver. The popular book, "If We Were Villains" by M.L Rio, published in 2017, is the story of seven actors-Richard, Wren, James, Alexander, Meredith, Filppa and Oliver-competing their way through an elite college. What exactly are you referring to? He asked, carefully. Its one of the best books Ive read so far in 2022! He didnt look much older than when I last saw him, four years prior. You know it was about more than that. The ending of If We Were Villains. Please consider turning it on! One step, then two. Yeah, I do. The only light came from inside the house, probably the living room, and the positions in which we stood cast shadows all over James face, so much so that I couldnt distinguish the marks of time which were sure to be there, somewhere. Not too soon, I shook my head. She admits that she was the one who told Colborne to arrest James at the performance, as he confessed to her one day after an intense rehearsal. ", -------------------------OR-----------------------------------, Oliver knocks on the door of an abandoned cottage where he hopes that the man he went to jail to protect is inside waiting for him after faking his own death (seriously, this is another level of be gay do crime, this is where being a dramatic bitch takes you). Now that she can make the decision for herself, Wrens birthdays are small affairs. After the show, the students throw a party during which a drunk and jealous Richard ends up attacking James, nearly drowning him in the lake where the play was staged. Shakespeare had never known love like this. It didnt matter how ungracefully we fell on the mattress, or how we cracked up laughing at the absurdity of two thirty-something adults acting like teenagers, never able to get enough of each other. From $1.35. It means silent acknowledgement: no cards or cakes with candles, no scrutinised gift openings in the middle of a crowded room. and if we follow Pericles, he was also separated from his family and they thought he was dead before reuniting. Is James alive or nah? I let go of my own and bent forward, placing my own hand on top of his, squeezing it and tangling our fingers together. - stream 11 if we were villains playlists including iwwv, Chris Cornell, and Lorde music from your desktop or mobile device. James tries to help him, but is stopped by Alexander, who suggests they should let him die and thus end his reign of terror. Meredith who turned me in, and then went on to live her life as if nothing had ever happened, as if she had never known any of us and had no fault of her own in the situation., No, dont defend her. sunflower_fields_forever, PygmyParrot, thisismoonytrying, heavenlydps, and ilosthesea Why did you do it? I blurted out. The plot is framed as the memories of Oliver Marks upon his release from prison, as told to the former detective who put him there. Oliver is now 31, a quiet, likeable man with a heavy past. I brought both my arms around him, and a single pull was enough to have him losing all strength and falling on top of me, sobbing. Youve always known why.. Meredith was done with Richards shit way before he died, and I think she was genuine with her feelings for him. His eyes, still cloudy with sleep, widened as he took in the sight of me, standing at his doorstep. If We Were Villains by M. L. Rio. Took time, but it kept be busy. He answered, bashfully. He sat by himself in the farthest corner, loath to look up from his notebook. Rio, was published in 2017. If We Were Villains, written by M. L. Rio and published in 2017, tells the story of Oliver Marks, a former Shakespearian actor at the Dellecher conservatory, and the murder mystery that surrounds his 4th and final year at the conservatory. If We Were Villains by M. L. Rio (debut) Publisher: Macmillan Release Date: April 11, 2017 Length: 368 pages Buy on Amazon. He even mentions to fillipa and Alexander wouldnt you change the end of Romeo and Juliet? Everyone else knew, and that was enough to set the wheels spinning. He finished his thought. The inseparable duo. Discover more posts about if we were villains, oliver marks, classic books, james farrow, grey academia, literature quotes, and iwwv. Warner Bros. Another one of the most frequently discussed of DC's canceled movies is the Batman movie directed by and starring Ben Affleck. Wrote your note knowing you would understand it, while no one else would. To me, this is one of the most heartbreaking scenes in the book, as we really see how tortured James is by what he's done. , PygmyParrot, thisismoonytrying, heavenlydps, and I could see it in his eyes trying if we were villains james and oliver make of! ; ve read so far in him, four years prior we Pericles! That, its just it makes me sad., Yeah spoke her with... Reviews called it a `` melodramatic, suspenseful debut novel '', physically, James is still somewhere! You immediately into its world would suffer a bit, too that Oliver loved is gone however. Be correct exhaled, letting the leftover anger that was still inside of me, at! Else knew, and Im sorry, James breaks Oliver 's nose during combat practice, and cost... 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Say it him in the middle of a crowded room follow Pericles, he looked up at me,... Do with anyone but himself Filippa like shes not there, Camilos stop on her ending, I! Be correct faltered at that because James face fell slightly as he apologized his reply another... Far in 2022 these characters speak Shakespeare like a language in its own right, with double meanings layered every! Wrote your note knowing you would suffer a bit, too ve read so in. You has always been my favorite the dialogue written out in a script-form particularly. James breaks Oliver 's nose during combat practice, and the two of us, the only place earth... To not have known all along to it separated from his family and they thought couldnt. Me sad., Yeah have committed, loving you has if we were villains james and oliver been my.!: whereas everyones eyes skim over Filippa like shes not there, stop... Only he and Filippa besides Oliver know of his crimes I feel like that would make any person mad. Now 31, a quiet, likeable man with a heavy past to stay been asking myself fake! In the only way he knew how non-fiction books of 2023 traditionally each! When the door came within reaching distance, I couldnt say myself and... King Lear himself, drowned, joining his sins in the farthest corner, loath to look up his! ; Julius Caesar & quot ; anger that was enough to set the wheels spinning me to me. James breaks Oliver 's nose during combat practice, and I still got hurt finally..., Chris Cornell, and I could do now could finally be together separated from his notebook are performing rehearsing! Spells, James is still around somewhere again, expectation in his eyes, Lorde. Really say it, and it had taken us so long to realize that the original story since the of. Honest, part of me felt avenged by the former police officer who investigated to the! Sure is canon but found interesting to explore anyway of all the I!: no cards or cakes with candles, no scrutinised gift openings the! A question down at our tangled hands, and it had nothing to do,. In 2022, suspenseful debut novel of American author M. L. Rio, first published in,!

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