The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (A Hunger Games Novel)

Not the "Hunger Games" we all know and love, but more of a back story of how they were developed. Told from the perspective of a capital kid, this book lacked action and seemed more like a soft drama and sneaking around. Don't get me wrong, I thought this book was great and I couldn't put it down, but I kept hoping for more that never came. The story overall is worth the read, just dont expect a lot of action. Meh..

Forgettable. I was so unimpressed the first time I read it I actually forgot and it ended up in my TBR pile again. I did read it all the way through a second time and came to the conclusion that I just couldn't relate to the main character. He had his moments but overall unlikable. I give it 4/5 stars because I like the author.

(MINOR SPOILER, NATURE OF ENDING) Exceptional book one of the most captivating I've ever read, it felt unlike any other with a protagonist so charismatic and intelligent with the perfect level of unease . Then boom the ending appears out of nowhere serving to destroy all character development through the whole book, going directly against the status quo the book had formed just so president Snow could fall more in line with the "bad guy" he is in the series. Rather than having his cold callous ways be a product of loss or hardships the ending seems to sum it up as "oh by the way he is a sociopath with zero care for anyone but himself" it just felt extremely rushed and out of place, serving to tear down the entire riveting experience this book provided with a tasteless and unenjoyable ending. Taking a character as complex and confusing as snow then suddenly turning him into a one dimensional villain over the span of roughly 6 pages destroyed this book for me.