Warning: There are spoilers ahead for Sunrise on the Reaping.The Hunger Games timeline. This is true both in District 12 and in the Capitol, where he is only one of 48 tributes chosen to fight to the death during the 50th Hunger Games, known as the second Quarter Quell.

Part of what makes the novel an equally engrossing and devastating story is its ability to get the reader invested in many of the other tributes who have to die before returning Hunger Games characters, the newcomers are still able to stand out. The best new characters are the ones who have rewarding character development, distinct personalities, and a satisfying conclusion to their stories.

10 Magno Stift

District 12's Stylist Is A Far Cry From Cinna

Magno Stift is the stylist who is assigned to District 12 for the second Quarter Quell. He is nothing like Cinna, the innovative and comionate District 12 stylist who creates stunning and deeply meaningful outfits for Katniss Everdeen to wear during the 74th and 75th Hunger Games. By the time of the second Quarter Quell, Magno has been District 12's stylist for years and dresses the tributes in the same coal miner's outfits every time. In addition to being lazy, he does not view the tributes as people, and does not show them any comion.

Even by the standards of the Capitol, Magno's personal fashion sense is seen as extreme. He enjoys wearing live reptiles, including snake earrings, and does not care that such fashion has been banned. He has a distinct personality and embodies the problematic lifestyle and attitudes of the Capitol's citizens. That being said, he is less compelling than other new characters because his main purpose is simply to be incompetent so that Effie Trinket can step in and help the District 12 tributes.

9 Drusilla Sickle

She Is Effie Trinket's Predecessor

Before Effie, it is Drusilla Sickle who was assigned to District 12 to preside over the reaping and to escort them around the Capitol. While Effie is naive, she is not intentionally cruel. The same cannot be said for Drusilla, who slaps one of the other District 12 tributes, Maysilee Donner, when she is offended by her comments. Drusilla then proceeds to repeatedly beat Maysilee, and Plutarch Heavensbee has to intervene to get Drusilla to stop.

In the Capitol, Drusilla does not prove to be any kinder, and continues to be cruel and dismissive toward the tributes. Her feud with Magno, who is revealed to be her husband, is entertaining. Her reactions to Maysilee's comments about her appearance and fashion also expose the insecurities that lie beneath the powerful facade of the Capitol and citizens. While this does provide valuable insight into the people of the Capitol, like Magno, Drusilla does not have an arc, and she largely exists so Effie can pick up the pieces of her incompetence.

8 Ma

Haymitch's Mother Has Raised Her Sons Well

Haymitch's mother, referred to as Ma, is a resourceful and loving woman. She has learned how to get by with minimal resources and has created the best life possible for her sons, Haymitch and Sid. As seen in the Sunrise on the Reaping excerpt, which is part of the book's first chapter, she is committed to making birthdays and holidays feel special for her children despite having so little. This means the treat of corn bread and a special sauce in celebration of Haymitch's birthday.

Even though she is absent for most of the book, she weighs heavily on Haymitch's mind. The wasteful opulence of the Capitol is even more jarring for Haymitch in contrast with his mother's frugal and resourceful lifestyle. He also thinks frequently about what watching the Games must be like for her and how much he wants to see her again, which makes her death all the more horrific. She is ranked lower due to not having as much development as other individuals, but she is still a deeply effective character.

7 Sid Abernathy

Haymitch's Younger Brother Was Too Good For The Hunger Games' World

Just as Katniss has a younger sister, Prim, who she loves fiercely and would do anything for, there is a similar dynamic between Haymitch and his younger brother, Sid. The first lines of the book, a happily uttered "Happy birthday, Haymitch!" are spoken by Sid. He is Haymitch's "rooster" by waking his older brother up early on his birthday as was requested. Sid and Haymitch do not get to share many scenes together, but the scenes they do have show how much Sid looks up to and adores him.

At 10 years old, Sid is a younger and more impressionable character, which means that Haymitch often thinks about the impact that his absence and his time in the Hunger Games is having on his little brother. Sid is a refreshingly cheerful and optimistic character in a bleak world. He is ranked lower since the reader does not get to learn much more about him after Haymitch is sent to the Capitol, but he works well for the story, and his death creates another tragic parallel between Haymitch and Katniss.

6 Louella McCoy

Her Death Puts Haymitch On President Snow's Radar

Louella McCoy is one of the two female tributes chosen during the District 12 reaping. She is a sweet girl who has a good rapport with Haymitch, and the two of them plan to be allies in the arena. They never get the opportunity to make their alliance a reality, as Louella is one of the first major deaths in Sunrise on the Reaping. During the tribute parade, she is thrown from the District 12 chariot due to a firework that is set off, and she is killed in the ensuing chaos.

President Coriolanus Snow fatally poisons the parade master, Incitatus Loomy, due to this incident occurring during the parade.

