Book Review – Catching Fire

Katniss Everdeen is alive. She and Peeta have both survived The Hunger Games. Spiritually destroyed, psychologically hollow, the pair is back in District 12. Katniss’s friend, Gale, holds her at an icy distance. Was the ‘great love story’ of Katniss and Peeta that played out on television screens, real? As victors, they must embark on a Victory Tour of the districts. They must look the murdered children’s families in the eye, and celebrate. Katniss soon realises that her defiance has fuelled a rebellion she cannot stop.

As the series develop, Katniss understands why Haymitch, her District 12 fellow victor and mentor, cannot exist without alcohol. She realises that she must fight. She has been a slave to a society that sacrifices its young, and starves its citizens. She must use her power. And when Peeta and Katniss are forced back into the arena for another Hunger Games, she knows she must save Peeta.

Suzanne Collins has done it again. She writes fearlessly. There is no sentiment involved when she dissects the horror. Catching Fire is possibly even better than The Hunger Games.

Amanda Patterson
4.5/5