REVIEW: the fifth wave; 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.

the fifth wave is a post-apocalyptic dystopian novel about aliens. (yes, i know, that may be a huge turn-off for some people, but it’s honestly not that bad) the world has been invaded by aliens. during their grand entrance, the first wave, they snuffed out all forms of electricity: cars, phones, lamps, everything. in the second wave, every coastline was destroyed – people, houses, cities, all demolished. in the third wave, there was a horrible plague that spread through the people and killed 90% of the population. in the fourth wave, the people you once thought were humans are now Other. people turning on people; in conclusion, trust no one. what will the fifth wave bring? the story follows cassie sullivan, a completely ordinary teenage girl – until the aliens invaded. there’s so much more going on in this book, but spoilers.

in all actuality, the plot for this novel is kind of lacking. you shouldn’t read it for the storyline or plot; you should read it for the writing. rick yancey has a beautiful way of executing this story. you’ll see parallels between characters and repetition in sentences and phrases across the entire story. there are lots of metaphors and symbolism, as well. in a way, it reminds me of the fault in our stars where every sentence means something. some novels are based completely on the plot and characters. the fifth wave, however, has both the plot and writing that makes it it.

i bought this ebook around a year or so ago, and picked up soon after. i read a few chapters and couldn’t get myself to continue; i had to stop. the beginning is very hard to get through. unless you’re really motivated to read this book, you’ll probably put it down at some point and maybe pick it up again. it’s very confusing and the world is just so weird (aliens! what?!) i’m trying to tell you: try to get through the first half. it’s one of those books that are way better after you finish it. about a third of the way through, you’ll realize how awesome this book is. after you finish, you’ll feel so satisfied because everything wraps up really nicely and just makes sense. but at the same time, you’re wondering, ‘what’s next?’ ‘but what about..?’ ‘i need the next book.’ (annndddd.. over-using the italics. sorry!)

honestly, the world was not built very well. (clearly because i had to stop because i was so confused) i’m not sure if it’s because i wasn’t fully paying attention, but i was confused 75% of the time. there were also many parts that were so slow. i wanted to stop (again) and never pick it up. one of the only reasons why i kept reading was because of his writing style. so good.

i love cassie’s sarcastic humor. i love how, even in the midst of an alien invasion, she’s still a teenage girl. reading from her point of view is always fun because it’s like you’re actually in her head. you follow her train of thought and go on the rollercoaster of her emotions. although cassie has her fun parts, she’s also very annoying and frustrating. actually most of the characters are annoying. they’re not completely unbearable, but they’re not very likeable. i feel like i can’t trust anyone and i don’t know if they’re lying or..

considering it took me so long to finish, i would give it 8.1/10 ✩s. the writing and pacing was really good, but the characters, plot, and honestly, everything else, was just meh. i feel like i would enjoy it a lot more if i re-read the book. (mostly because i know what’s going on now) i will read the second book, and i’m excited to see where it goes!

xoxo,

alexandra

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