After having read Bound Feet, I was excited to see that Kelsea Yu was coming out with a new book this year! It’s Only a Game is a YA thriller that pulls you in immediately with its rich characters and complex plot. Yu managed to create a mysterious main character, Marina Chan, without frustrating me as a reader. It felt as if everything hidden had its reasons, and I was absolutely along for the ride!
As a self-professed devourer of books, I truly did devour this one. I finished the vast majority of it on a plane ride and was a bit annoyed at myself for it, because I couldn’t scream at anyone who had read the book as well! It was a smooth and exciting read that consistently demanded I continue on to find out what happens next and who’s keeping what secrets, and what’s going to unfold when they come out. And when those secrets came out, Yu handled them excellently, without playing into unrealistic tropes or glossing over those that were unfair to keep. And, in what I’m finding to be classic Kelsea Yu fashion, I thought I had the mystery figured, but she absolutely got me.
I’d recommend this to anyone looking for a smart, fast-paced thriller that’ll keep the wool over your eyes all the way until the end. It’s an excellent read for YA and adult audiences alike (though certainly appropriate for YA)—Yu is fantastic at creating books with broad appeal!
Information about It’s Only a Game:
Author: Kelsea Yu
Publisher: Bloomsbury YA
Release date: July 9th, 2024
Print length: 352 pages
