Book Review: Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Collins, Suzanne. Catching Fire (Hunger Games Series #2). Scholastic Inc. NYC. 2009. 400 pp, ISBN 0439023491

Synopsis:
Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has won the annual Hunger Games with fellow district tribute Peeta Mellark. But it was a victory won by defiance of the Capitol and their harsh rules. Katniss and Peeta should be happy. After all, they have just won for themselves and their families a life of safety and plenty. But there are rumors of rebellion among the subjects, and Katniss and Peeta, to their horror, are the faces of that rebellion. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge.

Review:

I was so disappointed that the e-book version of this book wasn't available for nook download when I finished The Hunger Games because I couldn't fathom waiting to return home from vacation to find out what happened next in district 12. It's now available in e-book, but I ran out and bought this as soon as I got home. This sequel did not disappoint.

If The Hunger Games was about tenacity, Catching Fire is about consequences. Despite her new home and plenty of food, Katniss isn't able to enjoy her victory. Throughout the book she struggles with the consequences her defiance against the Capitol has brought on herself, those she loves, and throughout Panem.

Katniss in Catching Fire is beginning to understand the importance of standing for something, and she is faced with a level of cruelty at the Capitol that she is just beginning to understand. I felt this was a much more grown up book than The Hunger Games, and it was certainly darker. I felt the love triangle was a bit tedious at times in its immaturity, but overall this was a solid sequel.

Rating: 8.5/10