In an act of defiance, Haymitch places Louella's body at the gates of President Snow's mansion during the parade. He goes a step further by making a show of clapping for President Snow and making it clear that he blames the dictator for Louella's death. This is a pivotal moment in the story, with Haymitch openly rebelling against the Capitol, and being the impetus for all the ways President Snow goes on to torment and punish him. Louella is a likable and important character, but her story is cut short before she can become more developed.

5 Wyatt Callow

The District 12 Tribute Has A Unique Talent

Wyatt Callow is the other male tribute from District 12. Despite the vast number of individuals who have been in The Hunger Games books at this point, Wyatt is unlike any character who has been introduced before. He is the son of one of the Booker Boys, a group who place bets on events ranging from dogfights to the Hunger Games. Because of this, Wyatt has an unparalleled ability to accurately calculate the odds of any scenario.

Due to the reputation of Wyatt's father, Haymitch initially distrusts and looks down on him, but Wyatt proves to be an incredibly loyal individual who sacrifices himself protecting Lou Lou in the arena. Dying so early on in the Games is genuinely shocking after all the time spent with his character beforehand. He is a truly unique character who shows why a person should not be judged on their family's choices, and he probably would have been ranked even higher if he had lasted in the Games longer.

4 Lenore Dove

Haymitch's Girlfriend Stands Up For What She Believes In

Lenore Dove is Haymitch's girlfriend and is reminiscent of Lucy Gray Baird in ways that are both beautiful and tragic. Just like Lucy, Lenore is a member of the Covey who is free-spirited and bold, and she is even part of the Baird ancestry. She is unafraid to defy the Capitol, from telling the Peacekeepers to let Woodbine Chance's mother have his body to defacing the Capitol's propaganda with orange paint. Lenore is also connected to the arts, including her name being rooted in an Edgar Allan Poe poem.

There is genuine love between Haymitch and Lenore, and when they say, "I love you like all-fire," to each other, it feels sincere, as does the inscription she leaves on Haymitch's flint striker.

There is genuine love between Haymitch and Lenore, and when they say, "I love you like all-fire," to each other, it feels sincere, as does the inscription she leaves on Haymitch's flint striker. This makes Lenore's death especially devastating, with Haymitch unable to save her from the poisoned gumdrops Snow ensured she would find. The story primarily taking place in the Capitol means that the reader does get to know her as well as some other characters, but this does not diminish anything about her character.

3 Lou Lou

She Is A Victim Of The Capitol's Cruelty

Unwilling to let the world know that Louella had died before the second Quarter Quell even started, she is replaced by another girl, with the Capitol pretending that she is the same person. This girl, who Haymitch and the other District 12 tributes call Lou Lou, has been brainwashed by the Capitol and has a device implanted in her ear that can be used to hurt her if she says something she is not supposed to say. Even though she has endured unimaginable horrors and is meant to be a pawn who cannot think for herself, she defies the Capitol.

Beyond simple defiance, she reclaims some of her agency, and forms authentic connections with the other District 12 tributes even though she is not one of them, and is seemingly from District 11. One of the best scenes is Lou Lou feeling empowered by the live snake she gets from Magno during the tribute interviews, along with her moments of clarity when she shouts, "You'll murder us" repeatedly at the Capitol citizens. Lou Lou makes a strong impact, but there are two new characters who leave an even stronger impression.

2 Ampert Latier

Beetee's Son Tries To Defy The Odds

Ampert is one of District 3's male tributes and is the son of Beetee, who is a former Hunger Games winner. Beetee's rebellious acts against the Capitol are punished by his son being intentionally reaped for the second Quarter Quell. Nevertheless, Ampert is enthusiastic, kind, and courageous. He is meant to remind Haymitch of Sid, much like how Rue reminds Katniss of Prim during the 74th Hunger Games. It is largely through Ampert and Beetee that Haymitch sees a chance of stopping the Capitol by sabotaging the Games and creating a better world.

Ampert is a beacon of light, and he retains his optimism both before and during the Games despite his bleak situation. Of course, the Capitol cannot allow someone like him to live, which leads to Ampert being Sunrise on the Reaping's most gruesome death. He is a delightful character in his own right, but he is also fundamental to Haymitch's arc, and makes Beetee's backstory even more heartbreaking. The only new character better than Ampert is one who survives longer and gets even more development.

1 Maysilee Donner

She Surprises Haymitch In More Ways Than One

Maysilee Donner has been mentioned in previous books, but she can still be considered a new character since Sunrise on the Reaping is her first appearance, and it is the story where she is truly fleshed out. Haymitch's initial perception of Maysilee is that she is an entitled individual who thinks she is better than everyone else. It does not take long for Haymitch to realize that he had misjudged her and to see that she has far more depth than he realized. She and Haymitch not only become allies, but they develop a bond akin to a brother and sister.

From standing up to Drusilla to not letting anyone talk down to her or her allies, Maysilee is unafraid to mince words, and refuses to let others define her worth. Further weight is added to her arc with her role in the backstory of the mockingjay pin that will go on to become a powerful symbol of defiance against the Capitol. Maysilee's character traits and her actions cement her as the best new character in Sunrise on the Reaping.