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halthemonarch's review against another edition
3.0
I liked it, but while I was reading it I realized I'm in a place with my fiction books of choice where they uphold a theme, rather than things being purely character driven. On paper Ace of Shades has a gripping plot set in some sort of parallel universe early nineteen hundreds earth where magic exists. I’m getting the Pullman alternate reality vibes here, but I don't know if I was the most receptive to learning a new magic system and opening myself up to new characters since all I’ve been reading lately are sequels, and tragedies. It's a great read for people looking for the an allegory of the loose beginnings of class revolt but this is mostly a love story with magic and intrigue and a lot of descriptions of cards.
Enne is looking for Lourdes (which, twisty twist, isn't even her real name) her foster mother in New Reynes and her one lead is “Levi Glassier”. The little missy gets into trouble on her very first day but holds her own just so that young crime boss Glassier is compelled to protect her for a payout. They’re hot for each other, obviously. Levi’s boss, Vianca, at one point bonds Enne to her service and the city as she’s done with Levi. Now these two crabs are cooked together.
Things heat up when Levi’s right hand Raymond is murdered during an assassination attempt on the guild (or something) and Enne sneaks out to find she is part of a line of powerful and dangerous ex-royals called myzers, from a “blood gazer” called Lola. Later she’s conscripted via street oath (which are apparently impossible or at least physically difficult to break) to help Enne uncover more about the mysterious woman who raised her. Levi meanwhile, owes this other crime lord Sedric, like, a billion volts (currency) by Sedric’s deadline or terrible things will happen to him-- and time is running out quickly!
It was around here that I really tried to snap into it and get to reading the other half because I only had a few days left with the library’s audio copy. But like. It felt very ya not an examination of anything except the interest fabricated within creating this world, and it just wasn’t enough to suck me in. The story ends with Levi in Sedric’s casino, and then within the shadow game awaiting certain death, and Enne appearing on Vianca’s orders and her own will to help save the day. With Sedric dead and Enne’s powers awakened, we’re left open to the next book without yearning terribly for more. This might be someone’s cup of tea— actually, it was my cup of tea when I was of a mind to enjoy books like An Ember in the Ashes and City of Bones and Divergent and other normal-with-a-splash-of-magic and the idea that having more than one hobby is utterly radical books....you know? It’s like reading Mistborn without the morality of the Overlord character in the background, because the Myzers are obviously the subjugated class (but because they deserved it and were powerful sorcerer royalty before the working class executed them all?) I might revisit the series if the second book is ever readily available to me, because it IS an interesting story, I just idk if I was in the right mood to read it. Also French sounding fantasy names are quickly becoming played out and impossible to read in my book, my adhd brain just changed every French word to Lefevre or Croissant.
Enne is looking for Lourdes (which, twisty twist, isn't even her real name) her foster mother in New Reynes and her one lead is “Levi Glassier”. The little missy gets into trouble on her very first day but holds her own just so that young crime boss Glassier is compelled to protect her for a payout. They’re hot for each other, obviously. Levi’s boss, Vianca, at one point bonds Enne to her service and the city as she’s done with Levi. Now these two crabs are cooked together.
Things heat up when Levi’s right hand Raymond is murdered during an assassination attempt on the guild (or something) and Enne sneaks out to find she is part of a line of powerful and dangerous ex-royals called myzers, from a “blood gazer” called Lola. Later she’s conscripted via street oath (which are apparently impossible or at least physically difficult to break) to help Enne uncover more about the mysterious woman who raised her. Levi meanwhile, owes this other crime lord Sedric, like, a billion volts (currency) by Sedric’s deadline or terrible things will happen to him-- and time is running out quickly!
It was around here that I really tried to snap into it and get to reading the other half because I only had a few days left with the library’s audio copy. But like. It felt very ya not an examination of anything except the interest fabricated within creating this world, and it just wasn’t enough to suck me in. The story ends with Levi in Sedric’s casino, and then within the shadow game awaiting certain death, and Enne appearing on Vianca’s orders and her own will to help save the day. With Sedric dead and Enne’s powers awakened, we’re left open to the next book without yearning terribly for more. This might be someone’s cup of tea— actually, it was my cup of tea when I was of a mind to enjoy books like An Ember in the Ashes and City of Bones and Divergent and other normal-with-a-splash-of-magic and the idea that having more than one hobby is utterly radical books....you know? It’s like reading Mistborn without the morality of the Overlord character in the background, because the Myzers are obviously the subjugated class (but because they deserved it and were powerful sorcerer royalty before the working class executed them all?) I might revisit the series if the second book is ever readily available to me, because it IS an interesting story, I just idk if I was in the right mood to read it. Also French sounding fantasy names are quickly becoming played out and impossible to read in my book, my adhd brain just changed every French word to Lefevre or Croissant.
cornelia_sl's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
writermags's review against another edition
2.0
EDIT May 2021: I bumped this down to 2 stars because I've read a lot of 3-star books lately and I enjoyed this less.
I have a LOT of mixed feelings about this book so here goes nothing.
