Thanks to Ballentine and Netgalley for this advanced copy!

This was an interesting mystery, seemingly driven by tarot, but also possibly about the drug trade and the cop is Jewish AND cute?? It felt like this book was trying to do too much sometime, but I will say that Katie, the main character, felt well-formed and her life felt robustly described. But I almost didn't care about the central mystery and the ending, while not totally obvious to me, left me feeling a bit meh.

Lina Chern’s debut mystery “Play the Fool” operates on many levels, some that are quite strong, others not so much. The positives first. Chern is a fabulous writer, and does a great job creating believable characters who are likable despite (and even because of) their imperfections. The main character, Katie True, works at the dying Deerpath Mall at a Russian knickknack store and her best friend Marley works at the goth boutique across from her. Even though they had only known each other for two months, Katie considered them to be “rare specimens of some exotic breed of loser.” Although she is truly skilled at reading tarot cards with her mind, her grifter Aunt Rosie taught her to “don’t read the cards, read the person,” and Katie does that very well too. After seeing evidence that Marley has been murdered, Katie takes on the investigation on her own initially, before teaming up with a police investigator who appears to be equally lost and friendless, but also equally clever.

The problem with the novel lies in the plot, which is not particularly mysterious, and seems to have no purpose in the end but to reveal who many of the characters really are (i.e., we get to see who is “playing the fool”). If that is the real mystery then the novel succeeds on many levels. Otherwise, a tighter and more well-developed plot is needed for this to really be considered a mystery. 4.0 out of 5 stars for great writing and characters. I look forward to a sequel!

Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for providing me with a complimentary advanced readers copy of this book.

‘Play the Fool’ is an upbeat, funny, and clever whodunnit filled to the brim with quirky but likable characters, tarot lore, and fun mystery tropes. While not the twisty thriller advertised, if you like the edgier end of cozy mysteries, love the tarot, or just want to unwind from true physiological thrillers without getting too far away from the genre, this quick, fun lil debut might be for you!

Thanks very much to Lina Chern, Netgalley, and Random House Publishing for an advanced e-galley in exchange for an honest review.

THIS COVER is everything! I was immediately drawn in by the cover and a book about tarot cards struck me as unique and enticing.
Kate was a relatable, likeable character. She is “lost” in life, unable to focus on a career path and navigating family dynamics. Her character growth is lacking, but I don’t think this was intended to be a character driven novel. She spirals into searching for a missing friend, which kept the storyline moving forward at all times.
This was such a fun, cozy mystery with a tarot card element. I do wish we seen more of the character coming into herself given the nature of it being a rather less complex mystery. ANYWAY! The author's writing is rather casual but sprinkles in a lot of humor throughout. Really a great “palate cleanser” read!

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I kept thinking I would just continue to put it off, but I decided to read it over a weekend and found myself getting sucked into the story and the mystery. I definitely didn't predict how the story would end up, but I really liked it. I wish there had been a little more romance between the FMC and the cop, but I'm sure the author is probably leaving that open for future books. Overall, a pretty decent mystery read.

Katie is not doing well, least successful of all of her siblings, friendless, and a dead end job, the one thing she's truly good at is reading tarot cards. Unexpectedly she meets fellow mall worker Marley, self assured, interesting and mysterious, they become friends over lunches. So when Katie accidently uncovers Marley's death while trying to fake a psychic reading, Katie can't help herself to try and find out who killed her only friend.

This was a bit of a slow start for me, but overall I really enjoyed this murder/mystery. I found it engaging and surprisingly funny at times. While it was a slow start, once I got into it I did not want to put it down.

Thank you NetGalley and Bantam for allowing me a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This book feels like the cover doesn't totally match the vibe yet somehow it perfectly fits the vibe. It was an okay book. I probably wouldn't recommend it to anyone but I would tell someone not to read it if they picked it up.

This is a tough book to review because I can't really explain why I didn't like it as much as I expected to.

