Ace of Shades (The Shadow Game Series, 1)

Plot: An intriguing mix of criminal life, casinos, and love with a supernatural twist. There’s no other way to describe all that this novel encapsulated.Characters: Levi was a little more straightforward than his counterpart Enne who ended up blossoming into her true self over the course of the first plot. She changed so much from her initial introduction to Levi and the readers that it was entertaining to watch her make decisions and read Levi’s reactions to her unpredictability. Jac and Lola are the dream second hands and Chez deserved what he got. Vianca really needs to be next on the hit list, that omerta needs to be destroyed ASAP.Writing: Told from two POVs - Levi’s and Enne’s which was beneficial to understand the world created throughout this book, especially since these two managed to keep a few secrets from each other throughout different parts of the plot. The writing was distinct between the two characters yet similar enough to see why they would have such an intense connection. Almost 500 pages and it still felt like a quick read that was packed with important moments instead of filler.

Alright, chums, strap in because I’m about to get a little bit ranty in here. I generally like to start my reviews off with a little intro – something about my personal connection to the book, or something humorous if I’m really feeling myself that day. Today, for the first time in my blog’s history, I will rant.There are a lot of people saying that Levi, one of the MCs from this book is trying too hard to be Kaz from SOC. Now, I consider myself a SOC super fan. As I type, I can see the NMNF tattoo on my forearm, and my cat Kaz is grooming himself on my bed. So when I say that Levi is not like Kaz, I know what I’m talking about here. Lets break this comparison down:Kaz Brekker:-Is the leader of a gang-Has a band of extremely loyal followers, the Dregs-Likes women (exclusively to our knowledge)-Doesn’t like to be touched-Is relatively quiet, contemplative. Doesn’t speak unless he has something to say-Has no magical ability-Always wears glovesLevi Glaisyer:-Is the leader of a gang-Has a band of sort of loyal, but not really that loyal followers, the Irons-Is bisexual-Very much likes to be touched-Is sarcastic and kind of brash, says what he wants when he wants, and is usually trying to annoy someone or bait them-Has magical abilities-Does not always wear glovesNow that I’ve said what I needed to say on this matter, let’s discuss the book Ace of Shades. First off, the world building was fantastic. It was so creative and well done – kind of a dystopian version of Vegas, but with magic and Lords. I absolutely loved it. Foody even went so far as to create signature cocktails. There was a certain drink you ordered if you needed good luck at the tables, a different drink if you were on a winning streak, etc. Additionally, the way that she built the magic in it was pretty fun. Your magic was passed down from your parents. Your first name was your own, but the other two names indicated your magical abilities. It was a really clever way to set things up and I can’t wait to see where Foody takes it in the next book.The main character, Enne, is someone that quite a few people found annoying at the start of the book. I’m not sure why, but I understood why she was the way she was. Imagine taking the most prissy girl you know, and sticking her in the middle of a debauched gambling city. She’d probably act exactly the way you’d expect her to. Unlike the most prissy girl I know, however, Enne quickly toughened up, doing what she needed to in order to reach her goal.Levi was charming and fun while also managing to be a deeper character than I expected. I thought he would be kind of a player, the character to offer comedic relief. While he did offer that a number of times, his motivations were deeper and he turned out to be a well developed character in my opinion.The only thing that irked me in Ace of Shades was the romance. Levi and Enne just kept coming up with the dumbest reasons not to kiss. Their inner monologues went something like this “If he leaned his forehead against mine, I knew I’d kiss him.”…ummmm just kiss the dude! If I were in a life threatening situation, and the person I cared about was standing in front of me? I would be on that boy like white on rice. It was just frustrating and something I hope is remedied in book two.My Takeaway: Ace of Shades was fantastic – the world building was fun and entrancing, the main characters were well developed, and though their romance was flawed, I can wait to see what they do next. (Holy run on sentence Batman)

Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody is one of those books that grabbed me the second I read the summary and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it. I am so glad I picked this one up because I really enjoyed every second of the story and can’t wait to see where Foody goes with the rest of the story.Enne Salta is definitely out of her element the second she steps foot into New Reynes…the City of Sin. As a young lady who is more familiar with finishing school, Enne is in trouble the second she gets to town, but she has no choice. She needs to find her mother and the only clue she has is a name; Levi Glaiyser.Enne is an interesting character. There are things she clearly has no idea about and the second she decides she is going to take charge of her fate and figure out what is really going on, she becomes more than the proper young lady she was when she entered the City of Sin. She was willing to do whatever she had to in order to find her mother and she truly does. She shows a lot of growth throughout this story and while she knew that not everything was what it might have seemed, she definitely did not expect to find out what she did.I really liked Levi and love that he isn’t perfect. He is a con-man and a street lord, and he is in a lot of trouble. He is governed by a magic noose put on him and it has put him in a bad place…both with investors of a scheme his boss started as well as with his gang. When he meets Enne, he sees a way out of the trouble he is in and leaps at the opportunity to get what he needs. He also puts Enne in a position he never thought of which creates some issues. It was hard not to root for Levi and want to see him succeed and no matter what hits he took, he would always get up and do what he needed to protect his people.I loved how Foody built up the friendship between these two unlikely partners. Their first interaction doesn’t really start them out on the right foot but as they both realize they need each other to get what they want/need, their relationship begins to change. I thought she wove the secondary characters into the story really well too. Jac, Lola, Vianca…they all play key roles in the story and I can’t wait to see what happens with all of them next right along with Levi and Enne.Foody built up an interesting world within this book. Through her writing I could easily imagine these characters wandering the gritty streets of the city and facing the dangers of the environment head on. Foody combines magic, gangs, friendship, and a whole lot more in this book and does it all very well. The only reason I had to put the book down was because I had to be an adult and actually go to work.Definitely consider checking this book out. I have seen some comparisons to the Six of Crows series which I don’t disagree with on the surface. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to the next book in the series and can’t wait to get the finished copy on my bookshelves.

Antes de mais nada, acho bom deixar claro que Ace of Shades não é um livro ruim, nem de longe. Eu arredondei minha nota, porque a verdadeira é 3,5, e vou explicar direitinho tudo que gostei e tudo que não foi tão bom. O fato é que, apesar do livro ser legal e ter muita coisa interessante, ainda fica claro desde o começo que a escrita da autora e sua trama não estão no mesmo nível, por exemplo, de Six of Crows (livro com o qual este foi comparado). É simplesmente outro nível mesmo e, depois de ler os agradecimentos da autora, sei que não posso esperar nada realmente excepcional dela.Mas não me leve a mal! Um autor excepcional é coisa rara, então faltar um aqui não significa que o livro vai ficar péssimo. Ele é divertido mesmo do começo ao fim, me lembrou até um pouco Caraval (por causa da protagonista procurando alguém importante para ela e buscando pistas para isso), mas é mil vezes mais inteligente e bem pensado que Caraval. Ainda poderia ter sido melhor nesse quesito, as pistas foram todas interessantes, mas não se tornaram tudo que tinham potencial de ser.Aliás, esse é o maior problema do livro. Potencial demais nas mãos de alguém que claramente não consegue aproveitá-lo inteiro. Não, não é do tipo de livro que vai te deixar revoltado (sabe aqueles que têm ideias incríveis, mas execuções péssimas? Este não chega nesse ponto), mas dá para que tudo poderia ter sido melhor. Os protagonistas, Enne e Levi, terminam o livro ótimos, mas tinham passado muito tempo incertos, como uma criação um pouco insegura que não passou firmeza. Por exemplo, não entendi a necessidade de fazer o Levi ser lord de uma gangue. Ele nunca teve confiança, liderança ou qualquer semblante de lord, então deixá-lo com esse título só me fez sentir que a autora ainda não dominava sua personalidade e pessoa.O romance desse livro foi uma coisa que quase deu muito certo, já que seu desenvolvimento foi praticamente inteiro bem feito, mas a autora fez algo que me incomodou no final. E pode ser que a próxima coisa que eu vá falar seja um pouco spoiler, então pule o resto desse parágrafo se você não quiser saber. Eu super, hiper, mega entendo enrolar romance e construir devagar, sou a maior fã. Mas quando ambos sabem o que sentem e sabem o que o outro sente e não fazem nada e ficam evitando ao menos se beijar, já passou do limite para mim. Já vi isso acontecer em vários livros, então vou pelo menos torcer para eu já não ter perdido o interesse no romance quando finalmente acontecer.A Enne, outra protagonista, também começou mega incerta, eu não soube o que pensar dela por mais da metade do livro, e seu desenvolvimento foi feito a tropeços. Nesse quesito, o do Levi foi bem melhor trabalhado, mesmo que a base da história dele tenha sido tão cheia de buracos. Aliás, tinha buracos na da Enne também. A relação dela com a mãe, por exemplo, ainda terminou como uma incógnita para mim e não cheguei a entender o que a faria realmente ir atrás dela, em vez de mandar alguém no seu lugar - ou ir com alguém, nem que alguém contratado. Ela praticamente cresce e muda de uma hora para outra, mas pelo menos quem ela se torna depois é uma personagem realmente interessante e que leva a um final muito bom.E sim, eu gostei mesmo do final, apesar de ele ter sido um pouco estranho em alguns sentidos. Quer dizer, logo depois do clímax tem um anti-clímax que a autora deve ter achado necessário para levar ao segundo livro, mas eu gostei das atitudes dos personagens ali e, nesse ponto, já tinha desenvolvido certo apresso pela história para querer continuar. A questão de voltagem e os talentos foram detalhes também que eu não estava esperando, mas que funcionaram muito bem! A promessa do que eles guardam para o próximo livro é ainda mais interessante!Só não tem como negar que esse livro não está no mesmo nível de outros como Six of Crows e O Último dos Magos. Até na narrativa é possível ver alguns probleminhas. Muita coisa no começo é mais falada do que mostrada, e isso acaba passando pouca credibilidade para tudo que está sendo explicado. O universo aqui, aliás, foi outro tropeço. Ele, por boa parte do livro, se mostra como sendo mais parecido com o fim do século dezenove, pelas roupas, o cabaret, os carros (que não chegam realmente a ser descritos), navios e cartas. Sei que a história não se passa no nosso mundo, mas é preciso tomar cuidado com certas coisas. As coisas que mais estranhei aqui foram as luzes fluorescentes e neons. Não consegui imaginá-las no mesmo universo de vestidos tão grandes que era possível esconder várias e várias facas por suas dobras. Também não entendi o que levaria a mãe da protagonista a escrever uma carta com urgência - que podia muito bem ser sua última vez falando com a filha - para ser levada para ela por navio, quando no último capítulo descobrimos que existem telefones!Essa falta de consistência e solidez no universo sempre me quebra um pouco. A Enne vem de um lugar que a gente nunca encontra no mapa (ou melhor, na triste desculpa para um mapa que tem no começo do livro), o que já começou me deixando incerta sobre o mundo em que a história se passa, e aí eu encontro tantos objetos diferentes e de épocas diferentes sem qualquer contextuação assim e fico com mais certeza ainda de que esse universo foi mais aleatório do que precisava ser.Depois de ter tanta coisa para criticar, ainda fiz questão de arredondar a nota para quatro, porque o livro é mesmo divertido e tem detalhes ótimos nele - como o Levi ser bi e ter provas disso pelo livro, adorei! Pela segunda metade da história, dá para ver também que a autora já a está dominando melhor e tem partes que eu li como se estivesse em uma onda dentro da história, sem separar palavras, só absorvendo significados. Amo isso. E é por isso mesmo que eu ainda quero voltar para ler a sequência.

