"The Inheritance Games" Review

For months I have heard such good things about "The Inheritance Games" on both TikTok and Instagram. All of the reviews compared this to A Cinderella Story slash Knives Out crossover which was right up my alley! Naturally, I couldn't resist and I decided to pick it up the last time I went to Barnes & Noble. Let me just say that it definitely did not disappoint!

"The Inheritance Games" is the first book in a young adult fiction/mystery duology written by Jennifer Lynn Barnes. It was released in September of 2020. A sequel, titled "The Hawthorne Legacy", is currently in the works and is expected to be released in September of this year. If you would like to purchase "The Inheritance Games" you can find it on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

You can follow the author, Jennifer Lynn Barnes, on Instagram and Goodreads or check out her website for more updates regarding the sequel and her previous books.

"The Inheritance Games" follows sort-of orphan Avery Grambs who is currently barely surviving High School. She tries to lay low. Avery has a 'do well enough on the quizzes that you will do well in the class but not well enough to be particularly noticed' kind of philosophy. Avery's father was consistently absent from her life and her mother died recently. Instead of entering the system, Avery's half sister (they share the same deadbeat father) Libby takes her in. Avery and Libby both work and work hard but they still are just making ends meet. One day, both of their lives are upended when they are introduced to a mysterious visitor and find that Avery's presence is required for a will reading. Nothing too out of the ordinary, right? Wrong. The will that is to be read belongs to well-known philanthropist and billionaire Tobias Hawthorne. Did I mention that Avery has never met the man? She has no idea why she would be included in the division of this wealthy stranger's assets. After ariving in Texas at Hawthorne House, Tobias' will is read. Nearly everything is left to Avery. Its also not like Tobias had no potential heirs. He had two daughters and four grandsons, who are all stunned and very upset with the outsider who now owns what they once believed would be theirs. The catch is: in order to receive the full inheritance, Avery must live in Hawthorne House with the family that Tobias Hawthorne just dispossessed. The novel follows Avery's search into the reasoning behind her recent fortune and the challenges she faces when navigating her new living arrangements.

“Everything’s a game, Avery Grambs. The only thing we get to decide in this life is if we play to win.”

I gave this book 4 stars on Goodreads. If you liked the movie Knives Out or were a fan of the board game Clue, I am pretty confident that you will enjoy this book. The highlight of this book, in my opinion, is the setting. Hawthorne House is exquisitely extravagant. No expense was spared in the design of this house and I am living for the grandeur. Multiple libraries and secret passages galore!

Beyond the opulence that is Hawthorne House, I am fascinated with the idea of old money family dynasties. The Hawthornes are very Kennedy-esque. Each of the Hawthorne family members were interesting, whether they were likable or not. Having Avery be forced to live with them gave the book a very interesting dynamic. The Hawthorne brothers are all different and Avery's interactions and relationships with each are unique. Nash is the oldest of the brothers. He is the epitome of southern drawl. He is a frequent wearer of cowboy hats and has excused himself almost entirely from the family and the family fortune. Brother number 2 is Grayson Hawthorne. Grayson is the grey--eyed, Armani--suit--wearing heir apparent. He thinks that Avery is a con woman and is not to be trusted. Jameson is the day--drinking, rebellious third brother who is always down to solve a riddle or put together a puzzle. Jameson seems to like Avery and is hell-bent on working with her to figure out the final riddle that his grandfather has given them (the final riddle is Avery and her role in all of this). The youngest of the four brothers is Alexander (Xander) who is too busy worrying about what kind of scones are available in the kitchen than he is about loosing the fortune that Avery has gained.

I am fully aware that this may make me sound like a fourth grader but I love a good short chapter and this book is full of them! Sometimes I feel like long chapters will be the death of me, but this book is very good about having short to mid-length chapters which help with reader engagement! I appreciate the way that this book was written, but it did get a little slow at times so having the short chapters was a god-send.

"Sometimes,” Jameson Hawthorne said, sounding strangely contemplative, “things that appear very different on the surface are actually exactly the same at their core.”

The latter half of the book saved this from being a 3 star read for me. After the halfway point, things start to pick up the pace more and I had a whole different appreciation for the book after reaching the mid-point of it. The mystery doesn't fully conclude with this book, so definitely check out the second one when it comes out this fall. Overall, this book was a good read and I enjoyed it!

I think a wide range of reading audiences would enjoy this book! This book is very young-audience/middle grades friendly. I would consider this book to be well suited for ages 13+. There is a romance subplot, but only one scene involving a kiss throughout the book. The language is very mild. No adult language is explicitly used. There is a brief depiction of domestic violence, but it is not super detailed.

With all books that I read, I make a playlist to go along with the book. These playlists are full of songs which encapsulate the feeling of the story as a whole, capture the essence of a particular scene, or just remind me of one of the characters. You can find my playlist for "The Inheritance Games" on Apple Music or Spotify.

Have you read "The Inheritance Games"? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!

As always, thank you for reading!

XO,

Madison