Originally posted by: foreverlazy
UPDATE: I finally finished The Final Gambit (Inheritance Games #3) and I haven't felt this satisfied after reading a book in a while. I think Book #3 was the perfect ending to this story (for now obviously because there are more books to come) and JLB's writing (at least for me) improved with each book. The first book was painfully mediocre, but there was a certain shift in the writing style of Book #2. The characters and their dynamics were starting to become more fleshed out, and there were some scenes that I didn't expect to have the impact that they did. (There was a scene in Ch. 83 that got a single tear out of me and I'm still mad about it.) Moreover, I actually started becoming invested in the romance.
And then Book #3 was 4 stars for me (high praise coming from me because it might not seem like it, but I'm very picky about my 4-5.75 star range). There wasn't a single line that made me cringe (I'm used to Max by now) and there were some genuinely funny lines in the book. I also think this book had the best games and puzzles - they were all so interesting, but I definitely had a couple favourites. The best part though was seeing all of Avery's development - her starting out as someone intelligent with a knack for puzzles and finally growing into someone who can play games the way Tobias did as kind of like, her final form, was actually kind of beautiful to see.
It is actually hilarious how much I ended up enjoying Book #3 because I did in fact rant on here about how bad Book #1 was.
Currently Reading: I'm literally listening to The Brothers Hawthorne (Book #4) as I'm typing this out. It's weird to not hear Christie Moreau's voice after listening to her narrate the first three books (I even miss her weird Texan accent, I finally got used to it), but I'm excited to have a book from Grayson and Jameson's POVs after being in Avery's head for three books. (This is definitely a spoiler, but the prologue is a flashback of the boys as kids on Christmas morning and I love it!!)
UPDATE: I finished The Brothers Hawthorne last night and it's probably the quickest I've been able to consume a book from this series because the plot was truly excellent. I don't think I liked it as much as Book #3 or maybe even Book #2, but the writing is so solid I can't believe this is the same author that wrote Book #1.
We switch between Grayson and Jameson's perspectives in this book and it's interesting because they're dealing with two completely separate issues - similar themes, but literally so different they could've had their own books because their storylines never connected, no matter how much I thought they would. Grayson's story felt like a Shonda Rhimes show and Jameson's felt like if Squid Games was made by the creator of Knives Out. But for some reason, as different as their plots were, it didn't ever feel jarring to switch from Grayson's POV to Jameson's and vice versa - somehow, it all seemed to flow so seamlessly and I do think that having one narrator helped. However, it's weird to think about Grayson and Jameson essentially having the same voice because the narrator didn't use any inflections to differentiate between the two of them.
I'm not sure how I'd rank them because Book #2 has a special place in my heart for just how emotional I was over it, but #3 and #4 are just objectively so much better... Screw it, two rankings - one just based on the writing and one just based on my emotional attachment to it.
First Ranking: 3, 4, 2, 1
Second Ranking: 2, 3, 4, 1
Currently Reading: I'm debating on what to read next... and if anyone wants to help me choose, please feel free! I received my hold for AGGGTM #3 just as I was finishing up The Brothers Hawthorne and wanted to immediately start reading it last night. But then I saw that I would soon get my hands on one of my most anticipated reads of the year - Bromantic Puckboy (Puckboys #6). I've had this book on hold since January and it was released back in February I think? So basically, my Instagram has been flooded with reels about this book and I've been waiting to read it for so long, especially since Puckboys #7 also comes out this year!
I don't know y'all, AGGGTM #3 or Puckboys #6?
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