Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins Review

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Series:　The Hunger Games Trilogy Book 3
Publish Date: August 24th, 2010
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Pages: 390

Summary (from Goodreads)

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 plans--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. 


Read  my review of the first two books in this trilogy here and here. 

  Review may contain spoilers.

Review: 

          What a spectacular end to The Hunger Games trilogy. It makes me sad to know that the series is over and Katniss' revolution against the Capitol is over too. Although I cannot reveal all the craziness that concluded this phenomenal journey (no matter how much I want to), I can say that it ended with much tragedy and a new beginning for Panem. I am still coping with the ending after 3 days of reading it.

            Honestly I loved it and disliked it at the same time. It was a great way to end the series because it was a somewhat happy ending that i think everyone could agree with. Unfortunately, to get to that happy ending many tear jerking scenes had to occur. Fighting in a rebellion in no way guarantees everyone’s survival yes, I knew that, but that small information doesn’t make the deaths of some of my favorite characters hurt any less. When they faced their inevitable ends I immediately closed the book and had to take a break for fifteen minutes so that I could cope with what just happened. Thinking about it now still makes me upset. Although their deaths made this book all the more addicting and I needed to know whether or not Katniss would be able to avenge their deaths.

           The build up to the invasion of the Capitol was long but necessary. Katniss had to recover and prepare to get back into battle after suffering severe injuries from the Quarter Quell. It definitely wasn’t the most interesting beginning because everyone was just underground for a long period of time but we get to know a lot about how District 13 survived and their ways of life. It was interesting and almost humorous the amount of times Katniss was in the hospital. She seemed to be there more times than she has been anywhere else. I think one half of the book takes place inside the hospital.

            Finally the rebellion begins halfway through the book. It started off slow paced and began building up momentum into a thrilling climax. However, what seemed to be a great resolution to the rebellion was replaced with something that fell a little flat. What I anticipated most in this story was interrupted by Katniss waking up in the hospital (surprise surprise). We are told what happened to the Capitol through a brief story by one of District 13's important members. Nothing exciting and amazing there.

             I enjoyed the love triangle in this book more than others because it was subtle and did not compete with the main plot. Katniss was not conflicted with the knowledge that Gale and Peeta are in love with her because they did not push her to make a decision. I really loved that the author wrote Katniss as such a strong, independent character. The male leads in this story knew very well Katniss doesn’t rely on a man to help her. They knew very well they needed Katniss more than she needed them. In the end I’m glad that Katniss knew who she truly loved and I was happy with her decision. The author wrote of their romance briefly yet it effectively captured me. I smiled with happiness knowing that all will be okay with Katniss.  She found the little happiness she needed to give her reason to move on from all the tragedy she’s faced during the rebellion. She slowly picks herself up again after thinking she could never be happy. I’m glad the story concluded with a happy ending for  Katniss.
Overall this book has crushed me but I'm satisfied. It was a great conclusion to The Hunger Games trilogy. It's because of Suzanne Collin's amazing stories that I fell in love with the dystopian genre. I must now say goodbye to Katniss Everdeen, the girl on fire, but her memory will live on for a long time.

Rating: 4/5