Title: Ace of Spades
Author: Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Publication date: June 1st, 2021
pages
5/5 stars
Goodreads Synopsis
Gossip Girl meets Get Out in Ace of Spades, a YA contemporary thriller by debut author Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé about two students, Devon & Chiamaka, and their struggles against an anonymous bully.
When two Niveus Private Academy students, Devon Richards and Chiamaka Adebayo, are selected to be part of the elite school’s senior class prefects, it looks like their year is off to an amazing start. After all, not only does it look great on college applications, but it officially puts each of them in the running for valedictorian, too.
Shortly after the announcement is made, though, someone who goes by Aces begins using anonymous text messages to reveal secrets about the two of them that turn their lives upside down and threaten every aspect of their carefully planned futures.
As Aces shows no sign of stopping, what seemed like a sick prank quickly turns into a dangerous game, with all the cards stacked against them. Can Devon and Chiamaka stop Aces before things become incredibly deadly?
With heart-pounding suspense and relevant social commentary comes a high-octane thriller from debut author Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé.
Review
Ace of Spades is a YA thriller/mystery set in a private school with dual POV from Chiamaka and Devon – two students who couldn’t be more different, but find themselves the target of an anonymous texter called Aces. Aces is similar to A from Pretty Little Liars, they send text messages to the whole school dropping secrets about students and overall trying to ruin their lives. But what do these two have in common to derive such treatment?
Wow oh wow, first off I LOVE boarding/private school mysteries as a rule and this was no exception. At 27 years old I can’t say why I love teenage drama and pettiness but I don’t hate it. Both characters have a lot of depth to them as you learn more and it just draws you more and more into the plot with every message from Aces. It was hard to tell what the ending would be throughout the book, it’s not a plot line that is easy to guess.
There is also a lot of representation in this book – both MCs are BIPOC and on the LGBTQIAP spectrum. There is a fantastic conversation about race wrapped up in this book. I can’t even explain exactly how great this book was, and if YA mystery/thrillers are your jam you should definitely check it out.
Thank you to Feiwel and Friends and Netgalley for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Happy reading, folks!
Baltimore Bibliophile 