"An ingeniously twisty thriller exposing white supremacy in an elite high school"
Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé’s Ace of Spades is an explosively exceptional debut. An incisively subversive, edge-of-your-seat thriller that takes the genre to jaw-droppingly unexpected extremes as it exposes horrific, deep-rooted institutionalised racism.
The action centres around an elite high school in the white part of town. It has an all-white student population, except for our two principle characters - musician and scholarship student Devon, and privileged aspiring Yale alumnus Chiamaka. Devon (Von to his proud, hardworking Ma) can’t wear his hair in twists or cornrows here, and Chiamaka, of Nigerian and Italian heritage, feels compelled to hide her natural hair, and has adopted a “kill or be killed” stance - to achieve the success she’s set on, Chiamaka knows she’ll have to be tougher than tough.
Devon and Chiamaka are sent reeling when an anonymous texter, Aces, starts revealing their deepest, darkest secrets, and it doesn’t take much to realise why they’re being targeted - the colour of their skin. And so a cruel cat-and-mouse game unfolds - two mice trapped in a destructive nightmare and a malicious cat motivated by racism, with homophobia weaponised too.
While there are shocks aplenty (of the rare, ingeniously interwoven variety), the story is compellingly complex, with finely considered character exposition, and no simplified, clear-cut dichotomies drawn between who we can trust, and who should be top of our suspect list. The mounting tension is powerfully palpable, as is the embedded racism Devon and Chiamaka are subjected to - it runs deeper and wider than they (or readers) can possibly anticipate. Turns out, no one can be trusted; that there’s more than one cat in this hideous game. Oh, and there are romantic entanglements too, all of which means Ace of Spades delivers on all fronts - mystery, romance and tackling important issues in explosive style. What more could a reader ask for?
| Primary Genre | Young Adult Fiction |
| Recommendations: |
"e;One of 2021's biggest books."e; gal-dem"e;This summer's hottest YA debut."e; Entertainment WeeklyAn instant New York Times bestseller, ACE OF SPADES is Gossip Girl meets Get Out, with a shocking twist. Buried secrets come to light when two students are targeted by an anonymous bully with an explosive agenda.Hello, Niveus High. It's me. Who am I? That's not important. All you need to know is...I'm here to divide and conquer. - AcesWelcome to Niveus Private Academy, where money paves the hallways, and the students are never less than perfect. Until now. Because anonymous texter, Aces, is revealing the darkest secrets of two students.Talented musician Devon buries himself in rehearsals, but he can't escape the spotlight when his private photos go public.Head girl Chiamaka isn't afraid to get what she wants, but soon everyone will know the price she has paid for power.Someone is out to get them both. Someone who holds all the aces. And they're planning much more than a high-school game...Unputdownable and utterly compulsive, this high-octane thriller takes a powerful look at institutionalized racism. As seen in Vogue, The Guardian, Marie Claire, The New York Times, Elle, Buzzfeed, Cosmo and Entertainment Weekly, and on BBC Front Row, perfect for fans of Karen McManus, Holly Jackson and Angie Thomas."e;ACE OF SPADES is the thought-provoking thriller we ALL need."e; Nic Stone, #1 NYT bestselling author"e;A heart-racing and twisty thriller."e; Alice Oseman"e;Strong Gossip Girl vibes and a whole lot of mystery."e; Buzzfeed"e;Thunderous and terrifying. There's no way you're putting this down until you get to the last page."e; Maureen Johnson, NYT bestselling author
Ace of Spades features in the following genres: Young Adult Fiction, Debut Books of the Month, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, Recommendations
Ace of Spades is available in Paperback, Ebook
Ace of Spades was written by Faridah Abike-Iyimide and published by Usborne Publishing Ltd
£4.99
