Title: Mockingjay
Author: Suzanne Collins
Series: #3 - The Hunger Games
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: August 24th, 2010
My Rating: 4.0 out of 5.0
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 plains--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.
My Review:
Mockingjay, it was one of those books that I couldn’t put down. I was enthralled with knowing what would happen to Peeta, Katniss, and Finnick. I was happy to see some of the other characters back from the ending of Catching Fire. Although with this book, I had my doubts and troubles trying to understand some of the characters in this book.
Finnick I understood. His development and what he goes through is far beyond what I could imagine. Even yet, there is part of me that started to feel sorry and sad for him when his girlfriend comes back; and yet near the end you want to admire him for all the sacrifices he makes not only for that girl, but Katniss and everyone else as well. There is so much to Finnick and so much that I hated for the book to end, I wanted to know more about him.
Peeta and Gale finally get down and dirty and talk about who should be with Katniss. At that point I finally screamed about time you two put things together. I wanted them to both turn and scream obscenities at Katniss and both leave her. Yet that doesn’t seem to happen and I found myself wondering if the outcome was really plausible.
Peeta’s character goes through a huge ordeal that I won’t spoil. When Peeta takes the main stage and the light shines on who he is, his character twists and bends into a broken mess. Which suits the world they live in, and ultimately I felt his pain, felt sorry for Peeta and everything he went through to protect Katniss. As well, even after everything he’s been through, he’s still clinging to Katniss declaring how much he still cares for her.
The rebellion and the sense of destruction as Katniss goes to see the crumbling districts, the war that evolves around her makes her step out of her shell again. Katniss goes from this weakling and a heroin I hated in Catching Fire, to this spokesperson for war and the rebellion. I enjoyed this point of Katniss to a point, she still had these thoughts of a damaged person, and rightfully she should at this point.
The world building in this was superb, I wish there was more of it at times. The scenery, the destruction, and devastation of the people and environment was jaw-dropping. Yes jaw-dropping, for a book. I felt the pain of Peeta, and everyone else that died. Even the one small insignificant cat that morphed into the most powerful emotional tool the series had held. I wanted more; I wanted to feel more of the evolution of the people and the relationships.
The ending… That’s what everyone wants to know about right? I hated it, it wasn’t the fact that I didn’t like it or like it. The ending was superb and I doubt anyone could have done a better ending, but it was like a bittersweet ending. The loss, the pain, the suffering along the way, to me didn’t justify that everything was all right. The damaged couple at the end, the torment and sleepless nights they would have to endure because of what they had to endure.
