The 5th Wave

I really enjoyed this book.
It was definitely a teen book with teeny-bopper romance with possibly overpowered kids. That didn't stop it from being a really fun and thrilling. I greatly enjoyed this as an adult, but the 16 year old me would have read it all in one sitting and then re-read it at least once more.

Thank you again Penguin Books at SDCC.

THIS WAS SO GOOD. SO. GOOD.

Eh, it was alright. I think I'm just getting to old for these YA novels.

Sloppy.

This is one of those books that switches perspectives between different characters periodically. The audiobook uses two different readers, which helps narrow down whose section you're in. The main two perspectives are the Girl and the Boy.

We start with the Girl and miles of flashbacks. I found Girl tedious. She's not accomplishing anything, just surviving and emoting about how much her situation sucks. About twenty percent through the book, it abruptly switches to Boy, which feels weird by then. But Boy actually does stuff and learns stuff about the situation. He interacts with people! I don't usually read male perspective YA books but this time it's way better. There are a couple other perspectives in small doses.

The story is okay but there's zero conclusion at the end of the first book (typical YA trilogy style).

4.25. I have been hesitant to read this book for a few years now, all because the idea of aliens attacking our planet terrifies me. But, desiring to take a break from a Game of Thrones and actually finish a book in 2016, I decided to grab this book of my shelf and read it before the movie is released later this week.

I am glad to say that I was pleasantly surprised with the book. I liked the characters, I liked the struggles they faced, and I loved the action-packed ending. I couldn't give it a full five stars because aliens do still scare me, but I'm excited to carry on with series.

I devoured this book in less than a day, and I found it quite entertaining. The book moves at an interesting pace, with the first 3/4 of the book building and the last 1/4 moving at an insane speed. I tend to like books that alternate narrators (like this one does), and I think Yancey did it well despite the complexity.

I had a suspicion about where the book was going once additional characters were introduced, but it didn't make me like it any less. I've already reserved the next book in the series, The Infinite Sea, from the library. This is a great book to pick up on a flight delay in the airport, to bring to the beach, or to get back into reading after a dry spell.

This definitely lived up to all the hype for me. I love Rick Yancey's world and storytelling. I enjoyed learning about the aliens and what was going on in the world from both Cassie and Ben's perspectives. There are a lot of intricacies related to the aliens and what they are trying to do.

And while I knew eventually Cassie, Evan, Sammy, and Ben would meet up. I like the way that it actually comes about. I also appreciated how we didn't found out who was human vs. Other until towards the end, and even then, we don't know everything.

The concept is pretty cool. It's a bit too stylistically like other attractive teens save the world from some disaster type movies and books that are out there. That said, I'm interested enough to read the next two.

Awesome book

This was a great alien sci/fi book. The characters and the world were intriguing. You are always wanting to know what is happening and then it moving to someone else's point of view. But the point of views were confusing at first and I was confused at first till I looked it up.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. It was recommended to me by a friend and based on her description it sounded like just another YA dystopian story along the lines of Maze Runner, Hunger Games, Divergent, etc.... I'll admit that I enjoyed those for what they were and gave this one a shot because of that.

The first thing I noticed when I started reading this was that it's not necessarily a book intended for a YA audience. Sure, it has all the elements YA fiction, but the language was an immediate tip-off that this isn't meant for kids. Also, much to my delight, I found that the story was much darker than the recent influx of YA dystopian stories.

I enjoyed it more than I thought I would and I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

For a YA novel, I really enjoyed it! The story was well written, intriguing and suspensful.

„I am a shark, Cassie”, he says slowly, drawing the words out, as if he might be speaking to me for the last time. Looking into my eyes with tears in his, as if he's seeing me for the last time. „A shark who dreamed he was a man.”

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book. The beginning was so strong. There was mystery, suspense. I was enjoying the plot and the characters. But halfway through the book, the pacing changed, the suspense evaporated and Cassie started getting on my nerves. I can't bring myself to give a lower rating even though, with a few exceptions, the rest of the book was quite mediocre. Probably because I'm still under the influence of the those first chapters.

Pros:

I was intrigued by plot. I'm a big fan of post-apocalyptic scenarios and I though this one was quite gripping. I enjoyed the flashbacks of the world before and during the invasion. Still, I would have loved to read more about each wave. These weren't featured enough. I loved Cassie, the Cassie from the first half of the book. That girl was strong-willed, witty and easy to empathize with. She was what we call as kick-ass heroine. I connected with her.

I thought the writing was great, but this fact became quite irrelevant when I started to get frustrated with the story.I did enjoy the part about Zombie's relationship with Nugget.

