This review is a couple of years in the making, since I just read the last book in the series this month, hence the extra book review post.
GAMES UNTOLD
There is nothing frivolous about the way a Hawthorne man loves.
An amnesiac playboy and the woman with every reason to hate him. A daredevil, his favorite heiress, and three nights in Prague. An unlikely pairing between a cowboy and a goth. Four brothers with an inescapable bond, strengthened by the family they chose, in a house of wonders that promises to always deliver one more secret.
Discover their stories of love and loss, power, puzzles, and life-and-death secrets in this mind-blowingly romantic collection that proves that when you love the way Hawthorne’s love, there is no going back.
– A group of short stories from different timelines throughout the series. I didn’t think much of them, although one or two gave me quite a surprise and I want to know more.
After reading this book, and the others before it, I’m a bit sick and tired of the Hawthorne boys being portrayed as if they’re 30s or 40s. No teen kid is that mature, can run, and be trusted with running, mega billion-dollar corporations, yet somehow, Tobias trusted Grayson who was only the second eldest. It’s as bad as Imaginary Friend by Stephen Chbosky. 6- and 7-year-olds portrayed as 14 and 15.
THE GRANDEST GAME
Seven tickets. An island of dreams. The chance of a lifetime.
Welcome to the Grandest Game, an annual competition run by billionaire Avery Grambs and the four infamous Hawthorne brothers, whose family fortune she inherited. Designed to give anyone a shot at fame and fortune, this year’s game requires one of seven golden tickets to enter. With millions on the line, those seven players will do whatever it takes to win.
Some of the players are in it for the money. Some for power. Some for reasons all their own. Every single one of them has secrets. Amidst it all is Grayson Hawthorne, tasked with a vital role in this year’s game. But as tensions rise and the mind-bending challenges push the players to their limits–physically, mentally, and emotionally–it soon becomes clear that not everyone is playing by the rules.
– I read this and wasn’t overly interested in the whole storyline, it was just the smaller ones that were made centre of the story that piqued my interest, especially that of why is this mansion still standing after Toby burnt it down. Why is Gigi kidnapped at the end?
GLORIOUS RIVALS
FIVE PLAYERS REMAIN.
Seven Players arrived on Hawthorne Island to play a billionaire’s game. Now only five remain, and the race to the finish line is on.
EVERYONE IS A LIAR.
The heat turns up on the competition – and between the players – and it becomes increasingly clear that no one will emerge from the Grandest Game unscathed.
AND SOMEONE IS WATCHING.
Millions are at stake, but so are hearts – and lives.
THE GAME IS ON.
– I had to try and remember what the last book was about and how it ended. This book is a straight continuation of the first, no intro into characters.
We do find out who kidnapped Gigi, and she finds herself a whole lotta trouble.
We find out that, for a billionaire family their lawyer and security head are extremely inept at keeping them safe and keeping intruders off the island. Seriously, if I had a lawyer like Alisa and security like Oren, they’d be fired within a month for the inability to keep me safe. How utterly useless, but then it’s not the first time both of them have been unable to keep Avery safe.
This is a definitely a series you need to binge read, right from the very start of the series because I have forgotten about family ties and who’s related to who.
While the story only moved forward a little, and we find that there are three new players in the background, I actually can’t wait for this to be over with next year’s book as I’m a little sick and tired of billionaire’s getting away with whatever they want, and the people screwed over by their grandfather wanting to make them pay.
The games have grown tired, and the story is old. Time to move on.
THE GILDED BLADE
ALL GAMES MUST COME TO AN END.
Everyone is a player. In the grandest of games, there is everything to win – money, love, power, revenge – and even more to lose.
Every clue pulls them deeper. From Texas to Prague to London and beyond, the Hawthorne family and their allies old and new are drawn into a web of centuries old secrets and mind-bending puzzles.
Every answer demands a price. To survive, they must unravel the mysteries that bind them together . . . but some truths are deadly.
EVERY GAME MUST END. BUT CAN LOVE CONQUER ALL?
– A year on and this story has become so convoluted and overwhelmed with characters I found myself skimming pages because I couldn’t remember who half of them were, and really didn’t care. The only thing I cared about was Avery living. This story was just too much and other characters came back from previous books and I didn’t care about them, either.
Sadly, several people did die, many we didn’t know about, and many we did.
The end was a little off kilter. Three-month-old babies do not play on dance floors with five-year-olds, and by now I’ve forgotten everyone’s ages even though Jameson and Avery were getting married and why was Jameson’s arsehole of an uncle there?
Personally, I think this series went on way too long. The first couple were great, until all of the extras started being added, and then these books, and then everything became too monotonous and boring. Too many rich people with too much power, doing too many stupid things wanting to control everyone and everything else.
Even though I cried after the explosion at Vantage, I’m glad it’s over.