I'll admit, it took me a while to warm up to this book. I think I spent the first 50 or so pages just kind of slogging through. Things were kind of annoying and cliched and a bit contrite, but then something changed. I picked up the book again for something to do and found myself reading 120 pages at a time. Without it feeling like a chore. 
 I think it was the shift away from "wah-wah Katniss' life is so hard" to this sense that something bigger was going on. While the romance aspect of the novel is still its weakest point, in my opinion, it was interesting to watch Katniss change and evolve. To move to a different way of thinking, to protecting Peeta even at the cost of her own life. 
 And I really enjoyed the juxtaposition that went on with the lead up to the Games this time. It really felt different. Because we knew, as Katniss did, what was really going on. And with nothing to lose and a devil-may-care attitude, there were some interesting "screw yous" to Capitol. 
 I'm not going to lie and say I didn't see the ending coming, but I will admit to still being excited about where this was going. I wanted a grander scope in the first book, and I'm happy that's the plotline I'm getting. (And again, I rushed out to immediately request "Mockingjay" from the library.)