She’s a brown-skinned mixed girl of Nigerian and Italian descent who’s ostracized from her father’s family because of their racism. Her non-romance with her best friend Jamie has very unsettling implications in it from an accident that happened in their Junior year to a drunken night before school started. There’s her conniving crew of friends who only hang out for appearances. In comparison, Chiamaka doesn’t have as much going on but it’s still a lot to work through. As well as a love interest from his past who he wants to trust but is suspicious of because of everything going on. His current boyfriend is one of his best friends and also runs a ring of dealers to make ends meet. He has an emotionally abusive ex-boyfriend who kept him a secret. He’s not out to his mom who works three jobs to put him through school while raising her three boys from different fathers. Devon is carrying the weight of being a young gay Black teen living in a poor community that’s rife with drugs, violence, single parents, and incarcerated family members.

Àbíké-Íyímídé threw everything into Ace of Spades.

There’s no balance between these leads just a lot of Black pain. Chiamaka’s are all manufactured and meant to weigh on her mental health and sanity. Whether it’s a previous relationship, an intimate moment, or his current boyfriend. However, it doesn’t quite work.Įvery one of Devon’s secrets Aces exposes is something that actually happened to him. Presumably, the multiple romances weaved in and out of the plot are meant to provide some kind of buffer between the abject suffering Devon endures on a daily basis and Chiamaka’s slow realization that the facade she built is crumbling to pieces. Her narrative isn’t a powder keg, it’s a simmering fire growing hotter as Aces throws more and more kindling onto the blaze. Àbíké-Íyímídé spends a lot of time unpacking issues of assimilation, homophobia, and poverty creating an insufferable environment with very little light pouring in. With exception to the romance in Ace of Spades linked to explorations of identity, self-acceptance, and a firm stance on self-worth, there is a disparity of joy in this book. Ace of Spades is a promising thriller but it’s bleak and tries to do too much However, the mysterious Aces is not only hellbent on disrupting their plans, they also want to ruin their lives. Devon Richards, in contrast, is a scholarship kid from an underserved community who’s just trying to get through high school, get accepted into Julliard, and provide his family with a better life.

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