Review of The Hunger Games Series by Suzanne Collins

Bottom line: Fast paced action, compelling characters, unexpected twists and turns in the plot and an all around great read for all three books.

Rating: Strongly Recommended

Review:

The Hunger Games books are intense. I read all three books in one night, racing from one to the next to see how it was all going to end. They feel more like one book in three volumes, so if you’re interested in reading them, I’d recommend setting aside a couple of days to just have at it.

They’re very, very good. The first book was my favorite, followed by the second and then the third (which seems apt). I wasn’t crazy about the ending – not the outcome, but the way it happened. It just felt very abrupt, and then the epilogue felt a bit disconnected. Other than that, there were very few things to dislike about the series. The whole story is told from the first person narrative of Katniss, and you follow her journey as she volunteers to fight in the Hunger Games to save her sister, and then all that happens after. I don’t know if I could call it one of my favorite elements, but I felt one of the most compelling elements was how damaged the participants in the Hunger Games become. Often, it seems like the heroes and heroines of novels go from normal person to deadly killing machine to back again with no mental trauma whatsoever. Whereas you can really see the effect these events have on Katniss.

The Hunger Games books are technically young adult, but make no mistake – there is a lot of violence and death throughout the books, and the themes being dealt with are mature as well. What is worth fighting, dying, or worse, condemning those you love to death for? When do the ends justify the means? How much peripheral damage is acceptable to achieve your goal? Who can be trusted with power? Who can be trusted, period?

Katniss was someone I wasn’t sure I would want to be friends with (I’d call her more admirable than likeable – she’s fairly cold and calculating), but the way the books are written really draw you into her head and her struggles to deal with the new reality she’s been pulled into with the Hunger games. It’s a well thought out post-apocalyptic world, and seems very believable.  The plot, combined with the setting and characters make it a completely absorbing read.

See my review of the movie here.

Books in order:

Book 1: The Hunger Games (2008) – Get it! Amazon, Barnes & Noble

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. Long ago the districts waged war on the Capitol and were defeated. As part of the surrender terms, each district agreed to send one boy and one girl to appear in an annual televised event called, “The 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 is forced to represent her district in the Games. The terrain, rules, and level of audience participation may change but one thing is constant: kill or be killed.

Book 2: Catching Fire (2009) – Get it! Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Book 3: Mockingjay (2010) – Get it! Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Sidenote: My husband listened to all three Hunger Games books on Audible and enjoyed them.

What did you think? Did you like the series?

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