It will buy again

The book is about our female lead, Enne Salta who arrives in New Reynes in search of her missing mother. With only one lead, that is, Levi, she goes to ask for his help and together they embark on a quest to search for Enne's mother only to realise nothing is as simple as it looks.The first three four chapters feel a bit slow but after that, my God! You'll be flipping the pages involuntarily craving for more of the fast-paced story. There's a very good mix of politics, magic, action, corruption, deception and a hint of romance. Small leads lead to big revelations, the description of New Reynes is true to life and it's map makes us understand the city much better. Enne's character is well written. From a girlish and shy personality she turns into a ruthless person who wants nothing but the truth. Levi's character is also interesting.Overall, the story is racy, engaging and has all the elements of a fantasy book. Pick up this book right now and you'll be wanting for more!

Absolutely incredible series to read!

This is a YA fantasy, and the first book in The Shadow Game series. This follows Enne Salta, a prim and proper young lady, who travels to the City of Sin, to find her missing mother. Once there, she seeks out a name from her mother’s letter: Levi Glaisyer. Unbeknownst to her, Levi is a conman, working for a notorious crime family. Enne’s life is about to be turned upside down, and in the City of Sin, anything can happen… This was a brilliant novel, and you can see the development in writing from Amanda Foody’s debut. It’s still as fierce, but seems more polished and flows better. The characters are brilliant – both Enne and Levi change so drastically from the beginning of the novel, and it’s interesting to see them have flaws and be fleshed out. The romance element is slow burn, and I was living for it! There is great LGBT and race representation, as well as gender fluidity, which I was presently pleased with. The world building was incredible, and I could see this in my head as I was reading – the casinos, the burlesque shows, the drinking establishments, the gang hideouts! The villains were well written and intriguing, and after the epilogue, I’m excited to see what they will try next. Whilst there is violence and paedophilia, it’s completely condemned and I was thankful that the characters called this out. The fantasy element comes from people inheriting powers from their birth parents, such as accounting and dancing etc. I’d love to see more from these abilities in the future. I can’t wait for book two to be released!