Reviews tagging 'Injury/Injury detail'

Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

87 reviews

k8lynn's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

i love this book!!! could not stop reading it & when i wasn't reading it i was thinking about it. the audiobook only enhanced this experience!!

*also trigger warning for gay people being forcibly outed to the public

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug use, Blood, Bullying, Child death, Racial slurs, Toxic relationship, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Homophobia, Hate crime, Racism, Religious bigotry, Suicide, Misogyny, Outing, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Violence, and Toxic friendship

emily_mh's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

I don’t want to write too much about this read, because I fear I would spoil something by accident, and I truly think the best way to experience this book is to go in not knowing much about the plot, so that you’re as confused as the MCs and disocvering the trurth right alongside them. The only reason I’m giving this less than five stars is because of some pacing issues. The first half could have been tightened up more, and more time needed to be spent on the climax. There was also an aspect of one MC that felt a bit shoehorned in and underdeveloped. But other than that, this was a truly phenomenal read, both insightful and harrowing. There were so many layers to the plot and characters that Àbíké-Íyímídé artfully constructed and peeled back for the reader. I can see why everyone raves about this work, and I’m really looking forward to reading Àbíké-Íyímídé’s 2024 release.

Rep: gay Black MC, sapphic biracial Black/white Italian/Nigerian-American MC, bi SC, Black Achillean SC

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Physical abuse, Violence, Homophobia, Bullying, Outing, Racism, Gaslighting, and Hate crime

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Vomit, Cursing, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, and Car accident

Minor: Murder, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Child death, Sexism, Sexual content, Death, Blood, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Panic attacks/disorders, Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Drug use, Ableism, Police brutality, Bullying, Religious bigotry, Slavery, and Pregnancy

Major: three uses of the n-slur, eugenics Moderate: imprisoned loved one, capital punishment Minor: disownment, toxic masculinity, texturism, sick loved one, suicidal ideation, disordered eating

sinceraly's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

I wanted so badly to like this book, and I always feel weird trying to rate a book about a Black experience of racism, or at least a representation of that, when I am not Black myself, but critiquing this as fairly and honestly as I can, I don't think it's entirely well written. I understand the fact that racism can come from anywhere and anyone, and that no white person is not at least complicit in systemic racism, but some of the complete and sudden heel turns made by characters in this book for the sake of making them racist was sloppy, the plot didn't really make sense when you consider that the main idea of an evil school set out to ruin Black lives and practice social eugenics relies on said evil school bringing in Black students it otherwise did not need to, and plot points were regularly brought up and then completely left unanswered, like Devon finding out his father died as a death row I made and Dre being arrested on drug dealing charges.

The writer is very talented at prose, but unfortunately, this book did not have the consistency and skill to tell the story in a way that felt realistic enough. Racism does exist in both violent and sneaky ways, and both threaten lives, but Ace of Spades, to me, does not do a great job of selling the message. The evil you know is always scarier than the evil you do, and the book really would have been more successful if it had made and kept the villains as more of an intimate set of people - like Get Out did by having the villains be the main character's girlfriend's family - rather than a handful of them and also the whole school.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, Violence, Outing, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Racism, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Classism and Injury/Injury detail

luckyonesoph's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Complicated, conflicting feelings about this one. On one hand, critically important message and a fascinating premise that was mostly really well-written. On the other hand, some of the characters felt really under-developed, and some of the twists were so extreme, they were just unbelievable. Loved Devon, could never get myself to root for Chiamaka.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Racism, Toxic friendship, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Car accident, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Murder, and Hate crime

se_wigget's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Highlight, copy, paste--you know, like a phone that isn't a piece of shit. Stop proving that you're garbage, stupidphone.

Paste, paste, paste, paste, paste, paste 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Car accident, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Hate crime, Stalking, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, and Injury/Injury detail

voidature's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Homophobia, Hate crime, Stalking, Racial slurs, Racism, and Torture

Moderate: Mental illness, Toxic friendship, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, Car accident, Sexual violence, Gaslighting, Grief, and Outing

Minor: Classism, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, and Gun violence

aurora4847's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

Ace of Spades was such a good read, especially for a white college graduate during Black History Month. While the stakes seem so low in the beginning, the tension and mystery keep ramping up the further in you get. It feels almost like a paranormal thriller, but with the monster being systemic racism instead of a demon. The ordeals Chiamaka and Devon have to survive are truly horrifying, and terrifyingly realistic. While it may seem exaggerated for the sake of the story, it really isn't too far off what black students actually have to deal with in academia. Chiamaka and Devon's differing socioeconomic statuses adds another layer of complexity in how they handle and think about what they're enduring. Ace of Spades is practically required reading for any white person who's benefited from access to higher education, especially more elite private schools and universities, and actually gives a damn about how POC are treated in those spaces.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, Bullying, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Outing, Homophobia, Classism, Stalking, and Racism

Moderate: Suicide attempt, Violence, Blood, Abandonment, Fire/Fire injury, Car accident, Death, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Gun violence, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Addiction, Alcohol, Drug abuse, and Police brutality

This book is about systemic racism and eugenics. The main characters are the victims of harassment that grows to assault, hate crimes, stalking, and abuse. They are repeatedly betrayed by trusted individuals.

talonsontypewriters's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense 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? It's complicated

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Stalking, Violence, Blood, Outing, Toxic relationship, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death, Homophobia, Car accident, Grief, Racial slurs, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Death of parent, Suicide attempt, Vomit, Alcohol, Drug use, Infidelity, and Sexual content

camrich's review

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Hate crime, Bullying, Violence, Homophobia, and Racism

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Car accident, Cursing, Classism, Outing, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Sexual content, Suicide attempt, and Cancer

theuncannydani's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious sad tense 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

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Sexism, Toxic friendship, Racism, Child abuse, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Gaslighting, Stalking, Classism, Death, Car accident, Outing, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Drug use, Sexual harassment, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Confinement, Alcohol, Suicide, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Grief, Death of parent, and Sexual violence

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Cursing, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Drug abuse