Jennifer Lynn Barnes: The Hawthorne Legacy - The Inheritance Games Book 2

I read this for a co-worker who chooses his own book list for Battle of the Books and uses it in his classroom each year. I'd already read and loved the first one, and he brought this to me one morning (ironically while I was desperately trying to finish Skyward again so I could read Cytonic) and asked me to read it and write questions for the book. I finished it in one day, and that should also tell you a lot about how I felt about this book.

The Hawthorne Legacy by Jennifer Lynn Barnes picks up with Avery Grambs' story almost immediately after the conclusion of The Inheritance Games. Avery is trying to find Toby Hawthorne, the son of the billionaire that left her his entire fortune. Along with the help of the Hawthorne grandsons, she must unravel the mystery of who she really is, how she's related to this family, and where Toby might have gone.

I loved this book. Just like The Inheritance Games, there is a twist around every corner. Barnes is a master of giving you just enough information that you start to draw your own conclusions, and then subverting that assumption with a new twist to the story. I loved Avery's journey of self-discovery and how Barnes includes us as readers on that journey.

I didn't enjoy this as much as The Inheritance Games and I don't know that I can put my finger on exactly why. I think I got tired of the intrigue with all of the people surrounding her.

I still rate this book: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

PG - mild violence and a steamy scene

Comments

Markus Zusak: The Book Thief

This is a book that I read for the first time around four years ago when I first started teaching. This novel is one that I have loved ever since then. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak takes place in World War II in Nazi Germany. Liesel Meminger is not quite an orphan, but she is placed in foster care because her mother can't provide for her. Liesel goes to live with Rosa and Hans Hubermann, and they completely change Liesel's life. On her way to the Hubermann's, Liesel's younger brother dies on the train. In the graveyard where he was buried is where Liesel steals her first book: The Grave Digger's Handbook. Hans teaches her to read it, and inspires her love of the written word. The Hubermann's will then hide a Jew in their basement for a time. What will become of that hidden Jew? What will become of Liesel? What will become of Himmel Street, her friends, and her family in the wake of a violent and terrible war? This book is probably one of my all-time favorite...

Brene Brown: Daring Greatly

Brene Brown is one of my favorite TED speakers of all time. I have listened to her TED talks numerous times and used them in my classroom each year. I love her message: that we can't have success, innovation, change, and creativity without first having vulnerability. I love that she is seeking to demystify vulnerability and teach what shame is and how it destroys our ability to accept ourselves and others. I am not normally into the self-help kind of books, but of the books I've read this year, this is one of my favorites! Daring Greatly by Brene Brown discusses the concepts of shame and vulnerability and how we need vulnerability, but not shame. She gives strategies for combating shame and becoming "shame resilient." She gives strategies to use as parents, teachers, friends, and spouses. For one thing, I love Dr. Brown's Texan accent (she narrates the audiobook herself! 💗). Her voice and personality are all throughout this book. She is not afraid to use persona...

Anthony Doerr - All the Light We Cannot See

I'd heard about the Netflix series that adapted this, and many of my coworkers have read it. I also love World War II stories (if you can't tell by my historical fiction choices, haha). This book also won a major prize, and I was curious about the story. All the Light We Cannot See follows two characters in two timelines. It bounces from the past to the present between Marie-Laure and Werner. Marie-Laure is a young girl who lives in Paris with her father. Her father works for the Museum of Natural History in Paris. As the Germans close in on Paris at the start of World War II, Daniel (Marie-Laure's father) is entrusted with one of the museum's priceless treasures: the Sea of Flames. He and Marie-Laure flee Paris to the home of Daniel's wealthy uncle, where they stay until the city is bombed. Werner is a poor German orphan in a mining town. He is particularly gifted with mathematics and engineering, and is given the opportunity to go to a prestigious Nazi school. H...

Books I Read and Other Assorted Oddities

Search This Blog