disclaimer : I received this free from the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review

When We Were Killers follows Finn, a first year student at St Andrews, where he is soon drawn into a 'clan' who are obsessed with finding a long lost hallucinogen that made the Berserkers have a trance like fury. This obsession turns deadly (obviously).

Well, what can I say? This story has been done to death over and over and C.F Barrington added nothing original to his take. Yes, it is a fast-paced novel. Yes, I enjoyed the setting. Yes, it is atmospheric but it is also boring, unoriginal, and extremely predictable. It had potential but was poorly executed.

When the usual modern day drugs just aren’t cutting it anymore, you go in search of mystical old ones? Not rehab, it’s a long lost hallucinogen they need.

When We Were Killers follows five friends at St Andrews University. Finn, a first year, is brought into a group of friends obsessed with the history of Scotland - going on multiple adventures to ‘forgotten castles and faerie lochs’. There is, however, sinister motivations lurking and Finn will soon learn ‘just how deadly obsession can be’ when rivalries are made and the search for the drug is on.

Loved the setting - so atmospheric and perfect for the dark academia genre. I really enjoyed the St Andrews location and the immersive way in which the author set the scene.

Slow start but picked up around the halfway point. I was intimidated by the sheer amount of religious references and in depth discussions of Christianity - which kind of took me out of the story. This does show the authors research, but wasn’t the vibe for me!

Overall the characters were highly unlikable - but I assumed they were supposed to be. We weren’t meant to be rooting for them. As such they fit the vibe well, and made for an interesting read.

ARC copy provided by Head of Zeus & NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

**I was provided an electronic ARC from the publisher through NetGalley.**

CF Barrington presents a dark academic thriller in When We Were Killers. Readers follow our perspective character, Finn, upon his admittance to St Andrew's where he is to study Divinity. Finn is quickly swept up into the Clan dal Riata, a group of five friends including himself who are fascinated by pagan holidays of the Celts and Vikings. Nothing holds the attention of Magnus, the supposed leader of the clan, like the Viking Berserkers. Magnus is determined that a substance is responsible for the rage-fuelled aggression and resistance to pain of the berserkers and he is determined to find it. Even though a Clan member has already died in the search. Even though there is a very real threat that more might be next unless the search is stopped.

When We Were Killers does for the Viking lore what The Secret History does for the Greeks and what If We Were Villains does for Shakespeare. An absolute mess of toxic friendship and love and lore. This is absolutely the pretention and the isolation of academia accompanied by the camaraderie and misery of research.

The writing is sometimes slow and winding, but with a driving pace behind it that seems almost characteristic of the dark academia works that hit hardest for me. Barrington clearly researched the topics well and the cover art is the final nail in the coffin of impact for this book. When We Were Killers stands strong with the pillars of the genre and forges its own place beside them. Is it perfect? Undoubtedly not. But I couldn't ask for more from it.

I will absolutely be looking into Barrington's backlist and will be purchasing my own copy of this book.

The salt-scented quadrangles of St Andrews University greet misfit first-year student Finn Nethercott with indifference. It is a place where privilege counts, and those from the right backgrounds can get away with murder.
Finn is quickly seduced into a new circle of friends – four history scholars obsessed with the deepest roots of ancient Scotland – who sweep him away on wild adventures to forgotten castles and faerie lochs.
But he soon discovers the darker sides of his new friends: deadly rivalries, midnight rituals, and a desperate search for a long-lost hallucinogen. And as Finn sinks into a world where he can't always trust what he's seen each night.

I really enjoyed reading this book. It’s starts slowly but builds tempo as the story progresses. It has some likeable character and some not so likeable. All the ingredients for a great read. It’s well written and although a little over descriptive in places it paints a vivid picture of Scottish history encompassing academia. Great twist at the end.

This book follows a group of students as they attempt to discover what hallucinogenics made the warriors of the past so successful. With this book being dark academia I was immediately expecting a hard to digest text but I was absolutely delighted with how easy this book was to read. It was thrilling and easy to follow and I don’t know if that’s helped by the fact that I live near where this book is set to imaging the surroundings was a breeze. As you can probably tell from the title, this book is very like If We Were Villains in the best way! Take that complex cast of characters with a rich backstory and combine that with the stunning prose of The Secret History, mix in a big handful of scottish lore and you have this book! Getting to read this book early was truly an adventure and I’d highly recommend this to someone who enjoys scottish history or as an entry point into the dark academia sub-genre.

