If you enjoyed either Caraval by Stephanie Garber or Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, then Amanda Foody’s new young adult novel Ace of Shades is for you!
You may know Amanda Foody as the author of Daughter of the Burning City, which was her debut novel in 2017. In her new novel, this book focuses a lot on crime and its crime lords and mafia families in comparison to debut which centered on the circus.
Ace of Shades takes place in New Reynes, where we see a combination of modern elements, such as cars, showers, and electricity, alongside traditional clothing and history. The story primarily is set in the North Side of New Reynes where crime is very common and the mafia and crime families reign supreme. The town is unstable as there has been a revolution recently where the monarchy was overturned, the royal family killed and a Republic took its place. After the fall of the monarchy, there were still many supporters that had to conceal their true identity and live in secrecy. The North Side is divided into three gangs—the Irons, the Scarhands and the Doves and then there are also the two casino and mafia families—the Augustines and the Torrens.
There is also a magic system where everyone is born with talents that can either be split or ‘pure’. Your last name(s) are an indication of which one you have, for example, if your last name is Salta, one of your talents is dancing. Some families talents are stronger than others or could be magical.
Enne Abacus Salta is our main character who is introduced to us when she comes to New Reynes in order to find her adoptive mother, Lourdes, who has been missing for several months. She only has a handful of volts (currency) and a name to look for: Levi Glaisyer. Lourdes informed her to find him as he will help her, but instead of the kind man she pictured, she finds he’s the Iron Lord and a criminal. Enne’s character was very likeable and goes through great character development. When she initially arrives in New Reynes as a snobbish, naive and proper lady, she completely changes to who she needs to be in order to survive.
Our other main character is Levi, who is the Iron Lord and he has an alternating perspective with Enne. He is compared often to Kaz Brekker from Six of Crows by others in the book community and he really is quite similar. He cares for the kids in his gang and wants to pay them and treat them the best he can. He is a very ambitious character and knows he can always do better, but he isn’t sure how. He is also a diverse character seeing as he’s both black and bisexual, although it’s not cannonly stated, he clearly has an attraction to boys and girls.
There is romance in this book, but it is not the instantaneous love and attraction we come to expect from young adult novels, so it comes across as very believable and well written. The chemistry is quite a slow burn and we get time to see the deep connection that the two develop for each other.
Although there are books that have some of these aspects in them already, I felt like Ace of Shades had an originality to it. It has an intriguing plot line, the world-building is fantastic and the characters are developed and believable. The story did not completely wrap up and left there plenty to tell in the form of a sequel, especially since the series will be a trilogy! If you like any of this, then pick Ace of Shades up!
Are you planning to read Ace of Shades or have you already read it? Tell us in the comments!
SYNOPSIS | GOODREADS
Welcome to the City of Sin, where casino families reign, gangs infest the streets…and secrets hide in every shadow.
Enne Salta was raised as a proper young lady, and no lady would willingly visit New Reynes, the so-called City of Sin. But when her mother goes missing, Enne must leave her finishing school—and her reputation—behind to follow her mother’s trail to the city where no one survives uncorrupted.
Frightened and alone, her only lead is a name: Levi Glaisyer. Unfortunately, Levi is not the gentleman she expected—he’s a street lord and a con man. Levi is also only one payment away from cleaning up a rapidly unraveling investment scam, so he doesn’t have time to investigate a woman leading a dangerous double life. Enne’s offer of compensation, however, could be the solution to all his problems.
Their search for clues leads them through glamorous casinos, illicit cabarets and into the clutches of a ruthless mafia donna. As Enne unearths an impossible secret about her past, Levi’s enemies catch up to them, ensnaring him in a vicious execution game where the players always lose. To save him, Enne will need to surrender herself to the city… And she’ll need to play.
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