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4.02 AVERAGE
4.02 AVERAGE
I really thought I'd end up liking the 2nd book more since I thought the first book was a great start to this series. However, I think I give first books more slack in my ratings since building a brand new immersive world is HARD! This second book just didn't do it for me. Maybe I just didn't like the directions the characters headed but I found myself annoyed at them significantly more than the first book. (ahem, why is Levi so useless??)
If a book needs to shame men in order to make women look good...
It was still alright but I feel very in the middle about all of it
If a book needs to shame men in order to make women look good...
It was still alright but I feel very in the middle about all of it
I cannot overstate enough how much of a genius Amanda foody is. These books are like nothing I've ever read and rereading them in anticipation of Queen of Volts just confirmed that.
4.5 stars!! And you can check out my full review here
“The city felt like the hush before a stage curtain lifted, but what the city waited for was war.”
The previous novel in this series, Ace of Shades, is one of my all time favorites and I’ve read it a couple of times. This was everything I could have hoped for in a sequel, and more, but I didn’t enjoy it quite as much because it was a bit slower paced. It was still a fantastic read, albeit a long one, so I ended up giving it 4.5 stars.
First and foremost, we have the characters. All of the cast from the last novel are back, but we’re also introduced to a vast array of new diverse and complex characters in this installment. With so many new people being thrown in at once, it could have been very easy for some of them to fall flat and feel one dimensional. But that did not happen here. Amanda Foody is truly talented at crafting characters and that shines through in King of Fools. I loved every single one of them, including the villains.
“Maybe your soul didn’t break like a bone. Maybe it broke like a promise.”
The setting of New Reynes was pretty fleshed out already, but there were still a lot of new and surprising twists in this one. There was even more world-building and we got to learn a lot more about all of the legendary gangs and crime families. Due to that fact, this was a lot darker read than Ace of Shades, but that’s what made it so original. We used to only have Enne’s and Levi’s POVs, but I was extremely excited that here we also got a POV from Jac! Seeing his struggle with addiction and overdose was so painful because I love him, but it was perfect for this story.
My absolute favorite thing about this whole novel however, is the new girl gang. They flaunt their femininity with lace gloves, by giving each other manicures, using face masks, and keeping up with juicy gossip in magazines. But they do all of this while being the most successful gang and one of the scariest in the entire city. It was perfect and I was LIVING for it.
“The City of Sin would learn that a pistol painted pink was just as lethal.”
The only downside to this wonderfully painful book was it’s length and pacing. Due it’s page count being over 600, it felt extremely long and just wasn’t as fast paced as I was used to from Ace of Shades. I understand that it was so long to help flesh out the new characters, and explore some more of the world, but I would have preferred it being a little shorter. Then it would have been a perfect read for me.
Rating: ★★★★.5
Amanda Foody is still one of my favorite authors even though this ending really hurt my heart. I’d highly recommend this series to all fantasy lovers, but especially those that liked Six of Crows, Caraval, or White Cat.
“The city felt like the hush before a stage curtain lifted, but what the city waited for was war.”
The previous novel in this series, Ace of Shades, is one of my all time favorites and I’ve read it a couple of times. This was everything I could have hoped for in a sequel, and more, but I didn’t enjoy it quite as much because it was a bit slower paced. It was still a fantastic read, albeit a long one, so I ended up giving it 4.5 stars.
First and foremost, we have the characters. All of the cast from the last novel are back, but we’re also introduced to a vast array of new diverse and complex characters in this installment. With so many new people being thrown in at once, it could have been very easy for some of them to fall flat and feel one dimensional. But that did not happen here. Amanda Foody is truly talented at crafting characters and that shines through in King of Fools. I loved every single one of them, including the villains.
“Maybe your soul didn’t break like a bone. Maybe it broke like a promise.”
