This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This book was so good and full of drama! I loved it, this is one I think a lot of people will really like!

AHHHHH!!! I am soooo happy that my most anticiapted book of 2021 lived up to the expectations I perceived for it!!!

I was fully immersed in this world and loved every moment of it!!! This book was IMPOSSIBLE to put down and had me on the edge of my seat. Words cannot explain how much I LOVE Chiamaka's and Devon's characters. It was horrible seeing just how many people were against them whom were just a bunch of wolves in sheep clothing.

The reveal of Aces was COMPLETELY UNEXPECTED and had me shocked/shooked!!! There were people who I believed had their back but damn near EVERYONE was out against them!!!

One of the Devon's chapter's (#33) straight up had me RUINED!!! Both Chi's and Devon's chapter's just kept breaking me heart!!!

That ending brought JOY to my heart and am so happy that we got a happy ending.

But the ending, was surprising and made me happy

Two seniors, Chiamaka Adebayo and Devon Richards, have a lot in common. Both of them are of African descent; attend Niveus Private Academy; and, have started receiving anonymous threats from a serial texter who goes by the name of Aces. In order to thwart the uncovering of their deepest, darkest secrets, these two decide to work together in order to discover and expose Aces' true identity.

This fast-paced thriller is an engaging and issue-oriented piece. It is an allegorical examination of systemic oppression in predominantly (and historically) White institutions. This thought-provoking title could serve as the catalyst for many deep discussions regarding the intersectionality of race, class, sexual preferences, and stockholm syndrome.

Gossip Girl meets Get Out is a big strapline to live up to... Ace of Spades delivered. What a debut! A thrilling fast-paced Black queer dark academia. Can I use anymore adjectives?!

The YA authors did not come to play this year. This book will definitely keep you guessing. Ace of Spades is such a timely book which grapples with many heavy yet important themes from institutionalised racism to homophobia. It is so much more than a thriller. Àbíké-Íyímídé did not hold back and I’m glad that she didn’t do more young adults can delve deep into the powerful message. This book packs a punch and I would describe more like a ‘thriller with depth’. My main jibe was the ending was wrapped up too quickly; there were a few things that didn’t add up and I wanted to know more about the secrets.

I highly recommend Ace of Spades for YA (and more), for Black queer representation and for unapologetic social commentary. This gripping thriller is full of twists and turns which will keep you on your toes!

What an amazing debut from Faridah! I can’t wait to see what other twisty tales she weaves for us to devour.

For a full review, please visit my Goodreads page!

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Thank you to Macmillan Publishing and Netgalley for this eARC copy in exchange for an honest review!

"I feel destined to...stay here, in this house, in this room, listening to Ma pray to a God who covers his ears when she chants."

"I hate that these systems, all this institutional shit, can get to me. I hate how they have the power to kill my future, kill me. They treat my Black skin like a gun or grenade or a knife that is dangerous and lethal, when really, it's them. The guys at the top powering everything."

This is an excellent mystery thriller to read. I can't recommend it enough. But it's a hard read a lot of the times too. Perhaps the hardest part is knowing it a realistic depiction of the issues Black people face every day; worse, when the big twist comes, you think "oh this is insane! This could never happen in the real world" - but it could, and undoubtedly does to at least some degree. It's heart-breaking to read the thoughts Black people have over things that white people would see as minor inconveniences. A white person gets pulled over for a traffic violation, they might get a ticket and have to pay a fine. A Black person gets pulled over for the same thing? There's a radically higher chance that they may not walk away. This book brings a lot of those issues to light and it made me so angry to read and know that it's a reality many Black people face. Honestly, I think regardless of whether you're interested in the mystery or not, this is a book that every single person should read because of that.

I will say that one other thing I loved about the book was the interesting dichotomy presented between Chiamaka and Devon. Chiamaka's parents are doctors, she's wealthy, she lives in a good neighborhood in a big house. Devon is going to Niveus on scholarship, and his Ma works three jobs just to be able to pay the rest of his tuition. He shares a king size bed with his two younger brothers, and they have lawn chairs for dining furniture. We see both extremes with the characters - the comfortable and wealthy vs the poverty-stricken, scraping to get by. And that comes out in other ways in the book. For instance, Devon is suspicious of most everyone - he doesn't want to share details about Aces and what's going on because he doesn't trust that anyone is on his side. Chiamaka believes - right up until the very end - that she can find justice herself. She trusts the headmaster to help out, she trusts her peers, and others and she is let down by them every. single. time. I feel like it's a rude awakening for her, to realize that money doesn't carry the same weight for Black people, no matter how wealthy they are, compared to the white people in power who can get away with anything.