PROS:
- The magic system is subtler than most, but more or less unique. I like the concept of magic being passed down through family lines and children inheriting a "talent" from each of their parents. There's a lot of potential to experiment with combinations of talents and I honestly wish we'd seen more of it.
- Enne's character development (?) over the course of the book isn't really something you see with a lot of protagonists, especially female ones, and I appreciated that.
- No shame in eating cookies.
CONS:
- This is a long one, but my copy has the tagline "'House of the Rising Sun' meets Six of Crows" on it and let me tell you, that's completely off base. Setting aside that comparing a book to a song is kind of odd, I had a hard time drawing any comparisons to SoC. Yes, there are gangs and crime, but this is not a heist story (in fact, I don't even think we got a proper con, which was disappointing). There isn't really much of a "team" either - I suppose you could say that by the end we have Levi, Enne, Jac, and Lola, but we don't really see the supporting characters have their moment to shine, and this "team" lacks chemistry. I don't want to fault the author on how their book was marketed, but a tagline like that just set me up for disappointment.
- I had a hard time getting into the story until we were about 100 pages in. It got more interesting at that point, but that's nearly 1/4 of the book I had to slog through to get there.
- "Muck." (seriously though, just... let them swear. I know it's YA. I know it's fantasy. But I cringed EVERY TIME.)
- Pedophiles for some reason?? I guess it's meant to underscore how depraved New Reynes is but like... I feel very iffy about having sexual predators in books. Nevermind the discomfort of it - it cheapens a lot of the story. It's a shortcut for saying "THIS CHARACTER BAD" and also provides an easy justification for protagonists to get rid of that character. In other words, it essentially removes the protagonist from having to wrestle with the idea of killing someone, even when that someone is an objectively bad person.
- Side note on that:
- At least twice, we get lines like "[Enne had] never been a prude" and "[Levi] was certainly no prude" and I just... why? I want to believe that the author didn't mean anything harmful by it, but "prude" is such a charged word, ESPECIALLY for female characters. The lines kind of imply that if you're not like Enne or Levi, you're a prude, and that's a bad thing. It elevates one approach to sex at the cost of diminishing another. Idk. If you're trying to create a story that is sex-positive, you shouldn't be using words that shame people who aren't interested in sex or choose not to engage in it.
I think that's all I have right now. All this to say, I don't think Ace of Shades is an objectively BAD book, it just felt... disappointing. I won't go as far to say don't read it, but maybe try not to get your hopes up too much.
I have a LOT of mixed feelings about this book so here goes nothing.
PROS:
- The magic system is subtler than most, but more or less unique. I like the concept of magic being passed down through family lines and children inheriting a "talent" from each of their parents. There's a lot of potential to experiment with combinations of talents and I honestly wish we'd seen more of it.
- Enne's character development (?) over the course of the book isn't really something you see with a lot of protagonists, especially female ones, and I appreciated that.
- No shame in eating cookies.
CONS:
- This is a long one, but my copy has the tagline "'House of the Rising Sun' meets Six of Crows" on it and let me tell you, that's completely off base. Setting aside that comparing a book to a song is kind of odd, I had a hard time drawing any comparisons to SoC. Yes, there are gangs and crime, but this is not a heist story (in fact, I don't even think we got a proper con, which was disappointing). There isn't really much of a "team" either - I suppose you could say that by the end we have Levi, Enne, Jac, and Lola, but we don't really see the supporting characters have their moment to shine, and this "team" lacks chemistry. I don't want to fault the author on how their book was marketed, but a tagline like that just set me up for disappointment.
- I had a hard time getting into the story until we were about 100 pages in. It got more interesting at that point, but that's nearly 1/4 of the book I had to slog through to get there.
- "Muck." (seriously though, just... let them swear. I know it's YA. I know it's fantasy. But I cringed EVERY TIME.)
- Pedophiles for some reason?? I guess it's meant to underscore how depraved New Reynes is but like... I feel very iffy about having sexual predators in books. Nevermind the discomfort of it - it cheapens a lot of the story. It's a shortcut for saying "THIS CHARACTER BAD" and also provides an easy justification for protagonists to get rid of that character. In other words, it essentially removes the protagonist from having to wrestle with the idea of killing someone, even when that someone is an objectively bad person.
- Side note on that:
Spoiler
I know that Enne poisoning and later killing Sedric is meant to be an exertion of her power over someone who has used his power to assault children, and I'm not saying he shouldn't have died. But also, why do female characters almost always have to display their power by exerting it over rapists and sexual predators? Why can't Enne just kill Sedric because she wants to?- At least twice, we get lines like "[Enne had] never been a prude" and "[Levi] was certainly no prude" and I just... why? I want to believe that the author didn't mean anything harmful by it, but "prude" is such a charged word, ESPECIALLY for female characters. The lines kind of imply that if you're not like Enne or Levi, you're a prude, and that's a bad thing. It elevates one approach to sex at the cost of diminishing another. Idk. If you're trying to create a story that is sex-positive, you shouldn't be using words that shame people who aren't interested in sex or choose not to engage in it.
