Book Review :: The Grandest Game by Jennifer Lynne Barnes

The Grandest Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
ISBN: 0316481017
Series: The Grandest Game #1
on 30 July 2024
Genres: Young Adult
Goodreads

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.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase with one of these links, I recieve a small commission at no additional cost to you. Read the full Affiliate Policy.

What is The Grandest Game about?

The Grandest Game only comes around once a year, and this time, seven golden tickets are all that stand between ordinary lives and extraordinary wealth.

Run by billionaire Avery Grambs and the infamous Hawthorne brothers, the competition takes place on a private island and promises fame, fortune, and bragging rights for life. All you need to enter is a ticket… and actually see the game through.

Each of the seven players wants something different. Money. Power. Answers. Whatever their reasons, they’re all hiding something, and secrets are currency in a game like this.

“Some people can make mistakes, make amends, and move on. And some of us live with each and every mistake we make carved into us, into hollow places we don’t know how to fill.”

While the players battle through challenges designed to test them physically, mentally, and emotionally, Grayson Hawthorne has his own role to play. But as the stakes climb and tensions crack, it becomes clear that not everyone is following the rules, and the game may be more dangerous than anyone expected.

My thoughts on The Grandest Game

I think it was during the pandemic lockdowns in 2021 that I first discovered The Inheritance Series by Jennifer Lynn Barnes. I remember becoming engrossed in the trilogy and binge-reading the two that were out at the time in one weekend.

Turns out, I loved a games and clues-based book. And the characters were absolutely spectacular.

The series of four books has ended now, but the story kind of continues with new characters in The Grandest Game series. This new series continues after The Inheritance Games series, but there are new games, new stakes, and new characters.

“Sometimes, in the games that matter most, the only way to really play is to live.”

In The Grandest Games, we’ve got seven characters (some who are new to us and some who we know from the previous books) who have to solve a series of puzzles and get out and receive the money reward.

Some characters were blimmin’ annoying, and some were brilliant, and the fact that Grayson Hawthorne was one of the main characters in this book was a big tick. I loved him in The Inheritance Games and only want the best for him.

The fact that this was set on an island is another tick for me. What is it about games and islands that just hits different? I don’t know, but I love it.

Of course, there were meh things about the book (it ended quite quickly? There was something about the end that fell a little bit flat for me), and it certainly didn’t hit the same as the original series … but I’m excited to see where this series goes and am ready to pick up the second book in the series, Glorious Rivals.

Have you read The Grandest Game? What did you think?