"I received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review"

On the quest to find her missing mother, prim and proper Enne Salta became reluctant allies with Levi Glaisyer, the city’s most famous con man. Saving his life in the Shadow Game forced Enne to assume the identity of Seance, a mysterious underworld figure. Now, with the Chancellor of the Republic dead and bounties on both their heads, she and Levi must play a dangerous game of crime and politics…with the very fate of New Reynes at stake.
Thirsting for his freedom and the chance to build an empire, Levi enters an unlikely partnership with Vianca Augustine’s estranged son. Meanwhile, Enne remains trapped by the mafia donna’s binding oath, playing the roles of both darling lady and cunning street lord, unsure which side of herself reflects the truth.
As Enne and Levi walk a path of unimaginable wealth and opportunity, new relationships and deadly secrets could quickly lead them into ruin. And when unforeseen players enter the game, they must each make an impossible choice: To sacrifice everything they’ve earned in order to survive...

ONE BIG THING....DON'T READ THE FIRST BOOK SO LONG AGO YOU FORGET HOW IT ENDED.

That was my first mistake going into this book because it had been ages since reading the first book then the second. I should of done a re-read and that way it would of taken less time for me to figure out what was happening in book two.
Once I had caught up I remembered why I liked the first book so much and that is because the world is so different than anything else I have ever read. The same issue I had with the first book is the same I had with the second and that would of been more world building because I find it fascinating.

I have to say I liked Levi a lot more than Enne in this book but I am not sure why. I think it was because she just came across a little less likeable and Levi came across a little less cocky. I liked a lot of the side characters and it was hard reading some parts of the book because of that.

There were a lot of twists and turns I did not see coming and it kept me on my toes all throughout the book. That is why I ended up rating it 4 stars and I can not wait to get my hands on the third book after the cliffhanger king of fools left on.

“It didn't matter whether she decked herself in knives or pearls. The world would always demand that a girl apologize for herself, but she would apologize for nothing.”

Oooh boy.

There were parts of this that I absolutely <b>loved<b> – Enne's girl gang being the primary one, but Jac’s character development and romantic subplot was definitely a close second.

I really struggled with some of the character decisions and felt that our protagonists were getting pulled along by the decisions of others, rather than taking charge and forging their own destinies which was disheartening to read.

I also had trouble with the pacing. For a story that’s spaced out across many months I didn’t get the sense that a lot had happened until the last few chapters and even then I was expecting something more.

I’m still looking forward to the third book and I have hopes that the characters get the happy endings they deserve!

What an explosive sequel this was! I loved following these characters back through all the angst, twist and turns. The only thing that bugged me was that the main couple was split up for most of this book. But besides from that it was great.

With thanks to Netgalley for a digital arc of King of Fools by Amanda Foody, these opinions are my own.

I don’t really have much to say about this book unfortunately. It was well written, but didn’t grab my attention. Maybe I should have put it down and tried later, I really don’t know. The characters didn’t draw me in and neither did the storylines. The last few chapters helped bring my rating up and I will read the final book. Hopefully I’ll enjoy it as much as the first one.

Overall rating 3⭐️.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book!

Well, this is awkward. After LOVING the first book (except the beginning) I find myself in the exact same position for book two. I have been reading this off and on for over two weeks and making little to no progress because I can't get over how boring the beginning is. I've tried reading reviews that tell me I'm in for a surprise at the end and to keep going, but I just can't. This is the same problem I had with the last, but I'm even further in and nothing is grabbing my attention. I begged to get this one and I still didn't like it :( Giving up halfway feels like quitting, but well, I don't want this book hanging over me forever so I'm moving on.

king of fools was an absolute trip with some of the best character progression I’ve read!! it is an absolute chonker of a book, clocking in physically at over 600 pages and left me with a massive book hangover. this review will be spoiler-free, but just know that I am absolutely dying to discuss spoilers – so if you’re in the same boat, then mosey on over to yell with me on twitter (and also if you could read my ace of shades review as well, that would be cool.)

