WARNING: Spoilers ahead!
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Let me just start with this- this book is dark. Please check content warnings before reading.
Also if you hate Shakespeare, this is probably not the book for you. As a Shakespeare nerd, I loved this aspect of the book.
The characters attend a school where they only perform Shakespeare plays, learn about his works in their classes and have developed their own distinct way of speaking to each other entirely through Shakespeare verses. The whole book is structured with nods to Shakespeare’s works. But if you’re not a fan, the references to the Bard might seem a bit gratuitous. For me, they are a huge part of why I enjoyed this book.
As soon as I got to this line:
What is more important, that Caesar is assassinated or that he is assassinated by his intimate friends? … That,’ Frederick said, 'is where the tragedy is.
I knew this group was in trouble. Someone was going to die, and it was most likely the person playing Caesar (Richard). I do still have questions about why Richard went off the deep end though and started hurting everyone. I feel like it wasn’t clear if it was from jealousy, arrogance or something else that caused him to turn on his friends. While I know they had trouble separating themselves from their on stage characters, it still didn’t quite make sense to me. Maybe I’ll understand it more the next time I read this, because I already know I’ll be re-reading this at point.
I thought the group dynamics overall were super interesting. Characterizing everyone right from the beginning with their respective roles really set the stage. They all fall into their roles perfectly.
One of the most compelling dynamics in the group was that of James and Oliver. At first I thought the two were secretly seeing each other. There was a line in the very beginning where Oliver is talking about James:
He had always been the most serious student in our year, which (probably) explained why he was also the best actor and (certainly) why no one resented him for it.
Oliver also goes on to call James pretty in that same chapter. It’s obvious Oliver has a thing for James, and I thought James also liked him. However, once it became clear they weren’t together, I began to wonder if the author was going to be queerbaiting us. I’m glad I stuck around to find out that the real reason nothing had happened between them was because they couldn’t admit to themselves that they liked each other.
And can I just say, THAT ENDING. I was curious from the beginning why there was no real mention of James immediately following Oliver leaving prison. Filippa told Oliver about everyone except James.
To not know if James is actually alive was a perfect way to end in my opinion. Though based on the selection he deliberately left for Oliver from Pericles, I chose to believe he faked his death in parallel to the events of that play. I like that it is left open to interpretation though.
Rating: 5 stars
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