Catching Fire (The Second Book of the Hunger Games)
by Suzanne Collins My Recommended Age Group: Young Adult to Adult
Others in Series: The Hunger Games
, Mockingjay (The Final Book of The Hunger Games)
Our Rating:
My thoughts:
Someone told me once that CATCHING FIRE by Suzanne Collins was a "thrilling sequel." I'm not going to lie - I'm usually fairly dubious when someone calls something a "thrilling sequel." The term seems so contrived and is used in so much advertising that usually it's not worth a grain of salt to me anymore.
Guess what - CATCHING FIRE sure is a thrilling sequel. Honestly, there is no better way to describe it.
When I began this continuation of the story surrounding the post-apocalyptic world of Panem and our heroine Katniss I was kind of nervous. The Hunger Games was one of the best books I had read in a while and was packed with action from cover to cover. Typically when the first book is so spot-on, the second books can have a hard time living up. I only needed to read about a page, perhaps a page and a half, to learn that Collins was not going to have a hard time hooking me as easily as she did with the first book in this exciting series.
Just as The Hunger Games keeps you flipping pages, yearning for more, CATCHING FIRE had me racing through the story, dying to know what was going to happen next. Just when I thought I had the story all figured out, Collins would throw another turn in her, a twist there and completely spin me in a different direction. There are not many books that I can say I "devoured," but this would be one of them. I felt like I was pulled into the story, living it along with the characters and although the world isn't a pretty one - I didn't want to leave!
On my drive home last night, I thought to myself - do I stop at the store and pick up the conclusion of the series, Mockingjay, or do I just go home, finishing CATCHING FIRE, and go to bed like a normal person?
Well, now I'm kicking myself in the tail for not having picked up Mockingjay. Although it was pretty late when I finished CATCHING FIRE, my mind was nowhere near to being done with the characters, the world, or the story. I became immersed in the words of Collins and found it fairly painful to have to pull myself back out to go on with reality.
One thing is for sure - as soon as I can get out of this job that pays for my silly little reading addiction, I will take my hard earned money and stomp right over to the store in search of Mockingjay.
Only one question remains - do I justify driving to the next state over if my store doesn't have it? You bet!
