The Hawthorne Legacy (The Inheritance Games #2) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes - OPTIONAL

The Hawthorne Legacy (The Inheritance Games #2) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, 384 pages. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2022. $10 (pb)

Language: R (37 swears, 0 ‘f'); Mature Content: PG (passionate kissing); Violence: PG (bloody cow heart with a knife stuck in it; kidnapping; a bomb that killed two security guards)

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - OPTIONAL

APPEALS TO: MANY

Three weeks after being taken away from her regular life and being named heir in billionaire Tobias Hawthorne’s will, 17yo Avery is telling Jameson how she met Harry, aka Tobias Hawthorne II. Xander’s letter from his grandfather left him a clue to find his son Toby, so off they go on another riddle solving journey that’ll take them to Colorado searching for a compass and a ring and show them discoveries they might wish were left alone. After a professional hit and a bomb exploding, Avery is pretty shaken. The Hawthorne household is shaken too. It’s always an unpredictable ride when Hawthornes are involved.

 I love all of the puzzles that the characters work on and solve!  I like how a mystery is always in the background of The Inheritance Games books.  The characters are complex and the author has given them unique personalities. 

The ethnicity falls to white.

LynnDell Watson, DHS Librarian, Delta, Utah

The Grandest Game (The Grandest Game #1) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes - OPTIONAL

The Grandest Game (The Grandest Game #1) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, 384 pages. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2024. $11

Language: R (47 swears, 0 ‘f'); Mature Content: G (gentle kissing); Violence: PG-13 (bloody death)

BUYING ADVISORY: MS - OPTIONAL

APPEALS TO: MANY

Avery and three Hawthorne brothers, Nash, Jameson and Xander, create a game together with seven players. The winner gets a million dollars. The players are forced into teams as they are locked into different escape rooms, securing teammates. Gigi, Knox and Brady become a team; Savannah and Rohan are a team; Grayson, Lyra and Odette are a team. They must work together to escape their rooms and make it to the dock by dawn the next morning. Avery and the Hawthornes know how to figure out riddles and they know how to create difficult ones. Who will make it to the dock first?

 I thoroughly enjoyed the riddles that the contestants had to solve. The mysterious watcher creates suspense and an added tension! Wonderful character development.

Rohan has light brown skin. Knox is white. Brady has ebony skin.  Lyra has golden tan skin.

LynnDell Watson, DHS Librarian, Delta, Utah

The Same Backward as Forward by Jennifer Lynn Barnes - OPTIONAL

The Same Backward as Forward by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, 280 pages. Little Brown, 2026. $21

Language: R (100+ swears, 0 ‘f’); Mature Content: PG-13 (sex implied); Violence: murders and deaths mentioned, man thrown to dogs mentioned

BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL

APPEALS TO: MANY

20yo Hannah is waiting for the day that her sister Kaylie turns 18 and the two of them can leave their hometown forever. Before that day, however, Tobias Hawthorne and his entourage sweep into town and now Kaylie and the entourage are dead from the fire that also destroyed the Hawthorne island mansion.  Hannah is summoned by her friend Jackson, a hermit fisherman.  Jackson has rescued Tobias and Hannah is determined to nurse him back to health if only to make him live with his guilt the rest of his life. Tobias wakes up with amnesia and only knows what Hannah tells him - which includes a new name. As “Henry” and Hannah spend more time together, they are drawn closer.  But what will happen to their intimacy when “Henry” regains his memories?

Barnes gives as part of the story from Hannah’s point of view and then the reader flips the book over to get the same story, plus more, from Tobias’s point of view.  You should definitely read them in that order. While I am an un-fan of enemies to lovers, I did like the backstory about Henry and about Avery’s mother - and the events leading up to Avery inheriting the Hawthorne fortune.

Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS

The Mystery of Mystic Mountain by Janet Fox - ADVISABLE

The Mystery of Mystic Mountain by Janet Fox. 274 pages. Simon & Schuster BYR, 2024. $18.

Content: G

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

12yo Becca and her mom meant to go to a spa resort but mistakenly made reservations at a dude ranch in rugged Montana. Her parents are struggling in their marriage, while Becca is struggling to navigate friend groups and self identity. She meets Jon who is struggling with the death of his mom by trying to find the lost treasure of outlaw Pearlhandle Pete. They form a team and set out to solve the riddles left by Pete, but find themselves challenged by a visiting YouTube star.

