Reviews

Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

kthedestroyer's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective tense fast-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

4.0

Well, this was a fun book… if you could call it that way. It’s really interesting and one of those books that you just can’t put down but it gets so interesting. You literally can’t trust anyone other than the two main characters. Anyway, let’s talk about it, shall we? 

I like Devon. He’s an interesting character and I find it cool that the author made him gay. I like that the author actually made him have an interesting romantic life that made him go through a lot of trouble as well. I know that gay people often don’t have it easy when it comes to this but I’m glad he found someone to love at the end. The things Aces revealed about him were quite disturbing and I’m surprised Devon took it as well as he did. I mean, sure, he was shaken but I swear if someone did something like this to me I would have cried and dropped out the first thing in the morning. 

Chiamaka was also okay though I didn’t particularly care for her at the beginning. I didn’t like that she had so many fake friendships with those girls and the fact that she used people around her for her own gain. But in the end, she’s cool. I like how close she got with Devon in the time Aces worked on embarrassing them in front of everyone. 

I don’t want to talk about the plot here because I don’t want to spoil too much so I will dedicate a section for spoilers below. What you do need to know is that it’s very gripping and tense although I feel like some things were left unexplained at the end. 

I’m giving it 4 stars because I really enjoyed it but I do have some minor problems that bring it down for me. 

There will be SPOILERS from here on! 

Okay so, I want to talk about some other characters. First, Jamie… he’s such an ass. Like, this idiot was playing with Chi for 4 years, pretending to be her best friend and sometimes even giving her clues that he liked her romantically but in fact, he just wanted to embarrass her. What an idiot. I was so happy that this racist white piece of shit got his kick in the balls in the end because he deserved it so fucking much. I don’t even care that he died. He was too much of a spoiled rich kid for me to give a shit. 

The next one is Belle, whom I didn’t exactly hate but I still think she was shady for being in the Aces and cooperating with the discrimination towards Devon and Chi. Besides, she was Martha’s (or whatever her name was) sister and she never cared to say anything about it to Chi. I hated that and I think Chi was right not to associate with her anymore. 

Then we have Jack who is just horrible. I mean, I get that he didn’t want to get himself in trouble but then again, you can’t just sell your friend out like that. Sorry, but what he did is just really fucked up and I loved when Devon went to confront him about it. I kind of feel bad for Jack but at the same time, he’s a dick for leaking Devon’s personal information. 

Then we have Andre who was fine at first but now I kinda hate him. I mean okay, you want to break up with your boyfriend because he puts your business in danger… sure. But why the fuck would you let your people beat him up because of it. Breaking up doesn’t mean you can physically harm a person you dipshit. Honestly, I’m not sorry that he went to prison. 

And at last, there is Terrell. I didn’t trust this man for a second. I mean, he isn’t Aces but I was kinda right to be suspicious of him since they did approach him to spy on Devon and he didn’t tell Devon. You know, if you don’t plan on giving information away you might as well tell your soon to be boyfriend that some people approached you. Also the story of their first kiss is kinda weird and fucked up not gonna lie. 

I also have to talk about the plot itself or rather the plot holes. I feel like so many things were left unexplained. I mean, the story of how Chi and Jamie hit Martha, Martha herself was a mystery left unexplained, then we have no idea what happened to Jack or Belle, the news were such a random plot point… honestly, I think the problem is that the ending was rushed. I swear if the book took its time to explain such things and make conclusions, it would have been so much better. I mean, you can at least tell me briefly what happened to those people but no. I guess we can’t have everything. 

ladybugwrites's review against another edition

challenging dark informative reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.0

This book is about race and discrimination. It portays a picture of how horrible racism can be, the extent people are willing to go to just hurt others that are different from themselves. It's such an important read. I don't have words to describe it, I think it's a book you have to experience. 

girlinf1eld's review

5.0

Changed the way I think about how America thinks about race. Also, terrifying.

ralbert89's review against another edition

dark 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? Yes

5.0

msennflinn's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative 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

5.0

actuallyidontreallycare's review against another edition

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.75

writer09's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

5.0

bamboo_zled's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful 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? Yes

3.5

kerrexomerrick's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

4.5

toadboi's review against another edition

1.0

I enjoyed the drama and suspense of this book, but a lot of it fell flat for me. I understand what this book was trying to convey, but it did it with a lack of nuance in a convoluted way with almost cartoonishly evil villains who seemed to have no idea what their goal actually was. Additionally, I feel like the fact that the author trying to mix Gossip Girl and Get Out was part of the problem. Gossip Girl is one of those stupid teen thrillers where you're supposed to suspend your disbelief because all the drama was ridiculous. So, that fake car accident Chiamika was in? Absolutely what I'd expect from Gossip Girl. However, Get Out is a thriller where everyone except Chris and his friend have real, insidious motives bolstered by their racist beliefs. You don't have to suspend your disbelief because everything comes full circle, and you can tell that the story was trying to convey the insidious nature of institutional racism and the eugenics movement through the metaphor of this evil town of white people. So, about that orchestrated car crash: Not what I would expect from Get Out at all, and honestly, if something like that had happened, I might have just exited Netflix and moved on with my day because it would have killed the suspense and immersion I was feeling.
That was my main problem with this book. It felt a bit like trauma porn because it was trying to convey a very serious message with ridiculous plot points, and the characters could never seem to catch a break, especially Devon. The author should have just made this book its own thing and chosen where she really wanted to take it. I feel like this book should have been either a goofy teenage drama with ridiculous plot twists and characters, or it should have been a suspenseful thriller trying to convey an important and nuanced message to its readers through a metaphor that comes full circle at the end. It should not have been both, and that was precisely my problem with this book. I would have enjoyed it a lot more if it was trying to be Gossip Girl-esque. The idiocies of all the characters and the villains may have been more enjoyable that way. Unfortunately, it was trying too hard to convey something serious and real, and it failed at doing so, for me, at least. In my opinion, it was trying to be two things that, in this case, were incompatible. Still, I did read the book to completion, which should say something. I didn't feel satisfied, though, only confused and slightly annoyed by the lack of closure. For the entire book, my main thought was, "What in the actual hell is happening?" This book has a lot of good reviews, so I can see that a lot of people liked it, but for me personally, it just wasn't my cup of tea. So, maybe it just didn't sit right with me the same way it did for other people, or it just wasn't for me, but based on my experience, I'd have to give it somewhere between 1 and 2 stars.