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Last year I picked up the absolute rollercoaster that was The Inheritance Games (you can watch my full rave review on my Booktube channel if you’re interested!) and I immediately needed the sequel. As is the way with book publishing, I had to wait a full year for The Hawthorne Legacy to be released, and it was TRAGIC. Thankfully, I wrote a recap for The Inheritance Games so I didn’t have to reread it once The Hawthorne Legacy finally released and I could dive straight into the sequel I had been craving for months.
The Hawthorne Legacy was a RIDE from start to finish. I didn’t get to read it in one sitting like I wanted because of Real Life, but every time I picked it back up I was absolutely hooked and I didn’t want to put it down. I flew through this book. Jennifer Lynn Barnes has really found her niche with this series – and her previous one, The Naturals – as I think she truly shines with these fast paced thrillers. She knows exactly how much information to trickle through to the reader to keep you on the edge of your seat and blasting through until the end.
I think I mentioned in my previous review that I didn’t ship any of the ships, and I was a bit worried that Barnes was going to introduced a strange love pentagon. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case, although there is a love triangle. I thought we were over those in YA. In fact, I thought I was over those, but it turns out I really enjoyed this one??? Who am I.
So while I didn’t LOVE the romance, I did enjoy reading about Avery and her feelings towards the brothers and what was leading her to feel those things. I don’t mind who she ends up with, really, although I am leaning towards Jameson AS LONG AS he gets a bit more character development in the next book. I feel like he was just kind of there and looking cute and being nice, and we didn’t really get to see any raw emotional moments from him or between him and Avery. Maybe in the next book?
What I particularly liked about this one was how much of the mystery was resolved… or unresolved. Like I said at the beginning, Barnes has a way of feeding you just the right amount of information to keep you hooked and interested, and then gives you a little more at the end and then WAIT WHAT THERE’S SOMETHING ELSE. I like that some pieces of the puzzle were wrapped up but there’s clearly more to be discovered.
I also really enjoy reading about Avery’s journey into the world of billionaires. Like a lot of people, it’s my dream to win the lottery, so imagining being in Avery’s place (without all the assassinations and games, of course) was a lot of fun for me. I should probably start actually playing the lottery, though…
The Hawthorne Legacy is a SOLID sequel and an epic ride. I’m giving it 4 stars because it’s not an all time favourite, but it’s so much fun and it kept me on my toes. I will probably end up rereading both The Inheritance Games and The Hawthorne Legacy before the third book comes out so I can properly get my head down and try to figure out some of these mysteries. I think they’d work really well as a marathon reading session!
I still haven’t read this series but my sisyers copy of this book arrived yesterday and she’s been glued to it ever since!