Review – The 5th Wave (The 5th Wave, Book 1) by Rick Yancey (5/5 stars)
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Post-Apocalyptic/Dystopia
Length: 512 pages
Publisher: Speak
Release Date: February 10, 2015
ISBN-13: 978-0142425831
Stand Alone or Series: 1st book in the 5th Wave series
Source: Bought
Rating: 5/5 stars
“After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the luckyescape. 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.”
This is the first book in The 5th Wave trilogy. I really enjoyed this book and found it very entertaining and engaging. I had read Yancey’s Monstrumologist book prior to this one (which I enjoyed…not sure why I never went back and finished that series).
This book is creative, intense, and very well done. It kept me intrigued and involved the whole book. It’s a blend of post-apocalyptic survival and alien invasion that is really well done. The book is told in sections that jump between a number of different characters. Mostly we hear from Cassie and Ben; but occasionally from Cassie’s younger brother Sam or from Evan.
Overall I really enjoyed this story; it was fast-paced and engaging. I would definitely recommend if you enjoy post-apocalyptic and alien themes. Parts of it remind me a bit of Stephenie Meyer’s The Host; however it would be a disservice to this book to compare it to TheHost (which was awful).
This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– Mount TBR Reading Challenge
– You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge
– YA Reading Challenge