Coriolanus Snow is in his late teens as we venture back into Capitol. He lives with his grandmother and cousin Tigress who works to support them all in a frugal existence. Coriolanus is in school and might do well academically, but is harbouring a secret fear that the truth will be discovered. He is poor. His father, deemed a war hero after the District’s rebellion, and his mother dying in child birth has left Coriolanus an orphan.

There is no money, but his dream is to attend university, and secure a good, safe job to enable him to support his family. A chance at his dream arrives. This year the Hunger Games (developed to punish the Districts for their past rebellions), involves him. He has been named as a mentor to a girl from District 12, named Lucy Grey.

Lucy Grey has a wonderful singing voice, and although quickly popular with Capitol residents, it won’t win the ruthless Hunger Games. Coriolanus uses every tactic he can to ensure she wins, as he covets a prize of a full university scholarship.

Little does he know he is soon to fall in love, someone is observing his every move, and he will commit his first murder within days. Unaware he is being moulded into the psychopath we know as President Snow, Coriolanus is about to make a life-changing choice.

At 517 pages, this prequel to The Hunger Games is over 100 pages longer than any of the trilogy, but well worth the time investment. More of an in-depth look into the psyche of Coriolanus and how he is moulded into a leader than the Hunger Games themselves, it is still an entertaining read. I actually liked Coriolanus for most of the novel, as he struggles with poverty, friendships, his first love and possible discovery for what he really is.

A background insight into how The Hunger Games evolved is quickly explored and the problem of marketing them to the masses connected with the media marketing machine of today. A character study more than a rollicking plot driven, action packed novel. I enjoyed it.

Author – Suzanne Collins

Age – 12+

(Trilogy, Series, Prequel, Discovery, Poverty, War, Dystopian, Murder, Family, Studies, Peacekeeper, Training, Snakes, Folk songs, Entertainment, Covey, Secret)