Ace of Spades was one of my most anticipated reads of 2021. While I did like the book, it fell short of my expectations.
What I liked:
the writing, it was fast paced and kept me engaged.
the main characters. Chiamaka is the queen bee at Niveus Academy. She doesn't take ish from anyone and will put you in your place. Even when she's knocked down, she still holds her head up and you can't help but be on her side. Devon, on the other hand, is a loner who has one friend and buries himself in his music. He doesn't like being bossed around by Chiamaka, but they have to work together
when they're targeted by the mysterious Aces.
the cat. While he doesn't have a huge part, who doesn't like a cat named Bullsh*t.
What I didn't like:
the climax and ending. After finding out who Aces is, the confrontation is a let down. Nothing much happens or rather what did happen was just so unsatisfying. It just did not feel like a complete ending and it fell flat to me. I think I was expecting a lot more. Most of the book was spent on the buildup and not enough on the ending, which ended up feeling rushed and left some things unanswered.
There was an epilogue, which I did feel was somewhat redeeming and that I did like a whole lot better than the final chapter.
Overall, this was still a great debut by the author who drew from her own experiences while being away at university.
What I liked:
the writing, it was fast paced and kept me engaged.
the main characters. Chiamaka is the queen bee at Niveus Academy. She doesn't take ish from anyone and will put you in your place. Even when she's knocked down, she still holds her head up and you can't help but be on her side. Devon, on the other hand, is a loner who has one friend and buries himself in his music. He doesn't like being bossed around by Chiamaka, but they have to work together
when they're targeted by the mysterious Aces.
the cat. While he doesn't have a huge part, who doesn't like a cat named Bullsh*t.
What I didn't like:
the climax and ending. After finding out who Aces is, the confrontation is a let down. Nothing much happens or rather what did happen was just so unsatisfying. It just did not feel like a complete ending and it fell flat to me. I think I was expecting a lot more. Most of the book was spent on the buildup and not enough on the ending, which ended up feeling rushed and left some things unanswered.
There was an epilogue, which I did feel was somewhat redeeming and that I did like a whole lot better than the final chapter.
Overall, this was still a great debut by the author who drew from her own experiences while being away at university.