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A review by ihateprozac
The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey
The Infinite Sea picks up after the events of The 5th Wave with Evan Walker having gone AWOL after the bombing of the military base, and Cassie and co moving toward a hotel as their rendezvous point. We quickly learn that the 6th Wave is beginning, and it preys on one of the last hopes humanity has left: its children.
At 300 pages, this book occupies a somewhat awkward space between novella and novel. It’s chock full of action and revelations, and yet I found myself wishing for an extra 50 pages of meat to add to its bones. The story takes place within the space of a couple of days and while there is a lot that goes on, the fact that it is largely character-driven and occurs within such a short time frame seems to exacerbate how short the story feels.
The good thing is that in addition to Cassie, Ben, and Evan’s perspectives, The Infinite Sea gives us the opportunity to hear from the notoriously silent Poundcake and the enigmatic Ringer - with the second half of the story being devoted entirely to Ringer. Her story arc is the real standout of this story; we see her go from being strong to her absolute weakest and rise back up again, gaining some humanity in a truly inhumane situation. We also get to learn about why Poundcake is so silent, as well as some vital secrets about our alien visitors that will propel forward the final instalment.
Buuuuuut not gonna lie, said secrets were really confusing. I came out of this story wondering I guess only time will tell….
Overall: This is awkwardly short for a second instalment, feeling more like a 1.5 novella than a true sequel to The 5th Wave, but it was a fun ride. We got some extra perspectives here that added depth to our ragtag band of survivors, but ultimately it felt like a quick stopover en route to the final destination. I’m curious to see how this all wraps up, it's been a fun journey!
At 300 pages, this book occupies a somewhat awkward space between novella and novel. It’s chock full of action and revelations, and yet I found myself wishing for an extra 50 pages of meat to add to its bones. The story takes place within the space of a couple of days and while there is a lot that goes on, the fact that it is largely character-driven and occurs within such a short time frame seems to exacerbate how short the story feels.
The good thing is that in addition to Cassie, Ben, and Evan’s perspectives, The Infinite Sea gives us the opportunity to hear from the notoriously silent Poundcake and the enigmatic Ringer - with the second half of the story being devoted entirely to Ringer. Her story arc is the real standout of this story; we see her go from being strong to her absolute weakest and rise back up again, gaining some humanity in a truly inhumane situation. We also get to learn about why Poundcake is so silent, as well as some vital secrets about our alien visitors that will propel forward the final instalment.
Buuuuuut not gonna lie, said secrets were really confusing. I came out of this story wondering
Spoiler
”am I still reading an alien book? Or are these superhumans? Wot?”Overall: This is awkwardly short for a second instalment, feeling more like a 1.5 novella than a true sequel to The 5th Wave, but it was a fun ride. We got some extra perspectives here that added depth to our ragtag band of survivors, but ultimately it felt like a quick stopover en route to the final destination. I’m curious to see how this all wraps up, it's been a fun journey!