Games Untold by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

 

Last night, I finished reading Games Untold by Jennifer Lynn Barnes. This story collection includes two novellas and six short stories taking place in The Inheritance Games world. The first novella, That Night in Prague, is about Avery and Jameson's trip to Prague, Czech Republic, before the events of The Brothers Hawthorne when Jameson disappears while playing a game that Avery set for him in the city. The second novella, The Same Backward as Forward, is the romance of Avery's mom Hannah Rooney and Toby Hawthorne. Although Hannah hates Toby for causing the death of her sister, Kaylie, she nurses Toby back to health after he is rescued by a fisherman, Jackson Currie, following the fire on Hawthorne Island. In "The Cowboy and the Goth", Avery's half sister, Libby Grambs, falls for Nash Hawthorne even though they don't make any sense at all. These three stories, along with the other five, show the power of love and family.

I enjoyed this story collection so much. I laughed, cried, and was just really happy to spend more time with the characters with which I fell in love last year. Although I loved all the stories, my favorites were the three stories I mentioned above and "$3CR3T $@NT@", a short story about an extreme game of Secret Santa that Avery and Libby played with the Hawthorne brothers after The Final Gambit. It made me want to play with them! The most heart-wrenching story was The Same Backward as Forward and my tears flowed freely as I approached the conclusion. I wish so much that the ending was different, but I understand why it had to end the way it did. The most hilarious story was "Five Times Xander Tackled Someone (& One Time He Didn't)", which is self-explanatory, but it was so much fun gaining more insight into Xander's relationships with his older brothers and the girls in his life, Rebecca, Thea, and Max. Reading That Night in Prague was the first time I really felt like I could root for Avery and Jameson as a couple. Although I'll always be a Avery/Grayson shipper, I now see how Avery and Jameson can work as life partners, given their love for travel, adventure, high risk, and games. I also liked finding out what actually happened to Jameson in "Pain at the Right Gun" which takes place during That Night in Prague and explains the shocking secret that he has in The Brothers Hawthorne. Additionally, I thought it was adorable how Nash asked Libby to marry him using a Magic 8 Ball by the end of "The Cowboy and the Goth". From beginning to end, Games Untold is perfection. If you love The Inheritance Games, you can't miss this story collection!

The Grandest Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

 

Yesterday, I finished reading The Grandest Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes. The first book in a new series taking place in the same world as The Inheritance Games, this mystery is about Rohan, Lyra Kane, and Gigi Hawthorne, three characters connected to Avery Grambs and the Hawthorne brothers, who are among the seven participants in the second annual competition of the Grandest Game. Each of them has a different motivation: While Rohan needs the prize money to become the Proprietor of the Devil's Mercy, Lyra is seeking answers about her biological father's death and her parents are having money issues. On the other hand, Gigi is trying desperately to prove that she has what it takes to win and protect her twin sister, Savannah, by keeping the secret about what happened to their father. In a twist from the very start of the game, Grayson Hawthorne will be monitoring the game from the ground, making sure that all the competitors follow the rules. When it turns out the first night will be a team competition, Rohan, Lyra, and Gigi must make alliances with the other competitors, including Savannah, who has her own secrets and motivation, to move on to the next phase.

I was so intrigued to read this book when I first learned that the author decided to write another series with the characters from The Inheritance Games and The Brothers Hawthorne and it went beyond my expectations. I absolutely adored that the game took place in a mansion on an island (that was mentioned in the original series) that was basically an extreme version of an escape room. Even though I was rooting for one team above the other three, I had no idea who would get out of the mansion to the docks first. It was so suspenseful. I also enjoyed getting to know Lyra, Gigi, and Rohan better as the chapters alternated between their three perspectives. I don't want to say too much for fear of spoilers, but I loved the antagonistic-with-a-growing-attraction dynamic between Rohan and Savannah and how Lyra could finally face Grayson in person because I thought there could be a spark there from The Brothers Hawthorne. Additionally, I really liked trying to figure out the puzzles, although they definitely got harder as the story went on. I was so upset when the book ended because it left on a huge cliffhanger and I can't wait to read the next book. The Grandest Game is thrilling and I recommend it to anyone who has read The Inheritance Games series or enjoys mysteries and puzzles in general.