The book kept me on the edge of my seat and I honestly didn't know how there was going to be a happy ending. There are much-needed confrontations between characters and although there were a couple of things that I wished we'd gotten more information on, ultimately I don't think it was necessary for us to know those answers. The importance wasn't in the specifics, in those cases.

All-in-all, the book is hard to read, yes, but so amazing and so worth all the tears you'll shed and the rage you'll feel.

Chiamaka, the Queen Bee, and Devon, King Nobody, are the only two Black kids at Niveus Academy, an elite school, which only accepts the best of the best, whom eventually become creme de la creme of society after graduation. Both are looking forward to making their exits, Devon to Juilliard to create a better life for his mom and brothers and Chiamaka following in the footsteps of her parents and becoming a doctor. Those plans are put in jeopardy when their deepest and darkest secrets come to light through texts from an anonymous source, known as Aces. Everyone understands why someone would want to take down the The Queen Bee Chi, but Devon's takedown is a bit of an anomaly, since nobody really knows who he is, the only thing obvious is that it just may be time for these students to make the exit from Niveus Academy by getting out!

The YA thriller Ace of Spades was one of my most anticpated reads of the year, I enjoy reading dark academia. Unfortunately, I did not love this book but I did not dislike it either, I thought it had important queer voices that need to be explored, particularly in Black books. I did think the book was very heavy handed on showcasing Black misery, and could have displayed some Black joy in each of these character's lives, despite the difficulties that come with being Black, it is not an onus. I also take issue with the plot, the implementation of racism to enhance white supremacy should not be the only tool used to advance the story's arc, we were never really given any explanation of how the school was able to be so successful in their nefarious endeavors, nor did Chi or Devon speak to former students to help the reader better understand the school's success in ruining its Black students and I wished their had been more bonding between Chi and Devon as more information was revealed, prior to the end of the book. Still, I am happy I read this book mostly because I enjoyed getting to know Devon, queer voice, even if passive at times, his point of view resonated strongest with me and it did tackle very important social themes like classism and homophobia, I rate it 3.5 stars.

Ace of Spades has SUCH an enticing premise - Get Out meets Gossip Girl, I mean! - and it definitely provides exactly that. The execution of said premise is occasionally flawed, with somewhat sloppy writing and choppy plotting (from individual sentences to bigger plot holes, a lot of things just sort of didn't hold together), but it's still a compelling read, with engaging characters whose stories I wanted to know about. I read most of it in one sitting, and at 432 pages, that says a lot.

Thank you to NetGalley and Feiwel & Friends for the advance review copy!

This was my first five star read in a little while and it deserves even more than just five stars!!

I loved this book. It was so well written, so enthralling, and the twists were so well done!!

I highly recommend this book!

-this was part of a special comparison review - Challenging white supremacy through widely released fictional works is not a new concept, Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man was published by one of the Big Four publishers after all, and it is a 2017 breakout release, Get Out, that has inspired the two books I will explore in this post. White supremacy is a grasping, far-reaching, and horrifying reality that binds itself to us through early enforcement at school and gains institutional weight as we grow into working adults. Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé and The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris, both released yesterday, use the strength of the thriller genre to confront white supremacy as it occurs at a fictional boarding school and in the publishing industry.

In Ace of Spades we confront the Ivy League feeder school reality of Niveus Private Academy, a boarding school in an undisclosed city within the United States, through the eyes of two of the school’s few Black students, Chiamaka and Devon. A child of two doctors, one of whom comes from a wealthy Italian family, Chiamaka has been raised to find her place in elitist, predominantly white spaces. At the beginning of the book, her reputation as one of the school’s social battle-hardened over-achieving popular girls would lead you to believe that she has successfully navigated her way to the top by her senior year. In a matter of a few chapters, you find that reputation, no matter how jealously guarded, means very little when you lack support—a lesson Chiamaka stumbles through. In fact, much of the book is spent watching Chiamaka realize that she is not confronting a new reality but finally seeing the world as it has always been. On the other hand, her co-protagonist Devon has never led a charmed life. Though also in his senior year at Niveus, Devon relies on the school’s scholarship program to fund his education and his college dreams are built on the hours he’s put into composing the perfect piece for submission to Juilliard, his first choice. He and Chiamaka are forced to work together in order unravel why they have been targeted by the vindictive Aces, who outs him to the school while he is still closeted at home. It is their contrast—Chiamaka’s entitlement and confidence leading them into various strategies and actions and Devon’s more cautious and realist worldview—which allows them to uncover a heinous, decades-old white supremacist secret.

