The Inheritance Games (The Inheritance Games, #1)

by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

[Witty and Sarcastic Bookclub]

This book is available for purchase now.

Riddle me this: what book is full of mystery, puzzles to solve, possible murder attempts, and a plot that keeps you guessing? The answer is obvious! It’s The Inheritance Games, of course!

This book was so much fun! It follows Avery, a wildly intelligent girl who has been struggling to make ends meet. She learns that she has been left a large fortune by Tobias Hawthorne, an obscenely rich tycoon. She would be overjoyed, but she can’t overlook one fact: she’s never even met the deceased man. Question number one? Who is she to him, and why did he leave her his fortune, excluding his relatives?

This book features a cast of unique and not necessarily trustworthy characters. There’s Avery’s older sister who has a connection to a skeezy guy; Skye and Zara, Hawthorne’s daughters; Zara’s husband; and Tobias Hawthorne’s grandsons, who were very close to Tobias and were pretty much a lock-in for the massive inheritance. The grandsons are: Nash, a self-made cowboy who has a thing for saving people; Xander, the youngest who seems less-than-interested in everyone else’s machinations; Jameson, who is incredibly helpful (but who knows why?); and Grayson, who feels that Avery has somehow taken advantage of Tobias Hawthorne. There’s one catch: in order to claim the inheritance, Avery has to live in the late Tobias’ estate with these people of questionable ethics. Everyone in the book has their own motivation, and secrets abound.

There were so many great things about this book! First of all, I loved that the riddles weren’t obvious, and neither was the solution. I was guessing and figuring things out right along with Avery, which was a blast. There was one “reveal” which I figured out early on, but it didn’t ruin my enjoyment of the book. Instead, I had a major fist pump moment (“Yes! I knew it!”) and every other solved answer was completely out of the blue for me. Another thing that I enjoyed was that, even though it would have been easy to slip into the tried and true mystery tropes, the author neatly avoided falling into that trap.

There was the whole complicated love triangle doomahickey but, seeing as it was part of the game and possibly just a clever redirection, it didn’t really bother me. It was also kept in the background of the story instead of taking priority, which I appreciated. Avery had a good head on her shoulders and was not as easily hoodwinked as I think certain characters were expecting. No spoilers from me, I promise.

I fairly flew through this book of mysterious happenings, and I loved every minute! I’m incredibly happy to know there will be a sequel, since I’m not ready to leave Hawthorne Manor and its inhabitants behind. Do yourself a favor and read this book as soon as humanly possible.