I had to take a couple of breaks inbetween to read king of fools in its entirety because wow. it picks off straight after ace of shades, with the introduction of an enigmatic character we saw in ace of shades’ epilogue: harrison augustine. vianca’s estranged son (!!) there is a lot going on in king of fools, with the introduction of a new point if view character, jac!!! enne, levi and jac all have their separate storyline’s that converge and intersect once in a while, but they’re all on their separate journeys. levi’s is one of rebuilding and reclamation. jac’s is facing the past and overcoming his demons. enne’s is finding her inner leader and the potential for greatness.

first off I’m going to say, I absolute LOVED the queer content. it’s so casually, commonly accepted and no one even blinks an eye when levi kisses boys or lola kisses girls. 20gayteen really is forever, and we’re getting a major point-of-view character in ya fantasy who is gleefully, happily, explicitly queer (and bisexual!!! represent!!) we get more of that canon content in king of fools. I won’t spoil the other queer relationship that lola has with a certain someone, but it’s darling and lovely. now, moving on to the rest of the review…

If you loved the glimpses of enne’s darker, more ruthless side in ace of shades then you will absolutely adore her here. she’s still a lady of manners and delicacy, but there’s a distinct honed edge to her know. she has turned frills and lace gloves into her armour, tucks pistols and knives into her skirts and makes shots with the best of them. the scared, helpless girl at the start of ace of shades is gone, for the better, now evolved into something more. she’s been bitten by the ambition bug, and strives to dream harder, do bigger.

‘The world would always demand that a girl apologize for herself, but she would apologize for nothing.’

‘And maybe it was her own worst qualities talking—her pettiness, her competitiveness—but if Levi believed he could make an impression on this city, then so could she.’

levi, on the other hand, is reeling from the blows he was dealt at the shadow game and they just keep coming. he needs to rebuild his gang, find new headquarters and regain respectability as a street lord. harrison and vianca’s demands by playing a very dangerous game. on top of that, jac swears levi to not pursue a relationship with enne, because their affection for each other could bring vianca’s sword down upon their heads. he’s full of endless, endless ambition and desire for more. his short lived romance with narinder is 🔥🔥🔥 I love my bisexual king. buuut he messes it up because his and narinder’s values clash. levi wants more and more and more, with a hunger for greatness that could consume new reynes.

‘Even after the worst does happen, I can’t bring myself to stop, and I don’t want to. I want to be legendary. I want my mark on this world to stain.”’

jac finds his own story by splitting from the irons and infiltrating the torren’s drug dens at levi’s request. after sedric’s death in ace of shades, the torren family is in an uproar with a succession crisis. jac’s goal is simple: make connections and find out which torren is most suitable to lead, and get their support for harrison and his political party. his path crosses with sophia, the mysterious den leader with secrets of her own that can make or break jac’s mission. we find out more about jac’s past and his previous addiction to the drug lullaby, along with some insight about his long and complicated friendship with levi.

we also meet grace, my new favourite character whom I love to bits! she is my goth wife and I will shower her in jewels and trinkets and money. she’s the second to join enne’s accountant girl gang (!!), lola being the first. she’s brilliant with knives but also with numbers, takes no shit, and isn’t afraid to call out enne when she’s about to do something potentially disastrous. she’s also wonderfully frank and crass and unapologetic about it.

‘“Wealthy, working for his father’s company on Hedge Street,” Grace read. “He’s number eight, but do you think he really measures in at eight?”’

what I absolutely LOVED about king of fools was the relationship progression between enne and levi. she goes from being played to being a player, no longer weighed down by shame about her desire and wants. she sees and she takes. she’s also calling levi out of his (unintentional) self-centric worldview and that is hilarious to read.

‘What? No. Levi, this isn’t about you. Be quiet for a moment and listen.”’

they also have angst-filled moments, fuelled by levi’s secrets and the vow he swore to jac:

‘You do not get to touch me.” Tears finally spilled down her cheeks. She didn’t care how broken he felt tonight—he couldn’t use her as a weapon for his own self-destruction.’

one thing that I was surprised by was how much I empathised with vianca augustine. amanda foody has done an absolutely bang up job in crafting a sympathetic antagonist, someone that enne can see herself reflected in, like a distorted funhouse mirror reflection.

