Book Review: The 5th Wave.

Title: The 5th Wave.
Author: Rick Yancey.
Series: Yes, #1.
Pages: 457.
Source: Purchased.
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile.
Published Date: may 7 2013.
Links:
Goodreads.
Barnes and Noble.

Summary:

"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."

Cover:

I absolutely love the cover! I think it so pretty that way the sun actually shines through the tree branches when you hold it against the light. Beautiful! If you have the chance I would recommend buying it in hardback, it looks amazing.

My Thoughts:

If you've read other reviews on The 5th Wave, like I have, than you might've realized that there have been a few controversial reviews; some minds blow, while others were bored. And that many people are getting tired of the dystopian genre in YA, but I'm nowhere near that point, and I was dying to read The 5th Wave!

Some books do sit on my shelf for a while before I finally get to reading them, but this book wasn't one of those...and I have no regrets pushing it to the top of TBR..I actually recommend doing that!

Seventeen year old Cassie, short for Cassiopia, is living in a destroyed world. Since the Others have arrived nothing has been the same, her normal life doesn't seem to matter anymore. What she did in school, Ben, who she was crushing on doesn't matter anymore. Cassie seems to have lost everything. The Others are aliens, who have arrived months ago, and trying to exterminate the human race. So far four waves have hit, and billions of people have died.

1st wave: kills half a million people.
2nd wave: earthquakes and tidal waves, killing billions.
3rd wave: Red Death.

Cassie hasn't seen another human in weeks, and strongly believes she's the only person left on earth. She lost her mother to the third wave, her brother was taken to a "safe" place by soldiers, and her father was later shot and murdered by those same soldiers. With a gun, her journal, and Sammy's stuffed bear in hand, Cassie is willing to go the distance to get her baby brother back.

After getting off the bus, Sammy and the rest of the kids are divided into two sections. While one group is taken away, Sammy's group is sat down, and given instructions. He was asked questions and given a shot in the back of his neck. Sammy was at a child military base; child soldiers seemed to be the human race's future. But Sammy did meet Zombie, a boy named Ben...to help him through.

After weeks of traveling alone, Cassie is saved by a farmer boy named Evan. While her heart is set out to find Sammy, Evan does start to take her mind of the world falling down around her. Evan offers to travel with Cassie and help her find Sammy.

But Evan doesn't seem to be who Cassie thought he was. Sammy isn't in a "safe" place, like the soldier promise Cassie, and the only way to get him is to break into the academy and ultimately destroy it.

Cassie was that bad ass chick, I look and hope for in every dystopian novel! She's overcome so much, and is still keeping her head up. She is traveling alone, and sleeping with a gun. Cassie was so strong, and I know that I would never be able to do the things that she did.

Some other characters that were featured in The 5th Wave were Sammy, Ben, and Evan. Sammy is Cassie's six year old brother, who is so sweet and also so strong. He went through this academy, with no one except a boy named Zombie that he just met.

Ben, also known as Zombie, is introduced when Sammy enters the soldier academy, and takes him under his wing. Sammy reminds Ben of his little sister who he lost, and decides to help him out. And Evan...the boy who saved Cassie, but who isn't what you think, but I'm not saying anymore than that! (UHH! You're going to have to read the book to know!)

The 5th Wave was like no book I've read before! Aliens? Waves to kill ALL humans? A love triangle? (I have to admit, I love, love triangles..when they're well done.) There was so much going on in this book, and I loved the way it all tied together! This is definitely a series I will be continuing.