Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

(The Hunger Games trilogy, book 3)
Katniss Everdeen, girl on fire, has survived even though her home has been destroyed. Gale has escaped. Katniss’s family is safe. Peeta has been captured by the Capitol. District 13 really does exist. There are rebels. There are new leaders. A revolution is unfolding.

It is by design that Katniss was rescued from the arena in the cruel and haunting Quarter Quell, and it is by design that she has long been part of the revolution without knowing it. District 13 has come out of the shadows and is plotting to overthrow the Capitol. Everyone, it seems, has had a hand in the carefully laid plans – except Katniss.

The success of the rebellion hinges on Katniss’s willingness to be a pawn, to accept responsibility for countless lives, and to change the course of the future of Panem. To do this, she must put aside her feelings of anger and distrust. She must become the rebels’ Mockingjay – no matter what the personal cost.

In Catching Fire, Katniss and Peeta were sent back into the arena for the Quarter Quell; the twist in the 75^th anniversary was that the tributes from each district would be made up of victors from past Hunger Games. As the only girl to ever win from District 12, Katniss was forced to be thrown back into the arena. The Head Gamemaker was part of the rebellion, and managed to convince all of the victor tributes to do whatever it took to keep Katniss alive. They rescued her from the arena and have deposited her into District 13, which up until now, everyone thought had been destroyed by the Capitol. They have been secretly been building an underground community and have been plotting to take over the Capitol.

While in the arena, a number of districts staged rebellions and are behind the movement to overthrow the Capitol. In an attempt to persuade the remaining districts, Katniss is thrown into the role of the Mockingjay; the face of the rebellion. Through bombings, weapon training, raids, and deaths of loved ones, Katniss attempts to fulfill her personal mission: kill President Snow.

I loved this book, although I must say it was my least favorite of the trilogy. It may have just been because I was upset that it was the last book and that meant this story that I had fallen in love with was actually almost over. Even so, I didn’t find it as good as the first two books.

One of the main things I didn’t like about this book was that Peeta was somewhat absent for almost half of it. I’ll be the first to admit that I just love Peeta…love, love, love him! He was kidnapped by the Capitol while in the arena and is being held captive in an attempt to thwart the rebellion. His and Katniss’s relationship takes a hideous turn, and it absolutely breaks my heart. Gale kind of rubbed me the wrong way in this book, and some of his comments he made actually made me wonder if he was glad Peeta was…well…the way he was. He no longer posed as a threat to him securing a relationship with Katniss. Now, I’m biased because as I’ve said in my previous reviews I am a huge Katniss & Peeta fan. I want them together, and for the first time since the first book I really thought they weren’t going to end up together. Do they? Well, I can’t tell you that!

Some parts seemed to drag a little bit, however I did like that Suzanne Collins went into more detail on the lives of Finnick and Johanna, and if it’s possible I became an even bigger fan of Finnick than I was in Catching Fire. I actually did cry a little bit while reading this book, and my heart ached for Katniss on a couple different occasions. The ending was pretty perfect, although slightly bittersweet. I grew so attached to these characters that I didn’t want this mesmerizing story that spanned over three novels to end. Harry Potter has always been my favorite book series, but if The Hunger Games trilogy didn’t surpass it, it’s damn close. Let’s all give a round of applause to Suzanne Collins for this captivating, heart wrenching, kickass trilogy!

***On a side note: one of my all-time favorite lines from a book came from Mockingjay. Here it is:

So after, when he whispers, “You love me. Real or not real?”

I tell him, “Real.” 

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Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

(The Hunger Games trilogy, book 2)
Against all odds, Katniss has won the Hunger Games. She and fellow District 12 tribute Peeta Mellark are miraculously still alive. Katniss should be relieved, happy even. After all, she has returned to her family and her longtime friend, Gale. Yet nothing is the way Katniss wishes it to be. Gale holds her at an icy distance. Peeta has turned his back on her completely. And there are whispers of a rebellion against the Capitol – a rebellion that Katniss and Peeta may have helped create.

Much to her shock, Katniss has fueled an unrest she’s afraid she cannot stop. And what scares her even more is that she’s not entirely convinced she should try. As time draws near for Katniss and Peeta to visit the districts on the Capitol’s cruel Victory Tour, the stakes are higher than ever. If they can’t prove, without a shadow of a doubt, that they are lost in their love for each other, the consequences will be horrifying.

In Catching Fire, the second novel of the Hunger Games trilogy, Suzanne Collins continues the story of Katniss Everdeen, testing her more than ever before…and surprising readers at every turn.

