Title: The Inheritance Games (The Inheritance Games #1)
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Mystery
Publisher: Little Brown, Books for Young Readers
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: September 1, 2020
Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
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 conwoman, 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.
Review:
Avery Grambs has plans to finish high school and get a scholarship. However, everything changes when the billionaire Tobias Hawthorne dies and leaves his entire fortune to Avery. Avery has never heard of Tobias and she doesn’t know why he disinherited his two daughters and four grandsons for a stranger. Avery and Libby, her older sister and guardian, have to travel to Texas to claim her inheritance, but the catch is that she must live on his estate for a year with his family before the estate officially belongs to her. Tobias loved puzzles so the entire estate is filled with puzzles, including the answers to why he left everything to Avery. With the help of his four grandsons, Avery has to explore this new world of wealth and danger to figure out why she was named heir.
I had a feeling I would like this story but I had no idea I would become so hooked on it. As soon as I finished this book, I ordered the rest of the series. This story was intriguing, with Avery’s seemingly random turn of fortune, but it was also suspenseful. Avery’s life was in danger since everyone around her could be out to get her for her money. Plus there were lots of fun riddles and puzzles throughout the story.
The Inheritance Games is such a great story! I can’t wait to read the rest of the series!
Content warnings: death of parent, mentions of suicide, domestic violence, death of teen, attempted murder
What to read next:
The Hawthorne Legacy (The Inheritance Games #2) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Other books in the series:
- The Hawthorne Legacy
- The Final Gambit
Have you read The Inheritance Games? What did you think of it?
