Book One Blurb:
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.
Erin’s Review:
If you are looking for a fanastic mystery series to dive into with all the vibes of Nancy Drew, Knives Out, and escape room puzzles, then move The Inheritance Games trilogy to the top of your TBR List!
This trilogy is full of eccentric and fun characters, with Avery being at the center of it all. While there is all the appearance of a classic rags-to-riches story here, this trilogy is anything but predictable, with well-thought out twists that only a true detective could see coming. Swept away from a life of struggle, Avery is thrown in the midst of the Hawthorne family, namely the four grandsons–Nash, Grayson, Jameson, and Xander–of Mr. Tobias Hawthorne, the recently deceased multi-billionaire who has mysterious left his entire fortune to Avery.
The story takes off and doesn’t slow down until every clue is uncovered, every puzzle is solved, and every question is answered. But one thing that makes this trilogy really unique and enjoyable is that each book ends without a cliffhanger! Yes, there are unanswered questions, but it doesn’t beg you to binge read it, making it a great series to pick up whenever you need a thrilling mystery to break up your TBR list.
The relationships are another huge highlight alongside the mystery. Avery’s bank account doesn’t just grow, her family does as well. It is heartwarming to see each of the Hawthorne boys learn to accept Avery as one of their own and truly allow her to become “one of the boys”. And that’s on top of her wonderful friendships with her half-sister Libby and high-school bestie Max. Plus, this series has a swoon-worthy romance that grows from rivals to partners in crime, and while it flirts with the idea of a love-triangle, have no fear! It’s hardly frustrating or annoying.
I read each of these books in basically a day (Last Gambit took me 3 days because I read it over a busy weekend) but I can gaurentee that once you start that first page, you will have a hard time putting each book down.
Content Warning: LGBTQ characters
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