Reviews with content warning for Genocide - Ace of Spades

This is my actual face right now 😦
I couldn't read this fast enough, definitely binge-worthy.
The first half is very high school, Pretty Little Liars vibes except obviously racially motivated.
The second half is when it comes together and shit really goes down right at the end, which even if you can see it coming, you'll still be stunned.
The tension and pacing is amazing, but I think the best parts are the side stories and little details.
Silence is betrayal cannot be more evident in this book.
"This world, our world, the one with houses as crooked as the people in them"

IMPORTANT: This isn’t just a cute little queer/black representation high school mystery. There are many many many CW. It’s actually in the front of the book. For those exact reasons, I think everyone should read this but not everyone might be able to.

Content Warnings

mrdeadman's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

4.75

Content Warnings

taigemin's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional informative 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? Yes

4.0

this is the most insane book i've ever read but so good i thought it was moving kind of slow in the beginning, like just a regular YA feeling of like making and losing friends and partners and stuff, getting to know the characters, navigating high school, but then the thriller kicked in and i finished the book in like an hour bc of how crazy it got. every twist was like god i didn't expect that but i should've because it's obvious because structural oppression and insane literally sick white people.

it was hard to read the two black kids just "taking l after l in every chapter" like i heard in a tiktok review, but it exposed lots of issues that black people face--especially women, queer, and poor black people--just all squished into like a month of their lives. the absolute trauma that these characters and their communities experienced was very difficult to read about, and it is debatable if all of that was necessary, but I think it actually was, and that it gave like a worst case scenario that is really not that shocking for american racism.

I have questions about Andre. His story was one that has happened to many Black men victimized by the prison industrial complex, specifically queer black men. And he didn't get a "happy ending. But still, I wish there could've been closure or something, even though that would've detracted from the like 'this is how it is' feeling. Same with Devon's father. Looooved Chiamaka killing Ward though, that was awesome. And Jamie and all of them dying. I wish they all did. I had been thinking like the only way to get back at all of these monsters is for them to die and to crush the systems and everything and I guess 3 of them did, but I definitely wanted more. Jamie really satisfying though. Maybe throw in Ruby and Jack next time or something.

Content Warnings