Book - The Hunger Games
Author - Suzanne Collins
Year - 2008
Genre - Young Adult Sci Fi
Pages - 454
Series - The Hunger Games series

I suppose I had better kick things off to show you how a review is written.  This book is not part of the challenge, but I read it recently so I thought I would share my thoughts with you.

With a high grossing film adaptation last year, and a sequel on the way, The Hunger Games is one of the hottest properties around at the moment.  I have had many friends who have either read the book or seen the film, and their reports have varied all of the way from loving it, and recommending it thoroughly, to not seeing what all of the fuss is about and suggesting that I don't bother.  I decided that it was worth checking out, and so I picked up a copy and set about reading it.

The book follows Katniss Everdeen who lives in a future which is governed by a ruling class who make those from the poorer parts of society fight to the death once a year in the gruesome reality TV show style contest called The Hunger Games.  From one of the very poorest of the sections of society, Katniss supports her family by hunting illegally, as they live in constant fear of The Capitol.  The selection process is approaching for their annual event, in which two people from each of the surrounding cities - a boy and a girl - are put into a specially designed combat arena and forced to fight until only one person remains.  A surprise selection for her area sends Katniss' life into turmoil.

I am pleased to say that I found this book a fantastic read!  The friends of mine who recommended it to me were completely right.  The world that Collins has created is beautiful and believable, with characters that you instantly care about immensely, and the concept of the Hunger Games themselves is both chilling and exciting at the same time.  The true brilliance of the book however, is that the action in it is breathtaking.  You feel a real sense of urgency the entire way through the book that keeps you turning pages throughout.

With a sixteen year old female lead, this book is very obviously aimed at the teen market, and the tie in film has supported this idea.  I would suggest that it is not a book solely for teens though.  Although quite long, I could imagine that slightly younger readers would love the action, and the story is more than enough for any adult who enjoys a good sci-fi book.  At the end of the book I was left wanting more - which is fortunate as there are two sequels - but I can confidently say that this is a book that I would recommend to anyone.

9/10