Koushun Takami - Battle Royale
I just finished reading the newest translation of battle royale and I am genuinely obsessing over how amazing the whole book was from start to finish.
the hunger games series was essentially my favourite of all time (wasn't a huge reader up until the last few months), however I think this book sort of made it look like child's play lol. the hunger games is superior in world building and lore, however in pretty much every other aspect - battle royale takes the cake.
600+ pages went by faster than any other book i've read. i could NOT put it down. some of the chapters are so short, which made it super easy to just keep reading. the deaths throughout were beautifully yet tragically written, and the author did such a great job at keeping you guessing what would come next. there were a million twists and turns throughout the book, however i never really saw any of them coming until reading the page before. i'm just so shocked at how amazing this was. perhaps my first 10/10 book ever???? genuinely no notes lol.
if you are thinking about reading it, my only suggestion would be 1. for the first few chapters, don't get caught up trying to remember everyones name + backstory. it will be impossible. 2. (what i wish i did most) MAKE A LIST of all the students, and just jot down basic info about them. if they died, write down something memorable about them + how they died/who killed them. the author references them many times throughout and a lot of the names are quite similar so i found myself going back to double check i was thinking of the right person. they also are referred to as their first AND last name so it can be a bit confusing especially at the beginning/middle. you will really appreciate having the list lol.
all in all. if you haven't read this book, get it NOW. if you loved the hunger games, there is absolutely no way you won't love this book.