REVIEW: The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

 

Keep your teddy bears close.

If you’re like me and are on a post-apocalyptic binge (à la ‘Walking Dead’), then The 5th Wave is the book for you. If you’re not like me and are not craving post-apocalyptic stories, then you should read The 5th Wave anyway because it’s just that awesome.

From the publisher:

The Passage meets Ender’s Game in an epic new series from award-winning author Rick Yancey.

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—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.

Seriously. This was one of the best books I read this year. It’s been a while since I read a book that grabbed me by my hair and refused to let go (Don’t worry, it didn’t hurt). And I tried to let go. I had to study for finals and that proved to be a difficult task because I just couldn’t get this book out of my head.

When I picked this book up, I was expecting something a bit like ‘War of the Worlds’ and couldn’t get Tom Cruise’s face out of my head (and that en’t a good thing). Fortunately, this book was nothing like that. Rick Yancey has an amazing talent of bringing the main character, Cassie, to life. Listening to Cassie speak and tell the story is like sitting across the campfire from a really good friend who has a legit knack for telling stories. In some cases, she seems very flippant about the alien invasion to the point where you almost want to laugh at them. But then in the next second, when she’s on the run, all you can think is “WE NEED TO GET THE HECK OUT OF HERE!”

Yes. When she’s running, you’re running. This book sort of makes you feel like a scared rabbit who’s about to poop his pants every other page.

The pacing and suspense is spot on as are the characters and the questions they leave you with. It’s worth noting that Cassie isn’t the only narrator of this story. The others have equally distinct voices that draw you in with just as addicting story arcs.

All in all, I give The 5th Wave an A+

The second installment in the series, The Infinite Sea, is scheduled for a September 16th, 2014 release (WAAHHH!!).

Keep your teddy bears close.

An A+ book!

4.8
Plot
Characters
Writing
Theme/Message

The pacing and suspense is spot on as are the characters and the questions they leave you with.

Saul Marquez founded Bookstacked in 2014 and serves as the site's Editor-in-Chief. He primarily covers news for Bookstacked. He also co-hosts Bookmarked: A YA Book Podcast.

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