They're Coming For Us

The 5th Wave by 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 5th Wave is a very enjoyable read. The book description (taken from an official place) fails to mention what I think is the most important draw of the book. There is a military camp gathering children and they are training them to fight. Cassie’s young brother Sam gets taken to the camp and Cassie sets out to rescue him. Cassie and Sam are the only members of their family left alive and they want to stay together. The brother/sister dynamic is really well done and I think would be very true in the face of a crisis of earth-ending proportion. The Evan Walker character is the one that seems a little unrealistic. Lucky for me he comes in towards the end of the book.

I loved the settings and scenery in the book. The descriptions gave my imagination just enough food for thought.The setting helps to evoke the feeling of isolation and despair that the main character feels throughout her journey to find her brother. I also enjoyed that part of the story takes place in Ohio.

Overall I would recommend the book to most people who read end of the world fiction and don’t mind a few characters from beyond the stars.

If you think an alien invasion sounds like fun you might also enjoy:

Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
Insignia by S.J. Kincaid
Adaptation by Malinda Lo

If you think the end of the world sounds like a rocking good time try:
Ashfall by Mike Mullin
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
World War Z by Max Brooks (it is nothing like the movie!!!!!)

~Amy W.