ŷ������

** spoiler alert ** Mockingjay, the final book in Suzanne Collin's Hunger Games Trilogy. For a year, I had been anxiously waiting to read the about the adventures of the rebels, the hopefully happy ending. How wrong was I. There is an ending - but it is not as happy as most expected it to be. The rebels fought, they won. But in a sense, Collin's shows us that when violence is used to such extremes, no one wins; yes, a winner is declared - but the sadness and loss of both sides proves that no one really wins in war. While reading this book, I felt almost as depressed as a sober Haymitch.

There is a lot of death throughout the book (I sobbed at Finnick's). However, even though there is so much death in this book, most of it comes to new characters; the leader of district 13, Coin; Bogg, one of Katniss's bodyguards; mostly new or unknown characters that pass on. But alot of the death-related sadness in the book comes not from individual characters, but more from Katniss's vivid description of the mass homicide that they are left with at the end of the war. The group of children murdered on President Snow's doorstep - Prim included. The workers trapped in the Nut, a mountain in district two. The hospital burned down in district eight. That, more than anything, sets such a depressing tone.

In my opinion, however, it wasn't death that made such a sad air around the book. Some of the tortures make it worse. Peeta's hijacking, Finnick's molestation, Johanna's physical pain. And to top the list, Katniss - expected to be the rock strong Mockingjay when all of this happens around her. All this pain that she goes though, and so much more, should make her deserve a happy life afterwards. However, instead of in the company of her surviving friends and family, she finds herself alone, in a burned-down district, sitting by the fire in her Victor's house. That, more that anything, saddens the reader. When Katniss deserves someone with her, to make her feel less alone, the only person to console her is herself. Yes, in the end she and Peeta end up together. But during the book, she is always alone.

Even though this book is a far departure from the first two books, I believe that Suzanne saved her own series. She, like Cinna, made sure that no one would forget the 'girl on fire'. When so many books have slightly bittersweet endings, this book is much heavier on the bitter, distinguishing itself from so many others. There is no Disney ending to the Hunger Games, and I believe that if there was one than it would ruin the message of the series.

Suzanne Collins created her third bittersweet masterpiece, completeing one of the most different and best trilogies in YA Fiction today.

**note** its beautiful writing, too. suzanne collins has a gorgeous voice.