(Spoiler alert)
This book is The Hunger Games all over again. And I don't mean that it's simply book two in the series. I mean, reading this was serious deja vu, because it literally replicates what happens in the first book. When I picked this up, I honestly expected for there to be a swift progression into the development of the rebellion against the Capitol. Instead, what I got was a repeat of Katniss and Peeta being harvested for another games. I stupidly assumed that there was no way Collins would actually allow them to end up in the arena again, and rather that they would somehow avoid it. I was wrong.

The concept of the games is interesting, but not intriguing enough to be fully rendered TWICE in as many books. I feel that the original story provided ample opportunity for Collins to create a truly gripping plot movement showing the development of a fascinating upheaval against the Capitol. Instead, it seems that she got a bit lazy and simply fell back on the excitement of the games, which, although it worked well in book one, felt entirely redundant and unimaginative when depicted in Catching Fire.

My expectations for this book were too high, and so, when I began reading, I was immediately disappointed by Collins' style: it's simplistic and full of incomplete sentences. I know this is stylistic, but it still took some getting used to.

Otherwise, Collins has created a well-rounded sci-fi world in which it's easy to lose oneself. Katniss is likeable and tough, with admirable common sense, which makes it easy to cheer for her throughout the story. The concept of a dictatorial, heavy-handed government is frighteningly rendered, and therefore makes it easy to see how the possibility of a reality game centered around brutal killings could emerge as a form of oppression.

Honestly, Collins could have wrapped up the series here with (spoiler alert) some references to how Katniss' and Peeta's final action in the games was the momentum which led to all of the districts finally rebelling against the Capitol. I would have been fine with everything ending on that note, rather than the trite cliff-hanger that closes this book.

You’ve heard this song on the radio. Maybe not so much anymore now because it’s so last year, but it will pop up every once in a while when a station is doing a flashback to 2011. Every time I hear it, I have to smile.  Pitbull, Ne-Yo and Nayer singing, “Tonight, give me everything...

After sort of slogging through the Mistborn series, it took me a few years to try Sanderson again. Elantris, at least, promised to have everything wrapped up within a single volume, which was enough to get me reading it.

The concepts in this book are brilliant. I love the idea of a city to which the "dead" are relegated, and also the mythic stories about the fall of the once great city. The lead characters are all very likable, and generally make intelligent decisions, which always makes a book more enjoyable, and characters’ actions more believable, to me.

In fact, I had a hard time putting this book down for the first three-quarters. Then, as it became clear that things were beginning to reach a crescendo, the momentum seemed to slow down. Just like with Mistborn, I felt like I was really having to push myself to read the final quarter (or so) of this book – I really wanted to know what was going to happen, but it simply wasn’t happening quickly enough. This was surprising since the rest of the book moved along so well.

By the time I put the book down, I was relieved to be finished, which was a disappointment considering how fully I had enjoyed the majority of the story.