Review: The 5th Wave by Rick Yancy

Genre: Dystopian, Science Fiction
Publication: 05/07/2013
Series: The 5th Wave #1
Pages: 457 Pages
Source: Audiobook
Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars
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Goodreads 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.

My Thoughts
I have heard so much about this book ever since I became involved in the book community and the movie is coming out soon too. So, I thought it was high time I started this series. I was really intrigued with the premise of the book, I can never get enough aliens in my life. 

During the beginning of the book I was seriously hooked. I really loved learning about the world and how the different waves affected humanity. There were so seriously emotional scenes in the beginning of this book, I might have teared up a bit. However, as the story moved forward I found I was losing my interest. The plot wasn't what I expected it to be and I was having trouble paying attention. 

I didn't know that this was told in a duel perspective until I started it which I think did hinder my enjoyment a bit. I preferred Cassie's voice over the other ones we got. I connected with her in the beginning and wanted to hear her journey. I just didn't connect with the other voices. 

I do plan on continuing the series, I am interested to see what happens to humanity and the world. I do hope that I connect with the characters later on. We shall see. I do recommend this book if you are interested in the movie. It isn't a bad book at all and if you are a fan of apocalyptic books then I'd check this one out.  

Review: End of Days by Susan Ee

Genre: YA, Apocalyptic
Publication: 02/12/2015 by Skyscape
Series: Penryn and The End of Days #3
Pages: 344 Pages
Source: Library
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
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Goodreads Summary
After a daring escape from the angels, Penryn and Raffe are on the run. They’re both desperate to find a doctor who can reverse the twisted changes inflicted by the angels on Raffe and Penryn’s sister. As they set off in search of answers, a startling revelation about Raffe’s past unleashes dark forces that threaten them all.
When the angels release an apocalyptic nightmare onto humans, both sides are set on a path toward war. As unlikely alliances form and strategies shift, who will emerge victorious? Forced to pick sides in the fight for control of the earthly realm, Raffe and Penryn must choose: Their own kind, or each other?

My Thoughts
Look, I actually finished a series! It's definitely an accomplishment because I have only finished about 10 series in my life. Thumbs up for me. 

End of Days was a pretty solid series ending in my opinion. I wasn't left with too many unanswered questions and I felt pretty satisfied. I do think that there could have been more explanation and flushing out of characters and plot. I also wish that this series was going to be long as it was originally planned to be. I think so many things could have been addressed if there were more books but I wasn't disappointed with what I got. 

Penryn and Raffe were perfectly angsty and swoon worthy during the whole novel. I love how they both save each others butts a million times during this series. Penryn isn't helpless on her own, she saved Raffe as many times as he saved her. The action was also great and this book is just as gory as the last 2 were. This series is quite dark which is a nice to see in YA. I did find that the pace slowed down in the middle of the book and I felt like I was pushing to make it through a certain section but after that it picked up and I was back on the bandwagon. 

I do recommend this series to people who are fans of apocalyptic novels. It's fast paced and dark with an awesome forbidden romance. Just go check it out, it may not be my favourite series of all time but I think it is definitely a solid finish. 

Review: World After - Susan Ee

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

World After is the second book in the Penryn & End of Days series, so naturally check out the first book in the series, Angelfall before doing anything else. But do note, that this a a solid sequel in the series, which is pretty badass.

This book was stressful. I had no idea how it was going to end without something horrible happening to one of our beloved characters. Similar to the first one, one bad situation seemed to follow another,which had Penryn running for her life while trying to protect her family. This book also delivers the same amount of gore that the first book gave, which I really enjoy in a YA novel. So if you don't like graphic imagery, avoid this series! 

However, this book did suffer from a bit of second book syndrome, OR better known as filler to bridge the introduction to the series and the conclusion. There was some good story development and I can sense a kick ass conclusion to this series. However, what a lot of what made the first book so good was the banter between Raffe and Penryn, which was missing in the first 2/3 of this book. Together Raffe and Penryn are badass and the slow burn sort of romance is to die for. Without it, the story did lack some luster.

What still is awesome about this story is Penryn. She is still badass and holds her own. Who doesn't love a badass female heroine? Plus a lot of the new developments could really be awesome in the next book. Let's hope anyway. 

Conclusions - Still pretty badass but not as badass as the first book. Thumbs up for this series and the next book better be super badass. Penryn and Raffe are still very enjoyable together and I am secretly hoping for another steamy kiss. 

Rating: 3.75/5

Review - Anglefall by Susan Ee

I received a copy from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Angelfall is a post-apocalyptic novel that takes place after the world has been destroyed by Angels. The story follows Penryn and her family trying to survive in this new world. When her sister is taken, Penryn needs the help from someone she thinks could be her enemy to get her back. 

I was actually very surprised with this book. It was filled with action and the story never took a dull turn. However, it isn't your traditional YA. You were painted a picture of the violence and gore. The the author didn't hold back on the bloody and disturbing descriptions, which I appreciated because that is what a post-apocalyptic world would look like. I really liked the main character, Penryn. She was a girl that could defend herself and didn't need anybody to carry her through life. She was a strong female lead and I didn't feel like she made any unwise or unrealistic decisions. I also found that Raffe was a good male lead, but I still feel like his character needs more time to grow. I feel like there is still a lot of mystery surrounding him and the other angels which I am excited for in the further novels. The romance (or not so romance) I feel was handled perfectly. You could see how conflicted they were but couldn't help but have some sort of loyalty to each other after what they went through. I also enjoyed how Susan Ee handled the mental illness of Penryns mother which I think added more depth to the story and the characters. 

Conclusions: 2 thumbs up from me. Angelfall is exciting and action packed. Very good solid characters and the story didn't slow down during any part. However, if you are not a fan of violence or bloody scenes during your books I would avoid this one. It reads like YA but with more adult content. I will definitly be continuing with the series.

Rating: 4/5 (Perfect for fans of post-apocalyptic books)

The 100 - Kass Morgan

     

   You may know this book from the CW series that everybody seems to be binge watching on Netflix. I read this book with high hopes, it was made into a TV show so it has to be good right? That wasn't exactly how it went however. 

   The 100 is the first book in a series that follows a group of 100 teen criminals that were sent back to Earth after it became uninhabitable. The story takes place in the future where the remainder of the human race is living in a spaceship, The Colony, in Earths orbit. The teens have to figure out how to survive, while love interests blossom in true YA fashion. 

            I was underwhelmed with The 100. It felt like the first half of a book, not just the first installment. What I found the most frustrating was the world building, which was majorly lacking. I was confused about the law system on The Colony, it didn't seem to have a lot of structure for something so influential to the novel. Another gripe that I have is,  if the human race was so endangered, due to Earth being uninhabitable, then why were they putting HUNDREDS of teenagers to death due of petty crimes?  I just didn't understand the justification for that and it really put me off the book. 

Conclusions: The 100 is not the worst book I have every read and it was mildly entertaining if you can look past plot holes and like some adventure with lots of romance. I don't intend to continue this series, I may however watch the TV show on Netflix. 

Rating: 2/5 Stars (Not the Worst, Just Meh)