I’m still not 100% sure whether I am a fan of dark academia or not, I find myself in a bit of a quandary as I’m sucked in by some works of this type and others I find hard work. For me When We Were Killers by C.F. Barrington falls between the middle of the two extremes of opinion.

The MMC Finn Nethercott has just started attending the prestigious St. Andrew’s University in Scotland, encountering a level of society and people that he has no previous experience in, a society of money and privilege. Alone and feeling somewhat separate from the core student body, Finn is drawn to an intriguing and mysterious group of 4 - Hope, Laurie, Magnus and Madri, who obsessed with the Scottish myth and folklore introduce Finn to a world of late night rituals, secret meetings and a search for an ancient hallucinogen.

Amidst the world of St Andrews, Finn soon discovers that this group are not what he hoped they would be as he unearths the toxic and sinister rivalries within the group as they pursue their unt for a long-lost hallucinogen. And as Finn’s hold on reality spirals away he faces the ultimate question of what price he will pay in pursuit of knowledge.

Whilst I was intrigued and pulled in to how the book identified and explored folkloric, spiritual and cultural traditions rituals and rites, and was immersed in that unsettling, chilling environment, I found the slow-burn and pace of the plot not to my taste at the start but, soon was pulled into the wild rollercoaster ride of hallucinogens, lore and dynamic of obsession and madness that exploded in the latter part of the book.

Whilst this book still hasn’t resolved my dark academia quandary, it is a strong example of the theme, that anyone who loves dark academia, atmospheric thrillers, history, myths and folklore will be totally entwined in.

Huge thanks to Head of Zeus and NetGalley for this arc in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

When We Were Killers is a really unusual mix of dark academia, thriller and, despite being set in a very real place with very real people, it almost had a fantasy quality to the writing and story. Finn is starting at St Andrews University in Scotland and from the outset feels like an outsider. We know that he has had a difficult upbringing and this might be the reason he is instantly drawn to a group of 4 friends (Hope, Laurie, Magnus and Madri) who have established a private group called the 'clan of dàl riata' where they are all obsessed with mythology, history, lore and ancient traditions. One of these obsessions is with the viking berserkers and the group have been tirelessly experimenting with drugs to try and recreate the circumstances of this particular phenomenon.

I loved the structure of the story - we start with a really ominous prologue which is set thirty years ahead of the main story. In this prologue it is clear that something has gone terribly wrong but it is unclear as to how, why and who is involved. The rest of the book then builds up to this tragic event, gradually revealing more of the situation and how it came about. This is a wild story with lots of interesting cultural information woven into it. A dark and mesmerising fever dream of a novel!

Finn Nethercott arrives to start his year at St Andrews. He finds it to be full of people, who come from a different world than himself - a world of money and privilege. Shortly after arriving, he meets a group of History students, who take him under their wing. However, he learns that all is not what it seems when he discovers that they are made about ancient Scottish folklore. What happens next is a random event that threatens all of their lives. The story is well written especially the descriptions of Scotland and their folklore. The group dynamic is full of different personalities. It kept me entertained and glued to my seat.

Finn begins studying at St Andrews University and meets a new circle of friends who are obsessed with ancient Scotland. He soon learns that there are much darker sides to his new deadly rivalries and sinks into a dangerous world.

This sounded like it would be an interesting read and I liked the idea of reading some dark academia. This definitely ended up heavily focused on the academia and was a story with a difference. I found that there was a lot of attention on history and folklores, which is not something I usually love, but I did find parts intriguing in this novel. Saying that, it was rather a slow burn, sometimes to the point where it dragged so much I felt slightly bored, and the way the story is told did get confusing at times. I didn’t care much for the characters either. Even though this book wasn’t fully for me, I appreciate what the author was trying to achieve and I enjoyed the atmosphere and overall concept. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this copy in return for an honest review.

Wow! when I get an ARC, I'm never sure how it's going to turn out, especially when I've never read anything by the author before.

Being of Scottish and Norwegian heritage with a fascination in lore, coupled with a love for a crime thriller - this could be the perfect book for me.

The story of Finn, starting university with a traumatic past and the magic and mystery of folk lore weaved throughout the book.