I enjoyed Evan's character, with a few reservations that I will be mentioning in the cons. He's gentle, caring, sweet, mysterious and awkward. He goes against his nature because he wants to embrace his humanity. And because he wants to save the girl.ConsCassie's brains and personality get scrambled after she “falls in love” so she gets a bit boring and frustrating by the end.

The romance could have been so much better. My chip with it is that it was rushed. Yancey could have let it develop more slowly, maybe even leave it alone until the next book. That first kiss took place way too early. I was also put off by the stalking vibe, that was unnecessary and creepy. Evan had a great potential as a character, but he's not fleshed out enough. There's something magnetic about the him, but not the part of him that's obsessed with Cassie. His struggles to choose sides should be the main focus, but it's all sacrificed for the sake of keeping the “romantic suspense” around him and Cassie. Oh, and the truth about who Evan really is, I totally saw that coming.

I hated that Cassie's dad died. He was very interesting and would have loved to see more of them together.I also like the idea of different POVs, but I was not crazy
about how the POVs were executed in this book. I'm not crazy about Ben as a character, so I just wanted to read more from Cassie's account. I also thought that Sammy's section was unnecessary.

Yes, I didn't like Ben. I didn't hate him, but I could not care less about him. I also don't understand why someone would swoon over him for years. Why is he so swoon worthy? I wanted to read about things that would explain why he's that amazing boy. I felt sorry for what happened with his sister but I still couldn't like him.I have a feeling the author is going to turn this into the most predictable love triangle. Which is totally frustrating and unnecessary. Not sure if the he intends to pull a 180 and make Evan, the “bad guy”, opposed to him, the “good guy”. Don't know if it's a “Hunger Games” kind of triangle or an “Everneath” one. But even if the latter were the case, when the “bad guy” is more appealing than the “good guy”, we have a weak male lead on our hands.

I usually root for the „good guys”, for the sidekick best friend who has been friend-zoned and I get really annoyed when the girl ends up with the boring, shallow, handsome, rich guy or the annoying, douchey “bad boy”. I'm also not a fan of creepy, obsessive, violent types like what's-his-name in “Hush, Hush”, Daniel Grigori in “Fallen” or Travis in “Beautiful Disaster”. But if Rick Yancey is going to take the very predictable road of making Evan turn evil and have Cassie choose between Ben and Evan, I would still pick Evan over Ben.

What unbelievable odds that Sammy ended up in Zombie's care.Vosch is too much like President Snow.

Additionally, after “Divergent” and “Legend”, I'm getting pretty tired of all the super strong, can't-be-hurt-by-bullets prodigy teens that spike the interest of military organizations and get trained and turned into killing machines.If the aliens are that smart why don't they just wipe everyone all at once?

Also, why did the author have to make the connections between the characters so predictable? Why? Why? Why couldn't we find out who the Silencer is until the very end? Why did we have to know that Cassie had a major crush on Ben in high-school? Why couldn't we find out until they both met again while trying to rescue her brother, why?The alien invasion plot seemed so interesting from the synopsis, but, again, halfway through the book it takes a back seat for angst. It was exciting not knowing what they wanted and what their plan was. But then, the author just blurts out everything. He gives ample explanations about a lot of things that we didn't need to know yet. I wasn't satisfied with the aliens' motives either, it took out all the the horror and anticipation present in the first half of the book.

*I don't know much about the art of war, but something just didn't seem right after the 3rd wave. The aliens had no problem wiping out 97% of the human race, yet they had trouble killing the last few standing? Also, they tried to finalize this wipe out by using very convoluted methods that barely make sense.
____________

It might look that there are more cons than pros, but it was a good read, overall. It was engaging and I am excited about the next book. And it did have a few extremely awesome chapters.

3.5 rounded up
This book started out very strong and at first I was certain it was going to be a 5 star novel, that the hype was warranted, then I realized the movie wasn't entirely to blame for the things I found annoying. It's decently well written but too long for my tastes and having to follow a character that left me indifferent just wasn't the best experience.
Will I come back to read the rest of the series? I might stop there for fear that my least favourite YA trope (love triangle) might veer into cringe inducing territory.

I hate this book! I hate it! I haaaaaate it! Omg I love this book. I`ve never felt more helpless while reading a book than I have reading the 5th Wave. DON'T TRUST ANYONE! Now excuse me while I go weep in a corner somewhere.

I HAVE CONQUERED THIS BOOK. It was definitely a quick read (thank goodness because I wouldn't have finished it otherwise). I think the author could have easily take out a 100 words out of this book and it would have been a better read, that may not have helped me like the characters any better but it would have made it a better read.

lehet, hogy ez az öt csillag inkább annak szól, hogy az utóbbi idők pechszériája után végre sikerült kifognom egy igazán szórakoztató könyvet, mert közel sem volt tökéletes, de a kiszámíthatósága ellenére is lekötött és érdekeltek az egyes karakterek történetei.
van benne egy kicsit uncsibb rész a közepe táján, ráadásul nyilván az a leghosszabb, de összességében elég klassz volt.