Though I am not typically a thriller reader, I always love untangling a good mystery, something both of these books offer in spades. When I understood that both stories examined white supremacy through this genre lens, I knew a discussion about the strengths of the two were warranted. What stood out to me most when reading these stories was the impact that Get Out has already had on the ways Black creators interpret and explain their own battles with white supremacy to larger audiences. Ace of Spades builds on the tension and disbelief of even the white people whom we’ve built seemingly strong relationships with becoming our own tormentors. Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé does a laudable job in building in misdirects about who to trust or mistrust and when, drawing upon all that society has been taught to trust—authority and institutional pragmatism—and putting it under scrutiny. Zakiya Dalila Harris’ novel, The Other Black Girl, draws us in with the story of another Black woman occupying the same space during another time—much like the opening scene of Get Out. From there the story plays with showing us the universality of being Black in these sorts of occupational spaces while also dropping us into the strange and unfamiliar, without quite sticking the landing. While Ace of Spades ends on a triumphant note, The Other Black Girl stumbles into a territory that seems to undermine the opening questions of the book by seeking the approval of the white gaze.
I think both books are worth reading for any Get Out fan wondering at its legacy across mediums. Ace of Spades is a good study of why even Black people with the privilege of youthful optimism, capital, and legacy institutions are never safe—why Black folk have to remain constantly vigilant. The Other Black Girl is great for validating many of the concerns that college-educated Black people have even after we’ve achieved this first major goal post and why we must have support from others in this position to move forward. Like Get Out, after reading each book, I could faintly hear the refrain of Childish Gambino’s “Redbone.” How’s that for legacy?

This is such a brilliant book. Just wow.
Faridah didn't mince words in calling out bullshit and she also made sure to set my heart on a race!
I totally recommend this book and I love it so much.

Rainbows and Sunshine Book Blog
3 June 2021

I have never read dark academia before but Ace of Spades has set the bar quite high!!! I'm in love with both the main characters and I cannot reccomend this enough! It's an incredibly queer, Black and dark YA thriller and I couldn't put it down! (wlw and mlm main characters with dual POV)

Devon is the character that you'd easily root for from the beginning while Chiamaka sort of grows on you. Halfway through I was so much more interested in her POV than in the beginning but both of them are very interesting. The way I literally suspected everyone else to be Aces though😂

It's terrifying and fascinating at the same time. I expected some twists but most of the reveals were a complete surprise and I'm stunned! You know those things where you cannot say anything about the plot because anything could be a spoiler? This is it! This is an experience and I would never spoil it for anyone. All have to say is WOW!!!!!!

Rep: Nigerian-Italian WLW MC, gay Black MC

TW: racism, homophobia, blackmail, outing of a queer character, violence

*ARC provided by the publisher by via Netgalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review

I was truly on the edge of my seat for this entire book. From the very beginning I was hooked and I couldn't stop reading until the end. I simply HAD to know who aces was.

