Thank you TikTok.
Synopsis: Avery Grambs is a regular high school student aiming to get a scholarship and move away from her town and family issues. However, she gets a little more than she asked for when unknown-to-her billionaire Tobias Hawthorn passes and leaves his entire fortune to her. A fortune thought to go to his angered and mysterious family–including four intriguing, brilliant, and attractive grandsons. To receive her inheritance Avery must move into the Hawthorn mansion...with family members who are determined to crack a convoluted will and find a way to take their inheritance back.
Plot: This was very interesting and not what I was expecting. I absolutely loved the vibes and fun atmosphere. A huge mansion with puzzles, riddles, codes, and secret passages? I'm in. The beginning was a little slow and involved a lot of info dumping and telling not showing, but once I got into it, it was hard to put down and the pace quickened up. The whole plot of working together to break riddles and codes while learning about this secretive family's past was very entertaining to read and I was trying to solve the mysteries right along with them. However, because of the fun twists throughout, I was expecting a little more from the ending and was left feeling a little disappointed with the lackluster conclusion, but still enjoyed the journey.
Characters: Avery was middle of the road for me. I'm starting to sense a pattern of young adult heroine main characters–sassy, sarcastic, traumatic past, weak spot for brothers, and a spunky best friend whom she ignores. I wish for a little more nuance but she wasn't unlikeable and did the job just fine. The family members were my favorite part. They were super intriguing and I can't wait to learn more about them in the following books, I still have a lot of questions. The four boys though...I couldn't keep a single one apart and was confused majority of the book at who was who. They were okay I suppose, Xander was the best, but I don't fully get the intrigue and am also not the biggest fan of love triangles, especially amongst brothers, (I've been burned before #teamstefan).
Regardless of brother confusion, this was a fun and moody time. I have since read the second and am looking forward to the final book being released next month.
4/5 stars.
TW: physical abuse.
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