If We Were Villains

M. L. Rio's debut novel opens with Detective Colborne, who sent Oliver Marks to prison ten years before, asking him for the true story. Ten years earlier, Oliver was one of seven young actors at Dellecher Classical Conservatory, a secluded Shakespeare school, where he and his friends played the same types on stage and off, from hero and villain to temptress, tyrant, ingenue and extras. In their fourth and final year, friendly rivalries turn ugly and real violence breaks into their world of make-believe. Facing their own tragedy, the students must persuade the police, one another and themselves of their innocence. Flatiron Books published it in 2017, and a series adaptation is in development.

Jacqui Pretty, who founded Grammar Factory, mentioned it as one of the novels she loved in the past year.