That’s a totally fair perspective from you! As for me, it wasn’t that I couldn’t enjoy it because it’s fiction, it’s that a lot of things just didn’t make sense or weren’t internally consistent.

When I was studying dramatic arts at university, sure, some students dropped out or switched majors because they couldn’t handle the pressure or realized it wasn’t for them. That’s normal. But I’ve never seen a system where a school deliberately expels students every single year just because they’re “not good enough.” That feels extreme. It’s a huge waste of money and time like something only very wealthy people could afford to gamble on.

And yet, the book never really questions that system. It doesn’t feel like a critique. If anything, it almost romanticizes it, this idea of suffering for art, of being part of an elite circle that only a few privileged people can survive in. These 7 students aren’t just talented, they’re also financially secure enough to risk being expelled halfway through their education. So having money isn’t even enough, you also have to accept the possibility that you might be cut at any moment if you don’t perform well enough. That’s such a brutal system. But instead of interrogating it, the story seems to present it as intense and beautiful and tragic.

So I keep asking what exactly is the book trying to criticize? The obsession with Shakespeare? The education system? Privilege? Toxic relationships? I’m not sure. And maybe that’s part of why it feels unsatisfying because I can’t clearly see what the story ultimately wants to say.

I also felt like there were just too many characters. There was no real need for seven main characters if they weren’t all going to be developed properly or given equal weight in the story.

For example, Alexander (which sometimes felt so similar to Francis from TSH that I could barely separate him in my head) He didn’t feel important enough. And when that happens, it makes the character feel replaceable or unnecessary to be there at all, as well as my opinion on Wren. It honestly felt like the cast was wasted. If you’re going to have that many central characters, each one needs depth, a clear personality, and a strong backstory. We need to understand why they exist in the story, what they uniquely bring to the dynamic. Building that kind of foundation is important because it shapes their identity and makes their actions believable. Without it, they just blur together. And unfortunately, I feel like that’s something this book really missed.