The 5th Wave

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.

El tema de aliens es tan trillado que no esperaba gran cosa de este libro... pero supo sorprenderme!

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.

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!

Good idea...poorly executed. I suspect the movie will be infinitely more popular, with the producer taking liberties to correct plot holes and other story line issues.

FANTASTIC. GREAT. INCREDIBLE. If only I could find one mistake on it... it's perfect: the way it is written, the characters, the phrases, the humor, the action.... Seriously, I found no mistakes. READ IT ‘CAUSE IT WORTHS TIME READING IT

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.

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.

J'ai un étrange rapport à La 5e Vague, d'un côté je l'ai dévoré à toute vitesse et vraiment apprécié, d'un autre côté je l'ai trouvé extrêmement prévisible (enfin, du genre à prouvoir prévoir à 50 pages ce qui allait se passer). Ce qui m'embête aussi ces derniers temps c'est ce besoin systématique de transformer tout roman YA en trilogie obligatoire (dans l'espoir d'une adaptation ciné ?), alors que l'histoire ne semble pas à ce point aller en profondeur.

Le personnage de Cassie est par contre super intéressant, sur beaucoup de points elle me rappelait Katniss de Hunger Games, dans sa façon de se battre, de ne pas laisser tomber, de ne faire confiance à personne et d'essayer d'avancer malgré tout POUR VAINCRE LES PIEGES DES HUNGER GAMES AUTRES. Les débuts avec Evan sont aussi extrêmement drôles et ne font que la rendre attachante. Le problème reste vraiment dans le « squelette » du récit qui obéit un peu à tous les classiques de la dystopie YA (mais plutôt Hunger Games que Divergente. Oui je déteste Divergente. Non je n'en parlerai pas).

Ici l'ennemi est invisible, insaisissable et pour le coup vraiment surprenant mais je n'en dirai pas plus (non vous ne me forcerez pas, non je ne dirai rien ! RIEN !). Pour un premier tome, il arrive à capter l'attention et à rendre l'histoire suffisamment intéressante, mais sans vraiment donner envie de continuer plus en avant, il manque une sorte de cliff-hanger comme dans Le Labyrinthe qui donnerait vraiment envie de continuer la trilogie. Donc une bonne dystopie YA pour passer le temps, mais ne vous attendez pas non plus à des merveilles !

So I quite literally just finished this book and in all honestly I'm left in extreme wanting. The biggest reason for my four star rating has to do with the section of the book, “The Black Hole.”

The characters in this book seemed almost too over prepared for someone in their age group facing the end of the world. The constant POV changes were slightly confusing at times because I wasn't always sure who's part of the story I was reading until some very obvious hints gave it away. I throughly enjoyed Cassie, out of all the characters she really seemed to have the best grasp of what was going on. While I'm glad that Ben was reshaped, I slightly wished he didn't resurface. His presence doesn't really seem to make sense other than the fact that he's a love interest for Cassie and possibly Ringer. Why we were told the story from the POV of a five year old child seems odd to me, an extremely advanced five year to be exact. I would have spent more time with any of the other characters if I had the choice, I don't know like Evan. The short section that was dedicated to him was not enough at all.

Overall it was a great read and I will defiantly be picking up “The Infinite Sea” so I can find out where things go next. You will definitely have that review to look forward to.

„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.

Couldn't finish before it was due back at the library, and I didn't want to. It was a story I'd read before, just with aliens instead of zombies.

No entiendo mucho, leí tan buenas críticas sobre esta novela y que no era tanto Young Adult, sino mas Ciencia Ficción; y ahí voy de mensa a leerla. Termina cayendo en muchos de los clichés de la literatura YA. Este ser de otro planeta que después de matar a medio mundo ve a esta chica que es diferente y por supuesto lo cambia todo. Pero después de la casi extinción y ser de las últimas sobrevivientes, me imagino que algo te cambia.

Espero que no caiga en el tan recurrente triángulo amoroso entre el aburrido de Evan, Cassie y Ben, aunque al final me hace dudar. Como sea que Ben se quede con Hacha que me parece un personaje más interesante.

Me gusto el inicio y algo el final. La idea también me llamo la atención, las primeras olas sobre como deshacerse de la mayoría de las personas en la tierra me parecen bien: rápido y sencillo. Pero la quinta ola, que no mencionare cual es, se me hizo rebuscada y ridícula; no entiendo el para que tomarse tanta molestia.

Para pasar el rato, pero no es la gran cosa.

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

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 second half of the book was definitely the best. At first I was a little bored to be honest. There were so many descriptions and not much happened. But then, piece by piece, the story revealed itself and every now and then a new revelation would make me go “Oh... OH!”. And that's when I know it's a good book. I can't wait to see what the author does next!

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.

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

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.

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.

THIS WAS SO GOOD. SO. GOOD.

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.

This is the way the world ends. Not with a bang but a bitch slap. Yancy gives us dystopia by throwing it all at us: aliens, illness, and tsunamis all at once.

I went into this with high, high hopes. And it is not because of the press machine which has been shoving this book down our throats for months. It was because 1. I read and LOVED The Monstrumologist and 2. I am all about aliens right now. Maybe it's the return of Falling Skies. Maybe it's because I am deathly sick of zombies, vampires, and the fae. Anyway, the point is, I couldn't put this down. No, it's not perfect and I suspect that had I read Ender's Game (don't judge!) I'd have even more to compare it to.

What's very right about this book: the characters. Yancy writes great characters, and so completely they could be your best friends by the end of the book. The plotting-it's quick, quick, quick and for a big book, that's great. The sense of how strong kids really are. Kids in Yancy's books grow up quick and they are very strong but emotionally and physically (we knew all of this from Will Henry).
Here's what didn't work for me-the romance. There are some actual eye-roll inducing moments in here between Evan and Cassie that are so corny they ripped me right out of the story, made me gag, and then I had to jump back in. Also-stupid adults. Almost all of the adults in this story are useless. Not one conspiracy theorist survived the first 4 waves? They are trusting sheep. Thank goodness the kids have brains.
That's about it. Everything else was awesome, hence the 4 star review. I highly recommend it as a summer read. I know the sheer size of it will be off putting to some kids, but it moves fast. I think it's wrong to compare it to The Stand (there are not enough characters and the point of this story is not good vs evil, but what it means to be human), The Hunger Games, or any of the rest of the end of the world standbys.

Has some of the things I don't like about YA fiction (clumsy love triangles, a fascination with describing the flawless physical characteristics of love interests/rivals), but an otherwise captivating story. I read the first 250 pages or so in one sitting, stopping only because I had managed to wedge myself into an uncomfortable position in my chair. I don't really get much into YA fiction, and especially not YA series, but I'm really looking forward to reading the second book in this one.

Has some of the things I don't like about YA fiction (clumsy love triangles, a fascination with describing the flawless physical characteristics of love interests/rivals), but an otherwise captivating story. I read the first 250 pages or so in one sitting, stopping only because I had managed to wedge myself into an uncomfortable position in my chair. I don't really get much into YA fiction, and especially not YA series, but I'm really looking forward to reading the second book in this one.