Sunrise on the Reaping, authored by New York Times bestselling author Suzanne Collins, was released on March 18, 2025. It is the second prequel novel to the original dystopian series, The Hunger Games.

It’s set during the 50th Hunger Games, also known as the second Quarter Quell, 24 years before the original trilogy. Every Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes are placed in the games. The protagonist, Haymitch Abernathy, a 16-year-old tribute from District 12, gets wrongfully put into the Hunger Games. 

The novel delves into his experience in the games and portrays these particular games as much more brutal than the past Hunger Games. Collins illustrates the themes of propaganda, censorship, and violence, giving readers a perfectly curated dystopian world. Readers connect deeply with the characters. One fan on GoodReads stated that, “I honestly have no words to describe this masterpiece. It was honestly so good, like it’s been days since I finished it, and I’m still hungover from this book”. The novel contains many parallels with the original trilogy as well as the first prequel, further exciting fans.

It was announced that a film adaptation of the novel will be released in theatres by November 20, 2026. The cast of Sunrise on the Reaping so far includes Joseph Zada as Haymitch Abernathy, Whitney Peak as Lenore Dove Baird, and McKenna Grace as Maysilee Donner.

If you haven’t already, I deeply recommend reading this book, but I recommend that you read the past Hunger Games books before so the plot makes more sense.