The 5th Wave (Rick Yancey)

Title: The 5th Wave

Author: Rick Yancey

Publisher: Putnam

Length: 475

Rating: 4.5/5

Aliens appear in the sky one day, and in a series of four waves, humans are almost completely wiped out. In the dawn of the 5th wave, Cassie tries to stay alive to rescue her brother, who was taken by The Others, disguised as humans. She knows she can trust no one, and the first rule of survival is to stay alone. But then she meets Evan Walker, who may be her only chance to save her brother, and rescue herself. But can she trust him?

This book had a LOT of hype. I was worried I would be disappointed. But this book actually lived up to the hype!

Normally, post-apocalyptic alien stories are not my thing. They tend to get really violent, and really bleak, really fast. But Cassie’s honest and clear voice kept me reading until I was too hooked to be frightened off by a few human-shaped aliens. The history of the invasion is woven into the story, so that you discover each horror as you become more and more attached to the characters and story. The narrator jumping, while confusing at first, was yet another successful way of drawing me into the story.

I yelled at this book a lot. Mostly, NO NO NO NO DON’T DO THAT WHY ARE YOU DOING THAT, which shows you how invested I became in Cassie, and co surviving. Part thriller, part mystery, part love story, this book will grip you and not let you escape, even when the aliens finally reveal themselves. I barely escaped the 5th wave and I loved it.