On paper, I am absolutely the ideal audience for this: I love fun mystery novels, quirky characters, tarot, a story with fairly low stakes. And yet, this just wasn't the romp I was hoping it'd be.

I struggled to get through it (it took me nearly two months to read). Whenever I would put it down, it took effort to pick it back up, and the only motivation I had to keep going in the last third or so was to find out if my suspicions were correct. They mostly were, but even that wasn't satisfying because the book itself felt so long. I didn't like any of the characters, and their decisions and quirks were more confusing to me than endearing. It also read really young at times, not quite YA, but not really adult either.

I'm curious to check out what this author writes in the future because there were moments throughout that felt light and interesting. I wonder if this just wasn't the right book at the right time for me to fully enjoy.

It pains me to give this such a low rating because I have to assume this book has an audience, I'm just not entirely sure who that audience might be.

It seems like everyone always says, "don't judge a book by it's cover." But I do. Frequently. I have bought so many books (and movies) off the strength of their covers. And admittedly, sometimes amazing covers hide not-so-amazing interiors. Sometimes it's downright terrible in there. Thankfully this one wasn't quite that bad. However, while that cover is a solid 9/10, the book itself hovers right around 5/10 for me. It struck me as a little too irreverent to accomplish its task. Like Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, but with waaaaaay less character development.

Don't get me wrong - I like that kind of madcap-new-noir style of storytelling (I actually find the SP series highly entertaining). It just felt like something was missing here. I mean the basic formula is all there: black sheep of the family, doing "less" with her life than someone in the family thinks she should be, plenty of snark. But while the opening third or so of the story is pretty solid, it all sort of slowly falls apart from that point on. Honestly, the stakes don't feel particularly high, Katie seems underdeveloped, and there is a detective introduced as a sort of love interest for her, but...he might as well not be involved at all for all the purpose he actually serves to either the story or Katie's character development/arc.

One thing I really did enjoy though was the way that the tarot cards themselves were woven into the story. I actually thought that bit was really cleverly handled.

Overall though, sad to say I did not love this one.

Play the Fool" by Lina Chern is a gripping mystery novel that takes readers on a thrilling ride through the perspective of a unique protagonist, Katie True. Katie is a part-time psychic and works as a clerk in a small Russian tchotchke store located in a rundown mall. One day, a man comes in and agrees to a tarot reading, leaving his phone unattended. Katie, unable to resist the temptation, takes a peek at the device, hoping to gather information that might aid the reading. However, what she discovers on the phone is a picture of her friend Marley, who has been found dead in the alley behind the mail.

I'm so thankful to have received digital access to Play the Fool by Lina Chern leading up to its publication date of March 28, 2023. I thought this piece of literary fiction, twisting and turning all the while, was so well done and I can't wait to run to my feed to see what my fellow readers think of this work of art. I am so thankful to NetGalley, Random House, Bantam, and the author, additionally for the bookish love.

This was a rough one to get through. The very beginning and toward the end held my interest, but the whole middle felt like dragging myself out of quicksand. I got the audiobook when it became available and it was easier to get through, but I was listening on top speed just trying to get through it. I couldn’t find myself growing attached to any of the characters, the story and the “mystery” of it all didn’t pull me in, and the ending left a lot to be desired. Had this been a short story I think it could’ve been interesting, but as it is there’s a lot said while nothing much happens. Overall I would give this one a pass unless you’re really captivated by the synopsis.

PLAY THE FOOL by Lina Chern is a very original and super fun mystery read. The story begins in a mall outside Chicago, where 20-something Katie True is stuck in a dead-end retail job and trying to cope with a family who disapproves of her lifestyle choices. At the mall, a bleeding man suddenly asks her to read his fortune with her Tarot cards and when she manages to sneak a look at his phone, she sees evidence of a murder. Despite not finding a body, Katie next decides to convince an attractive cop (the chemistry between them is apparent) that the victim deserves an investigation. Katie is a clever sleuth on her own; well, except for staying out of danger. Non-stop action, the involvement of organized crime, and many more Tarot readings later, readers will be laughing and cheering for Katie and Officer Jamie. PLAY THE FOOL, a debut novel, received a starred review from Library Journal ("charming and eccentric Katie will captivate readers").