The story of heroine Katniss Everdeen continues in Catching Fire, and the second book in this trilogy is just as good as the first. Katniss and Peeta defied the Capitol during the Hunger Games when, as the only two tributes left and the rule of both tributes from the same district being declared winners revoked only moments before, they attempt to eat poisonous nightlock berries knowing they won’t allow both tributes to die and leave them without a victor. This clever trick gets them both out of the arena and back to District 12 as they are both crowned the victors of The 74^th Hunger Games. However, in order to avoid dire consequences, they must make everyone…including President Snow…believe it was an act of love that compelled them to act the way they did.

President Snow doesn’t buy it. Not for one second. While Katniss and Peeta are travelling to each district on the Victory Tour, rumors of a rebellion begin to surface and Katniss and Peeta’s act of defiance in the arena is being known as the initial act of rebellion. In an attempt to thwart any and all future problems, Katniss and Peeta are desperate to make everyone believe they were in no way trying to rebel; they are just two teenagers who are crazy in love. This of course means that Katniss will never be able to live the life of her choosing; she knows that she will have to continue a relationship with Peeta with no end in sight. With this being the 75^th year of the Hunger Games, we are introduced to the Quarter Quell; on the anniversary every 25 years, the gamemakers make a change in the rules. The 25^th anniversary every district had to hold an election and vote on the tributes who would represent it; the 50^th anniversary each district was required to send twice as many tributes. What will the change be on the 75^th anniversary? It’s pretty dang shocking!

This book didn’t disappoint at all! I still think the first book was slightly better, but not by much. In Catching Fire, you are introduced to more victors from previous Hunger Games; my favorite by far was Finnick. He’s charming, gorgeous, and adds some comedic relief. The Head Gamemaker from the first book is no longer around and you are introduced to the new Head Gamemaker, Plutarch Heavensbee. I had a weird feeling about him from the moment he met Katniss during the Victory Tour while they were being thrown a dinner party in the Capitol. My questions and/or suspicions were luckily answered at the end of this book, but the cliffhanger at the end was particularly surprising. I have such a love/hate relationship with cliffhangers!

You also get to see Katniss’s feelings towards Peeta blossom and you realize that there just might be real emotion behind their façade. The relationship between Katniss and her best friend Gale goes more in depth, and starts to somewhat present the potential for a triangle romance between Peeta, Katniss, and Gale. I’ve been Team Peeta since the very beginning, and after this book my opinion didn’t waver too much. The writing is just as superb as the first book, and I almost shed some tears during one particular incident involving Katniss and Peeta.

I finished this book in one day and immediately starting reading the final book of the trilogy. Catching Fire was really almost as good as The Hunger Games; it was just as action packed, and set the tone for what to expect with the final book, Mockingjay. It’s just so dang good! It’s also nice to read a book about a girl who is a heroine, and not some lovesick human who is completely dependent on her relationship with a sparkling vampire. (I’m looking at you, Twilight!)

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The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

(The Hunger Games trilogy, book 1)
In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger games, a fight to the death on live TV.

Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister’s place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before – and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

I was completely enthralled with this book and somehow managed to finish it in one sitting. I’ve heard several people say they think it started off too slow, but honestly the only pages that were mildly dull in my opinion were the first ten or so pages. You aren’t necessarily going to get action starting on page one, people! I digress.

The Hunger Games is an annual contest where one boy and one girl between the ages of 12-18 are picked from each district to fight to the death in a monitored, man-made arena. The Games were created in the wake of the districts attempt to rebel against the Capitol, and now serve as a yearly reminder that the districts are at the mercy of the Capitol. Katniss volunteers to take her younger sister’s place as tribute, and is sent into the Games alongside Peeta Mellark, the district 12 baker’s son. The tributes are whisked away to the Capitol where they are groomed to look flawless, and put through training to handle the arena. You get to learn more about some of the other tributes, mainly “The Careers”, which are tributes from districts 1 & 2 who start training for the games as soon as they can walk. It’s an honor to go in the arena for them, because most of the time, they end up with a victor. District 12 is the poorest district with many people not even able to afford food, let alone have the resources to athletically train for the arena. The always drunk Haymitch Abernathy, who is district 12’s only victor, serves as Katniss and Peeta’s mentor, and in an attempt to gain sponsors (who send gifts, food, etc. to tribute in the arena) advises the two of them play star-crossed lovers. I was rooting for the Katniss/Peeta romance from the very beginning, and it is extremely well written.

The action in the arena constantly keeps you on your toes, the alliances that are formed will touch you and shock you, and you’ll have your hopes lifted and dashed through a couple major game changers. Oh my gosh, and the ending…I don’t even know what to say! It’s just great. It does leave a bit unanswered, which didn’t surprise me considering it was only the first book in the trilogy.

I absolutely loved this book and would highly recommend it. The whole trilogy is spectacular and I look forward to reading more of Suzanne Collins’s work in the future.

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