Tag: the inheritance games

Book Review: The Brothers Hawthorne (The Inheritance Games #4) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Mystery
Length: 480 pages
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Publisher: Little Brown Books
Release Date: August 29th, 2023
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BOOK SUMMARY:

Four brothers. Two missions. One explosive read. Jennifer Lynn Barnes returns to the world of her #1 bestselling Inheritance Games trilogy, and the stakes have never been higher.  
 
Grayson Hawthorne was raised as the heir apparent to his billionaire grandfather, taught from the cradle to put family first. Now the great Tobias Hawthorne is dead and his family disinherited, but some lessons linger. When Grayson’s half-sisters find themselves in trouble, he swoops in to do what he does best: take care of the problem—efficiently, effectively, mercilessly. And without getting bogged down in emotional entanglements.
 
Jameson Hawthorne is a risk-taker, a sensation-seeker, a player of games. When his mysterious father appears and asks for a favor, Jameson can’t resist the challenge. Now he must infiltrate London’s most exclusive underground gambling club, which caters to the rich, the powerful, and the aristocratic, and win an impossible game of greatest stakes. Luckily, Jameson Hawthorne lives for impossible.
 
Drawn into twisted games on opposite sides of the globe, Grayson and Jameson—with the help of their brothers and the girl who inherited their grandfather’s fortune—must dig deep to decide who they want to be and what each of them will sacrifice to win.

A WEE BIT SLOW.

I was not as impressed by this as I had hyped myself for (and maybe that was my undoing???). I really enjoyed the first trilogy and thought we’d finally get some Grayson moments and instead I felt like that poor guy just kept getting beat down more and that we were all back at square one with the characters.

Some aspects of the mystery were intriguing, I loved seeing all of the brothers interact again. I am curious enough to read the next book and I did enjoy listening to this. While there was good, I’m overall a little perplexed (and cautious) at how the next book with further open these plot lines. I did like a few of the twists and betrayals.

And can we please give Grayson a dang break??!

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Mystery
  • Language: some strong
  • Romance: Closed door
  • Violence: moderate
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: parental abandonment, brief mentions of cheating spouse, death of loved one recounted

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Book Review: The Final Gambit (The Inheritance Games #3) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Mystery + Romance
Length: 400 pages
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Publisher: Little, Brown Books
Release Date: August 30th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Avery’s fortune, life, and loves are on the line in the game that everyone will be talking about.

To inherit billions, all Avery Kylie Grambs has to do is survive a few more weeks living in Hawthorne House. The paparazzi are dogging her every step. Financial pressures are building. Danger is a fact of life. And the only thing getting Avery through it all is the Hawthorne brothers. Her life is intertwined with theirs. She knows their secrets, and they know her.

But as the clock ticks down to the moment when Avery will become the richest teenager on the planet, trouble arrives in the form of a visitor who needs her help—and whose presence in Hawthorne House could change everything. It soon becomes clear that there is one last puzzle to solve, and Avery and the Hawthorne brothers are drawn into a dangerous game against an unknown and powerful player.

Secrets upon secrets. Riddles upon riddles. In this game, there are hearts and lives at stake—and there is nothing more Hawthorne than winning.

STELLAR FINALE.

Don’t you love when you finish a series and realize how much you’ve enjoyed it? Hallelujah this was the case here. What a fantastic YA mystery series.

I LOVE THESE BROTHERS. If I could get spin off books of everyone I would be in bookish heaven. I love Jameson, Grayson, Xander and Nash for in a hundred ways and will protect them at all costs.

The puzzles and games sprinkled throughout were intense to watch unfold. I am continually in awe at this author’s ability to craft such intricate enigmas. I love that I don’t quite know where each answer will lay and who’s on what side.

I do wish there was a touch more romance. I appreciated the growth from Jameson that I really needed to feel more connected to the relationship between him and Avery. They had some really sweet moments though!!

Short chapters make for a fast pace that had me binge reading this needing to know what happens next. I liked the conclusion a lot and how Avery ended up handling the inheritance and defeating the nemesis that came from the past.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Mystery
  • Language: a little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: med-high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: weapons violence, kidnapping, recounted murder

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Book Review: The Hawthorne Legacy (The Inheritance Games #2) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Audience: YA Mystery
Length: 368 pages
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Publisher: Penguin
Release Date: September 7th, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Intrigue, riches, and romance abound in this thrilling sequel to the New York Times bestselling The Inheritance Games perfect for fans of Karen McManus and Holly Jackson.