‘Vianca Augustine was a monster, and a monster who learned remorse was a monster still. Her hands were too stained to wipe clean.’

‘Maybe she had turned herself into a monster because the only other option was to be a woman.’

enne sees a woman trying to survive in the cutthroat world of men, always devalued, always judged for her woman-ness. but the great thing about enne? she sympathises with vianca, sees her perspective, and goes beyond it. vianca was a victim to the patriarchy, an unwitting accomplice, but enne with remake the world in ash and blood to respect her. enne doesn’t let what other people think about her weigh her down, even if she does experience moments of doubt. by the end of king of fools, I wanted her to take over new reynes because surely, surely she would be a much better ruler than the current street lords and mob bosses.

I’m not going to spoil the plot too much, because you have to read it to believe it, but there are some truly spectacular, jaw-dropping moments. the pace is slow at first, while all the pieces assume their place and the board is being set up, but once the game is ready it goes OFF. suspicions, betrayal and treachery abound. I was caught in one mystery after the other, on tenterhooks waiting to see what the characters would do next and how they’d survive. by the epilogue you’ll be screaming “what?? what!!!!!!!!” it’s a long journey but it is entirely worth it to see where the chips fall and where the characters end up.

rating: 4.5 stars. even more enjoyable than ace of shades and I absolutely loved the character progression and the way it ended

King of Fools is the second book in the Shadow Game series (with Ace of Shades being the first), written by Amanda Foody. If you haven’t read Ace of Shades and plan to in the future, there will probably be a couple of spoilers, as this is a sequel and the synopsis will mention them- just skip the next paragraph or first couple of sentences.
King of Fools is an action packed, fast paced sequel set in the notorious City of Sin, which follows on directly from the first instalment. It begins as Enne and Levi have just escaped the Shadow Game, when they are faced with the fall out and a series of repercussions, including a bounty on both of their heads. This book focuses on the main characters attempting to fix the fate of New Reynes through their own deeds and with the assistance of other stakeholders and gangs. This is done both criminally and politically. The narrative is told through three different perspectives of Levi, Enne and Jac as they each face different challenges over a series of months. Levi, with the development of an unlikely partnership, Enne, attempting to build her own gang and stuck between being a street lord and proper lady, and Jac who builds an unlikely friendship with a woman who holds significant power over one of the cities wealthiest families.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Despite its intimidating size, it kept me engaged throughout and the fast pace made me want to keep reading into the night. One thing that really stood out to me was the inclusion of three narrators. As there was a lot more going on in this book, by having each of the main characters narrate, as a reader, we were able to see further into the plot and what was going on. This also allowed for the characters to develop further and to discover more about their context. I especially liked reading Jac’s point of view, as he was only a secondary character in the first book and this book really allowed for him to show what he was capable of. Jac was able to prove that he was more than just Levi’s second and he could make his own choices based upon what he believed in. I found Enne’s chapters thrilling to read too, as she battled with herself and what she believed in, whether she should be a street lord or whether she should just be a set of eyes for Vianca.
Unlike other young adult fantasy books, I commend Foody for writing about some topics which other authors may find confronting or shy away from. Within this book, there is mention of drug addiction and abuse, torture and parental abuse (to name only a few). While these scenes may be confronting for some, they allow the reader to visualise the high stakes of the city and the lengths that the characters will go to, to ensure that they are in control.
Another aspect of the book I really enjoyed was the inclusion of Enne’s gang and the feminist representation within. These girls all came together with a common goal of seizing power in a city where the men were seen to rule the gangs. Despite their differences, they all worked together to achieve their goals despite numerous setbacks. I also admired the character of Enne and how she changed so much from Ace of Shades. Her character development was phenomenal, going from a girl who was used to a fancy finishing school, to leading a gang. Over time, she learnt the ways of the city and that it was a fight to survive.
This book also included mystery within its pages too. This aura of mystery made me want to continue reading, to find out what was happening. There was the mystery regarding who Vianca’s third omerta was which left the reader guessing throughout the whole book. There was also the mystery regarding Sophie, who she is and what her intentions were over the course of the book. These were two things within the book which kept me guessing until the very end and made me engage more with the plot.
I also felt like the characters were further developed throughout this book. While the various other gangs were introduced in Ace of Shades, King of Fools gave Foody the opportunity to flesh out these gangs and the members within them. The reader was able to find out more about the gangs, what they were after (considering the events of the previous book) and how they aimed to achieve this. There were shifting alliances, new members joining old gangs and new gangs being formed. I especially liked learning more about the Scarhands and the Doves as they were previously introduced but not too much was known about them.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed reading King of Fools and following Enne, Levi and Jac on their journeys in New Reynes. This was a book that kept me engaged throughout due to its fast pace and inclusion of so much action. I am very much looking forward to reading the next book when it is released to see where the plot goes!
I rated this book: 5 stars
King of Fools will be released in Australia later on this month and has already been released in the US.
Thank you to the publishers, Harlequin Australia, for providing me with a review copy via NetGalley
More about the book and information regarding where to purchase can be found by accessing the link below:
https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9781489276971/king-of-fools/