(képtelen vagyok szó nélkül megállni, hogy olvastam egy végtelenül ostoba kritikát vagy inkább fröcsögést a vélemények között. ha valaki annyira buta, hogy nem bírja kitalálni, kinek a szemszögét olvassa éppen és az írót hülyézi le, amiért nem rágta azt a szájába, az tényleg inkább nézegessen képeskönyveket. hát de komolyan. nem azt mondom, hogy nem kell kicsit odafigyelni a fejezetek elején, de azért kettőnél több agysejttel már elég könnyen kibogozható.)

También en: El Extraño Gato del CuentoAliensEl único libro de aliens que leí fueron los dos primeros de la serie Obsidian y la verdad no me gustaron. Creo que esperaba de La Quinta Ola ser tan fresón como ese, los buenos comentarios o el fandom de un libro no son garantía de que un libro ses bueno o vaya a gustarme. Este libro no es nada como mi anterior experiencia aliénigena. Decidí leerlo en inglés porque las traducciones luego nos confunden quién es quién cuando el cast se va anunciando, es bastante sencillo de leer, por si buscan una lectura para empezar en inglés, The 5th Wave es una buena opción (a diferencia de The Inifinite Sea, pero de eso ya les hablaré luego).BookmarksEsta fue una de esas veces que mi libro está lleno, pero lleno de anotaciones, desde frases pequeñas, conversaciones, párrafos, cosas que solo entiendo de un modo personal. Es un libro sobre aliens, sobre como no han sido exactamente como ET pero de alguna manera lo sentí en muchos momentos un poco personal.Pros & ConsPros: Me encantó la voz de Cassie, es muy divertido leerla, es cínica, sincera, pasa por algunas cosas que la desvían y distraen de su meta pero al final nunca pierde la vista de su objetivo. Además que a diferencia de otros personajes distópicos, Cassie (o en este caso el escritor Rick Yancey) muestra el lado más real de una catástrofe: violencia y a veces egoísmo. Y hay dos frases que me gustaron aunque no son exactamente de importancia pero que para mí hicieron que The 5th Wave resaltará de muchas distopías conocidas: “Si voy a morir, voy a morir limpia” y “No habrá señal, pero llevo conmigo mi celular. Por que ya sabes, es mi celular”. Como dije, son frases muy superficiales, es sólo que a veces las distopías se me hacen tan ordenadas y arregladas (otro caso interesante de distopías que me gustó bastante por su realidad fue Not a Drop to Drink, por si estás interesado en otro tipo de distopía).Cons: En un momento cambia bruscamente de POV, no me gusta mucho eso, además de que no entendí porque exactamente se le llaman “Olas”. Si no hubiera leído The Infinite Sea, en contras pondría que a veces me fue no-creíble que los Extraterrestres se tomarán tanta molestia para hacer lo que hicieron y luego prácticamente parar y dejar algunos vivos, no tenía mucha lógica. Pero como dije, eso pondría eso si no hubiera leído The Infinite Sea.Una cosa curiosa que me pasó leyendo el libro es que, como sabes, el cast tiene a Chloë Grace Moretz como protagonista ¿y de qué otra adaptación recién estrenada famosa protagonizó Chloe? If I Stay. Durante todo el libro no pude dejar de pensar que en cierta manera se complementaban. El The 5th Wave tiene mucho flashbacks con Cassie, en Si Decido Quedarme también. Incluso en alguna parte dice exactamente “If I stay”, confieso que me reí como loca un buen rato xD Ya les fastidié el libro ¿verdad? ._. Culpen a los productoresLa Quinta Ola me gustó bastante, rápido de leer, incluso divertido de hacerlo (por lo general con Cassie), tiene personajes muy interesantes, escenas con acción y dolor. Solo espero que la trilogía no termine con cierto pequeñín sacado del mapa.Twitter   Blog   Pinterest   Tumblr   Instagram

Pros: horrifying invasion story, believable protagonists, compelling story

Cons:

For Parents: some swearing, kissing, the violence isn't graphic but there are child soldiers, executions, and murder

Cassie has survived the first 4 waves of the alien invasion: light's out, surf's up, pestilence and the silencer. Seven billion people didn't, including her mother and father. Her five year old brother was taken away in the 4th wave. Now she waits for the 5th wave and the courage to keep the promise she made to her brother, that she'd come after him.

This is a brutal invasion story. These aliens know how to wipe out humanity and do so in sweeping waves, each more destructive than the last. Through Cassie's eyes we learn about the 4 previous waves, and through her eyes, and those of a few other characters, we slowly learn what the 5th and final wave is.