“The Mystery of Mystic Mountain” shows young teens dealing with heartbreak and trying to find their place in the world. However, the serious questions are balanced by true treasure hunting adventure. Becca is shown to be smart and kind as she learns to be true to herself. Outlaws, ghosts, and long lost relatives make for a good read. Becca has a best friend, Ameerah, who is told by other girls to, “ Stay in her own country,” even though she and her parents are citizens.

J. Smith, Teacher Librarian 

Survive This Safari by Natalie D. Richards - ESSENTIAL

Survive This Safari by Natalie D. Richards, 384 pages. Random House, 2025. $18 

Content: G 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ESSENTIAL; MS - ADVISABLE 

APPEALS TO: MANY 

12yo Lucy has earned a place on a team to try out a new escape room style game set in her favorite safari park - Wildlands - where her older sister works. Paired with three others, she is spending the night and solving puzzles - and one of their team has the chance to become a student ambassador for the park. Lucy is anxious to prove her worth; she loves animals, but on her previous tryout, she froze on the viewing platform and had to be rescued. She is hoping that she can overcome her anxiety issues and win the spot. 

Richards creates great tension between the group members without resorting to melodrama. The addition of a real crisis in the park ups the stakes in a way that works well. While I am not a fan of anxiety as a plot point, I did enjoy how Lucy receives encouragement and sound advice from her teammates along the way. Fans of Stuart Gibbs’s funjungle books will also enjoy Lucy’s story. 

 Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS 

A Study in Secrets by Debbi Michiko Florence - OPTIONAL

A Study in Secrets (Last Chance Academy #1)by Debbi Michiko Florence, 304 pages. Aladdin (Simon), 2025. $18

Content: G 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - OPTIONAL

APPEALS TO: SOME

Since her mom died, 12yo Meg  tried to get her father’s attention by doing worse and worse in school, but this has only landed her in a boarding school that the kids call Last Chance Academy, for troubled but wealthy and smart students. Meg’s not really interested in making friends, but there are only 3 other kids in her age group.  When a mysterious invitation for a treasure hunt arrives, with a prize that Meg really wants, she is determined to be the first to the prize.

I was expecting more intrigue and excitement  - the blurb compares it to Only Murders in the Building.  Instead it is a puzzle-solving book, no blood or death involved. Fans of The Westing Game or Gollywhopper Games could enjoy this.

Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS

Mystery Royale by Kaitlyn Cavalancia - OPTIONAL:

Mystery Royale by Kaitlyn Cavalancia, 400 pages. Disney, 2025. $19

Language: R (86 swears, 0 ‘f'); Mature Content: PG (kissing); Violence: PG-13 (bloody death)

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - OPTIONAL

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

16yo Mullory feels alone and helpless. Her mother left her to take care of her terminally ill grandmother, leaving her with this warning, “Run if the strange finds you”. She starts receiving letters and doesn’t want to open them but when Elliot, a family services worker, arrives and tells her he’s checking in on Mullory and her Gran and seeing how difficult their situation is, might have a solution to help them. Elliot tells Mullory to open the letters. Inside is an invitation to Stoutmire Estate to participate in a game of mystery to win an inheritance. When she arrives at the estate, Mullory discovers that Elliott is actually Edwin and serves the estate owner, Xavier Stoutmire. Then things become more strange because a murder has been committed and a game has been created by the deceased that’s outlined in the will. The players must unravel the mystery with magical clues, riddles and illusions full of danger. 

The book is definitely written for YA with the quips and easy crushes. I like how the author added literary quotes to broaden the impact. Flashbacks are sprinkled throughout the story as echoes that the characters can see. The author created an eclectic mix of characters.

The ethnicity is predominantly white.

LynnDell Watson, DHS Librarian, Delta, Utah

Snoop by Gordon Korman - ADVISABLE

Snoop by Gordon Korman, 208 pages. Scholastic, JULY 2025. $19

Content: G

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

12yo Carter is more interested in watching the latest viral video than keeping an eye on his younger brother Martin hurling down the ski slope.  Bad call - now Carter has two broken legs and nothing to do but play on his computer. Which leads him to hacking into the traffic cameras around town and then hacking into private businesses cameras, as he finds out that life in his dinky little town is more exciting than he ever thought. That can’t really be a red panda pawing through the garbage cans? Then Carter decides to borrow his mother’s drone that she uses for her professional photography - the static cameras just can’t show him the details he needs to crack the puzzles that his town is hiding.

