Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - The Final Gambit

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The Final Gambit by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

54 reviews

the_lovely_mrs_p's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

The Hawthorn brothers have fully embraced the heir to what was supposed to be their fortunes as one of them. The protection they once reserved for their inner circle has extended to not only Avery but a few friends along the way. The brothers who never needed anyone have learned to lean on others. And when a familiar looking stranger comes bursting through the gates, bleeding and injured, they know the game is afoot yet again. More riddles and ring masters enter the fray in this exciting story.

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hazelgirl21's review against another edition

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mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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saraavowlerr's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This was probably my favorite in the series. The reason why it wasn’t a 5 bc Avery’s relationship with the brothers kind of confused me along with some writing choices, but I loved the story line and the ending.

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elspethmigliore's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.75

It was a little hard to follow at times because the family tree is so confusing, but other than that, it was really good! I wish we could've seen more Grayson, or I wish his character had better development, but I'm happy with the ending.

I was team Jameson the whole time, even though I do love Grayson. I feel bad for him and I hope he has a better ending after the story ends. Also, I wish avery didn't just give the money away immediately.

Also, I loved the references to chess and the Queen's Gambit and I like that it connects to the title. I loved how we got to see more Xander and how the mystery seemed to build to a final point over the course of three books. I really like that Avery started solving things by herself and embracing her Hawthorne. Overall, it was very very good.

definitely reread material ✅

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oddduck's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious fast-paced

5.0

Wow, this was fantastic. An absolutely phenomenal end to this trilogy!

First, the plot. This was such a satisfying end to all of the mysteries of the first book. I can see where some might feel that there wasn't enough foreshadowing or clue placement to make the final mystery feel like a natural progression/not completely out of left field. I think that was kind of the point though, and I think we get an in-universe explanation for that in Tobias Hawthorne's message.

He set everything up so that Avery would be the one to deal with it. Not his family. Because he didn't want his family to know about any of this, until Avery was there. So of course this would be as much a surprise to them as it would be to Avery.

When you're dealing with a plot that's based on long buried family secrets, and uncovering said secrets, it's definitely plausible that there could be something big that got buried. It felt like everything slotted together nicely in this book and I really enjoyed the direction it took.

A big part of those feelings are because of the new characters we meet in this book. My non-spoiler thoughts are that they were fantastic in all the worst ways and I loved their addition to the cast. Everything else I have to say about them is full of spoilers though.

Let's start with Eve, because holy crap. Girl!! I know she's kind of a not good person, but I have a hard time blaming her?? She got an absolute shit hand in life and she's just trying to make sure she never ends up in that position again. There were other ways she could have accomplished that, but from her perspective, none of them were viable options. Eve is a great example of one of my favorite motivations for a character. (My only complaint about her is that I'm very over the comparisons to Emily, though I can appreciate what they did within the narrative as an emotional tool.)

I was right there with Avery and Grayson on the "trusting Eve" boat, and even after Avery figures out the message from Tobias warning her not to trust Eve, I was still struggling to see why. Which is brilliant! And definitely made the way she manipulates Grayson so much more emotionally impactful. The scene where Oren's got her pinned down in the chapel, and she's still trying to convince Grayson to help her, and then threatens to jump off a cliff. That had me screaming internally. She's such an interesting character.

Speaking of Grayson, this dude needs some therapy, stat. He's has been through it and he is clearly not taking care of himself in any sort of healthy way. Honestly, this is probably the biggest reason why I don't think he was a good fit for Avery romantically. He needs to deal with his own shit before he tries dating anyone. And he really needs to process everything that happened with Emily.

Now for the Blakes. Honestly, I loved learning about the Blakes. How Vincent was the origin of Tobias Hawthorne's love of games and puzzles. That Vincent is not a good man, but he respects the game more than anything, and if he loses because someone played the game better, then they earned it. And the way the Hawthorne family history is tied in with the Blakes. Wow. I will say it got a bit confusing at times, simply because there's so many characters (we could have used a family tree at the end of the book, honestly), but I loved all the connections.

Which brings us to Toby. Loved seeing him finally decide to stop running away, though it's unfortunate that it was at least partly prompted by Vincent. But then again, Toby made the decision to let Eve win, so that she could get the security she needed/wanted.

I also really loved Rebecca in this book. I didn't really think much about her previously, but she was great here. I love that she's finally learning to take up space and be a person. Her relationship with Thea is awesome. All around good for her.

There was some really cool character work done in this book, and I loved every minute of it.

The love triangle remains the part of these books that I don't really care about. I'm happy with how things shook out. I think the development that happens was natural and made sense. It was a little annoying how Jameson kept trying to like. Start a fight with Avery over Grayson? But I do think it makes sense for his character. He's been down this road before, and he lost, and he's not unused to losing to Grayson, so it was certainly not my favorite thing, but it's a manifestation of his insecurity, which was nice to see. And Avery handled it well. I do have one bone to pick though.

The part where Jameson locks Avery in an escape room (without telling her it's an escape room) because he's trying to "protect her" did not make sense. At no point has Avery ever wanted someone to protect her, so for Jameson to say that she does is ???? Where did this come from? I did not like this part and I was very delighted when Avery told him off over it.

