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bandherbooks's Reviews (3.65k)
Spoilers ahead. Stop now if you haven't read both The 5th Wave & the Infinite Sea.
Phew, what an absolute mind f***. Yancey doesn't pull any punches here, from the toddlers as human bombs and the copious amounts of blood, violence, and torture. And I loved every line.
I wasn't expecting such a focus on Ringer's point of view, but after the big reveal about the nature of the alien invasion, I totally got it. I'm super scared for Cassie, Ben and gang in book three.
I must also take a moment to praise Yancey's writing. Each character's POV is entirely unique. I can tell just by reading who's head I'm in, and I love it. Cassie's especially, due to her manic snarky-ness in the craziest of moments.
My favorite quote:
“You make your whole existence dependant on another human being you’re asking for a world of trouble. Think of every tragic love story ever written. And I didn’t want to play Juliet to anybody’s Romeo, not if I could help it. Even if the only candidate available was willing to die for me and sitting right beside me holding my hand and looking deeply into my eyes with the not-so-gah-now eyes the colour of melted chocolate. Plus being practically naked under those covers and possession the body of a Hollister dude . . . but I’m not getting into all that.”
Phew, what an absolute mind f***. Yancey doesn't pull any punches here, from the toddlers as human bombs and the copious amounts of blood, violence, and torture. And I loved every line.
I wasn't expecting such a focus on Ringer's point of view, but after the big reveal about the nature of the alien invasion, I totally got it. I'm super scared for Cassie, Ben and gang in book three.
I must also take a moment to praise Yancey's writing. Each character's POV is entirely unique. I can tell just by reading who's head I'm in, and I love it. Cassie's especially, due to her manic snarky-ness in the craziest of moments.
My favorite quote:
“You make your whole existence dependant on another human being you’re asking for a world of trouble. Think of every tragic love story ever written. And I didn’t want to play Juliet to anybody’s Romeo, not if I could help it. Even if the only candidate available was willing to die for me and sitting right beside me holding my hand and looking deeply into my eyes with the not-so-gah-now eyes the colour of melted chocolate. Plus being practically naked under those covers and possession the body of a Hollister dude . . . but I’m not getting into all that.”
Theo Decker loses his mother to a bomb explosion during a visit to NYC art museum. Theo survives, but at the behest of a dying old man he steals a small but hugely important painting, The Goldfinch. His mother's death and this theft shapes and moves Theo's life as he is shuttled around adult caretakers and into his adult life.
Gloriously written, with imagery and sentences that are simply glowing, Donna Tartt subsumes you into Theo's life with each page. While this books starts with a bomb blast, the remaining 800+ pages ebb and flow with events, like the tide. Theo is not always a likeable person, and his drug habits are simply enormous, but his life, and the people in his life are so well drawn you simply lose yourself in the story.
All I really have to say is wait until you meet Boris. He is one of the best characters in modern literature I have ever met. I held my breath whenever he was absent from the narrative, and smiled with glee each time he returned.
Gloriously written, with imagery and sentences that are simply glowing, Donna Tartt subsumes you into Theo's life with each page. While this books starts with a bomb blast, the remaining 800+ pages ebb and flow with events, like the tide. Theo is not always a likeable person, and his drug habits are simply enormous, but his life, and the people in his life are so well drawn you simply lose yourself in the story.
All I really have to say is wait until you meet Boris. He is one of the best characters in modern literature I have ever met. I held my breath whenever he was absent from the narrative, and smiled with glee each time he returned.
Epic, impressive, and thrilling. What a ride this trilogy has been. Marchetta's work still revolves around themes of nationality, family, and honor, and she makes her characters go to hell and back to find their true meaning and purpose in her violent world. She makes you fall in love with each of them, despite their obvious flaws and prejudices.
Seeing as I finished this quite late last night - I will leave this review brief and spoiler free. Read this trilogy!
Seeing as I finished this quite late last night - I will leave this review brief and spoiler free. Read this trilogy!
Second go around - 04/29/2014 - audiobook version
Oh my god Augustus Waters. That's all I can say. Also, GREAT audiobook narrator - Kate Rudd. Wonderful job. Thank you for making me drive around crying.
9781455869749
June 24, 2012
Both heart-breaking and snarky, this book really made me believe in young star crossed love. I felt it was a very accurate and poignant depiction of what a young person who is confronted with their own mortality would actually feel like.
Oh my god Augustus Waters. That's all I can say. Also, GREAT audiobook narrator - Kate Rudd. Wonderful job. Thank you for making me drive around crying.
9781455869749
June 24, 2012
Both heart-breaking and snarky, this book really made me believe in young star crossed love. I felt it was a very accurate and poignant depiction of what a young person who is confronted with their own mortality would actually feel like.
What's an early 90s teenager to do when she embarrasses herself on national telly by reading a way sappy poem about her dog then cracking awful Scooby-Doo Jokes? Hit CTRL-ALT-DEL on your DOS machine and rebuild yourself as the foul-mouthed, chain smokin', gin drinkin', black eye-liner encrusted, up for anything Dolly Wilde. Fake it till you make it right?
Through a series of ballsy ass moves, Dolly Wilde is able to land a job at a indie music 'zine trashing local bands, lose her virginity, and make a bit of money to help her on-the-dole family. But, what happens when you learn that the girl you built isn't making you happy?
Super fantastic and chock full of witty British-isms I could only dream about being cool enough to say. I also wish I was cool enough to understand all the 90s era British grunge music and British pop culture references.
Moran's style is hyper-kinetic, almost stream of conscious, and I loved how blunt she was about the trials and tribulations (and extreme awkwardness) of masturbation, sex, and relationships. I also adored that Moran didn't make her main character focused on finding love. Very refreshing.
Highly recommend.
Through a series of ballsy ass moves, Dolly Wilde is able to land a job at a indie music 'zine trashing local bands, lose her virginity, and make a bit of money to help her on-the-dole family. But, what happens when you learn that the girl you built isn't making you happy?
Super fantastic and chock full of witty British-isms I could only dream about being cool enough to say. I also wish I was cool enough to understand all the 90s era British grunge music and British pop culture references.
Moran's style is hyper-kinetic, almost stream of conscious, and I loved how blunt she was about the trials and tribulations (and extreme awkwardness) of masturbation, sex, and relationships. I also adored that Moran didn't make her main character focused on finding love. Very refreshing.
Highly recommend.
Mira Grant builds a pretty terrifying (and realistic) post-zombie apocalypse world. I appreciated all of her details on how the virus works, how it continues to be a constant source of fear and horror despite being almost 20 years later, and how everyone deals with it. This is what I like about zombie books. I didn't enjoy the actual story about the news reporting and blogging. It was really technical, dry, and didn't capture my interest as much as actually running away from a zombie would. Also, the big reveal of who is after Georgia Mason's blogging team felt rushed and unexplored, especially after trudging through 500 pages. I'm glad I finished, but I'm not compelled to continue reading any of the others in this series. I do give major kudos for this very unique take on a genre that is rapidly becoming overdone.