I think that's all I have right now. All this to say, I don't think Ace of Shades is an objectively BAD book, it just felt... disappointing. I won't go as far to say don't read it, but maybe try not to get your hopes up too much.
betwixtbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.0
rhrie38's review against another edition
Childish as hell. "Mucking"? Seriously? Also wtf is character depth. These guys are flat as pancakes.
lisamarie89's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this world. I appreciated seeing the world through Enne's eyes because she just gets dropped into this strange world and has to figure out how to survive. I think Levi's POV could have been more developed, but I think he might grow in the next book. This book was clearly a first book in the series, but I am excited to read the next one!
ashcash981's review against another edition
4.0
THIS MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
I tried reading this book back in 2019, and inevitably DNF'd it. However, I decided to try again, and this time the audiobook. So I'm not sure if this was in contribution as to why I enjoyed it a lot more this time around. The narration and narrator were amazing!
With that being said...I LOVED that this book was character-driven and the growth of the characters throughout the story. Enne Salta heads to New Reyens, City of Sin to find her mother Lourdes. She's sheltered, naive, and innocent. However, weeks in the City of Sin she begins to realize that she can't be this naive little girl anymore. She needs to adapt, and adapt she did...albeit hesitantly.
What I didn't like was the made-up curse words mucking and shatz, for the love of holy please just use real ones! I wish there had been a deeper explanation of the Volts system, the magic system, why everyone seems to hate Mizers, and why they were all killed at one point. Did they hate Mizers because they could make volts? It was unclear. Not that I need to be spoonfed details, but sometimes at least a little knowledge is better than being left confused.
I will say if I didn't know Levi Glaysier was a teenage black boy, you'd never know. I wish the character descriptions throughout the book were thought out a little bit more as well.
Overall, I enjoyed the story. I can't wait to pick up the following book, King of Fools, to see if it's more plot-driven this time around or a mix of both character and plot!
I tried reading this book back in 2019, and inevitably DNF'd it. However, I decided to try again, and this time the audiobook. So I'm not sure if this was in contribution as to why I enjoyed it a lot more this time around. The narration and narrator were amazing!
With that being said...I LOVED that this book was character-driven and the growth of the characters throughout the story. Enne Salta heads to New Reyens, City of Sin to find her mother Lourdes. She's sheltered, naive, and innocent. However, weeks in the City of Sin she begins to realize that she can't be this naive little girl anymore. She needs to adapt, and adapt she did...albeit hesitantly.
What I didn't like was the made-up curse words mucking and shatz, for the love of holy please just use real ones! I wish there had been a deeper explanation of the Volts system, the magic system, why everyone seems to hate Mizers, and why they were all killed at one point. Did they hate Mizers because they could make volts? It was unclear. Not that I need to be spoonfed details, but sometimes at least a little knowledge is better than being left confused.
I will say if I didn't know Levi Glaysier was a teenage black boy, you'd never know. I wish the character descriptions throughout the book were thought out a little bit more as well.
Overall, I enjoyed the story. I can't wait to pick up the following book, King of Fools, to see if it's more plot-driven this time around or a mix of both character and plot!
snoopydoo77's review against another edition
4.0
This book was amazing! I’m so glad I stumbled over this series and I already started book two.
I don't think there is anything I didn’t like in this book. I loved the characters, I loved the world, I loved the writing and the pace. Just simple stunning.
The world gave me an old Hollywood/ Vegas vibe which I enjoyed so much more than I thought I would.
The characters are so real, so flawed and so enjoyable. It was easy to get lost in the world along with them. Plus, they had some amazing, character development along the way.
Enne... OMG. I loved her... I loved seeing her transformed from this good school girl to kick ass heroine in one book and I suspect it will just get better from here on.
Levi, complete opposite ... in character but still amazing growth in his own way. Seeing the soft side in the street lord he is and how much he cared for those around him.
But not only the main characters were awesome but the supporting cast was great as well.
I loved the slow romance … okay the book takes place only over a span of a two weeks or so. BUT it felt much slower than that, not slow as in boring but slow in pace if that makes sense. It felt like we know these people forever and a day.
The romance felt slower as well and very sweet and natural.
The only thing I had a little problem with was the magic system in this world, it took me a little to understand and get into. I hope be more of an idea of it in next book.
Overall, loved …. I can only recommend this book if you are looking for a book with amazing cast and world.
I rate it 4.5★
lyakimov's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars.
The whole plot was a huge mishmash of magic and politics that confused me so much. It was a little bit of everything and it just did not work for the story. Also the instalove and the made-up swear words was so annoying. I really can’t take it seriously when they say “Muck you” like girl WHAT. Am I not supposed to laugh?? Also, the main character is 5 foot, and the love interest TOWERS over her of course like every other goddamn book.
The whole plot was a huge mishmash of magic and politics that confused me so much. It was a little bit of everything and it just did not work for the story. Also the instalove and the made-up swear words was so annoying. I really can’t take it seriously when they say “Muck you” like girl WHAT. Am I not supposed to laugh?? Also, the main character is 5 foot, and the love interest TOWERS over her of course like every other goddamn book.