Inheritance Games Book 0.5: The Same Backward as Forward by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Inheritance Games Book 0.5

Read her side of the story, then flip the book over to experience their love anew through his eyes in this novel that you can read backward or forward.

Hannah Rooney knows how to be invisible. At twenty, she keeps her head down and her eyes open, and so far, she’s managed to avoid being pulled into the dealings of her notorious criminal family. Hannah lives her life in countdown mode, biding her time in nursing school as she waits for her beloved sister, Kaylie, to turn eighteen so Hannah can get them both far, far away from Rockaway Watch and start a new life. 

Tobias Hawthorne II acts every inch the entitled heir that he is. As the only son of one of the country's richest men, there isn't a door that isn't open to him. Yet behind his razor sharp cheekbones and devil-may-care attitude, Toby is guarding a nest of deadly secrets and a fiery anger fierce enough to burn everything in his path.

Their lives collide in one tragic, stormy night, where an act of arson and nature leave Kaylie and two others dead and Toby just barely alive--with no memory of who he is. The fisherman who pulls him from the ocean enlists Hannah to help save the very person who she knows took away her sister. Fueled by her hatred, Hannah is determined to deny Toby's death wish by keeping him alive. He is the last person that she should ever develop feelings for, and she is the first thing he ever remembers seeing.

*Hannah’s side of the story was previously published as a novella in Games Untold.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/228646235-the-same-backward-as-forward

********

My Review: 5/5 Stars

Toby and Hannah may not get a happily ever after with one another, but their love story is still worth telling. Read both sides of their love story in this latest addition to the Inheritance Games series! Hannah’s story we’ve already seen in Games Untold. We saw her pain and anger as she saved the boy who is part of the reason her sister is dead. She refuses to let him die and cares for him through the burns and the missing memories. All the while, they fall in love. And now we get Toby’s side. Toby who wakes to pain and agony and no memories. But he just sees her. The girl with eyes that hold everything he needs even though he doesn’t know it yet. And though he wants to give in to the pain and feel it no more, she won’t let him go. And in doing so, she makes him fall for her a little more each day. I loved reading his side of the story. We get a lot more about what was going on with him during that time and after and why some decisions to stay away were made. I will also say that I think this series should be read in publishing order. Toby’s story revealed some things that you will recognize after reading the later books, especially Glorious Rivals. Another great addition to this series that only makes it more interesting and puzzling. And I can’t wait to see where this series finally takes us as we come to the end.