The Final Gambit by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

The quick cut: In the final weeks before inheriting the Hawthorne fortune, a new girl arrives at the gates of the mansion that causes a new spiral of puzzles and clues. 

A real review:

 If you stood to inherit billions of dollars, what would you do to hold onto it? For Avery, that is a persistent question as she tries to make it through the final weeks before inheriting the Hawthorne fortune. 

 Avery only has a few weeks before the Hawthorne fortune is officially hers. However, that doesn't mean that the process is all downhill from there. When a girl named Eve shows up at the gates of the mansion looking for help, it starts a sequence of events that leads to new mysteries that everyone wants the answers to. Why was Avery chosen? Is there a reason for all these unknown answers? 

 I made one mistake while reading the third book in this series: I didn't read the first two books right before starting this one. For anybody who plans to read Final Gambit, I highly suggest doing so. Otherwise, the first half of this one becomes difficult to track with the characters involved and what they mean to each other. 

 That being said, the story typically goes at a relatively medium pace until there's only a quarter of the book left - then it rockets into fast paced mode. I wish the story was all that pace because there were a few parts that seemed to drag on. 

 The ending took me by surprise, although it probably shouldn't have considering who Avery is as a character. It's fun seeing her progress as a nobody to a person about to inherit a fortune. Her morality and ethics are tested every step of the way - which turns her into a confident woman who knows who she is. It's exciting to read and root for her. 

 A happy ending to the main mystery of the Hawthorne inheritance.

My rating: 4.25 out of 5