WOW what a wild ride!

This was a killer debut. It's pitched as Gossip Girl meets Get Out, and it totally delivered on both those fronts. I loved the dual POV of both Chiamaka (the rich, mean popular girl who wants to be the best at everything and wants everyone to know it) and Devon (the quiet, poor kid who just wants to get through high school and make it out of his neighborhood). They couldn't be more different, and in fact have nothing to do with each other until they are forced to interact after a mysterious figure calling themselves "Aces" starts to target them.

This book is a harsh critique of institutionalized racism while simultaneously being a compelling (and at times terrifying) thriller. As the author says in her note at the end of the book, it's also a very personal story, inspired by her own experiences at university. While she was not outright attacked for being Black, the insidiousness of institutionalized racism lurked everywhere--in all her interactions with other students, in classrooms and even just walking around in places where she was the only Black person around.

Spoiler

She took those experiences and turned them into an organized group of, let's be honest, terrorists who were set on destroying the lives of Black students who dared to want better for themselves. And one of the scariest things about this book is that it doesn't seem all that far-fetched...

I have not read many YA thrillers, but this one definitely knocked it out of the park for me, and I can't wait to see what else Àbíké-Íyímídé writes!