I have officially fallen in love. For two days, I was attached to the second book in the Hunger Games trilogy, Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins. I didn’t expect this book to compare to the first book (The Hunger Games) because the story had events that were so unique and intriguing that I thought it would be impossible for the second book to even come close to it. However, Catching Fire was even more intense and leaves me longing for the third book in the series to come out (which is expected in fall 2010).       

  By the first paragraph, I was reunited with Katniss and Peeta who are the main characters in the first book. In the original The Hunger Games, the characters live in a futuristic world where rules are strict and punishments are even harsher. Katniss and Peeta are two teenagers who were forced to take part in the Hunger Games in the first book. The Hunger Games are an event that takes place each year in their world to remind everyone that the Capitol still controls the districts and can take away their children. Katniss and Peeta form a unique bond that results in Peeta falling in love with Katniss, but Katniss starts to fall for her best friend, Gale. A confusing love triangle forms, and develops even more in the second book. At the end of the Hunger Games, Katniss and Peeta both live and therefore defy the Capitol. The Capitol wants revenge, and will do anything to get it.          

  Catching Fire starts off where The Hunger Games left off. The capitol is angry with Katniss, who is in grave danger. The president of Panem (the country Katniss lives in) is devising a plan to get rid of her, and does not hesitate to hurt her friends and family through the process.

  Another new event in this book is that uprisings in Panem are happening, meaning Katniss will have to decide if she will risk everything for the people she cares about the most, or take part in the uprising that could uproot the Capitol and its harsh policies. The story includes the same characters as the first book, and they continue to grow and develop throughout the book. There are even more twists, romance, and adventure in Catching Fire, which make this book impossible to put down.                                                                                                                   

  There are many elements to this book that make it such a great read, but something that made an impression on me was that it focuses on politics, relationships, romance, and action throughout the whole story. There is never a dull moment, and one of my favorite qualities about this book is that the last sentence in each chapter is a surprise or twist that makes you look forward to the next chapter. This keeps the book moving at a very fast tempo.

  As you can tell, I was not disappointed by this book at all. In fact, it has earned a new and esteemed place on my bookshelf right beside the Harry Potter series. The only negative things I have to say is that the book didn’t have enough pages. Three books in the series isn’t enough to tell this story, and one year is a year too long to wait for the next (and last) book in the series to come out.