I absolutely love how the young adult fiction writers can take genres such as romance, fantasy, horror and thriller to name a few and reinvigorate them in fresh, exciting ways for new audiences. The Inheritance Games from Jennifer Lynn Barnes is no exception to this rule.

Imagine combining Riverdale and the movie Knives Out with a twist of rags to riches Cinderella and you come close to The Inheritance Games. It is an easy, yet thrilling page turner. Avery Grambs is left a vast fortune and estate by a mysterious billionaire benefactor Tobias Hawthorne, who she has never met or heard of. The only stipulation is that she must stay in his family home Hawthorne House for one year, with his feuding family, who want the fortune for themselves. Avery is a magnificent protagonist, quick witted, clever and very likeable, which is so important for a book like this. The other characters are equally sharp and well written, The book never loses momentum and the thrills don’t stop as to get to the truth Avery must solve mystery stacked upon mystery, twists and turns and red herrings, All whilst also negotiating the deadly family politics. I can’t wait for more from this series.

Brilliantly clever twisty modern thriller ⭐️⭐️⭐️ out of five

Great thriller! Well-crafted mystery with lots of misleading clues and characters you truly love to hate. Have already purchased copies of this title for my high school library and look forward to book-talking it to my mystery lovers.

Loved this book, a slightly different slant on your usual young adult book and I would definitely read another book by this author. Four stars.

Many thanks to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and The Write Reads for a copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I’m always excited when The Write Reads comes out with new tours, because Dave has an amazing track record of steering me towards awesome books. So when I heard about The Inheritance Games, between him and Susan @ Novel Lives telling me I wanted to read this, I just went with it. Boy am I glad I did.

The Inheritance Games is basically a Knives Out for a YA audience, with a compelling mystery filled with puzzles, complicated characters you’ll love, and plenty of twists and action!

My Thoughts:

- This book introduces the Hawthorne family, which is … a bundle of laughs? They’re a little dark, scary, and definitely too used to lying and getting their way. The Hawthorne family is by no means going down quietly. They’re clinging to the inheritance they think they deserve and looking for whatever loopholes they might think they can find. Well, not everyone in the Hawthorne family, but still. Trust no one. Because everyone stands to gain something. This is a family who’s used to getting their way, to having everything, to being able to buy, bribe, or cheat to get the outcome they want. If you think this doesn’t bode well for Avery … you’d be right. There’s definitely more nuance than that to the family, but it’s also clear that Avery stands to lose as much as she stands to gain. Maybe even more.

- The four main characters, aside from Avery of course, are the Hawthorne boys, who are an enigma in and of themselves. Though they’re all related, of course (half-siblings, with different fathers), each boy is wildly different. It was hard not to fall in love with all of them, though.

Xander is the youngest, and by far the most charming. He’s always so cheery and adorable and charming. He seems like the peacekeeper of the family—able to keep his two older brothers from destroying each other and just aloof enough to seem like a neutral party. Make no mistakes, though … Xander isn’t nearly as innocent as he seems.

Then there’s Grayson. He’s always dressed up in a suit, very formal, very protective of his family. Comes off a bit old-soul and stuffy, but there’s definitely another side to him. For reasons that I’m sure the boys don’t understand, he’s always competing with Jameson in a game of one-upmanship that has continued to leave them ever more broken over the years.

Which, of course, brings us to the other half of that equation … Jameson. He’s a bit of a rebel, a bit of an outcast. Tries to tell himself he doesn’t care and that it doesn’t bother him, but of course it does. Plays the tough guy and is all cocky and sure of himself (including drinking, skipping school, etc), but is really just a bundle of insecurity, wrapped in a thin layer of cranky aloofness.

- As I’m sure you can imagine, not everything is sunshine and roses now that Avery’s inherited the Hawthorne estate. In fact, things are just getting started for her. In case you’ve missed all the news stories about it, like, ever … coming into a ton of money is really just earning yourself a boatload of problems. You know, one for every million dollars you now find yourself with. It wasn’t like Avery was just going to inherit the money and then live happily ever after. Oh-ho-ho, no. There are so many forces at work attempting to stop Avery from getting the money, from keeping the money, even from wanting it. I mean, Avery’s young, and can you imagine the stress of now being the most talked-about person in the state? Possibly the nation? Going from nobody to being in the limelight? That definitely comes with its own set of issues that Avery may or may not be prepared to face. And all hinging on one simple question: why her?

