The 5th Wave

bibliophile - Cassiopeia is a beautiful queen (but very narcissistic) who was set up in the heavens by Poseidon (cough cough Percy Jackson's dad) to become a constellation after boasting too much. Even though Cassie is named after Cassiopeia, Cassie isn't quite vain... in fact, she is quite intellectual, and you'll learn to love her. I think that girl heroes are awesome... Like the Divergent series... well Tris can really kick butt... and that's the same thing with Cassie... Girls can fight like guys... or maybe even better (now I'm not insulting the guys... I'm just simply stating the truth... okay.. just kidding XD... guys and girls are all awesome)... Anyways... As a teenager (Cassie) thinks about what teenagers normally think about... "OMG, did you see that cute guy!!!" or maybe "I hope I do well on that pop quiz that Mr. Daniels gave me" (now all of these scenarios are stereotypes, so don't take them personally)... but it shows that teenagers don't think about their own death... or even when the world is going to be abducted by aliens... So once the plane came crashing down during school... you can see how everything played out... a hot mess... the first wave came, then the second wave, the third wave, and the fourth wave.. while all the survivors are anxiously waiting for the fifth wave... After these four waves... Cassie becomes tired of running away... her mom passed away from an illness while her father is murdered right in front of Cassie's eyes! After the soldiers, who they say they are, take all the children... including Nugget (Sam, Cassie's adorable younger brother)... Cassie and Evan decides to take their plan in their own hands... There comes a time with many sacrifices.. and this is the time... Cassie must battle through this horrendous generation and help rescue her brother by passing through all these complex technology... but can she trust Evan... Who is Evan??? Will Cassie ever find Sam??? Or will he be lost like the other children??? Well to answer these questions... you must read this amazing book to find out... So i really liked this book... it had me hooked to the beginning and end.... there is no part in the book that'll make you feel bored... because the author makes this book so realistic (I know the end of the world... but the author really pulls you in) that it's like your like Cassie's shadow, taking in part of this journey... And one tiny warning... do not pronounce Cassie like Cass- ee- oh- PEE- a... it drives her crazy... But if you want adventure and suspense leading you on every page... this book is perfect for you!

Starred review from February 25, 2013
Yancey makes a dramatic 180 from the intellectual horror of his Monstrumologist books to open a gripping SF trilogy about an Earth decimated by an alien invasion. The author fully embraces the genre, while resisting its more sensational tendencies (rest assured, though, there are firefights and explosions aplenty). A rare survivor of the invasion, 16-year-old Cassie, armed with an M16 rifle and her younger brother’s teddy bear, is trying to reunite with her brother and escape the “Silencer” (assassin) trying to kill her. Meanwhile, 17-year-old “Zombie,” an unwitting military recruit, is facing a crisis of conscience. The story’s biggest twists aren’t really surprises; the hints are there for readers to see. Yancey is more interested in examining how these world-shaking revelations affect characters who barely recognize what their lives have become. As in the Monstrumologist series, the question of what it means to be human is at the forefront—in the words of cartoonist Walt Kelly, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” It’s a book that targets a broad commercial audience, and Yancey’s aim is every bit as good as Cassie’s. Ages 14–up. Agent: Brian DeFiore, DeFiore and Co.

April 1, 2013
The challenge? Surviving the genocide of the human race when aliens attack Earth in the not-too-distant future. Sixteen-year-old Cassie, her brother Sam and her dad survived the first four gruesome waves of the attack. Together, the three wait out the titular fifth in a military base for survivors until school buses arrive to take all children to safety, including her brother Sam. Cassie, her dad and the rest of the adults are then divested of their weapons and marched into a bunker by their protectors. Cassie escapes, only to see her dad (and everyone else) brutally executed by their so-called protectors. She then embarks on a mission to rescue her brother. As in his previous efforts (The Monstrumologist, 2009, etc.), Yancey excels in creating an alternative world informed by just enough logic and sociology to make it feel close enough to our own. The suspension-of-disbelief Kool-Aid he serves goes down so easy that every piece of the story--no matter how outlandish--makes perfect sense. The 500-plus-page novel surges forward full throttle with an intense, alarming tone full of danger, deceit and a touch of romance. The plot flips back and forth with so much action and so many expert twists that readers will constantly question whom they can trust and whom they can't. Best of all, everything feels totally real, and that makes it all the more riveting. Nothing short of amazing. (Science fiction. 14 & up)

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April 1, 2013

Gr 9 Up-Cassie travels with just the essentials. First on the list: Luger, M-16, ammo, Bowie knife. Incidentals like food, water, sleeping bag, and nail clippers come further down. A nondescript 16-year-old, she is one of the very few people left alive on Earth. Aliens sent waves of destructive forces to eradicate humans: Cassie's family survived the 1st and 2nd Waves. Her mother died in the 3rd Wave (Pestilence) and her father in the 4th (Silencers). Her little brother may still be alive; he may even be safe in a military compound, as Cassie deals with the 5th Wave- a carefully orchestrated survival dance of kill or be killed. The aliens are never described in detail, and their reasons for wanting the humans gone are not clear. But they are ruthless and determined, and their methods for gaining control mean readers will never again see owls as the friendly, mail-delivering avians portrayed in the world of Harry Potter. The compelling story is told from the viewpoints of Cassie and Ben, who is now a soldier known as Zombie. Cassie crushed on Ben at school, but he never particularly noticed her. Now he has transformed from handsome high school sports star to focused paramilitary killer. Yancey's story is full of violent twists and turns, but character development continues along with nonstop action. Cassie and Ben grow out of high school self-centeredness and find leadership qualities. Cassie's interactions with an alien elevate him from a one-dimensional "bad guy" role. While the big body counts (billions die) happen largely offscreen, there are numerous more personal instances in which teens are both killers and killed. The ending has enough planned loose ends to practically guarantee a sequel.-Maggie Knapp, Trinity Valley School, Fort Worth, TX

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 1, 2013
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* The Monstrumologist series set a bar for YA horror nearly impossible to match. Can Yancey do the same for sci-fi? He makes a hell of an effort with this ambitious series starter set in the aftermath of a crushing alien invasion in which the aliens themselves never appeared. Seven billion humans have died in the months following the appearance of a giant mother ship. Wave 1: an electromagnetic pulse rendering all machines useless. Wave 2: tsunamis wiping out coastal cities. Wave 3: the Red Death, a deadly plague carried by birds. Wave 4: Silencers, humans who were implanted with alien intelligence as fetuses. We don't even want to know about Wave 5do we? Monstrumologist fans will be surprised to discover that Yancey grounds his multiperspective survivalist thriller in two fairly conventional YA voices: Cassie, 16, whose grim solitary existence changes when she is rescued by hunky but mysterious Evan; and Zombie, 17, exsports star thrown into a brutal boot camp to train as an alien killer. Yancey's heartfelt, violent, paranoid epic, filled with big heroics and bigger surprises, is part War of the Worlds, part Starship Troopers, part Invasion of the Body Snatchers, and part The Stand, but just close enough to dystopic trends to make this a sure thing for reviewers and readers alike. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Hype has been heavy since a big preempt sale and an announced 500,000 first printing. Film rights are sold, tours are planned, ads will be omnipresentneed we say more?(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)