Goodreads Overview:
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.
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:
I really enjoyed Jennifer Lynn Barnes's The Naturals series, and this sounded like another sure winner to me. I was correct. Who wouldn't love the Hawthorne brothers? They are all very different from each other, but they are all uniquely appealing. Add in a mansion and family filled with secrets and puzzles and the pages wouldn't stop turning. I read the first book while I was on a ski trip and wanted nothing more than to hole up in the evenings to see what would happen next. I am not usually one to read through an entire series back-to-back, but that is what I did in this case. I don't think I have done that since I discovered the Twilight series back in 2010. As soon as I finished each book, I requested the next one from the library.
I am now anxiously awaiting The Brothers Hawthorne, which is scheduled to be released this October. The one loose thread remaining after the original trilogy is Grayson Hawthorne. He was such a lovable character who was ready to take the world by storm until he was passed over by his grandfather in his will. That combined with a dark event that happened prior to the start of the book left him "broken". I really hope he can finally find his happily ever after.
The Final Gambit was filled with HUGE family secrets that I never saw coming. Some things seemed a little far-fetched, but in the end, everything came together nicely. I can't say I would have done what Avery did at the end of this book, but it does make sense given Tobias Hawthorne's original intention in his prior will. I'm just glad she didn't go to his extreme.
This was another highly entertaining YA series that should appeal to both boys and girls. I struggle trying to find books I think my son will like, but both The Naturals and Inheritance Games series fit the bill. All of the puzzles and mysteries definitely outweigh the romance elements, which he usually loses interest in quickly.
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