3.5 stars!

First off, what an amazing cover! That was the thing that first caught my eye. This was a fun “murder mystery” and I enjoyed the tarot aspect of it as well! Such a neat detail. Some character development, funny moments, quick paced, and cozy mystery elements. My main issue was that I never really knew if this was a full mystery, a romance, YA, or ??? It was a bit confusing.

This was a pretty good debut novel. I thought the writing and mystery was good but the story itself was hard to believe at times.

This fast paced murder mystery will have you gasping and questioning what happened all the way to the end of the book. The book starts off strong and maintains a fast pace until the very end. Overall a very enjoyable murder mystery book.
Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing for the ARC!

I enjoyed this book and the inclusion of some humor that was involved with the telling of this story. It brought a different spin to the genre. Overall it was a good book.

3.5 stars rounded up!

Play the Fool: A Mystery is a fast-paced, quick-witted mystery thriller debut by Lina Chern. The story follows main character Katie True, a cynical tarot card reader who seeks to discover the truth about the death of her friend, Marley. Through a series of amusing but dangerous circumstances, she must use her razor-sharp instincts to solve this clever whodunnit mystery.

This book was compulsively readable and had a great balance of mystery, thrills, and humor. Katie was a charming protagonist and I couldn’t help but root for her. The mystery was engaging and left enough room for the reader to try and solve it along with the characters. The reveals may not shock a seasoned thriller reader, but it’s still a fun time watching everything unravel. I highly recommend this debut, especially for fans of Finlay Donovan is Killing It!

**Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for sending this eARC for review consideration. All opinions are my own.**

Thank you to Bantam and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this amazing novel! From the synopsis: “a cynical tarot card reader seeks to uncover the truth about her friend’s mysterious death in this delightfully clever whodunnit.” This book WAS “delightfully clever” and I absolutely loved it from the start.

I fell in love with several things in this novel: the storyline, of course, the characters, and the quirky tarot card motifs that surfaced throughout the novel. I think that everyone and their cousin can relate to Katie as a character. We’ve all failed at adulting, we’ve all lived in rundown apartments that have something that doesn’t function but never gets fixed, we’ve all had those “temporary” jobs that we stick with a little longer than we should….and we’ve all stumbled upon underground crime rings (well, maybe not that one). Katie was so incredibly real for me that I found myself unable to stop reading. I loved her point of view, her clever wit, and her very hilarious and questionable decision-making skills. Owen was incredibly lovable as well (the BUBBLE TEA….don’t get me started) and I loved the hints at his sensory dysregulation and neurodivergence (we need more of that in literature). That made him an incredibly real character as well. I enjoyed Katie’s unlikely friendship with Jamie, and I liked that Jamie wasn’t just the “friend who is conveniently a cop and can help the protagonist with the case” character. He had some depth and some brokenness and some innate protective instincts in him which I think also made him more real.

I loved the uniqueness of Katie’s POV in this story. Her mind works in such a special way and I really enjoyed reading the story from her perspective. Seeing the tarot cards in everyday life and situations was a very cool way to write her mind’s eye. Katie is a relatively innocent and kind of “out there” character and I love that she accidentally discovered a murder and a crime ring. The contrast between her “failed-at-adulting” life and the massive amount of danger she managed to put herself in worked really well for me.

I won’t spoil anything in this review because I think everyone should read this one, but the plot twist at the end was actually something I did NOT see coming, even though it was hinted throughout the story that things with a certain character weren’t as they seemed.

Definitely recommending this one to anyone who likes:
Webs of mystery
Lovable characters
Tarot
Quirky main characters who stick their noses in situations where they don’t belong
Incredibly relatable storylines
Stories with real danger
Plot twists
Bubble tea and food court fried rice

I had a hard time really getting into Play the Fool. So I did struggle with going back and forth between other books. This book has great potential.