Review by alixbx - Sunrise on the Reaping

alixbx 's review for:

Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins

4.25

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

If you are reading The Hunger Games universe in timeline order - don't read the epilogue. It will spoil the ending of the trilogy that follows. I know there's someone out there who will just now be getting into it, whether they put it off for years or they're a young reader just being exposed for the first time. The epilogue should be saved for after you have read the full series. Even if it didn't spoil the trilogy, I would have still deducted 0.25 for its inclusion because it doesn't add much of anything to the story. I have not read many epilogues that actually improved the story, and this one certainly won't be making the list of exceptions for me.

The 0.5 deduction is because Collins quotes

Edgar Allen Poe

very heavily in the final 14 pages - like it is legitimately a 1:1 ratio of quoted words to her original ones. It was difficult and boring to read, rendering the emotional impact of Haymitch's consequences... almost pointless? I hate that I'm saying that because I love this universe and series so much, but I'm firm that it was a downer in the wrong way. Every page was another stab to my heart in so many ways, and then to just be glad to be done because of the quotation inclusions were so disruptive, what a disappointment.

That said, this is still a wonderful story. If you told me before I read Ballad and Sunrise that I would prefer Snow's origin story to Haymitch's games, I would have considered beginning a verbal altercation because nobody wanted Snow's villain origins. So many people for years wanted Haymitch's games - so, so many! Alas, I do think Sunrise is the weakest of the books in the series. It's not just the reasons above, but I do think the other issues are so negligible that If the previous issues didn't exist, then I would have still rated this a perfect five book.

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Something I do in all of my reviews now is a trigger break down, since I know a lot of readers want context for certain triggers, so here's what I want to make sure that I give some limited-spoiler context for ahead of reading:

Police Brutality & Gun Violence:

This is scene primarily at the beginning and early chapters through the Peacekeepers. Peacekeepers kill a child in a brutal manner using guns. There is also an incident where chaos ensues and Peacekeepers start detaining, brutalizing, and chasing tributes.

Kidnapping:

There is a child character whose real identity is unknown who dies without the characters and readers never learning that child's identity.

Insects/Bugs:

Many of the mutts in this games are bugs and insects that are described in varying levels of detail, but additional have strange abilities that are used to cause harm and sometimes kill the tributes.

Confinement:

This is not in reference to putting the children into the arena. This is actually in reference to events that transpire after the games are completed. It will take place in two different locations over the equivalent of a two-week timeframe.

Body Shaming:

Even though this is minor mention, capital teens and young adults talk about "maintenance" and other body modifications that are popular in the Capitol, one of which talks about how she has not started yet and that she thinks she should despite being very young (early twenties, estimated).

Content Warnings