Sunrise on the Reaping book review

Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
Series: The Hunger Games #0.5
on March 18, 2025
Pages: 343
Goodreads

When you’ve been set up to lose everything you love, what is there left to fight for?
As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes.
Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves.
When Haymitch’s name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. He’s torn from his family and his love, shuttled to the Capitol with the three other District 12 tributes: a young friend who’s nearly a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in town. As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he’s been set up to fail. But there’s something in him that wants to fight . . . and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena.

There is something brilliant about The Hunger Games universe and getting the chance to jump back in with Sunrise on the Reaping feels like an absolute treat. I adore Haymitch, I think he is the perfect character with all of his flaws and how he views the world and the Games. There was something completely heartbreaking about him even from the beginning of The Hunger Games, a grown man falling off a stage and now we have all the reasons why.

I loved seeing a deeper look into Panem and also I loved that this book builds on a prequel and the original trilogy. It really gives you a chance to appreciate just how far Snow had gone and was willing to go. I also think seeing the parallels between Katniss’ story and his, with the way they were determined not to have their emotions used and manipulated. Not only that but also the fact they were desperate to survive and maybe live to see a better world. They both don’t see themselves as the hero, just something to be sacrificed in order to save their family and that in itself is something to cry over but also admire.

The reaping of Haymitch was a part of the book that I thought I was prepared for, and boy was I not. I don’t know what I was expecting but my heart broke and I reeled at how unfair the entire situation was. Part of me knew what was going to happen but another part was desperate for there to be a reprieve, for some magical change of story or pace. Watching him as he loses everything and succumbs to his fatality really drove home just how awful and stripping the games are.

Learning more about the arenas and all of the different mentors and inner politics was something special. Seeing Mags, Beetee and Wiress again was such a needed reunion, I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about their worlds and how they became a part of the Games. Seeing them mixed with the others from District 12 was fantastically written, Maysilee was a brilliant character and her disdain for the Games and the people around her could not have been written better. I think this was the hardest part of the alliance and having so many children as part of the Games meant you just physically weren’t able to keep a track of who was who. Which I think was a sacrifice that needed to be made, otherwise the book would be over 1000 pages and you would lose track of Haymitch and his story.

I am usually a little cautious about prequels and additions to such a modern and beloved trilogy, and whether they actually add anything or is just a money grab. Wholeheartedly can I say that this and Ballad add so much to the story and so many nuances that can only be seen from a distance. Sunrise on the Reaping broke my heart in so many different ways and I have such an appreciation for the work that went into building the story.

Hopefully Collins never stops adding to The Hunger Games universe and we get to experience more even if it means being heartbroken. I adored everything about this book and I genuinely cannot wait to see what comes next.