Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody

Author: Amanda Foody

Publisher: Harlequin

Date: April 10, 2018

Pages: 416

Format: Hardcover

My Rating: ⭐⭐

Purchase Links: [Chapters/Indigo] [Amazon]

Goodreads Synopsis:

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.

My Review:

Ace of Shades was one of my most anticipated reads for 2018. I came upon it on twitter and was loving the concept. My family and I play a lot of poker, so it was awesome to see a book where the whole city runs on gambling. It all sounded amazing but sadly it did not live up to my expectations.

I expected to be amazed and dazzled but I was bored out of my mind! I had predicted much of everything that had happened and did not care for the "twists" and "turns".

I did not like Enne at all! I found her to be very annoying. She was also snobbish, stupid and naive to an overwhelming degree. One part that really bugged me was how I thought she was supposed to have one of the best poker faces with how she had been raised. Though we find time and time again she can't keep a poker face. She would constantly repeat mantras/rules in her mind, but they weren't doing anything for her, she wasn't taking them in, and I just found that very annoying. These mantras/rules have been drilled into her since she was a baby and she still cannot do them...

There are 3 gangs that are ruled by the Lords of each gang. Irons who are the Gang of Cheats, the Scarhands who are the Gang of Smugglers, and the Doves who are the Gang of Assasins. We really do not see much of these gangs just whispers of them. Levi is this supposed Iron Lord, the best con man in the city, but what I saw was a Kaz (from Six of Crows) impersonator and not a very good one. Levi was annoying, but not as much as Enne. I found his actions and responses to be very weak and sappy. Even after finishing the book I still don't understand how the Lords work, what they actually do to the city, and what they do for their followers. There should have been a better explanation, there was a lot of information but not enough depth. I found it difficult to understand how the system worked in the City of Sin and what the roles of people were.

It didn't seem that the entire book was only portraying 10 days of their lives. It dragged so much that the only entertaining part was near the end, around 10 pages of the quickest climax I have ever read. It was such a disappointment because, after reading over 350 pages, the whole story leading to this, was so quick.

This is the first book in The Shadow Game series, but unfortunately, it will also be my last.

#AmandaFoody #AceofShades #2star