Brad About Books: The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

Read on May 31, 2013

THE 5TH WAVE
Published: May 7, 2013
Publisher: Putnam (Penguin)
Format: ARC
Page Count: 457 pages
Source: RAK
Series: The 5th Wave, #1

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.

Words can't even begin to describe how amazing The 5th Wave truly is. This book deserves every ounce of hype surrounding it - it's absolutely fantastic. Definitely a favorite of all-time!

The creepiest part about The 5th Wave? The silence. This is, honestly, the most terrifying world I have ever read about. Think about it: You have aliens who have come in, destroyed the world and everyone you know... then... silence. You don't hear anything from them. They're sinister and quiet, waiting for the perfect moment to finish what they started. You can NOT tell me that that is not super scary. I would be scared for my life in Yancey's magnificent world. The world-building was fascinating, and I loved getting to explore this wasteland of a world with our ensemble of character: Cassie, Evan, Zombie, and everybody else.

Speaking of which, the characters are amazing. Another cool thing Rick Yancey brings to the table is that this book is split into parts (fourteen, I believe; I could be wrong.), and each part is from a different POV. They rotate between a couple of characters (the main ones being Cassie, Evan and Zombie), so you can see this world through multiple eyes. But he doesn't tell you right away who you are experiencing this world with. It takes awhile before the character is mentioned and we understand who is speaking. Usually, this is a major turn-off for me, but for some reason, it works with The 5th Wave. We get clean slates of who these characters are, and it just fits with the tone of the book so well! I never thought I would actually like that in a book, but I loved it in The 5th Wave!

And the entire concept of an alien invasion! So cool! I have read very little alien invasion books (a standout in my mind is Icons by Margaret Stohl) - The 5th Wave is such a unique take on aliens. The destroying waves, the eerie silence, and the Silencers (my gosh, they are FREAKY! Silencers are one of my new favorite villains), EVERYTHING about The 5th Wave is marvelous, fantastic, and utterly phenomenal. If you have not gotten this book yet, run -- AND I DO MEAN RUN -- to the bookstore and purchase this amazing, amazing start to a promising new series. You won't regret it.

Overall, The 5th Wave is definitely a new favorite for 2013 and of all-time. As soon as I finished this book, I wanted to go right back to the beginning and start all over again; I can definitely see me re-reading this book soon. Yancey's newest novel is a climatic thriller that had me on the edge of my seat and had chills running down my spine. And I adored every minute of it.

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Brad About Books: Icons by Margaret Stohl

Read from May 9 to 10, 2013

ICONS
Published: May 7, 2013
Publisher: Little, Brown
Format: Hardcover
Page Count: 428 pages
Source: Purchased
Series: Icons, #1

Your heart beats only with their permission.

Everything changed on The Day. The day the windows shattered. The day the power stopped. The day Dol's family dropped dead. The day Earth lost a war it didn't know it was fighting.

Since then, Dol has lived a simple life in the countryside -- safe from the shadow of the Icon and its terrifying power. Hiding from the one truth she can't avoid.

She's different. She survived. Why?

When Dol and her best friend, Ro, are captured and taken to the Embassy, off the coast of the sprawling metropolis once known as the City of Angels, they find only more questions. While Ro and fellow hostage Tima rage against their captors, Dol finds herself drawn to Lucas, the Ambassador's privileged son. But the four teens are more alike than they might think, and the timing of their meeting isn't a coincidence. It's a conspiracy.

Within the Icon's reach, Dol, Ro, Tima, and Lucas discover that their uncontrollable emotions -- which they've always thought to be their greatest weaknesses -- may actually be their greatest strengths.

Bestselling author Margaret Stohl delivers the first book in a heart-pounding series set in a haunting new world where four teens must piece together the mysteries of their pasts -- in order to save the future.

Words cannot even begin to describe how much I adore Icons. You know how some people say "I can't even", and some people don't understand it? Well, guess what. 

I CAN'T EVEN.

Everything about this book is phenomenal; everything. I was emerged into the world of the Icons immediately, and I never for a second wanted to put the book down. When I would, it was the only thing on my mind. And whenever I picked it back up, I would read 150 pages in one go. Icons is definitely a favorite of 2013 and of all time. I have been pushing this book onto everybody lately, and I don't see that stopping anytime soon. Seriously, if you haven't picked up Icons, you're missing out. It's wonderful!

Dol is such a fantastic main character. She's strong, loyal and fierce - everything I like in a protagonist - and she never let me down during the book. And Ro and Lucas were just great. What I love about this love triangle (I guess you could call it that) is that both loves feel genuine and real. The relationships aren't forced, and there are obvious reasons why Dol is attracted to both Rol and Lucas. Stohl did a stunning job with these characters and their development during Icons. Brilliant.

