Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

♥♥♥♥♥

Title: Catching Fire
Author: Suzanne Collins
Year Published: 2009
Format: Physical
Genre: Fiction, Young Adult, Science Fiction, Dystopian


Review*:
  For whatever reason, I enjoyed this book much more than the first. I think a large part of it was the pacing and the fact that the continuation of Katniss's story details beyond the 74th Hunger Games isn't as familiar to me as the first book is.
   The relationship between Katniss, Peeta and Gale in the movies I always found to be super vague. Neither relationship seemed like the OTP over the other, I know a lot of people really love Peeta still and I'm sure my opinions of him will change with the final book but right now all I can feel towards Peeta is frustration. The martyr shit gets a bit old when you tie in a lot of emotions, rather than utilizing logic. Peeta wishes to save Katniss because he loves her and wants to see her happy, which doesn't play into any agenda but his own. I'm sure these details though will feed into the transformation we will see of the Capital and the districts as a full blown rebellion ensues.
   Katniss is someone usually I can see her reasoning because it's rather 'grey'. However her back and forth between Peeta and Gale, although different than most love triangles, lacks a little bit of fat. I'm not convinced of her feelings either way and I think it lies in her inability to find loyalty to either one for very long.
   The 75th Hunger Games was like a beautiful explosion, so quick and messy but I really enjoyed that there was more ingenuity involved. As sick as this sounds when you put it in perspective, it felt like the 74th was just a stagnant game of murder, like a fat cat playing with a disabled mouse. Whether the Quell was originally supposed to be previous victors or if just plays into Snow's need for control, it was genius to have previous competitors in the arena together. Despite not everyone getting a lot of screen time, you understood what emotions may be a harder blow for these people as opposed to previous years, where the tributes were more about brutality. 
   Over-all, I think Collins knocked this one out of the park. It's been a long time since I flew through a book as fast as this one. If I remember correctly, this movie wasn't nearly as accurate as the first but I do still intend on watching it since it's been so long and I'm not sure if I remember all of it.

*This review may contain spoilers.