- This book is absolutely full of riddles and puzzles and things to be solved, and it’ll keep you guessing. If you’re a fan of riddles and puzzles, boy does this book deliver! I wasn’t entirely sure I got all of them, if I’m honest. I was confused here and there, and there’s not really much explanation as to them. For the most part, though, they really kept me guessing and added a level of difficulty to sussing out the twists and turns that I was not prepared for. No, I for sure didn’t see the ending coming at all. And that end?! *chef’s kiss* There’s obviously going to be another book, and I can’t wait for it, because things are about to get even more interesting and convoluted.

- There’s a love triangle in this book that, while I understand the role it plays in the story, I wasn’t really feeling. It’s no secret that love triangles are one of my least favorite romance tropes ever. They can absolutely be done well, in such a way that I’m as confused as the character and their confusion makes perfect sense, but those tend to be the exceptions. I’m afraid that wasn’t the case here. The love triangle almost served as more of a distraction than anything else. I didn’t feel like a romance was particularly necessary in this book to start with, but I was fine with it. Just … not the love triangle. Anything but a love triangle. This book is complicated enough that it doesn’t need that on top of everything else. The love triangle and romance never come fully to fruition in this book, so it makes me wonder if maybe it’ll be touched on more in the second book and if the love triangle might yet die the horrible death it deserves. I guess this is going to be a wait-and-see instance.

ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT YA! Will be recommending to anyone who loved the movie Knives Out. My only small criticism is that the ending is almost a cliffhanger - if you don't like cliffhangers when the second book isn't available yet, I would wait for that to come out before reading the series, as everything is not entirely resolved in this book.

A perfect example of a slow releasing read that works!! I was hooked from the first few chapters of this book! A fantastic young adult book which I would recommend to others!

3.5 STARS ACTUALLY....
I read other reviews before writing mine, as I've got to the end and haven't quite decided what I think yet. Then I saw YA mentioned over and over, and had no idea what that meant, so had to look it up.

I picked this book because of the reference to Knives Out, and I thoroughly enjoyed that movie. I had no idea this was a 'young adult' novel, and maybe I wouldn't have requested it if I had.

But overall, I'd give the book 3.5 stars. It's not as mediocre as a 3, it's not quite as great as a 4, but it was enjoyable. The story was engaging enough to keep me reading, and the characters were just deep enough to keep the pages turning.

I guessed the crux of the story very close to the beginning, because it really was obvious, but enjoyed the puzzling journey to reach the conclusion.

The young adult genre explains why I liked it, but didn't love it...it was a little shallow. The bugbear, however, was Max, Avery's elusive best friend; the juvenile language I found highly irritating, and was entirely unbelievable. A shame because I did enjoy the rest.

This is another review where I know I am going to fall short of having the right words to do it justice. It has been a long time since I have managed to read a book in one day but honestly, The Inheritance Games was so addictive that I actively struggled to put it down. It is compulsive reading at its best.

There honestly wasn’t anything I disliked about this book, it just had everything that you could really want: a rich and slightly dysfunctional family, four engaging and charismatic brothers, a mansion with secret passageways, a load of riddles and secrets, and a girl thrust into the middle of it all without a clue as to why. I was hooked from the first page and loved every minute of this captivating journey.

The plot is exceptionally clever, how everything fits together and the fact that it keeps you guessing the whole way through because you can’t trust that anyone is being entirely genuine. It wasn’t just the mystery of why the money was left to Avery, there are a lot of other things that need to be solved and this honestly kept the pace at a fever pitch because I was desperate to know everything.

I really liked Avery, she comes from a very different background to the Hawthorne’s but is smart and even though she is seen as the underdog because of her background, the Hawthorne boys soon discover she is just as much a player in the game as they are. I loved her determination and the fact that she felt like an outsider but still tried to do the best with the circumstances she was left with.

There is something exquisite about the Hawthorne boys, Nash, Grayson, Jameson, and Xander, they are all very unique personalities and even when they clash you know that there is a strong bond between them. Usually, I would have a favourite but I actually loved them all and their complicated relationships. They are all flawed but also brilliant in their own ways and it makes for some interesting reading, I wish I could say more about them but I don’t want to spoil the fun for you.

