#3 Mockingjay (The Hunger Games, #3)

by Suzanne Collins

[Stephanie]

Originally posted at Once Upon a Chapter

In the breathtaking final chapter of the Hunger Games trilogy, we see Katniss in a new role. In the beginning she's broken. Her fear for Peeta makes her life stand still…until she sees him in a Capitol propos. This slaps her out of her self-imposed prison as nothing else would. Katniss agrees to become the Mockingjay for President Coin and the districts. IN this rebellion the Rebels are so much closer to winning and with Katniss, the Mockingjay their moral remains high.

Peeta has suffered much under President Snow's watch. The torture was awful enough but the Capitol invaded him in such a unique way that he may never be the boy from district 12 again. Upon their reunion, Peeta tries to strangle Katniss. Katniss wanted Snow dead before but now it's her life mission.

War in Panem rages and there is so much loss. Katniss has unwittingly sparked a revolution and now she is helping to lead it. She trains as a solider and barely makes the cut to serve in the taking of the Capitol. She is placed with Gale and Boggs from District 13 in a group of elite sharp shooter and act as stars for 13 and the Rebels.

Then one day Peeta is dropped off in their camp. The boy with the bread still is gone from his body which can only mean one thing: Katniss' use to Coin and 13 has reached it's end. Who does Katniss trust now? Can her assassination plot still meet it's glorious end? What will happen to the Mockingjay and her group of soldiers?

My Thoughts:
Where to begin? I think wow sums it up pretty well. So do the words amazing, stunning, chilling, and heart breaking. So many times through this book the characters I have come to know and love gained, lsot and changed. My heart rose and fell and shattered. Collins has done such a great job with her characters that in the end they are real people to me. I feel like I can go to Panem and Katniss and Peeta will be waiting there to greet me….okay maybe not so much Katniss but definitely Peeta.

I'm not going to lie. I never chose Team Peeta or Team Gale. I really wanted Katniss to end up with Gale but I know that Peeta was the only one that could ever really be with Katniss. Who else could understand her the way she needs to be understood? There were a lot of plot twists that I didn't expect A lot of people lost that saddened me. Collins had to do it though. How else would we understand the costs? As readers how else could we understand Katniss' decisions? While the ending caught me off guard in the end I truly believe it to be the right one.

I would suggest this book to people who are looking for a heavier young adult book. It is imperative that you read the first two or you'll be lost. Also if you're looking for a traditional happily ever after, skip this book. I'd classify the ending as a happily ever after with strings attached. All in all it was a great trilogy and a story I'm glad I didn't miss.