Spoiler Free Review

I gave this book five stars and absolutely loved it! Once again I was completely immersed in this world and the lives of all of our characters, I was completely gripped by this story and it honestly felt like I was just stepping back into it like it had only been a moment since I finished the first book. I love Amanda Foody's writing, it was so easy to get through and kept me constantly wanting to read more and see what would happen next.

I actually loved all of the new characters that we get introduced to in this book, there were quite a few different ones but the people who stood out the most were definitely Sophia, Tock and Grace. They were all incredibly bad-ass in their own ways but also had such interesting personalities and quirks :D

I loved getting to read from Jac's perspective in this book since he played such a big role in the book. Jac is actually one of my favourite characters and I really enjoyed getting to see more from his personality and his back story since we didn't get a lot from him in the first book. His part of this book was actually my favourite, the things that he is doing and so interesting and high stakes and as we go it just gets more and more interesting.

There is so much that goes on within this book, we constantly have ups and downs and so much personal growth and understanding from all of our main characters and I loved watching them as they went through so many difficult situations and great triumphs and I just want to read more.

Spoiler Review

I was just living for the romance or hint of romance in the first novel between Levi and Enne and I was so incredibly disappointed that they really didn't get together until way into the book but that they also are no longer together. I always find it really annoying when characters split up or don't get together because they are keeping things from each other or just not talking to each other about how they feel, with this book I do understand the secrecy and how it makes sense that they shouldn't tell each other everything in order to keep themselves and each other save so I forgive it a little bit but it just makes me happy when they are together so they just need to be together in the next book.

While we are on the topic of romance as well, I really enjoyed watching the interactions between Grace and Roy, he really is exactly what she was looking for except for the fact that he is/was a whiteboot and is technically their enemy. I am really looking forward to them getting together and I am actually hoping that we get to see from their perspectives in the next book since I think that they will play a big role.

Through out the book I had so many theories about who was going to be Vianca's third omerta but I did not guess at it being Bryce. There was so much mystery surrounding him and honestly I should have guessed but I didn't. There are so many questions surrounding him and I just need to find out what is going on! I feel like this story is going to take a huge turn and I just need to know what will happen.

I honestly cannot wait for the next book, it ended in such a crazy place! Jack is dead which was so incredibly sad, but also Vianca is dead which is fantastic but has also freed Bryce who is crazy and has an ability that creates a lottery wheel where people just die if it lands on their number, also the fact that they all got Shadow cards at the end of the book was crazy and I really want to see what will happen with the Shadow Game in the next book. I am so excited to see what will happen next because there are so many crazy aspects of this story and I really want to see where it goes! :D