Review: The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

Hi Birds!

I love me some post-apocalypse/dystopian novels so when I heard about The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey I had to get my hands on it. Fast forward a year and my lazy butt finally checked it out from the library.

Amazon.com Summary

RickYancey.com

After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.
Now, it's the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth's last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie's only hope for rescuing her brother Sam--or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.


What I Thought - A
This was a great example of a YA post-apocalyptic novel. The main character 16-year-old, Cassie Sullivan, is pretty much kick-ass. She's on her own in this world gone completely batsh*t crazy and she survives like a trooper. Under that kind of pressure, most people (myself included) would completely fall apart but Cassie thrives.

I liked that the book switched perspectives between Cassie, Evan, Sam and Cassie's other love interest, Ben. It helped round out the story and kept things exciting.

The waves were an interesting plot mechanic. They helped build a back story and also helped the reader feel the panic and desperation in Cassie's search to find her brother. The 5th wave was especially tricky and demoralizing for the human population. I kind of had an idea in the back of my mind about what the 5th wave was as soon as I saw who was in Ben's group at the base but the full plan was still pretty mind-blowing. The cliff-hanger ending was terrifying and paved the way for the sequel which comes out September 16 and is called The Infinite Sea.

Suggestions
If you have read this book and liked it, or if you're just interested in stuff that's similar, check out:

Books ~ The Passage by Justin Cronin, Swan Song by Robert R. McCammon, Dies the Fire by S.M. Stirling, School's Out Forever by Scott Andrews, Aftertime by Sophie Littlefield, Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry, The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

TV ~ Falling Skies, Defiance, Battlestar Galactica, Roswell

Movies ~ the Alien franchise, Independence Day, District 9, The Thing, Mars Attacks!, Invasion of the Body Snatchers 

COMMENT BELOW! Let me know if you've read The 5th Wave and what you thought of it!