The Final Gambit (The Inheritance Games, 3)

Since I don't want to spoil anything, I'll try not to go into specific details so everyone can enjoy and experience the book for themselves. I was really looking forward to the last book in this trilogy so much that I couldn't even wait for my physical copy to arrive to read it, and started the Kindle as soon as the book hit my virtual bookshelf. The Final Gambit is as epic as the first two books. It's binge-worthy, and I had a hard time putting it down when I had to do other things🙈. I really tried to read it slowly and savor every page at first (knowing there won't be another sequel), but who was I kidding?! With this kind of story, it's simply not possible to read slowly.🤷‍♀️ The puzzles, riddles, and mysteries kept coming, and while I tried to solve the riddles with Avery and the Hawthorne brothers, I also couldn't wait to turn to another page to see what would happen next. Not all of us can be as extraordinary as them. So why try when they solve it for me, right? The story builds on what we learned from the previous books and expands on that. You get sucked into the story, and the reality around you just ceases to exist. You need to know what comes next, and since the chapters are short, the usual "one more chapter" keeps coming every other minute.😅 We get to know some new characters, uncover layer after layer of the Hawthorne secrets, and get plenty of time with the brothers (yes, they wormed their way into my heart even more than before, and I love them all. Who wouldn't, right? But my all-time favorite Hawthorne will always be Grayson😍)! And Avery is the queen! The finale was grand! And we came a full circle. The development of the characters and the story as a whole (from The Inheritance Game to The Final Gambit) is sooo good!❤️‍🔥 The interactions between the main characters (and some side characters), and their life together since Avery came to the House shaped them into who they were meant to be, changed them, healed them, and showed them the right path. I think it's perfect. Everything got explained, and we got a very satisfying end. The only minus is there is no other sequel. What am I gonna do?!😭

This was a very satisfying wrap up of the story arc. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of this book! The plot, the characters development, the twist and turns in the story were all so refreshing to read.

I think it is safe to say that I never saw this ending coming. I truly never saw this coming. As a reader, I can often predict the way a story is going to go because people copy off each other so much. I cannot predict this book. I mean, sure there were certain things that as a reader, you could figure out. However, This was a fantastic great final to the trilogy. Even more the trilogy followed the rules by explaining something that we never knew. It added an element of surprise that we did not see coming. It had an origin story that just shook you to your bones. It was fantastic. Exactly the way a trilogy should go.

**This Review has spoilers** I have so many opinions about this book. The first two books in this series were perfect, but this one let me down. The mystery and the suspense storyline is why it recieved 5 stars because man the puzzle part of this series is addicting and easily my favorite part. However, I am a sucker for love triangles and that is why I hated this book as much as I loved it. In all my years of watching tv and reading books, I have never chosen the wrong love interest for a main character and maybe I’m salty that I chose wrong. But I also believe that the writing and the small moments are what matters, and while the big moments pointed towards Jameson, it was everything else that pointed towards Grayson. Avery’s inner monologue did not match with her choice. I will stand by that because I feel that Jameson and Avery would have been spectacular best friends, but her and Grayson would have been a love for the ages. For me to be truly okay with Jameson and Avery I need to see Grayson fall hard for someone spectacular because I can’t see him being able to move on, but Jameson would have easily been able to. I try not to say a writer wrote a book wrong because it’s their world, and I still believe that in this book, but I will say if they make this series into a movie or tv show, the audience is gonna make the writers wish they could chance the outcome and I sincerely hope they do.

I loved this book! It was the best one in the series IMO. I loved the first book because of the mystery and suspense and was immediately hooked. This book had so many exciting puzzles to solve and mystery so engaging I couldn’t put it down. **Mild Spoilers Below** In the first book the romance wasn’t really there for me. It annoyed me that Avery was so insta-love with both Jameson and Grayson and I didn’t really like either one of them in the end of Inheritance Games. By book two I was team Jameson. I have loved the growth of his character through the series and I love him and Avery together. This is the book where I think the author was finally able to bring their feelings through and make it good. The thing I loved most in this book is Avery was not so dependent on the Hawthorn brothers to follow her leads. She took initiative and went off on her own instead of waiting around for one of them to pay her attention. I have been waiting 3 books for this Avery and loved it. One frustrating part of this book for me was the mention of a past wine cellar scene…..in the previous books, the author did a great job at weaving everything through so that you never felt like you had forgotten something. She wouldn’t go into lengthy paragraphs to recap, but Avery will quote something or have a thought of a place to jog your memory of important facts or times. Jump to this third book, and Avery keeps mentioning Grayson in the wine cellar. I could not for the life of me remember a scene with a wine cellar. Every time it’s mentioned I rack my brain and come up with nothing. At first I kept reading hoping something else would be mentioned and I would remember, but after a while I started pouring through the pages of the last two books looking for this scene I missed. Come to find out it’s something we haven’t seen yet and will be explained later. I was a little frustrated, but it did not ruin the book for me. Still loved it, still love this series, and still think this was the epic ending for an amazing story!

From the beginning of book 1 to 2, the story was engaging and exciting. However, when I started reading this book all the way to the end, I was very disturbed by the handful of curse words and complacent attitude toward sleeping together with many of the characters, including the protagonist. Is this really what the author is sowing among young minds today. I’m a mother of a teen, and I have been reading a multitude of books for teens to young adults so I can recommend it to her. Well, this certainly is not the book that I would recommend to her or her friends. However, this book wrapped up the whole story completely. Admittedly, it ended well, but the other elements I mentioned above could’ve been omitted.

My 19yo Son really loved this series. Would definitely purchase other works by this author.

I have been swallowed up by these books to the point of only sleeping a couple of hours a night because I simply can't sleep without Finding Out What Happens Next! Such an amazing author! Will be driving into the next book next!