The setting of New Reynes was pretty fleshed out already, but there were still a lot of new and surprising twists in this one. There was even more world-building and we got to learn a lot more about all of the legendary gangs and crime families. Due to that fact, this was a lot darker read than Ace of Shades, but that’s what made it so original. We used to only have Enne’s and Levi’s POVs, but I was extremely excited that here we also got a POV from Jac! Seeing his struggle with addiction and overdose was so painful because I love him, but it was perfect for this story.
My absolute favorite thing about this whole novel however, is the new girl gang. They flaunt their femininity with lace gloves, by giving each other manicures, using face masks, and keeping up with juicy gossip in magazines. But they do all of this while being the most successful gang and one of the scariest in the entire city. It was perfect and I was LIVING for it.
“The City of Sin would learn that a pistol painted pink was just as lethal.”
The only downside to this wonderfully painful book was it’s length and pacing. Due it’s page count being over 600, it felt extremely long and just wasn’t as fast paced as I was used to from Ace of Shades. I understand that it was so long to help flesh out the new characters, and explore some more of the world, but I would have preferred it being a little shorter. Then it would have been a perfect read for me.
Rating: ★★★★.5
Amanda Foody is still one of my favorite authors even though this ending really hurt my heart. I’d highly recommend this series to all fantasy lovers, but especially those that liked Six of Crows, Caraval, or White Cat.
I am enjoying the series. Lots of interesting turns. For audiobook, the reader is excellent.
3.5*
Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy King of Fools as much as Ace of Shades. All the unnecessary drama between Levi and Enne could've been solved if the characters just communicated with each other, the plot dragged as the book went on, and Levi annoyed me to no end. I swear 90% of his chapters were making bad deals that inevitably go wrong and bemoaning about his relationship with Enne.
The City of Sin is supposedly "ruthless", but from what I can see, Levi is just a selfish teenager with a big mouth and dreams of grandeur. I have no idea how he survived this long much less as a lord of one of the biggest gangs in the city.
The characters that honestly saved this entire novel were Grace and Lola. It was so satisfying seeing them transition from outright contempt for Enne to unwavering loyalty and I beamed whenever the trio got any page time. It's so refreshing seeing friendship unmarred by underlying jealously and Grace and Lola supported Enne no matter what through her terrible decisions (which were aplenty, trust me).
Overall, King of Fools dragged on for too long and was slightly disappointing, but I was still thoroughly entertained! Off to the next one!
Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy King of Fools as much as Ace of Shades. All the unnecessary drama between Levi and Enne could've been solved if the characters just communicated with each other, the plot dragged as the book went on, and Levi annoyed me to no end. I swear 90% of his chapters were making bad deals that inevitably go wrong and bemoaning about his relationship with Enne.
The City of Sin is supposedly "ruthless", but from what I can see, Levi is just a selfish teenager with a big mouth and dreams of grandeur. I have no idea how he survived this long much less as a lord of one of the biggest gangs in the city.
The characters that honestly saved this entire novel were Grace and Lola. It was so satisfying seeing them transition from outright contempt for Enne to unwavering loyalty and I beamed whenever the trio got any page time. It's so refreshing seeing friendship unmarred by underlying jealously and Grace and Lola supported Enne no matter what through her terrible decisions (which were aplenty, trust me).
Overall, King of Fools dragged on for too long and was slightly disappointing, but I was still thoroughly entertained! Off to the next one!
This book was a rollercoaster ride. I’m not even sure how I feel about it! There were so many good parts that I thoroughly enjoyed. Hands down one of the best bits was when Grace asked Enne to teach her to curtsy...because that’s what they do in romance novels. There were some parts that I plain didn’t like, but maybe it had to do with preference. I wasn’t impressed with the language (those fake curses were..interesting) and the plot felt old, but nonetheless the book kept me engaged. The problems were slightly outweighed by my enjoyment. 3.5 stars 🌟
Wow this book is jammed pack. A lot of info, a lot of new and old characters, and many different games.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes