👶 The 5th Wave, by Rick Yancey

In an effort to give sci-fi a chance, I chose this book because of its rave reviews on both Goodreads and Amazon. Unfortunately, I have to admit, it was just not my cup of tea. Despite my fondness for Dystopian novels, I had a very hard time with suspension of disbelief as I read this novel about alien invasion. My intrigue with Dystopian novels lies in the fact that they are within the bounds of possibility, albeit a very frightening possibility.

Despite what seems to be an interesting premise, the book wasn't very captivating until perhaps the last quarter. In addition, the heroin quickly turns into a dewy-eyed sap over every tall, dark, and handsome male character. Although one would assume that such swooning would be an integral part of every young adult novel out there, such nonsense isn't necessary in strong character-driven novels, regardless of the audience. The characters and relationships weren't even developed enough to make the "teen love" believable.

Furthermore, it is evident that this alien species is fully capable of destroying the entire human race in one fell swoop, so the whole idea of dragging it out in waves seems absurd. To boot, later in the book, we learn that the aliens are pure consciousness, so if that is the case, why would they need a planet to live in? Once I read that crucial bit of information, the story became even more jejune, in my opinion - there was no point to their invasion!

Read 7/15/13