Review: Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Title: Catching Fire
Author: Suzanne Collins
Publisher: Scholastic
Pub. Date: 9/1/2009
Genre: YA
Main Themes: Survival, Love, Family, Futuristic worlds, Reality television
Pages: 391
Plot (from book jacket):
SPARKS ARE IGNITING.
FLAMES ARE SPREADING.
AND THE CAPITOL WANTS REVENGE.

Against all odds, Katniss 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 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.

I absolutely devoured this book. In one night. When I had class at 8 am. There is just no preventing it - so make sure that when you read this book, you have a chunk of time to do so. And you want to read this book, trust me!

Katniss absolutely shines in Catching Fire! She is still very much the survivor readers saw in The Hunger Games. I liked that we saw a little bit more of Katniss' softer side come through in this installment. I love Peeta just as much, if not more, than I did in the first book, but I'm still glad that we got to see a bit more of Gale than before. I can understand why he and Katniss are best friends now, whereas previously I couldn't see what was holding her back from Peeta.

I was dreading the twist in Catching Fire. I had a heads up from a review I'd previously read, but I wasn't sure how Suzanne Collins was going to pull it off. I shouldn't doubted though, Collins seems to be able to pull of anything! :) Sorry if that is extremely cryptic, but I don't want to have any spoilers!

There was some talk of District 13 in this novel and I'm hoping that the rumors will be explored in the next book(s). There are so many directions the next book could go - plus Catching Fire ended in a major cliffhanger! I've got to hand it to Collins, she keeps the readers coming back for more with her intense endings - but it hurts!! :)

Now, on to my favorite aspect of Catching Fire: the romance! I will admit to being a huge fan of Peeta (see my button in my sidebar???!). Gale, though a quality character and guy, just doesn't do it for me. In my eyes, Gale is the childhood crush: there is definitely comfort and familiarity there. Peeta is true and real - Katniss NEEDS him, even if she is denying it! I'm really curious to see where the Peeta-Katniss-Gale love triangle goes in the third book. Especially after that darn cliffhanger!

Ratings (Out of 10):
Plot: 10
Characters: 10
Writing style: 10
Romance: 10
Originality: 10

Total: 50/50 (A!)

I can't wait for Suzanne Collins' next installment in the Hunger Games books! I've high expectations, but I'm really not worried about being disappointed. I'm not sure Suzanne Collins could write a bad book if she tried!