The plot takes off running immediately in this mystery page-turner. I liked that the main character was a mess, but still trying to do the right thing. The author did a fantastic job of balancing the serious and emotional moments with humor and banter. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this!

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine for access to this arc.

I read the blurb of this story and thought it would be right up my alley.

I love books that have tarot in them, mysticism and the like but unfortunately the other aspects of this story didn't keep my attention. I didn’t care for the main character and most of the plot. After about 40% I found myself skimming for the tarot aspects and not caring about the rest.

I think it might just be that it couldn’t connect because this story has all the elements of a great one. Bummer for me, but I would recommend you check out the book for yourself to see.

I received an ARC via NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Bantam and I am leaving an honest review.

Katie True has failed. At adulting. Now she is back home living with her claustrophobic parents and settling for a job at a Russian knickknack shop. There she also reads the Tarot. Interesting angle. I liked it.

Katie has one true friend. Marley. Marley is everything Katie is not. And she works across the mall from Katie. Or she did.

The day Katie is working by herself, a strange guy comes in with a bleeding head wound, acting sketchy and wanting his cards read. Sure, Katie can do that. But when she sees a picture on his phone of her friend Marley with a bullet in her head, she is going to find out who and why.

She will risk everything to find out what happened to her friend.

This was okay at first but quickly turned into more of a young adult mystery.

NetGalley/ RHPG/Ballentine March 28, 2023

Play the Fool is billed as a thriller, but in reality it’s more of a women’s fiction with a mystery thrown in. Katie True is a strong female protagonist but at times her actions border on sheer stupidity. She’s failed at an attempt to live in Chicago and came home to Lake Terrace, a suburb of Chicago, where she’s living in a crappy apartment and holding down a crappier job at a shop that sells Russian tchotchkes. Katie’s sole successful job has been at reading tarot cards.
She makes friends with Marley, a woman who works nearby, and this friendship makes Katie feel like she could actually succeed at something. The mystery arises when she sees a photo of Marley dead from a gunshot wound to the head.

The tarot aspect was intriguing but didn’t get enough play in the latter half of the book. I liked that Katie, when she looked at someone, “saw” a particular tarot card representing that person’s personality. She does undergo some character growth. However, the romance isn’t quite strong enough to hold its weight. The prose isn’t great nor is the mystery aspect. The first third of the book was far better than the rest of the book.

A cozy murder mystery! I absolutely adored the MC - Katie is extremely relatable, the stereotypical adrift middle child trying to figure out what she wants from life all while being outshined by her older sister and younger brother. Owen was a scene stealer and I loved the representation of his sensory processing disorder. Katie’s tarot cards added a unique element to the story and I enjoyed reading as her brain played through various scenarios using the cards. The plot did drag at times and the romantic tension was an unnecessary element, but this was overall an enjoyable read and I appreciated the closure regarding Marley.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

This is the perfect spring time mystery novel. The writing is smooth and warm and makes you feel like you have just been blessed with the first warm day after a long winter. The book centers on Katie True, an amature tarot card reader who just hasn't found her place in the world. After failing in the big city she moves back to her home town to work dead end jobs and be lectured by her parents and older sister about trying for more in life. When Katie believes her only friend Marley is murdered and the police cant do anything about it, she decides to put her people reading skills to the test to solve the crime. Joined with the help of her Autistic brother and the hansom new detective in town, Katie will stop at nothing to get to the bottom of it all, even if everything else around her begins to fall apart. With a delightful cast of relatable characters and a PG plot (complete with a love interest) this book would be perfect as a series (I secretly hope this will be a series). I get strong Stephanie Plum with a twist for the next generation vibes.

This was a cute book with an east of follow plot. Love how the tarot cards playing in the storytelling. The main character was easy to like with all her chaos and quirks. This was my first reading for this author but I would definitely look for more.