Korman brings his signature humor and boy antics to his latest. Sure to be read by kids who have found Korman.  Includes a first love interest, a best friend in crime, and plenty of hijinks.

Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS

The Kill Factor by Ben Oliver - OPTIONAL

The Kill Factor by Ben Oliver, 368 pages. Chicken House (Scholastic), 2024. $16

Language: R (41 swears, 0 ‘f'); Mature Content: PG (kissing); Violence: PG-13 (bloody death)

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - OPTIONAL

APPEALS TO: MANY

16yo Emerson lives in the Burrows, the poorest part of the city with her young brother Kester, and oblivious father. She steals money to buy food for her 9yo brother Kester, who is deaf and has genius level intelligence. She’s apprehended for starting a fire at the school she was robbing and she’s offered a deal - agree to participate in a competition where one contestant will receive money and status or she can go to prison for arson. Emerson doesn’t want to take the deal, but Kester talks her into it because it could change her life for the better. When she arrives, Emerson discovers forty-nine other competitors and the details of the games - gain the most social media followers to win, the lowest ranked person is sent to life in prison. The youth all have to participate in crazy and dangerous games or the poisonous capsule placed in each of their wrists will be triggered to kill them, one by one.

I enjoyed the descriptive surroundings and I felt suffocated when reading about Emerson being under the sand. Emerson has unconditional love and loyalty for her brother. The story is similar to Hunger Games and Squid Game. The ethnicity is mixed.

LynnDell Watson, DHS Librarian, Delta, Utah

Curse of the Specter Queen by Jenny Elder Moke - HIGH

Curse of the Specter Queen by Jenny Elder Moke, 340 pages. Hyperion (Disney), 2021. $12

Language: PG (25 swears, 0 ‘f’); Mature Content: PG-13 (kissing, smoking alcohol); Violence: PG (some peril) 

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH 

Sam Knox has a gift for reviving old books, she even is in charge of a quaint like bookshop. Her life is simple, and she is happy that way- in previous years she has hunted down mysterious treasures with her best friends, siblings, Bennett and Joana. But when Sam and Joana got in an explosive fight, she's decided books are her only friend, books don't judge or criticize they are comfort and an escape for Sam. Turns out that comfort and peace of mind don't last very long because... When mysterious men burn down her beloved bookshop, Sam is forced back into the world of treasure hunting, because if she doesn't find what the fire starters are looking for, they will just create more destruction.

Curse of the Specter Queen is a very cute novel! It has it's flaws but all in all, it was a fluffy adventure story. I loved the main character Sam, is a very capable heroine with a heart of gold and she is an old soul like me. I loved Bennett and Joana's brother sister relationship and I loved the writing style of this novel. It is a bit predictable and the plot is very flat, but I think it's the perfect book to cuddle next to a fire this upcoming fall season with a mug of hot chocolate!

Kenzie Hoehne 

The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes - ESSENTIAL

The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, 384 pages. Little Brown, SEPT 2020. $18

Language: PG-13 (43 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (some danger)

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - ESSENTIAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

Creeped out by her sister Libby’s boyfriend, 17yo Avery Kylie Grambs has moved back into living in her car. That is until the stranger appears at her school and tells she is mentioned in the will of a very rich man, Tobias Hawthorne – a man Avery has never met.  The reading of the will leaves more questions than it gives answers, especially because Tobias left very little to his actual heirs and the bulk of his $46 billion dollar estate to Avery. And Avery soon finds out that Tobias has also left Avery and his four handsome grandsons a game of riddles and puzzles – the kind the boys have grown up playing. Thankfully Avery is smart enough to hold her own, to help peel back the layers of mystery Tobias let behind, and kind enough to help heal the wounds that each of the boys carry – if she can survive long enough to see the game to the end.

I originally thought this might be similar to The Westing Game, but it so completely not.  Dangerous in parts and very intense, but instead it hits more at the heart. Barnes has woven an intense mystery that holds your attention all the way through. And while some questions will be answered, other questions will arise – so I deeply hope that book #2 is on schedule to be released next year! Sooner, rather than later. I will be rereading this one – probably more than once!

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS