Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

196 reviews

saucy_bookdragon's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

 Ace of Spades for the first half is a compelling contemporary that makes you understand the characters and sets up what they have to lose, then the second half is a tense dark academia thriller that had my heart pounding as the mystery got darker and darker. This put me through an absolute whirlwind of emotions, I even cried during one scene!

It's got a very similar premise to Gossip Girl/Go Piss Girl, our two main characters are the only Black students at a prestigious private school who are being targeted by the mysterious Aces who is airing out their dirty laundry. I really loved both characters and how dynamic they are! They're also both queer, Devon is gay and Chiamaka has an arc of figuring out her sexuality. I found this to be some of the most relatable rep I've read, Devon really captured a lot of the darker feelings from being closeted while Chi's journey wasn't simple nor quick.

Thematically, the book is an indictment of systemic racism, shown through the example of an overwhelmingly white private school. It deals with various different ways that this racism manifests, from the targeted attacks by Aces to characters passively allowing racism to go unchecked and not acknowledging their own biases.

My only complaint is that the plotting has some odd hiccups. Like, I didn't understand why they didn't start investigate Aces earlier, even though I like the fact that we got time to know the characters before diving in. There's also a major decision towards the end that was odd, illogical, and convoluted. And the climax was both rush and a bit too convenient.

Overall, Ace of Spades is an absolutely wild dark academia thriller with lovable complex characters that criticizes systemic racism.
 
TWs: racism including targeted attacks, homophobia including outing, stalking, vehicular manslaughter, death, capital punishment, and an intense interaction with a police officer. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Car accident, Outing, Racism, Stalking, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Hate crime, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Violence, Police brutality, Classism, Death, and Gun violence

diogomlory99's review against another edition

dark emotional informative 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? No

4.75

A thrilling and exciting book, about racism. For fans of PLL and Gossip Girl, this book will be amazing! Even for non-fans, who are looking for a GOOD book with great characters and a tense mysterious plot! Loved every second of this book! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Racial slurs, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, Toxic friendship, Car accident, Classism, Death, Bullying, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual harassment, Suicide attempt, Gun violence, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, and Violence

hausofbooks's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Violence, Racism, and Bullying

Minor: Death, Gun violence, Suicide attempt, Car accident, and Suicidal thoughts

spooderman's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Gaslighting, Car accident, Physical abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Homophobia, Toxic friendship, Racism, Racial slurs, Outing, Mental illness, Slavery, Cursing, Stalking, Body shaming, Colonisation, Misogyny, Gun violence, Vomit, Death, Violence, Torture, Murder, Abandonment, Bullying, and Blood

Moderate: Alcohol, Biphobia, Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Police brutality, Forced institutionalization, Suicidal thoughts, Infidelity, Confinement, Medical content, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, and Drug use

Minor: Eating disorder and Pregnancy

jen1804's review against another edition

challenging dark informative mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I need time to reflect and gather my thoughts, but this is 5/5 read.
***********************************
This is one of those books which I think will stay with me forever. It’s a gossip girl/pretty little liars/get out vibe, dark academia story, which features the scary possibilities that institutionalised racism can demonstrate.
This is a suspenseful thriller with an excellent plot and well developed characters who have realistic feelings and emotions. I found the whole thing rather reflective, making me think about my own white privilege. There are some absolutely chilling moments and I gave some audible gasps.
In my heart I hope that the sick, calculated and wide spread hatred represented in this book is completely and utterly fiction, but I know that it does indeed highlight the racism that is still very much a prominent thing of this century. Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé does a fantastic job of demonstrating the everyday issues that those existing in darker skinned bodies must deal with, whilst also elaborating on it in a more dramatic way through the social commentary of institutionalised racism within a high school.
The pacing of the novel was perfect and I felt engaged all the way through. I also enjoyed the exploration of the LGBTQ+ difficulties and especially how it intertwined with race and culture.
Check trigger warnings before reading as this book covers a lot, but it does so in the best possible way.
Satisfactory ending? Yes.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Outing, Racism, Blood, Car accident, Hate crime, Bullying, Toxic friendship, Violence, Homophobia, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Gun violence, Stalking, Body shaming, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Drug use, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting

alouette's review against another edition

dark hopeful tense fast-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

4.5

not what i expected! the author takes a seemingly basic setting and uses well fleshed out characters to create a really meaningful, creepy, important story. while i think the writing style wasn't for me when it came to visualizing scenes, especially very heavy ones, it still got a magnificent plot across. absolutely the diverse, thematic, unpredictable kind of novel we will always need more of in the world.

i was definitely more partial to devon's POV as a queer person, but both his and chiamaka's voices were very distinctive and gave fresh perspective on their community. worth a reread to find all the hints that culminate into that thrilling ending. and the closure afterwards in the epilogue made me incredibly happy!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident, Racism, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Gun violence and Drug use

danaslitlist's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

4.5

Tense, suspenseful and all around a thrill to read. With a handful of moments that left me teary eyed. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Violence, Outing, and Racism

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Drug abuse, and Drug use

calamitywindpetal's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Alcohol, Car accident, Grief, Toxic friendship, Homophobia, Bullying, Stalking, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence

Moderate: Police brutality, Death of parent, Misogyny, Violence, Vomit, Death, Racial slurs, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Drug abuse, Gun violence, and Drug use

icarus_has_risen's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious relaxing tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This book. It punched me in the gut, it kicked me, it made me cry. And I’m still going to read it again and again and again. I can’t get over how much I love this book. It’s message is one everyone needs to understand- no matter how uncomfortable it is. Black stories need to be told and listened to, and this book is so perfect. It’s full of justice and hatred and sadness and joy. If you need to read one book, read this one. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Homophobia, Racism, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Murder, Violence, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Outing, and Slavery

Minor: Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, and Gun violence

millies_mini_library's review against another edition

dark tense fast-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Outing, Racism, Bullying, and Homophobia

Moderate: Gun violence

Minor: Drug use and Suicide attempt