A murder mystery about palm reading and tarot cards would not normally be for me. But, this one is more. Part murder mystery, part cozy mystery and full of characters that you probably won't like, but you will root for. When Marley takes a job in a mall store, she becomes fast friends with Katie who works in a store that sells items from Russia. BTW, Marley also knows the family trade of fortune telling. When she accidentially sees a picture of Marley dead, she panics. She must know what happened to her friend and who is the culprit. Along the way we meet Marley's parents, brother and sister and a few local cops. Does Marley have the intelligence and skill to figure it out and come out alive? You'll know when you read it. Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC I received in exchange for my opinion. The book was published 3/28/23 (yes, I'm a little behind) and I recommend it!

This was a super engaging read! I love a strong female protagonist. The idea of using magic and spells to solve crimes was really fun, and I enjoyed it.

Play the Fool is not my normal read at all, but I did enjoy this mystery! The main character, Katie, is resigned to her life in a dead end job with no ambitions at all. This is very atypical to characters I usually read so it was a bit startling at times. I love the aspect of the cards and the readings she would occasionally give and thought the author did a great job with Katie's envisioning of the readings as she gave them. There was an unnecessary hint of a love story that I could do without and at times this did not feel remotely believable, which made it drag at times while also being entertaining. I thought it was good for a debut novel!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy. All opinions are my own.

Even though this had all of the elements of a thriller I typically fall for, this didn't hit for me. I felt like every time I blinked, I would open my eyes and be in an entirely different scene and big plot points passed right by me. I'm not sure if it's a "right book, wrong time" situation, but I just felt a bit underwhelmed by it.

The plot was very unique and interesting though. I loved the involvement of tarot cards into the story and wished we even got some more insight into the tarot world!

I wouldn't skip past Lina Chern in the future because although this one wasn't for me, I think with some more editing, it would work for me! 2.75 stars rounded to 3 stars

Pleasantly surprised by this light read. The cover is a bit misleading that it has more to do with tarot cards than it actually does. This has murder mystery appeal, with a likable lead. Strong start to this one, but I had struggling interest in this story toward the end.

Play the Fool A Mystery by Lina Chern

313 Pages
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group, Ballantine, Bantam
Release Date: March 28, 2023

Fiction, Mystery, Thrillers, Tarot, Divination, Spies

Katie True reads tarot cards and works in Firebird Imports, a Russian gift shop in a rundown mall. She has a friend, Marley, who works in the Stone Blossom, metaphysical shop. A big guy runs into Katie’s store frantic, his head bleeding, and looking as if he is running from something. Katie takes out her tarot cards and starts a reading for him. When he isn’t looking, Katie looks at his phone. She sees a photo of Marley, shot dead by the dumpster. She begins investigating and calls the police. She meets Jamie, a detective recently transferred from Los Angeles. He believes her, but without a body or any clues, the investigation goes nowhere. Katie depends on her tarot cards to tell her the story. Hopefully she will find out the truth before the murderer finds out what she is doing.

The book has a fast pace, the characters are developed, and it is written in the first-person point of view. I love quirky characters with flaws. They feel more realistic to me. The author did a wonderful job including the tarot cards into the story. Not only does she do readings, but she also includes the descriptions of cards for the people she encounters. There is a little romance that I hope continues after the book ends. If you like light mysteries or tarot, you may enjoy this book.

This book was a little slow to start, but overall, it was mostly enjoyable. The mystery was engaging, and there were some funny moments. I liked the use of tarot cards and would have actually liked it more if they had played a bigger role.
My main issue that kept me from giving it a higher rating was that the main character was a bit annoying.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I have voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this title given to me via NetGalley. I really enjoyed this book. It was really well written and it just had you trying to solve the mystery. I look forward to seeing what’s next from this author.

The first third of this book was fascinating and gripping. I loved Katie's intro to her life and her world. The story was simple yet interesting to get into. The humor was loud out loud funny and had me in stitches at times. The mystery was intriguing and had me invested throughout.

This was a really entertaining cozy mystery debut featuring a cynical tarot reader turned amateur detective who sets about figuring out who killed her friend. I really enjoyed this on audio narrated by Kristen Sieh and was kept guessing about who the killer was right to the end. The way that the tarot cards were used throughout the story was a fun element too that kept things interesting.

I really enjoyed reading Play the Fool! Based on the book description, I wasn't sure if I could expect a suspenseful mystery/thriller, or more of a cozy mystery. The plot was a little far-fetched at times, and the characters were great and well-developed - I would definitely classify this as more of a cozy mystery. I was very invested in the protagonist, and appreciated the struggles and growth she went through during the story. I would recommend this book if you like quirky mystery stories!

Katie True works at a frippery store in a mall and is just coasting through life because she can't quite commit to what she wants to do, which is being a professional psychic. She has one friend who she doesn't feel cool enough to have and a whole lot of issues she's having trouble getting herself to care about. Until a guy comes into the store covered in blood and she talks him into a Tarot reading. Katie snoops his phone for clues to make the reading better and finds a photo of her murdered friend. It's the beginning of Katie making a series of very questionable and at times dangerous decisions that force her to look at her life and where she's heading. There's also the handsome cop who actually believes her there's been a crime and is willing to help her prove it, adding the prerequisite romance angle rather beautifully.
I confess to coming into this book unsure if I was going to like it because I'm kind of over amateur detectives lately, but I loved Katie and the utter mess that her life is in. She makes all the dumb mistakes that seem mandatory to the genre but it somehow felt original as it was happening.
This is probably due to Chern's loose and personable writing style. It's a relaxing and entertaining read despite the fact that it centers around a murder and the danger Katie finds herself in after insisting that the cops solve it despite there being no body or proof that it actually happened.
Here's hoping this turns into a series because I enjoyed following along with Katie's growth as a character. Her relationship with Jamie is also great and I'd love to see that explored in a book that keeps the momentum of this one going.

