A review by dernichtraucherin
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

dark emotional tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

okay so ive been reading the reviews and felt like i had to add, yall are not doing this book justice but for the wrong reasons.

it had all the ingredients for a really nice stew and suzanne collins is a great cook-

i loved dr gaul and her big plan, loved her manipulation of snow, his slow realisation about himself and the war, the way his decay to crazy began and especially his obsessive behaviour which started with lucy gray and ended with katniss everdeen. the moment he recorded sejanus gave me goosebumps and if the plot was a little dry up to the point where the end and the betrayals started, it was well executed.

i also loved the "hanging tree" backstory and really liked that snow always hated mockingjays because to him they represent the ultimate loss of control. i didnt feel like it was forced and thought it very reasonable for him to hate katniss and her symbolic mockingjay nearly 60 years later.

what i didnt love about the book was that i assumed we would get the story of how he became president and not mainly his demise before coming back to the capitol. i would have liked less soft snow and more evil snow, who embraces his mania but then again, thats just my preference, it was very well done tho!


anyways, snow lands on top ;)