This book had me at the cover and description. A cynical tarot reader? This has TikTok culture written all over it. Unfortunately, the character development felt a little like it was mixed and match from our favorite TikTok tarot readers and some of it just felt silly. Well, most of it.

I enjoyed the mystery of it and will admit that the plot had me guessing until the end. That said, the actual reveal was a huge letdown. The “whodunnit” built up to be so much that I felt like the characters’ time investigating, as well as my own reading, was wasted.

I didn’t mind the main character of Katie, but I don’t think it was necessary to give her a romance storyline that was not even remotely plausible. Would’ve been better served without one at all.

Still, it was an easy and mostly enjoyable read and I would give the author another try in the future.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Tarot reader Katie stumbles onto a murder when she glimpses a client's phone during a reading. I was intrigued by the premise of this book, but ultimately it did not hold my interest. I appreciate the author and publisher for providing an advance review copy of the book, but ultimately this one wasn't for me. DNF.

A mystery with Tarot influences sounded exactly like my thing, and Play the Fool did not disappoint. Katie True, our protagonist, is a walking ball of chaos on a path to solve the mystery of how the best friend she didn't actually know that well died. I wasn't sure whether to scream at her for her recklessness or to cheer for her bad decisions, knowing they would end up pushing the mystery along.

This ended up being a lot lighter in tone than I expected from a murder mystery--at times veering towards slapstick. The Tarot influences were both more and less prevalent than I expected. Tarot was a large part of Katie's personality and how she processes the world, but it didn't play much role in the actual mystery. I appreciated that the author is clearly familiar with Tarot and didn't just throw in a few references for the vibe.

I'm not sure how to feel about Katie's brother, Owen. I believe he was coded as autistic, and at times his character felt a bit like a caricature. I hope that this particular character had a sensitivity reader.

I enjoyed it but it was a little stereotypical as well as a few too many coincidences. The description implies high stakes but they didn't feel as urgent in the writing.

I loved the cover! I loved the concept! I loved the main character! Then about 50% through, it sort of started to unravel. I don't know what went wrong. It really was more of a cozy mystery but I didn't feel like the mystery elements really worked. I kind of wish it went in more of a literary fiction route so we'd have some more depth. Katie True deserved more.

Katie True works as a clerk in a shopping mall to pay the bills, but her real talent is fortune telling, which she dabbles in part time. She has a knack for getting people to unwittingly divulge details about themselves that she can then spin into Tarot card fortune telling magic. Sounds fun, right? But things get serious when one particularly distraught client briefly leaves his phone unguarded. Sneaking a peek for information, Katie discovers a photo of a murder scene inside. What’s worse, she knows the victim. With no evidence of a crime, beyond an image she wasn’t supposed to see, the police are slow to react. Undaunted, Katie takes matters into her own hands, and Tarot cards, and launches her own perilous investigation. As the intricate plot unfolds the suspense ratchets up, and the stakes get ever higher for Katie. Chern leaves lots of clues and breadcrumbs along the way, guiding the reader along to the jaw-dropping conclusion. This is a crisply written, clever, fast-paced, and fun whodunit. Welcome to Tarot Card Reading 101.

I really wanted to enjoy this book much more than I actually did. The cover and description are great but I was never hooked. Everything just fell flat and the main character’s immaturity kept taking me out of it. I expected the tarot aspect to be incorporated more but again, everything I wanted to love about this book just wasn’t executed well.

Thank you Net Galley for the advanced copy. I might try reading again once it’s officially released.

Katie is a tarot card reader who works in a mall with her friend Marley. She is giving a reading to a customer and goes through his phone as he goes to the restroom. She finds a photo of her friend Marley dead. She goes to the police and a cop named Jamie helps her investigate. They uncover secrets and lies. This book was a thrilling read. Thanks NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine! This will be released March 27th, 2023.

5/5 stars
Thank you to the publisher for the early review copy via netgalley.

