Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

 Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins - 390 pages

My name is Katniss Everdeen.
Why am I not dead?
I should be dead.

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.

Opinion: Loved this book, too, though it's the most devastating. Suzanne Collins is such a great writer with lots of interesting social commentary. I always love a good ending line that ties the story together or delivers a punch and the last line certainly does that.

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

 Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins - 391 pages

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen 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 that 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.

Opinion: Again, loved this book and the series as a whole. Catching Fire might be my favorite in the trilogy. 

THE HUNGER GAMES BY SUZANNE COLLINS

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - 374 Pages

The hunger games is a novel that unfolds in Panem, an apocalyptic world. The story is centered on a 16-year-old girl, Katniss Everdeen and her struggle for survival in dystopia. Each year, as a punishment for the failed rebellion by District 13, the 12 Panem Districts are forced to pay tribute to the ruthless Capitol regime. The story begins on the day of reaping at District 12. A day that each district is required to offer two tributes, a boy and a girl aged 12 to 18 years to participate in the games. This was going to be the 74th hunger games.

In a twist of fate, Prim Katniss’ 12-year-old sister is selected as one of the tributes. Having lost their father at a young age, she isn’t going to let her mother lose her too as she swore always to protect them. She volunteers to take her sister’s place, and together with the baker’s son, Peeta Mellark they represent district 12. What follows is a series of events that will put Katniss in the spotlight both as a source of hope for the oppressed and as an enemy of the Capitol. Her feelings for Peeta will be exploited for the games, which are aired across all the districts.

She will make new friends, enemies, inspire and give hope to many people in Panem thanks to her performance in the games. What makes the hunger games a more thrilling story is the games win or die rule. Will Katniss have the heart to kill Peeta and vice versa, or will they both survive?