finished reading

Growing up as a theater kid/nerd, I liked that this book takes place in an arty college that specializes in Shakespeare.  I loved the theater references and jargon.  I liked how Shakespeare is discussed by the characters--so that I didn't have to have a lot of background in Shakespeare to appreciate what the characters were talking about and doing.

I thought the characters were just pretentious enough.  Cliche enough.  And even though I knew who committed the crime, I was still interested enough to find out the details.  I did think the author tried a bit too hard to be literary, which kind of detracted from the whole experience.

From the publisher:

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, ingenue, extra. 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.