Suzanne Collins is set to enrich the Hunger Games universe with her latest novel, The Sunrise on the Reaping.
This announcement comes nearly four months after the bestselling author confirmed she was working on a prequel that delves into the origin story of Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark’s mentor, Haymitch Abernathy.
The novel’s cover features a striking purple background, adorned with a gold songbird and snake facing each other in an open horseshoe design. Golden spikes rise behind them, symbolizing a sunrise.
David Levithan, Scholastic’s vice president and editorial director, remarked on the cover’s significance, stating, “The spiky sun rises on a symbol that will come to mean a lot to Haymitch Abernathy, as well as countless readers.”
The Sunrise on the Reaping is scheduled for release on March 18, 2025. A quote from the narrator, Haymitch Abernathy, has been revealed: “They will not use my tears for their entertainment.”
The book’s official description provides further insight into Haymitch’s struggles. It reads: “When you’ve been set up to lose everything you love, what is there left to fight for?”
Back in District 12, Haymitch is trying to navigate his precarious situation, focused solely on making it through the day and being with the girl he loves.
The narrative will explore the 50th Quarter Quell, where Haymitch is forced to compete against a larger pool of tributes—two female and male tributes from each district.
When Haymitch’s name is called, the description reveals, “He can feel all his dreams break,” as he is separated from his loved ones and sent to the Capitol alongside three other District 12 tributes: a close friend who is like a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the town’s most arrogant girl.
While the identities of other characters in Sunrise on the Reaping have yet to be disclosed, fans may recall from Catching Fire that Katniss mentions Maysilee Donner, a friend of her mother, who was also reaped that year.
During the Games, it is hinted that Haymitch and Maysilee will form an alliance, though their relationship prior to the arena remains uncertain.
“As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he’s been set up to fail,” the description concludes. “But there’s something in him that wants to fight—and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena.”
In discussing her inspiration for this latest installment, which follows both the original Hunger Games trilogy and the prequel The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Collins explained, “With Sunrise on the Reaping, I was inspired by David Hume’s idea of implicit submission and, in his words, ‘the easiness with which the many are governed by the few.’ The story also lent itself to a deeper dive into the use of propaganda and the power of those who control the narrative. The question ‘Real or not real?’ seems more pressing to me every day.”
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