Battle Royale - Koushun Takami

Stumbled across this on my beloved Library Sale shelves, and knew it was something of a precursor (maybe you could call it an ancestor) of The Hunger Games, so I picked it up. You can definitely see where Suzanne Collins may have gotten the original idea for her series from this book, although her series is not at all a carbon copy. (Side note - do people still use this reference now that carbon copies are not often used?) A violent story set in a dystopian Japan, I enjoyed this fast-paced quick reading brick of a novel, and I must say, despite not being a huge horror fan, I would like to see the movie based on this someday. If you're a fan of contemporary horror authors you will most likely enjoy this book. Recommended (but not necessarily for the faint of heart).