I really enjoyed this book. Katie's a very believable character that has obvious flaws and knows her flaws. She finds out her only real friend is dead and nobody is doing anything about it. Rather than leaving it with the police she throws herself into the investigation, or rather starts her own investigation.

I was kind of expecting tarot reading to be more important to the story, but I like how it was included. Katie originally gets involved via a tarot reading. Other than that she imagines people as different tarot cards and etc. There's not really a romance to the book, but there is a friendship that could potentially become one.

I do recommend this book

This was a good story, with a fairly good plot. The writing became repetative at times, which can drag you down.

The ending was pretty satisfying, if not a little rushed, so here too I enjoyed. I was fully satisfied the way this ended. There is closure in what happened to Marley.

A down-on-her-luck tarot reader stumbles into a complicated mystery and proceeds to make it twice as complicated! Katie True is (mostly) skilled at reading people, getting mental images of the tarot cards they relate to, which is an interesting addition to a mystery plot. It is definitely not a thriller, or especially realistic, but if you are willing to relax and join in the fun, it's a delightful escapade!
I really enjoyed this cozy mystery, and hope it becomes a series.

Katie True, tarot card reader extraordinaire, is down on her luck, working at a seedy tchotchke shop in a mall. She makes friends with a fascinating woman who works at a neighboring store: Marley. One day, a mysterious man comes into the shop for a tarot reading. Katie sneaks a peek at his phone and sees a photo of a deceased Marley. What happened to her? Katie is determined to find out, using her tarot cards to help her uncover Marley's fate.

This book caught my eye immediately--one of my favorite covers I've seen in a long time. This seemed more cozy mystery than thriller to me, but that suits me just fine. I love strong and flawed female characters, and Katie did not disappoint. The shining moments are the discussions of the tarot cards themselves and their meanings--Lina Chern clearly has done her research and put painstaking effort into folding tarot lore into the novel.

This is a great book for those who enjoy a medium-paced mystery and love who-dunnits. Unique and fun!

Play the Fool is the perfect read for a fire-side, cold winter’s night!

Chern writes a cozy mystery with an empowered female lead determined to solve her friend’s murder.

Katie works a mainstream job at a Russian tchotchke shop in the mall. However, her true talent lies within tarot reading. Unfortunately for Katie, clientele is scarce.

With little hope for improvement in her job that keeps the lights on, Katie relies on her friend Marley, who works at the shop across from her.

Stuck in-between the present and her hopes for the future, Katie lacks purpose. It certainly doesn’t help that her family are always giving her advice on what she should do, rather than appreciating what she brings to the table.

That’s where Marley comes in. Marley is the confidant Katie needs in her life. Marley wholeheartedly supports her friend’s dreams for tomorrow and accepts Katie for who is.

One night, while giving a tarot reading, Katie glimpses her client’s phone. What she sees will forever change her…

All it takes is one photograph of Marley, dead with a gunshot wound to the head for Katie’s life to spin out of control. Her friend is gone. Who killed her? What was Marley hiding? As Katie fights for answers to these questions, she might just end up becoming the murder’s next target.

Chern delivers a page-turning novel that will leave readers on the edge of their seat!

I read this novel in one day; it was impossible to put down! As I was reading, I became more and more enthralled with the plot; needing answers as much as I needed oxygen. Chern certainly knows how to deliver!

Chern’s characters were authentic, and I related to their plights. Having the skills to succeed but not knowing what path to follow is a struggle I think many readers relate to. People don’t always know where life is going to lead them next, nor do they always have everything put together. We are all flawed - but it is those imperfections that make us human. Chern highlights the importance of being your own person and believing in yourself, even when the odds are stacked against you.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group, NetGalley, Lina Chern, and Kathleen Quinlan, for reaching out to me and providing me with an arc. Based on my previous reviews, you thought I might enjoy Play the Fool. You were absolutely right! I can not thank you enough for bringing this book to my attention.