The whole concept of the Icons? Freaky as crap. They honestly scared me, even though we didn't get to see much of them (which I'm hoping we do in book two!). The fighting, the war, the struggle, the survival, everything about Icons worked for me, and this is easily one of the best books I've read. 

Overall, what else can I say about Icons except that I love it so, so, so much and it is mind-blowing?  Fast-paced and captivating, Icons didn't just exceed my expectations - it blew every book I've read in a long time out of the water.

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Brad About Books: I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore

Read on May 2, 2013

I AM NUMBER FOUR
Published: August 3, 2010
Publisher: HarperTeen
Format: Hardcover
Page Count: 440 pages
Source: Purchased
Series: Lorien Legacies, #1

Nine of us came here. We look like you. We talk like you. We live among you. But we are not you. We can do things you dream of doing. We have powers you dream of having. We are stronger and faster than anything you have ever seen. We are the superheroes you worship in movies and comic books - but we are real.

Our plan was to grow, and train, and become strong, and become one, and fight them. But they found us and started hunting us first. Now all of us are running. Spending our lives in shadows, in places where no one would look, blending in. We have lived among you without you knowing.

But they know.

They caught Number One in Malaysia.
Number Two in England.
And Number Three in Kenya.
They killed them all.

I am Number Four.

I am next.

I had troubles with I Am Number Four. While the plot sounded epic, the pacing of the book was too slow for me.

Let me start by saying that this plot sounds amazing in every way possible. I was so excited going into I Am Number Four - I mean, judging from the synopsis, who wouldn't be? I expected a fast-paced, on-the-run story like no other, and I wanted it to be great. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. While I Am Number Four does have some redeeming qualities, the plot moved way too slow. I found that some chapters would have no meaning to the actual story, and I caught myself drifting off. To be honest, I just don't see how a book that has such an interesting premise can move so slowly.

But like I said, I Am Number Four did have some redeeming qualities.  The last fifty pages were very fast-paced, and I couldn't put the book down. And besides that, the character of Four (or John Smith) was very awesome - on the run and on the loose, I loved getting to travel along with him as he fights for his life. The antagonists are so freaky in this book! I couldn't get a clear picture of them in my mind, but believe me, they sounded awful. Even though I thought I Am Number Four was just okay, I'm looking forward to seeing what will happen in The Power of Six.

I've noticed that aliens are becoming a new trend (even though this book was published in 2010), and while the whole "alien" aspect wasn't explored on that much, it was still interesting to take on this perspective of aliens. I just hated the plot moved so slow - I couldn't stand it at times! The end did make up some for it, but in the end, I just don't think me and I Am Number Four clicked well.

Overall, I Am Number Four is a decent read that held my attention and had me on the edge of my seat at times, then had me distracted and dozing off at others.

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Brad About Books: Rush by Eve Silver

Read on April 16, 2013

RUSH
Expected Publication Date: June 11, 2013
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books (Harper)
Format: e-ARC
Page Count: 352 pages
Source: Publisher in exchange for an honest review
Series: The Game, #1

So what’s the game now? This, or the life I used to know?

When Miki Jones is pulled from her life, pulled through time and space into some kind of game—her carefully controlled life spirals into chaos. In the game, she and a team of other teens are sent on missions to eliminate the Drau, terrifying and beautiful alien creatures. There are no practice runs, no training, and no way out. Miki has only the guidance of secretive but maddeningly attractive team leader Jackson Tate, who says the game isn’t really a game, that what Miki and her new teammates do now determines their survival, and the survival of every other person on this planet. She laughs. He doesn’t. And then the game takes a deadly and terrifying turn.

Rush is a fast-paced, gripping novel that held me from page one and never let me go. 

I was thrown into Rush head-on with an excellent first chapter! I love it when a book can hook me with in with a great opener, and Rush did just that and more. I connected with Miki almost instantly - traveling along with her in this new, peculiar and complex world was fantastic, and Silver did a great job at bringing this world to life. 

The world-building is very complex and took me awhile to figure out. I mean, come on... teenagers are fighting aliens (or the Drau) for their lives. While it was awesome (and it totally was!), I had to wrap my brain around the entire concept of how the Game worked, what the rules were, etc., and I won't lie when I say that it turned me off from the story a little. But once everything was explained, I got back into the swing of things and started to love Rush again! Rush is such a fast-paced, pulse-pounding YA debut that left me shocked, stunned and amazed!

And my favorite part about this book was all the action scenes. This book is so incredibly hard to put down once the action gets going, and it honestly never quits! The last 30% of the book was non-stop action, and I couldn't help myself by tearing through this book! And that ending was so cruel - I need the sequel!

Overall, Rush is an energetic, heart-pounding and exciting read. I would gladly play this Game again!

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