I absolutely loved this and I'm now going to add all of the author's other reads to my list because it was absolutely fantastic. An unforgettable page turner which will surely be made into a film.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book for an honest review.

I liked this! Scottish dark academia with a murderous, hallucinogenic twist. Definitely slow to start and a little long winded on the religion stuff. I did however really enjoy the historical fiction aspect on the Viking mythology. Overall recommend!

While I enjoyed the reading experience and I was kept riveted the entire time, I can’t help feeling that the ending was slightly lacking. Would have liked to see some real consequences for those entitled rich kids.

☠️ T O X I C T U E S D A Y review ☠️ featuring “When We Were Killers” by C.F. Barrington!

MY RATING: 🖤🖤🖤.5/5

Finn Nethercott is attending the prestigious St. Andrew’s University in Scotland. Arriving alone and living in a single dorm room pushes Finn to meet people … which doesn’t take long. Finn finds himself totally drawn into a group of 4 friends that are obsessed with the ancient history of Scotland.

Hope, Laurie, Magnus and Madri introduce Finn to a world of late night rituals, secret meetings and a search for an ancient hallucinogen. But it doesn’t take long for Finn to catch on to the sinister and toxic dynamics of this group and the rivalry between them … and him.

If you are a fan of dark academia, atmospheric thrillers and deep rooted history and folklore, then this one is for you! Full of twists and turns, out of body/mind experiences and untrustworthy characters, this book will put you through the wringer!

Thank you kindly to @cfbarrington_notwriting @headofzeus @netgalley for my #gifted advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review! This book releases on May 27, 2025!

a dark, atmospheric read with a strong sense of place and simmering tension throughout. It blends toxic friendships, obsession, and folklore into a moody, slow-burn thriller that lingers after the final page.

This is a dark academia thriller based in St Andrews, Scotland.
The setting works really well for the academia and secret society plot lines. The toxic friendships in this are well written and the entire story leaves you thinking carefully about how things could go wrong when you get into all the wrong things.
I found the berserker history plot a really interesting topic for their reasons for doing what they did.

Omg I loved this book had me gripped from the first page. If you loved a secret history, dark academia and story's of legends and whimsy this is for you. The characters are so well written and brought to life so vividly you can feel everyword. The story line flowed really well leaving you guessing where it might end up. A story of friendship, relationships and just how far we will go to fit in or run from our own trauma. Thanks netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read an early arc of this book

I thought this booked sounded amazing when I read the description and I am pleased to say it lived up to my expectations. I have never read a book quite like it that blends almost a contemporary style with magical/mystical elements at times. The story had good pace, drive and I loved the whole idea of being sucked into this world because you have lost something in yourself. The setting was really interesting and the history, particularly the Scottish was great to read. The characters all stood out on their own, for good reasons and I felt each of them were understandable and relatable in a lot of ways. Overall it was a great read and I would recommend it.

Fascinating book about the Berserkers where the main character doesn't know what he lays in store for. Loved the writing and the pacing of the book. Definitely recommend. 4/5 stars

Thanks to NetGalley and Aria & Aries for an ARC of When We Were Killers in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 3/5

I encountered some challenges while trying to engage with this book. It seemed to progress at a pace that was slower than I had anticipated, which made it difficult for me to immerse myself fully in the narrative. However, if you appreciate intricate storytelling and a deeper exploration of themes revolving around faith, this book might be right up your alley. The complexity of the narrative could resonate with readers who enjoy a thoughtful and reflective reading experience.

set under the watching eye of st andrews, this book is a mystery waiting to be solved, horrors waiting to occur and a trip that desperately needs to end.

we follow a handful of strong and intriguing characters, belonging to the clan of dàl riata. this clan pays homage to many an ancient tradition, often following the pagan calendar and holidays and paying respects to the norse, celts and vikings belonging to the scotland of old. our groups founder magnus has a particular obsession with untangling the mysteries of the viking berserkers and the question stands - what made them so indestructible and will there be a prestige to figuring out their secrets?

the line 'life lingered in her' particularly struck me in its powerful us as both an opener and a closer in the book, though sparking intrigue at the start its truly haunting by the end. the pre-technology setting of the 90's added to the morbidity, forcing our characters to sit with their grief and guilt. despite this darkness we still have a unique found family with our cast, including more wholesome points in which our author pays homage to actual st andrews traditions.

coming out in may, this is a great thriller academia to pick up and enter the darker months with.