Catch Fire

No sex. No profanity. But plenty of violence. The Hunger Games books are riddled with violent content, but it’s the entire premise of the series that makes it so exciting. Blood and gore aside, Catching Fire is a ride you won’t want to get off at the end, and you’re left panting for book three.

In Catching Fire we revisit Katniss and Peeta shortly after the Games are over, but life is everything but peachy for the victors. Their rebellious victory at the 74th Annual Hunger Games has them in the sights of the less than benevolent leader, President Coriolanus Snow, who rigs the next version of the Hunger Games to assure that the two are chosen again.

The 75th Hunger Games is termed the ‘Quarter Quell’, where every 25 years the game is changed up – usually at the discretion of the Capitol’s game makers. Thrown back into a new, even more deadly arena, the pair are forced to team up with other prior victors for their own survival. What the players do not know is that a plan, not the President’s, is hatching, and a twist comes that leaves us hanging on for book three.

The tension in this installment of the trilogy keeps you on the edge of your seat, breathlessly awaiting the next turn of events. Collins’ other-worldly technology brings new levels of danger, all the while provoking the imagination.

Matthew R. Hinman is a total technology geek and writes a science and technology blog at www.matthewhinman.com.