There's a fair amount of violence, particularly when the child soldiers come into the picture. But it's violence that serves a purpose and isn't graphically portrayed. This is a book that questions humanity. What will humans do to survive? What makes you human in the first place? The book doesn't answer these questions, making it a great jumping point for discussion.

The characters are believable, falling apart under the pressures of the new world and picking themselves up again because doing otherwise means death. This makes the book difficult to put down. The writing is intense and while you may see the revelation that is the 5th wave coming, it doesn't stop it from being horrifying in its implications.

The ending is very tense, though I'm not sure I believe the kids could accomplish everything they do, and it ignores the larger picture. But it does give a good closure for the book.

I highly recommend it.

*2.5

the last 30% saved it for me tbh..

ps. the movie waz better in my opinion. Idk if i will continue in the series

There were two things that kept running through my mind: [a:Noah Hawley 381355 Noah Hawley http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1331915491p2/381355.jpg]'s [b:A Conspiracy of Tall Men 3278364 A Conspiracy of Tall Men Noah Hawley http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1267905617s/3278364.jpg 702833] and [a:Suzanne Collins 153394 Suzanne Collins http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1366212557p2/153394.jpg]' [b:The Hunger Games 2767052 The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games #1) Suzanne Collins http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1358275334s/2767052.jpg 2792775] (maybe you've heard of it). I'm not really suggesting that Yancey's created some sort of Hawley-Collins hybrid, but this affected me the same way those two did.I remember very little about Hawley's book (it was 1999, in my defense) – I remember enjoying it and being really creeped out and feeling paranoid. A feeling that lasted a little longer than the book, as I recall.I remember Collins better, obviously. And whatever issues and problems the first of Katniss' adventures had, it grabbed me by the throat and wouldn't let me go until well after the runaway freight train of a story had come to it's adrenaline-fueled conclusion.I really don't know how to discuss the story of The 5th Wave without spoiling the heck out of it. But I can tell you that it hit me like those two books did. The various storylines are gripping, and fast-paced and make you wish you could turn the pages faster. And once you get your brain wrapped around the devastation being unleashed on earth, the creepiness and paranoia are the order of the day.This isn't one of the better books I've read lately – in terms of character, craft, literary value, etc. – but it's just about the most effective and affecting. Hawley gets under your skin with the skill of a seasoned pro, makes your emotions and reactions dance like a marionette for him, and leaves you hungry for more. I have to admit, I miss the Yancey of Alfred Knopf and The Highly Effective Detective books – they just felt different. They were fun – as enjoyable as this is, it wasn't fun. And I liked the characters (most of them), wanted to spend time with them. Not so sure I like these characters as people. But, until Yancey gets around to it (if he does), I'll gladly take pulse-pounding excitement and mind-bendy plots.

More like 4.3 one section/chapter really bothered me and I had a few problems with it. It was also predictable and I was only surprised once and for a minor part. But overall really amazing book highly recommend it.

Eh, it was alright. I think I'm just getting to old for these YA novels.

4.7

I had an intense ‘reader's block' for almost a year and this is the first ~full~ novel I've ever finished ever since. I thought I'll never be able to finish another book because of that, but I'm glad I did. This is actually one of my goals by the end of the year - to get into reading again. Anyway, here's my review for this awesome book.

This book messed up my mind! I now understand the hype, the ranting and the raving, the hangover it causes once you finish it. There's a mixture of thoughts and emotions on me that I'm very unsure of. I have already read so many post-apocalyptic/alien novels and they're somewhat forgettable. But not this one. While reading, you just can't put it down. It's an absolute knock-out thriller that will make you not let go of the book.

Rick Yancey is a magnificent author, a great writer, and has a rare gift in storytelling. I love how he shifted the narrations between a few major characters because it works very well with this novel. To give you a little overview, Cassie and Ben are the primary narrators, with a chapter here and there from the POV of Cassie's little brother Sammy and also a stranger she meets named Evan. This really adds to the overall climax of the story, because as a reader, you hold a lot more pieces of the puzzle and you're just itching for them to find out things about a certain situation. There are also some twists in the story, that aren't much of a big reveal to the reader, but it really adds up to the tension.

What makes this book standout from other alien invasion tales is that the aliens never had an intention to damage nor destroy Earth. Since they need it so much, and instead of blowing stuff up, they find more sinister ways to exterminate humans. I don't want to give away too many plot details, but I have to say that the character development in this novel is absolutely splendid and the concept of the 5 “waves” is brilliant!

To sum it all up: The 5th Wave ended up being the type of book that I love and will be talking to people about for a couple of weeks or months. Excellent, compelling fast-paced story that kept me up all night just to finish it. It's a wonderful start to a series that I assume is only going to get better. I can't recommend this book enough. JUST DON'T MISS THIS ONE!