This. Was. Awesome. 
 The Hunger Games, but with only one tribute vs. the entire rest of the f*$%ed up world. 
 Ben Richards' entire future depends on him winning the free-vee show "The Running Man". He is unfiltered, unapologetic, and cynical to the max. I've never read a Stephen King book before, and if this is what they are all like, then I should read them more often. His writing style is amazing. I loved The Hunger Games more than I should, but King's style of writing blows my beloved YA obsession out of the water. One of my favorite lines from the book: 
 "The apartment was haunted by the ghost of long-departed cabbage." 
 I saw the ending coming, but it's what I wanted to happen, so I was ok with it. I was rooting for Ben Richards the whole time, liking his desperate and unforgiving character. 
 THIS is how a dystopian novel should feel. Dark. Hopeless. And hopeful. I'm considering my next book very carefully. I don't dare pick up a YA dystopian with minimal world building and love triangles. No, that won't be doing it any favors. I must keep this on my shelf for a re-read at some point.