Author: Suzanne Collins 
Release Date: August 24th 2010
5 Stars - Loved it, will read again and again

Synopsis: Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she’s made it out of the bloody arena alive, she’s still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Who do they think should pay for the unrest? Katniss. And what’s worse, President Snow has made it clear that no one else is safe either. Not Katniss’s family, not her friends, not the people of District 12. Powerful and haunting, this thrilling final installment of Suzanne Collins’s groundbreaking The Hunger Games trilogy promises to be one of the most talked about books of the year.

***WARNING - SPOILERS***

This will not be a spoiler free review.  How could it be? There is way too much to be said about this conclusion to the Hunger Games.  I picked up the Hunger Games on a whim when Catching Fire was about to be released.  I was very curious of how a book could cause such a ruckus.  After reading it, I understood.  It had everything, action, love sacrifice and truly intriguing characters. I loved both books, and  Mockingjay ends the series with a huge bang.  I was having a hard time with the military and war angle of the beginning of the book.  I just have this aversion to war.  When they finally rescued Peeta I started to dive deep into it.  Katniss and Gale's relationship was obviously doomed.  Of coarse she would end up with Peeta in the end.  Although I think a lot of that has to do with the fact that there was no way she could forgive Gale for the role that he played in Prims death.  I loved about this book because I had no idea who was trustworthy or not.  And in the end, my hunch that Coin was just as evil as Snow was confirmed.  I feel sorry for Katniss, she was underestimated and used throughout the entire series.  Only a few people knew her for what she was.  She wasn't the hero, but she was brave and believed in what was right and stood up for it.  She was not perfect by any means and had faults that defined her as a human being.  You felt her pain, and knew you would have felt the same way.  I am not shy to say that I was crying at midnight last night while reading the end.  When Katniss finally came to terms of Prims death in her victors home in district 12 and unleashed all her emotions, I just couldn't help it.  I guess when you think about it, there was no way Prim would live, this was set up from the first book when her name was called for the reaping.  It still broke my heart.  This whole book actually broke my heart.  I truly hope that our society never comes to this point.  The scary thing is there are people out there that would use children as human shields and not bat an eye in the end.  
The book as a whole was an enigmatic, sad, frightening ride to the end.  After about chapter 23 I could not put it down.  I don't usually like books that make me cry, but I will give this one an exception.  I am having a hard time really describing the depth to which this book took me.  These books are so much deeper with symbolism that I can't even begin to discuss.   I would love to discuss other peoples opinions of this book, if you have read it, please comment.     

synopsis and photo from Goodreads