Reviews with content warning for Toxic friendship - The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

You don't root for young Hitler to find love and success... Coriolanus Snow cannot be redeemed. But he can be understood, to a point, and thats what Collins did well here.

I struggled to get into this prequel story knowing full well I would not sympathize with Snow, but I wanted to understand how history unraveled itself into the world we see by the 74th reaping. The level of foreshadowing Collins does within this story alone, as well as tying things into the original trilogy, is phenomenal. I am still constantly thinking back to how every action by the rebels in the future, knowingly or unknowingly, packs a bigger punch to the gut against Snow/against the capitol. Although I enjoyed the overall message, I really didn't care for a lot of the characters nor the games they played.

What I thought was originally just a love story gone wrong developed into more of a study on the human psyche, and for that, I did enjoy this read slightly more than average and more than what I expected.

For all these reasons, I am also glad I borrowed this from the library rather than spent the money as it would not have met my original trilogy Hunger Games expectations.

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kirbylover16's review against another edition

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emotional reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Suzanne Collins is so good at character development. In The Hunger Games, she takes one of the most evil characters in the series and makes the reader empathize with him. She does this by showing how even the most powerful people in the Capitol can be victims of the society they live in. President Snow's lack of control over his own life and the resulting choices he makes show excellent characterization. The new characters like Lucy Gray and Dean Highbottom are fantastic too. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, as it delved deeply into themes of class, propaganda, and indoctrination. It was interesting to observe how the games transformed over time and the reasons behind these changes. I also appreciated the backstory provided on the creation of the games, as well as the integration of DNA and scientific elements.

My biggest complaints are all in the last third of the book. I was expecting the prequel to The Hunger Games book to be about the Hunger Games themselves, but it’s actually about the Capitol and District 12 again. Why?? We already spent so much time in District 12 in the original series! I think other districts deserve a little more love. I wish Snow got to go to District 2. The games in this book are so small that in-universe they are erased! The romance between Lucy and Snow is enjoyable. But the two of them don't really know each other, and it feels like something is missing.

If I'm supposed to believe that Lucy was using Snow, you need to give me more proof. The quick betrayal is written weirdly. Like blink and you miss it.

Last third was so rushed that could she not write another chapter or two?

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haileyhardcover's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark inspiring sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This books starts on July 4th, so what a fitting day to finish it! I loved The Hunger Games series when I first read it, devouring each book within just a couple of hours. Still, for some reason, I wasn’t all that interested when I heard about this prequel. Who wants to read about the man we know becomes the ultimate villain? Turns out, I do.

Even if I hadn’t known the future of Coriolanus Snow, I would’ve hated him. From the very first page, he is vain, selfish, and entitled. There are plenty of new characters to love and root for in this book, but never once did I find myself rooting for him. Collins does an incredible job of giving us a look into the mind of a narcissist.

Like the other Hunger Games books, this one is easy to binge. Even when there’s not a lot of action on-page, it spurs you forward and you’ll look back and wonder how you just blew through 200 pages at a time without realizing it. I’m glad I decided to read it, and I’m looking forward to the next prequel she has planned!

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lucyford's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Honestly, this is probably my favorite Hunger Games book yet. I loved the world-building and connections to the previous books, and the character depth of all the characters was amazing. Everything about it is so creative and I was continuously shocked by the genius ideas of the Author. Definitely worth reading (and watching the movie)!

The only thing I didn’t like was that you were never super attached to the characters because you generally know where they’re going to end up (could also be a result of watching the movie first though).

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