I genuinely can't recall the last time a book gripped me the way Ace of Spades did. I was immediately intrigued by the premise of "gossip girl x get out," and Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé's debut did not disappoint. Chiamaka and Devon's dual POV provides a wonderful contrast because of their many differences in both personality and background. Being able to read both of their perspectives also added depth to the story, as readers can experience the events through both of them. It was also fantastic to see the growth of their friendship from acquaintances to reluctant allies to friends on both ends. This novel is addictive and fast-paced, while also delivering a nuanced examination of the insidiousness of racism. No matter what other privileges a Black person might have, they are still affected by institutionalized and systemic racism, Driven by suspense and adrenaline, I absolutely could not put this book down. Àbíké-Íyímídé also did such an amazing job of exploring intersections of identity. Devon is dealing with being closeted and worrying about how his mother and community would react to learning he is gay. Over the course of the book, Chi makes discoveries about her own sexuality. In both cases, the characters show different parts of what it is like to exist as Black and queer. I would absolutely recommend this book to everyone, and I can't wait to read Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé's future works! Huge thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for giving me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received an advance reader copy of this book, which is a very exciting first for me. Ace of Spades was very well done and I recommend it! My heart was both racing and aching for Chiamaka and Devon the whole time. The author did a great job making me feel like nobody could be trusted. This story deals with heavy and unfortunately very real subject matter, which is tough yet important to read. I look forward to picking up a print copy to get a look at the finished product (and I definitely want to read the author’s note!!).

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of this book.

Oh my god, this book was a roller coaster! I wasn’t sure what to expect going into it, but I definitely wasn’t let down by it. Everything from the story building to the characters blew my expectations out of the water. I don’t often read thrillers or novels with much suspense at all, but after this one I might start searching for them more often.

It took me a while to get into the book and for it to pick up, but once it did it didn’t stop! I marathoned the last half of this book and, once I finished it at night, I’ll admit that it left me terrified to sleep for a bit. Even though I knew it wasn’t real, it felt like it could’ve easily been—which is what I love in a book (even if it terrifies me).

I definitely recommend this book if you’re like me and haven’t read many thrillers and don’t have much history with the genre. It was a great introduction and the motivation to be more open to thrillers.

Wow…! This was a stunning debut! The comparison to Get Out and Gossip Girl were quite apt. So if you enjoy either one of those, you will definitely enjoy this.

Ace of Spades follows our two Black main characters, Chiamaka and Devon, as they attend the predominantly white Niveus Academy. They are soon forced to work together to take down “Aces” when their invisible enemy starts revealing their well-kept secrets.

Never have I felt so much rage and frustration for the main characters in a book before. Ace of Spades is a fantastic middle finger towards institutionalized racism and social eugenics. Suffice to say, the topics were deftly handled and will get you thinking. I see a reread of this novel in the future and will purchase a physical copy for myself.

Chiamaka and Devon were such likable and flawed characters. I related so much to them, from Chiamaka’s ambition to Devon’s kindness. The topic of queerness was integrated seamlessly throughout the book and I loved how it was handled.

In terms of the plot, it was a bit patchy at times. Some questions were left unanswered and I found the pacing of the beginning to be too slow, but this soon quickly picked up. However, the ending terrified me and I was left reeling at the plot twist. It was so well-done!

This is a must-read, not only for the important themes throughout the book but also for the charismatic and likable characters, Chiamaka and Devon.

I absolutely LOVED Ace of Spades! From the beginning, I was pulled into such a scandalous world revolving around our two main characters, Chiamaka, and Devon, who both worked to get to where they are. Faridah did such amazing work creating two distinct yet familiar characters. I was invested in Chiamaka and how gravitating she was. Her presence was always commanding and powerful especially as a black woman being in a predominantly white academy. Devon on the other hand was someone I sympathized with so much and definitely the most grounded to the earth. I love both of them and rooted for them both throughout the end.

Faridah has written a book with intrigue in every chapter. I flew through this book within less than a week and was satisfied with the end. I cannot wait for more of her future works!

The way Ace of Spades easily made it into my Top 5 books of the year. I’ve almost read 90, but this was an instant favorite. I want essays written about this book. I want a limited series. I want Faridah to be given every book deal she wants.
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This book was legitimately terrifying to me. I screamed in shock so many times. Like few things scare me more than racism, so the comp to Get Out is entirely accurate.
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I really cant even go into the deep dive that I want to because spoilers but I will be writing a spoiler blog post at some point because I have many thoughts!!!
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Like even my closest theory was no match for the bomb Faridah dropped in this book. And I hate how completely realistic it is too 😭😭😭😭😭 terrifying
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It also felt like watching a scary movie where the characters are not paying attention to clues and you just wanna yell at the screen “DONT DO IT”
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I want to thank Fierce Reads for having me on the street team and for inviting me to the chat with Faridah. If you don’t read this book you will be severely missing out. I don’t care if this falls out of your preferred genres or interests, read it 🗣🗣🗣🗣