There is a little hint of a romantic triangle that always feels like its teetering on its edge, I’m glad that wasn’t a main focus in the story but the tension it added was perfect and I’m sure it will also provide some drama in the next book. There was also chemistry between some of the characters that has left me wondering whether it will turn into anything and what complications that might bring up.

I cannot actually express how much I loved this book and how excited but also impatient I am for the next book.

I love a puzzle and this book is full of them. This is a masterful example of slowly releasing information so that both reader and protagonists gradually gain insight and are able to solve the riddles of each other's characters as well as the puzzles set by the shadowy games master that initiates and perpetuates the thrust of the story.
I really enjoyed reading this book and will be looking out for other work by this author.

Well, what a great book! I thought that when I noticed it was a YA book, that would put me off. How wrong was I. This is a fast paced, page turning, intriguing read.

Young Avery is on her own, looking after her half sister Libby. Times are hard, but she still finds time to help out an elderly man in the park, playing chess with him each morning.

Out of the blue, she inherits an unbelievable fortune, but the family are not happy, as they all get nothing.. Now follows the games, played by the members of the family to try to get rid of her, or sicken her off.

The plot moves along at a fast pace, once started I could not put this down, reading late into the night to see what was going to happen..
Give it a go, you will not be disappointed and I hope there is going to be a sequel, hence the 5 star rating.

I really enjoyed this book. The whole concept of a mystery girl inheriting some strangers estate and inheritance was very intriguing and compelling to the point where i struggled to stop reading. I really liked Avery and how she didnt really let any of it mess with her mind even though it was a complete turn around of her life. I really liked the mystery part of this book and was trying to figure out who tobias was to her along with the characters in the book and picking out the clues and the answers. There was a whole array of characters that we get introduced to that all had their own unique personalities. I partically liked the 4 brothers: Nash, Grayson, Jameson and Xander, and how each them were different from Jameson bubbily behaviour, graysons coldness, xanders shyness. We dont see much of Nash compared to the others but when we did see him i really enjoyed it. I liked the romance in this book even though it wasnt part of the main story, i felt like even though it wasnt needed it made me enjoy it more and i cant wait to see if it builds in the second book and what happens considering its a bit of a love triangle/square.

Avery goes to live with her half-sister, Libby following the death of her mother but following a run in with Libby's horrid boyfriend, she decides that she'd rather live in her car! That's how horrible Drake is. Suddenly though, Avery is summoned to the reading of a will. The will of Tobias Hawthorne, billionaire.
At the reading, Avery discovers that she inherited almost everything from him but there's a string, of course. Avery must spend a year living alongside the Hawthornes. The family that Tobias have left almost nothing to.

Looking forward to reading more.

I received this book from the publisher via Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

This book definitely sounded up my alley, and I was so very right! It’s so twisty! And that ending? OMG. I need more.

You know going in that it’s going to be a fun game of “who can you trust”, and I love how well it plays out, and that the way the characters are (and how they interact with each other and the puzzle) is actually something that makes sense. The explanations give the characters real motivation. And poor Avery is stuck in the middle, trying to figure out how this all plays out! The dynamic with the brothers especially, is really fun, and honestly I hope that they can continue to sort that out :)

As you go through, and more becomes revealed about the puzzle, it becomes clear that Tobias Hawthorne really has been playing a very long game, and honestly I am really looking forward to some explanation as to how he managed to set so much of it up!

The mystery of how I will manage to wait for the second book (especially as I didn’t realise going in that this wasn’t a standalone!) is going to be the hardest to solve though ;) 5 stars.

Avery Grambs life is far from perfect. Her mother passed away two years prior and she now lives paycheck to paycheck with her half sister, Libby. All of this changes when Avery is named in Tobias Hawthorne’s will leaving Avery a billionaire overnight. There is only one problem. Avery does not have any idea who Tobias Hawthorne is or why he left her just about his entire estate. The Hawthorne family is equally as puzzled and also quite angry especially since no one has ever heard of a seventeen year old girl named Avery prior to the reading of the will. Avery will get everything on one condition. She must live at the Hawthorne House for one year or forfeit everything. Does Avery have what it takes to figure out the clues and puzzles Tobias left behind or will someone make sure Avery’s time is limited at the Hawthorne House even if it means murder?

