A review by lilybear3
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

I'm only 5 years late and have managed to not watch the movie.  It is so good and terrifying to be back in the Hunger Games universe, especially in this political climate.  High school me was barely politically awakened when the first Hunger Games book released and was merely a dystopian, not a commentary on class issues, oppression, authoritarianism, and capitalism.

It took about a quarter of the way in to be super invested in the story because we follow someone NOT in the games.  But I love a prequel backstory.  Choosing to follow Coriolanus Snow was an excellent choice in that it was early enough to learn about the games' inception and how key elements came to be.  Just as thrilling as the original series, this book captivated me and I was charmed by Coriolanus and Lucy Gray.  I had to remind myself of how future Coriolanus Snow is!  I love a callback and easter egg reference and there's plenty of them.  This book is new and nostalgic.

I love that
the ending is speculative.  Did he kill her or not?  My theory is she escaped.


Random side note, I love the naming conventions in this series.  I'll never be able to use them because they'd be a dead giveaway.
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