4,5 stars from me. 
 I read it pretty much in two sittings both into the middle of the night. It is really a page-turner. The book was thrilling but never scary and not gratuitous about the violence. 
 I'm guessing that the hunger games are inspired by ancient Rome's arena games. 
 All in all, I really enjoyed the book. It was thrilling and engaging and highly entertaining. It was really a page-turner! I liked Katniss as a character most of the time and I thought most of her relationships were really interesting. And I am a sucker for survival fiction. 
 Read the full review here: http://wp.me/p40HVI-dW