The premise of the previous book had to be greatly twisted in order to make this one possible. It couldn't have been a new person undergoing the Hunger Games, and maybe they get further in subverting them, it was Katniss again in order to set up vague revenge against the Capitol. Moreover, this is where any salient points went to die as far as the last book. It is now a Twilight-esque deliberation of feelings between Katniss and Peeta/Gale, and everyone the reader may have liked is an unequivocal ally and everyone the book took no time to characterize is an automatic villain.

A cliffhanger is written for the sake of having one; this is not a complete story on its own, it is just further setup for the third of its installment. This book is all lather and no rinse, and was very frustrating to read.