Very happy thanks to NetGalley and Bantam for the thoroughly entertaining read!

As so many of us are, I am intrigued by knowing the future. The description of this book caught my attention, having been fascinated by Tarot, and runes, and all manner of fortune-telling. I will admit that I didn't like the main character initially, but discovered there was more to like than not, as I continued. The family dynamic and the way the relationships develop kept my attention, and I found a sort of familiarity with the characters. The story has the elements of a good suspense thriller, and while I felt there were some predictable components to the story, it made for a fun adventure. The settings and events were believable and well-described. I feel that anything that gets me thinking is a worthwhile pursuit, and that was achieved in Lina Chern’s novel. The author has an interesting voice, and I'll be looking for future titles.

A copy of Play the Fool, A Mystery, by Lina Chern was provided to me by NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Bantam, for an honest review.

Katie True can’t seem to find her footing. She’s working at a dead end job at the mall after moving back to her home town when she meets Marley, who works at the store across from hers. Marley just seems to get her and they begin to bond during their breaks. Katie’s talent lies in reading tarot cards and when she starts a reading for a guy who stumbles into her shop, she shocked to find a photo of Marley who has been shot in the head. Mourning the loss of her friend, Katie sets out to figure out who killed her and why. But as she starts to unravel the mystery of Marley’s death, she realizes how little she really knows about her.

I thoroughly enjoyed the characters in this book and thought they were all well developed. I specifically loved the relationship between Katie and her brother. There is also humor sprinkled throughout that made this a fun read. This is very solid debut novel that kept me moving through chapters to figure out if Katie would ever get to the bottom of Marley’s death. Thank you to Bantam and Netgalley for providing me with this ARC.

I wasn't sure what to expect when I started this one. I loved the cover and was curious about the story and so.. here we are.

Play the Fool, is a fun read. I absolutely love Katie and could easily relate to much of how she feels and goes through. She's quirky and charming and I adored her. I also adored her brother Owen. Jamie is a great counterpart and the banter between him and Katie was enjoyable. Love their sarcastic humor.

There story itself was good, although I did figure out some of what happened. That didn't take away my love for the book though, and overall this was great.

I sincerely appreciate the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

3 stars! I was really attracted to this cover- the bright colors and relation to tarot cards. A mystery where a hot mess Katie is trying to figure out what happened to her friend, whom she realizes she knows very little about. Parts of the plot seemed a little out of reach between the police angle and the crime. I found that I did not like Katie but enjoyed the introduction of Jaime and the will they won't they thing going on. I found this to be a quick and easy read and overall enjoyed how it wrapped up.

Thank you to the author and publisher for providing me an e-ARC from Netgalley.

I can’t believe it took me so long to write this review - I’m late! I absolutely loved Play the Fool. This is a type of book that I crave - funny, witty mysteries with a realistic, perhaps flawed, but determined female at the center of the story. As our main character, the somewhat lost and aimless Katie, investigates the disappearance (murder?) of her best (only?) friend, Harley, I felt like I was her and she was me. Despite being a reader of tarot, I appreciated that Katie’s insightfulness and sharp mind were what led her to the story’s satisfying conclusion. Lina Chern nailed this one - five stars!

📖My Thoughts📖

Mysteries are a genre I always enjoy reading. I may never guess the “whodunnit” part, but I really like trying to! This one seemed different than some of the others I’ve read, but in a good way. The whole tarot card element and the cover of this book are the two variables that drew me in. I love any books with the element of tarot cards, even if it’s not a huge part of the story. The book was fun to read and kept me interested throughout. I really enjoyed the characters in this book, especially seeing the relationship between Katie and Jamie as well as Katie’s relationship with her brother Owen. I think Katie’s character has a lot of potential but it seems as though others set their expectations low for her which seems to kind of hold her back from her true potential. This was a debut novel by Lina Chern. I believe she has some true potential and am looking forward to reading more of her work. I feel like this is more like a cozy mystery, but either way it was a good book!
Thank you Netgalley, Lina Chern and Random House Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this debut novel. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Cozy mysteries typically aren’t for me, but every so often one catches my eye and I’m tempted to check it out.

That’s what happened with Play the Fool, which is basically Finlay Donovan meets Poker Face with a big splash of tarot mixed in. It’s super unique, very fun, and I think it will be a hit with those who like their mysteries on the lighter side.

The characters and sense of place were really strong in this one and I loved how the mall was such an important component to the story. Chern did such a good job describing the setting I could practically smell the food court. I also found myself really invested in the mystery.

I was less invested in the focus on tarot and card reading. While I appreciated that it was a key component of Katie’s character, my lack of knowledge on the subject made it hard to understand those portions of the book and the symbolism they held. If you’re interested in tarot though, that probably won’t be an obstacle for you.

Overall, I’d recommend this for anyone looking for a cozy mystery with a dash of sass.

🔮🃏 Book Review 🃏🔮

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Thank you so much @netgalley and @penguinrandomhouse for the eARC of this!

I was so surprised this was a debut novel. It was really entertaining, quick paced and had an almost police procedural feel to it. I loved the investigative parts, the incorporation of the tarot cards/reading (it didn't feel cheesy which is hard to do) and the imperfections of the MC. Overall, a solid murder mystery to unravel. This would make a great summer read!

#PlayTheFool #RandomHouse #tarot #psychic #mystery