Middles are hard, and the more I think about it, the more this one doesn't quite satisfy. Hunger Games #1 got by on the fun of making new friends, as we met Katniss, the villainous nation of Panem, and all the rest of it. I haven't read three, but I know that it will derive it's story-telling impact from the satisfaction of seeing Katniss give President Snow what for, and destroying the corrupt and evil antagonists.

Catching Fire has to move us between the introduction and the finale, and while the plot ticks along neatly enough, the emotional maturity and change are not quite there. The tension between Katniss' basic humanity and the artificiality/bestiality of winning the 74th hungers games doesn't quite ring true. Things happen, but Katniss is not a part of them, and neither are we.

Well, let's see how it all ends.