5-stars

So everyone has been raving about Ace of Spades and I knew it’d be excellent, but STILL– I should have read it sooner!!

I am still in that exhausted post-incredible-novel haze where I’m still absorbing all the twists and betrayals and cruelties that Devon and Chiamaka went through. Easy 5 stars 😩👌🏻 This is so darkly compelling and exceptionally well written.

I really really don’t want to give too much away, because I think the less you know about the plot, the harder the twists hit. So!! Just know it’s about two Black teens in an elite rich school (everyone else is white) and how they are just striving for the top of their class, to be something someday and live their dreams, when they get targeted by an anonymous bully who sends vicious text messages to destroy them. They have to figure out who it is, but in the meantime they’re being emotionally manipulated and destroyed.

“I’m tired of having faith things will work out, only for any hope I have to be violently crushed.”

I loved Devon instantly 😭 He’s a soft musician, gay but mostly closeted because he lives in a tough neighbourhood, and he also is scared his mum won’t accept him. His mother is working like 3 jobs and they’re poor, so Devon is under so much pressure to make this expensive school worth it. He is just SO NICE and his ptsd is so obvious from just existing in this world carved cruelly to hate Black kids, Black boys even more so. Also there’s a scene about his dad that fully made me tear up… Just. Devon goes through a lot.

Then there’s Chiamaka, who is like the mean girl badass popular top of the class prefect, who plays the mind games with the white kids and is untouchable. She’s going to be a doctor. She’s going to THRIVE, no matter what she has to go through. I didn’t like her at first because she treats even Devon like a dirty rug to walk over, but by the end I loved her fiercely and I think she’s exceptionally well written. Her arc is powerful, and so is her personality and character the whole way through. She is unapologetic about wanting to be the best– and WHY NOT. You go Chiamaka.

I stop myself from apologizing-because what would I even be sorry for? Existing too loud?

And omg the TWISTS. The whole book balanced perfectly between being chilling and disturbing, but also realistic in everything that goes down. It’s horrible what they go through, but I would not be surprised if it was real. Truly. This world sucks. By halfway through I knew there was no pausing. I needed to finish it in a day. I needed ANSWERS. It’s also a stark critique of “dark academia”, and the white supremacy and elitism that twists through our society.

Bold, fast-paced, and sobering in a chilling way; this is a thriller not to be missed.

Going to say shout out to my library for buying this one on my request 😂

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.

Goodreads | Book Depository | Booktopia

It’s time to celebrate the finale of the Great Library series!

And to capitalise on the pun opportunity I have been given — it was great. 😂🤭Ok I’m good now, I’m fine…

But truly this series is exquisitely incredible, thrilling and heart-wrenching and full of violent Ravenclaws (which, quite frankly, is amazing to read about). I don’t often stick with long series because I have the attention span of a gnat. But I’ve craved every book since Ink & Bone released back in 2015!

Today I’m part of the blog tour for Sword and Pen.

It’s really sad to say goodbye 😫But it was also a stunning ending.

Keep reading for some immensely epic giveaways + my review + and an excerpt from Thomas!

(And huge thank you to Berkley Pub and Rachel Caine for having me as part of the tour!)

➢ Catch up on my reviews of the first 4 books:

Goodreads | Booktopia | Book Depository | Amazon

With the future of the Great Library in doubt, the unforgettable characters from Ink and Bone must decide if it’s worth saving in this thrilling adventure in the New York Times bestselling series.
The corrupt leadership of the Great Library has fallen. But with the Archivist plotting his return to power, and the Library under siege from outside empires and kingdoms, its future is uncertain. Jess Brightwell and his friends must come together as never before, to forge a new future for the Great Library . . . or see everything it stood for crumble.

Rachel Caine is the New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of more than fifty novels in a diverse range of genres and categories. She’s been honored with multiple awards from RT Booklovers Association and the Texas Library Association, and was honored with two spots on the 2012 “Most Favorite Books of UK Schoolchildren” list. In 2006, she created the Morganville Vampires series in young adult, and premiered the TLA-listed novel Prince of Shadows in 2015, and the new Great Library series with Ink and Bone in 2016. Rachel and her husband R. Cat Conrad live and work in Fort Worth, Texas.

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Open for an excerpt

Open For excerpt from THOMAS

“No, not like that,” Thomas said, and elbowed the Artifex Magnus aside. He was sweating, stripped of his jacket, and he hardly recognized that he’d just shoved a member of the Great Library’s Curia out of the way until it was far too late. “Sorry,” he mumbled, but not with any real regret. “We have little time.”

“Yes, I know that, son,” Artifex Greta Jones said. She was American, which was a curiosity in and of itself—a round, pleasant woman with more than enough talent at engineering for nearly any task set before her. A rich, slow accent like melting butter. “Easy now. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it.”

