*A few Spoilers*
Loved it!
Ace of Shades follows the story of Enne Salta who has made her way to the city of New Reynes nicknamed the City of Sin to find her mother. She has been missing for the last month and has left Enne a letter with the name of a man of might be able to help her, Levi Glaisyer.
I really enjoyed Enne’s character and the growth she shows over the course of the storyline. She starts off very naive and unsure of herself, very prim and proper and eventually becomes Séance, the badass gang lord who has defeated the Shadow Game. She’s very self-aware and almost unapologetic in terms of who she is and how she conducts herself. She isn’t the cliché damsel in distress in need of rescuing, she takes on the city head on and will do just about anything to find out where her mum is.
I loved Levi! He is one of my new favorite male protagonists. He is a very complex character and I loved seeing all of the different sides of him come out during the plot. He has the persona of the Iron Lord and has to be the strong, resolute and almost cruel at all times, yet he has so many doubts and guilt and he is being pulled in all these different directions.
The romance was a little bit of a slow burn, it was obvious right from the start that they would get feelings for each other because they were thrown together so quickly. I thought they complimented each other quite well and I loved the banter between them.
I thought the magic system was quite unique and very interesting. Having the different families with different abilities and having split abilities depending on your heritage I found very clever. I like that in this world you’re limited by who your family is; it makes it simple to understand and also adds an element of mystery if someone doesn’t know who their mother or father is.
I liked that the book spanned the 10 days that Levi’s debt was due. This format enabled the plot to really go in depth on what the characters were doing at every moment of the day; all the mundane actives that would otherwise be overlooked had the story been longer. This really helped me form a connection to the characters and made me a lot more invested in the story.
All in all I really loved this book! From all the characters, to the setting, the world building and the plot. It all really came together so well and had me intrigued and invested right from the start.
⭐️4.5/5 stars I could not put it down!
After I completed Ace of Shades I immediately knew I had to pick up King of Fools straight away!
Amy Leigh Reads 