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** spoiler alert ** Quality of writing and personal enjoyment put this at 3.5 stars for me.

This is a harsh book, and painful to read. It pushes and forces you to keep going, through death and sorrow and pain beyond endurance, to come out on the far side of darkness. To a place where hope and healing are possible but not easy nor guaranteed. This is what this book was at its best.

There have already been so many reviews that there is very little to say that has not been said. Many of them are thoughtful and pensive reflections on the political and social commentary that is the true core of the story, pondering the cautionary message and what it means and how it can inform us. Many mention how eerily and tragically possible this whole scenario really is, esp. given our culture's current obsession with reality tv. Others focus on the destruction of Katniss as a character and how who she had been at the outset was killed by what she experienced and that what remained was a victim of the games: The Hunger Games, The Quarter Quell and the personal games that she was used in by Haymitch, Coin, Gale and Snow. Then, of course, the inevitable shippers for Gale or Peeta. I never cared one way or the other in the earlier books, but this time around I was firmly with Peeta since Gale was clearly not that good a person, whereas Peeta always has been.

It was all these things, but they have all been pretty thoroughly hashed out, so I'll just mention the very personal, subjective things that bothered me about this book. Mostly the characters, though the conclusions that seemed to be drawn were not at all encouraging either. And as a character reader, I was terribly disappointed. Most especially by Katniss herself. Her life was more or less ruined. Her family destroyed. Her sister killed (likely by her erstwhile allies and by a bomb designed by your would-be lover). And what does she do? She chooses to perpetuate this cycle of cruelty! What. The. Hell?! After enduring - if it can even be called that - the Hunger Games she was forced into, she chooses to foist them upon the Capitol's children in a show of "justice". She does this knowing full well what they entail and what being a part of those games has done to her and the other victors. And still she chooses to force other children into a Game, to meet her fate? And then to say it was for "Prim", who would never, ever have made that choice or wanted it made because of her?! No.

Haymitch and Peeta, not to mention Gale and Prim and a host of others were shortchanged and given so little pagetime and development. Even Coin and Snow, Plutarch and so many others who could have offered so much. Why? It could have raised this book into a masterpiece if the other players had been fleshed out and truly brought to life.

And Kat and Prim's mother is a sad excuse for a person. So eager to help others, to doctor them, but can never manage to be there for her own kids.

And ultimately I am simply unconvinced that Katniss loved anyone here. Maybe not since her father's death or her mother's emotional abandonment. I am not sure if it can be pinpointed, but at some point Katniss gave up on life and love, and while she is still capable of it and may very well one day heal, I was by no means convinced of it based on her interactions in this book. There are moments of genuine kindness. And affection. A spark of life in her that refused to be wasted or dictated. Katniss is not a nice character here and she admits as much. I felt sorry for her, but equally irritated with her repeatedly making bad decisions for herself. She gives up on Peeta. She writes him off because she does not want to deal with it. I don't care how bad he could have been hurt, if the roles were reversed, Peeta would not have done that. Katniss never deserved Peeta. She trusts too much in Gale. She refuses to see the truth that is so plain because she would rather ignore it. It is easier. Understandable, but that does not make the matter better.

I am still confused as to what Katniss' rationale was for offing Coin? At least in relation to her and Snow's mutual agreement not to lie to each other? Huh?

Gale was bloody usless. Heartless. Callous. As happy and willing to prey on human sympathies and better impulses as any Capitolist, as Snow or Plutarch.

Pacing was awful. Either too slow or so blindingly fast that even upon several rereadings I cannot make any sense of some scenes. It is still disoriented and unclear what is going on. No details to put things into context and reference. Just an incoherent blur. Esp. the last few chapters. And a lot of it just doesn't make sense.

The deaths. Some just seemed plain gratuitous. Finnick in particular.

Beginning of chapter 24, first paragraph about "There's not the least indication that love, or desire, or even compatibility will sway me." That Katniss will simply "pick whoever she thinks she can't survive without", not who she can't live without or which one "it will break her heart to give up". And while I agree with her choice, the way it is worded in the last chapter felt wrong: "That what I need to survive is not Gale's fire .... only Peeta can give me that (the promise that life can go on, that it can be good again.)" Which implies it was survival, not love. Wish that had been worded differently.