The Inheritance Games ended with a bombshell, and now heiress Avery Grambs has to pick up the pieces and find the man who might hold the answers to all of her questions – including why Tobias Hawthorne left his entire fortune to Avery, a virtual stranger, rather than to his own daughters or grandsons.

Thanks to a DNA test, Avery knows that she’s not a Hawthorne by blood, but clues pile up hinting at a deeper connection to the family than she had ever imagined. As the mystery grows and the plot thickens, Grayson and Jameson, the enigmatic and magnetic Hawthorne grandsons, continue to pull Avery in different directions. And there are threats lurking around every corner, as adversaries emerge who will stop at nothing to see Avery out of the picture – by any means necessary.

With nonstop action, aspirational jet-setting, family intrigue, swoonworthy romance, and billions of dollars hanging in the balance, The Hawthorne Legacy will thrill Jennifer Lynn Barnes fans and new readers alike.

I’M ON THE WRONG SIDE.

…OF THIS LOVE TRIANGLE. Ugh. I have one book left to see if things go by way because gosh dang it, I hate being on the wrong side. Don’t get me wrong, Jameson made some great strides and I saw growth in his character. BUT IT’S TEAM GRAYSON OVER HERE.

I’m in awe of this authors ability to craft amazingly detailed and intricate puzzles. They wow me. The reveals mostly catch me off guard. Explosions, kidnapping, being followed. Avery goes through another wild ride trying to keep her inheritance at the Hawthorne’s.

For a middle book I was thoroughly charmed. The pacing kept up and action was definitely there. I found enough quiet moments to relax before things picked back up and I love that I feel like I can’t trust many characters. It’s fun to be on my toes wondering what’s going to happen next. The finale is sure to be something else and I can’t wait!

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Mystery
  • Language: very little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: kidnapping, recounting of house fire with loss of life, plane explosion, gun violence

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Book Review: The Inheritance Games (The Inheritance Games #1) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Audience: Young adult mystery
Length: 384 pages
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: September 1st, 2020
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A Cinderella story with deadly stakes and thrilling twists, perfect for fans of One of Us is Lying and Knives Out.

Avery Grambs has a plan for a better future: survive high school, win a scholarship, and get out. But her fortunes change in an instant when billionaire Tobias Hawthorne dies and leaves Avery virtually his entire fortune. The catch? Avery has no idea why–or even who Tobias Hawthorne is. To receive her inheritance, Avery must move into sprawling, secret passage-filled Hawthorne House, where every room bears the old man’s touch–and his love of puzzles, riddles, and codes.

Unfortunately for Avery, Hawthorne House is also occupied by the family that Tobias Hawthorne just dispossessed. This includes the four Hawthorne grandsons: dangerous, magnetic, brilliant boys who grew up with every expectation that one day, they would inherit billions. Heir apparent Grayson Hawthorne is convinced that Avery must be a con-woman, and he’s determined to take her down. His brother, Jameson, views her as their grandfather’s last hurrah: a twisted riddle, a puzzle to be solved. Caught in a world of wealth and privilege, with danger around every turn, Avery will have to play the game herself just to survive.

YOU HAVE MY ATTENTION.

Well this held my attention from the get-go.

How trippy to find out you’re all of a sudden an heiress because someone decided to give you all of their money? WhOa.

What a wild mansion. I loved that there was so much to the entire house. The random tunnels, hidden spaces, the amount of rooms, all of it. Without such a obscene amount of rooms to create this land there wouldn’t have been a story. It added many adrenaline pumping moments and times where I was taken by surprise.

The riddles were brilliant and well put together. I love when I can’t solve things right away because it really adds to the mystery and suspense of the novel.

Throw in a group of four brothers with hidden pasts and their own issues and we’ve got a ourselves some side characters. I loved these Hawthorne brothers!! What didn’t I love? That dang love triangle. Boooooo. It wasn’t too much of a distraction, but the stronger feelings became the more I was hoping things would go one way or another.

After that bomb drop of an ending I’m invested. I want to know how this sequel works out because I have twice the amount of questions.

Overall audience notes:

  • Young adult mystery/thriller
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: guns, physical, someone passing away from a heart condition

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