There was no time to be polite, or easy. Thomas knew he could do better. That wasn’t modest, but it was true. He quickly unscrewed the bolts holding the gigantic crystal in place and gently lowered it to the worktable nearby. Everything looked fine, but he could read from the power consumption curve that it was not fine at all. “It’s not performing as expected,” he said as he unbolted the platinum casing that held the crystal. “The power cycle should have been longer, and recovery shorter. There’s something—”

As soon as the casing was off, he saw it, and his heart sank. Something had been off in the measurements, just the tiniest bit, and the distribution of stress must have thrown the calculations off and caused vibration. Vibration had caused a flaw.

The crystal was useless. The crack within it was tiny, a flaw that would have been meaningless for any other purpose … but not this one. It could be recut and the flaw eliminated, but he’d custom-built the casing for this stone to exacting specifications.

And they didn’t have time to machine new parts and cut a new crystal now.

The Artifex looked at the crystal, and he could tell she saw what he did. “It’ll crack straight through the next time we use it,” she said. “You were right. I’m sorry I doubted you. We could recut it, but that will reduce power …”

“It will,” he confirmed. “I’ll have to have the jewelers cut another crystal while I make a different kind of casing. One that can adjust to different crystal dimensions, in case we must change it more frequently. Put this one back, reduce the power output, and pray that they don’t force us to use it again more than once before the replacement is ready.” The Lighthouse ray was, in effect, a giant bluff, a gamble that he and the Artifex had decided was worth the risk. Now more than ever it had become more threat than reality.

Sword And Pen was stressfully brilliant, powerful and absolutely destroying.

I actually had to take a moment to breathe after I finished because, like Jess, I spent most of the book gasping and dying between paragraphs that were obviously designed to spear me right through the feels. This books was so so intense and it delivered everything I needed in a finale. Including making me not know if a single character I liked would get through. I was tHAT stressed!! I was so stressed!!!!

things I did while reading:
(a) pressed the entire ARC to my face and scream/cried at Santi calling Jess his and Wolfe’s son
(b) panicked about Jess’ life expectancy
(c) said I hated it and loved it in a single breath
(d) took too many photos for my bookstagram
(e) died and came back as a library haunting ghost of appreciation

Last books are always hard to review because I don’t want to give spoilers! 👀

But this totally delivered with a tight-action-packed plot, that was full of war and battles, super high stakes, and valiant sacrifices. It also had tons of stupid teenagers thinking they’re invincible (I love them) and Wolfe getting grey hairs because his kids are irresponsible about their health (I love him). It had so so so many satisfying plot twists. I was just beaming by the end.

It managed to be painful on the feels, heartbreaking at times, and also intensely right and satisfying. That’s a hard balance to pull off in a finale, and I applaud the entire series for constantly delivering to my super high expectations.

A little run down about what the characters were up to…

Jess gets himself seriously seriously hurt and I definitely ached for him through the entire book. His ptsd and depression spiral is gut-wrenching. I love him so much ahhh.
Wolfe and Santi didn’t have a lot of chapters in this one but I loved every scene they were in. Their devotion to each other is incredible; gay dads of the century. We stan. 😭🙌🏻I also love that Santi gave up hoping people would be sensible and just started pairing everyone off so at least the hot-heads had someone to temper them down.
Thomas is off solving lots of puzzles; also being a super weapons genius while being the softest bean ever.
Dario is such a snake I love him. Tbh he bad more chemistry with Jess than Morgan/Jess did but ok.
Khalila no spoilers but AHHHH SHE IS A QUEEN AND I LOVE HER. She really just proves herself in this one and I adored her arc.
Glain has always been like the smallest part of the squad but she is badass and I do like her.
Morgan was super powerful and kinda scary with it, but I did appreciate her whole storyline for this finale.

Spoilers About The Finale

(seriously DON’T click until after you’ve read it!)

open for finale SPOILERS

I very very much thought it was setting up Jess to DIE. I was freaking out.😭😂 I always feel like a journey is pointless if the protagonist doesn’t make it sooooo…I was worried. But my son, my love, Jess got through. His emotional pain and ruination over Brendan dying in his arms really followed him through this book and I broke with him. Grief = exceptionally written.

I just wish there’d been like a “5 years later” epilogue showing us what everyone is up to!!!

→ Also Wolfe and Santi being at his hospital bed at the end, threatening to murder his dad, saying TEHY WERE HIS NEW DADS??? 10/10 best moment of the book. My HEARTTTTT.

→ Morgan’s death was super sad, but it also felt well handled and right. And tbh she was never my favourite and I never felt she and Jess fit perfectly. So she’s in a bodyless dimension being free and I’m just like! Ok!

→ And YES that Khalila got to be the Archivist. SO deserved. Best and most satisfying ending.

I also love how the book balanced destruction, violence, and hope.

Ultimately, the series is about fighting for what you believe, for making sure no one person has the ability to dictate the spread of knowledge through the world. The book is about knowledge being power…about found-family being the truest part of your heart…and about freedom. It got so so dark in this book. But it gave us those slivers of light that we needed to cling onto.