March Book Club Book Reviews
Shelf Awareness Teen Book Club: Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes.
Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves.
When Haymitch’s name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. He’s torn from his family and his love, shuttled to the Capitol with the three other District 12 tributes: a young friend who’s nearly a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in town. As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he’s been set up to fail. But there’s something in him that wants to fight . . . and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena.
Sunrise on the Reaping had my jaw on the ground in literally every scene. I grew up being a Hunger Games fan, and Haymitch was always one of my favorite characters, so it was amazing to read about him pre-trauma.
The characters were just how I imagined them, and we got to see so many faces from the original trilogy, which really pulled the story together. At the story's beginning, Haymitch is just a teenage boy trying to survive another year in District 12 without being reaped. He develops so much as a person, and we really see him play into the rascal persona like how the capitol views him, but in the end, it's not just a persona; he becomes a rascal. Haymitch tried to be what Katniss ultimately became, but the timing wasn't right. There are so many parallels between his rebellious actions and the Girl on Fire that I wonder what could have happened if Haymitch had started a rebellion.
One of the best characters in the whole book was Maysilee Donner. She was such a diva and a fashion icon. I quickly grew attached to her. It was cool to read how Haymitch and Maysilee hated each other initially but developed a strong sibling bond by the end of the book.
Plot-wise, I loved the story. The plot was so engaging and entertaining that I read the book in nearly one sitting. The game's concept of double the number of tributes was well thought out and executed perfectly. However, sometimes it made it harder to connect with the tributes because there were so many of them, but that did not stop the emotional blow each time someone died.
Several character deaths left me crying and staring at the wall in shock at the pure pain Suzanne Collins put Haymitch through. After reading about his life and the unimaginable losses, it is no surprise that Haymitch turned into the man we see in the original trilogy.
One of my favorite parts throughout the book was how Suzanne Collins would subtly mention Lucy Gray and the legacy that she left behind in District 12 and on President Snow. I'm not sure I've ever hated a character more than Snow. There is no excuse for what he does in Sunrise on the Reaping. However, one of the most shocking parts of the whole book was the amount of propaganda and lies. I thought that because we knew a little about Haymitch's games, I would know a little about the games, but I didn't realize how much the capital hid and altered for the public. It makes me wonder how much about the other games is actually true or just lies that the Districts have been fed.
I absolutely loved this book and will definitely reread it.
Literary Ladies Book Club: Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera
Lucy and Savvy were the golden girls of their small Texas town: pretty, smart, and enviable. Lucy married a dream guy with a big ring and an even bigger new home. Savvy was the social butterfly loved by all and, if you believe the rumors, especially popular with the men in town. But after Lucy is found wandering the streets, covered in her best friend Savvy’s blood, everyone thinks she is a murderer.
It’s been years since that horrible night, a night Lucy can’t remember anything about, and she has since moved to LA and started a new life. But now the phenomenally huge hit true crime podcast Listen for the Lie and its too-good looking host, Ben Owens, have decided to investigate Savvy’s murder for the show’s second season. Lucy is forced to return to the place she vowed never to set foot in again to solve her friend’s murder, even if she is the one who did it.
The truth is out there, if we just listen.
Listen for the Lie had me on the edge of my seat, glued to the pages of this dark, twisty murder mystery. The story revolves around Lucy Chase, a blunt, intelligent, and straightforward anti-heroine who you can't help but root for despite the possibility that she is a cold-blooded killer. Amy Tintera portrays the story in a refreshing whirlwind of flaws, biased townies, and a riveting ending. I loved how the chapters often alternated into "Podcast interviews" as it allowed the readers to analyze the crime from someone else's point of view other than Lucy, who can't remember the crime.
At first, I was worried that Lucy would have a victim mindset and drink away all of her problems, but that didn't happen. Instead, we are met with the wickedly honest narrative of a girl who uses dark humor to cope with the fact that her best friend was murdered, and everyone believes she is the killer.
However, Lucy's hilarious narrative and snarky commentary sometimes felt like the only thing keeping the story moving. The mystery was relatively predictable, and the stakes were low, so it felt a little bland at times. There was no real urgency to find the killer; no one was missing, and a serial killer was not on the loose. Sometimes, it felt like Lucy didn't care to find out the truth because her reputation was already ruined.
I often found myself frustrated with the police for not doing their job correctly. Why didn't they check the blood that Lucy was covered in? What is it actually Savvy's? Did it have a splatter pattern, or was it dripped? Everyone just gave up on the case too quickly and blamed it on Lucy.
While this all seems relatively negative, there were so many funny moments woven throughout the story, helping me latch onto the story and its characters. It was such a quick read, and because it wasn't high stakes, it can act as a palate cleanser for a more intense story if you need something quicker and on the funnier side with a touch of darkness and suspense.
Written by Carlie Renee
