Ace of Spades

I read this as a buddy read with my friend Tierney over on bookstagram and even though I didn't love it, I am glad I read it. This is my first Young Adult thriller/mystery in a long time and if I was the targeted audience, I would have loved this book through and through. However, since I am a mother, in my thirties, this book just didn't quite do it for me and left a lot to be desired in my opinion. With that being said, it's a great book and touches on important topics.

To begin with, Ace of Spades follows two students who go to a prestigious high school and in their senior year someone under the name Ace of Spades starts spreading their secrets and other personal stuff for the whole school to see. They have to figure out what's going on before time runs out and their futures hang in the balance. I liked this plot, even though I haven't been in high school in a long time and it wasn't the best novel I read that takes place in a high school. I thought that the first half of the book dragged somewhat and the ending felt a bit anticlimactic for me. Everything was wrapped up too perfectly and there was no place for pondering anything further. Some things I saw coming and others I did not but since I wasn't extremely invested in the story or the characters, they didn't have much of an impact on me either way.

Further on, the characterization was above average for me in this book. I thought that the two main characters we were following had somewhat of deep backgrounds and we got to know them pretty well. However, this being a Young Adult novel, the character depth just wasn't quite there for me, not like it is in a well-written adult novel. Also, I had a hard time relating to the characters, since they were in high school and going to a prestigious one at that. The book was interesting enough but it didn't keep me hooked all the way through.

Finally, the writing style was a very popular one for Young Adult books. I thought that it was simple and to the point but didn't add anything more to the novel. It got the story across but that's all it really did, nothing that made me ponder anything further.

In conclusion, I would recommend this book to young adults, around high school age who will be able to relate to the characters more than I did. It's also good for people who want a more in-depth look into some of the issues surrounding African Americans in today's world. Overall, it wasn't a bad book, it just wasn't great. Teenagers and younger individuals will be able to appreciate it more I think.