The 5th Wave

The 5th Wave

by Rick Yancey

"1st Wave: lights out. 2nd Wave: surf's up. 3rd Wave: pestilence. 4th Wave: Silencer. What's next, Evan? What's the 5th Wave?" (pg. 351)

When the alien mothership showed up above Earth, no one knew exactly what to think.  It just hovered there.  It did nothing.

And then the power went out.

With that EMP, hundreds of thousands of people died in plane crashes and effects of electrical failures like elevators dropping and cars losing control.

When the mothership dropped a large pike into the earthquake fault, those along the coasts who didn't die from the earthquake were killed by the resulting tsunamis.

The survivors of that tragedy were then attacked by a plague carried by birds.

By this point, 97% of the population was gone.  Those who were left tried to band together only to be attacked by the aliens themselves.  Now, the few who remain have no one to trust.

Because the aliens don't just look like us... they ARE us.  And there is no way to truly know who is who.

Final thoughts: Alien apocalypse??  Didn't think I'd like it, but it pulled me in and wouldn't let me go.  Told from the points of view of two primary characters and two minor ones, the story flows well and does a good job creating a freaky and freaked out mood.  Excellent story with a solid ending that feels like it could lead to a sequel, but doesn't have to have one.

Rating: 5/5