And of course: the ending. I already talked about why I liked the mystery part of the plot, but the other part, the inheritance part, was also great. I think her choice makes perfect sense for her character and as an anti-capitalist, I was very on board. A major theme, especially in this book, has been that money = power, so this feels like the natural conclusion. Knowing the end, I also find it hilarious that Amazon acquired the film rights and is reportedly working on developing this series as a tv show.

Jennifer Lynn Barnes has been on my "always read" list for years and this series is a perfect example of why. What a fun ride, and I'm looking forward to the next couple books she's got coming for this universe.

[Additional content warning: emotional manipulation. I don't think it's quite to the point of emotional abuse and it's definitely not gaslighting, but there's a character who knows which buttons to push and does so deliberately in order to make people self-destruct for their own gain.]

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sweetsxrrxw's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

[this review will contain several spoilers. please make sure to avoid it until you have read the full book!]

i was a bit afraid to read this book. i wasn't sure of what to expect as the ending and i was also worried about how the love triangle would develop. but i have to say i am overall satisfied with everything!

this book, altogether, was the one where most of the characters got to show their most emotional side of themselves. it was a bit slow paced in the beginning so it took me a while to get into the story but once i did i just loved to see everyone's vulenrability.
the general realization that tobias hawthorne was a morally grey person, who had to do some horrible stuff in order to maintain some stability in his life, was so important. i could say that it was one of the most important themes in the book. it impacted all of the characters, specially his close family but i believe it was a very needed reminder. most people you look up to usually have a dirty path behind them.

however, i can't properly talk about that topic without talking about each character so just let me do it real quick, while i also give my opinions on them:

first of all, let's start with xander. i am convinced i have said this in my previous reviews to this series BUT man, i absolutely love him. he owns my heart, he is a softie but also the funniest person you'll ever meet. if it's not one of your favorite characters, i'm sorry but i can't trust you. like, honestly, most of my annotated quotes revolve around him. i just love him so so so much, fr. i love how in this book he wasn't left besides that much and that he got to rebond with his dad <33
nash and libby still own a piece of my heart, of course, but xander will always be famous to me <3 like ok maybe they're not that relevant to the plotline but i still relate a lot to both of them. also we got to learn where nash's savior complex came from and i think that was interesting. idk my love for him just grew a bit more. and same goes to libby! her "survivor" tattoo hit me :/
i can understand why grayson acted the way he did during the book. i've read other reviews saying he was annoying for sticking with eve but, tbh, i think most people would do the same stuff he did if they were on his spot. also, i feel like during this book he let his walls down more often which is a detail that made me really happy. i love it when though characters give themselves an emotional break. and, even though i believe he deserves a happy ending, i'm not mad at the ending he got. i think he really needed some time for himself
oh, and let's talk about jameson! well, he was my fave love interest since the first book. i related maybe a bit too much to his "i was never enough and everyone always prefered jameson" speech, lmao. and of course, i was afraid that the author was going to pull up the cliché love triangle trilogy line where jameson's character would magically become an asshole and avery would choose grayson bc of his dark sad past which makes him mysterious and cool. but i'm glad none of that happened. i love grayson but i would have been very heartbroken if, after opening up to her about never feeling enough, avery didn't choose jameson. and i'm also happy that, instead of letting his insecurities set him apart, he fought through them because he was totally sure he loved avery <3
and focusing on avery now, i don't love her as much as i love other characters but i don't dislike her either. i think she's a good main character who has grown throughout the three books. of course she had always been a clever girl with clear goals but by the end i think she turned out to be more mature than what i was expecting. like, i don't think any reader was anticipating the fact that she would give away most of her inheritance.
another character i liked was toby. i was very upset when he lost the chess game and was forced to oficially become toby blake. but, on the other hand, i believe that's part of the consequences of his actions so i don't think i can complain much about it.
oren kept me intrigued because he knew about tobias' plan all along but he never showed any clue of it. idk, i just feel like if i were him i could not keep my mouth shout lmao. so shoutout to him for keeping the mystery a secret during this whole story!
even side characters such as thea and rebecca which were given more importance in this book, made my heart melt and shatter a bit. i don't really understand how thea became an influencer but she speaks so softly and beautifully about bex so i like her! and idk i feel like rebecca's story was what got me to like her more. like, yes baby, you deserve to live a happy life doing whatever you want and to shine on your own <3

i think that another detail i kinda loved was the cyclical "ending", it was nice to see toby and avery play chess once again, maybe it all felt a bit weak and it was hard for me to believe that vincent would risk so much with just a bunch of games.

so yeah, in general it was a good ending for the trilogy. but i think i can't give it 4 full stars because of the slow pacing at the beginning. it just did not keep me hooked the same way the first book did, but still it was good!

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oceanwriter's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Once again, I have managed to become completely invested in the Hawthorne (and honorary Hawthorne) riddles and games.

Upon turning eighteen, Avery is heading toward the complete inheritance of the Hawthorne billions. However, the arrival of Eve brings another game, this time one that contemplates friends and foes.

It took a little while for me to get into the plot of this one. I still had some trouble keeping the Hawthorne boys straight. I think I might finally have it down now. Everything picked up in the second half, and then I didn’t want it to end. I liked how much Avery lead this game compared to the others where she was still learning the ways Hawthornes play.

I’m sad to see this particular part of the series come to an end. I never anticipated getting as hooked on the books as I have. Though my feelings are mixed on a lot of things, I have to say this has become one of my all-time favorite series.

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