OMG! OMG! OMG! I am absolutely positively hooked on this story! I read a lot of books, but every now and then you just pick up a book and you never want it to end. I read nice and slowly as I wanted to savor this story like a delicate mouth watering treat. I can now say I am totally addicted! This story just grabs you right from the first page and you are sucked into a creative, mind-blowing, intricate web full of puzzles and clues while trying to figure out what is going to happen next. I do admit I figured out one piece of the puzzle early on Although, I had no idea how it would be worked into the story. There is no part of this story that drags and page by page there is something always happening that drags you in even deeper. Jennifer Lynn Barnes is a genius and writes some pretty intricate puzzles and clues and I am glad Avery was smart enough to figure things out cause I would be crying in my room. I hate puzzles! LOL

Although Avery is only seventeen years old, she has been through a lot with the death of her mother, her relationship with her sister and her sister’s on again/off again loser boyfriend, Drake. Avery, for me, was a standout fully fleshed character I could not help liking. She is analytical, wise beyond her years and didn’t let the new found money change her. Avery soon finds herself in a bit of a love triangle with Jameson and Grayson, two of the four Hawthorne brothers. I just want to say, I loved loved loved the brothers and I am hoping they each get a story in the series? One can only dream!

The Inheritance Games is a hugely imaginative, twisty read that will have you furiously flipping the pages until you get to the end. Ahem, a bit of a cliffhanger there, eh? What a way to keep me hooked! So, I see the second in the series comes out in 2021. The first half hopefully? How am I going to wait so long! I need the second book now! Ugh! Needless to say if you have not figured it out by now. The Inheritance Games is a huge five star read for me!

This was exactly what i wanted from it. I liked the drama and mystery element to it. The characters weren't always the most fleshed out but i thought they were fleshed out enough. I liked that the story and the drama got more and more dramatic as it progressed but the ending left me enough wanting to read the sequel as soon as possible.

Imagine being relatively poor and struggling to get ahead in life and in the next breath you’ve inherited a sizeable fortune from the Rockefeller family.

One day Avery Grambs was living with her sister, Libby, and the sister’s abusive boyfriend, Drake. Then practically the next day, Avery has inherited a palatial estate and the fortune of Tobias Hawthorne, who is a stranger to her. The only stipulation is that she has to live in the mansion for one year. Of course, Avery will be sharing the house with all of the people that did not get what the fortune that they wanted. All of them are the enemy for the next year.

Avery is very bright but unaccustomed to having wealth or the whole world following her every move. She doesn’t have that many people in her life that are trustworthy.

The most interesting character, Emily, is already deceased by the time Avery moves to the Hawthorne estate. She was dating two of the Hawthorne grandsons and was a bit of a risk-taker. We don’t know if Emily was killed or died of natural causes until the end.

Avery spends a lot of time trying to figure out the mysteries of Hawthorne House. How does Tobias Hawthorne know her? Why did he leave her an interitance?

I thought that this book would be predictable. However, there’s enough mystery and a puzzle around every corner to keep it interesting.

If you like mystery, drama, and puzzles then you will probably enjoy The Inheritance Games.

If you would rather read a boring book about boring people, then this might not be the book for you.

I don't think I am going to be able to stop thinking about this book for a while - probably until I can get my hands on the sequel at the end of 2021! I was HOOKED! The puzzles had me gripped and although I need to know what happens next, I am glad that it is a series as I didn't once feel like the story was rushed at all - the pacing was great! Definitely one of the best YA thrillers I have read so far

If you're a fan of Clue and/or locked room mysteries then you'll definitely enjoy this one. I felt that the story was incredibly immersive. Even though there are quite a few characters, I didn't think it was too bad to orient myself with the main players since everyone had distinctive voices and personalities. I loved that there were plenty of twists and turns along the way. Overall, a solid read!

DNF at 25%

This one has been called 'Knives Out for YA readers', which I totally understand. This book sets up a mystery -- why did this mystery billionaire leave Avery the bulk of his fortune when she swears they had never met? While it has a strong enough start, The Inheritance Games didn't keep my interest as the story progressed, and I didn't find Avery to be a strong enough character to pull me through.

While this book didn't click with me, I think readers who have a stronger interest in contemporary YA will have a better time with it!

A very well written YA book which was great to read, the characters were enthralling and the storyline was gripping, would definitely recommend this book