In 2013, we were introduced to Yancey’s The 5th Wave, which laid out a terrifyingly real so-this-is-how-it-will-end alien invasion as seen through the eyes of one plucky teen: the always-relatable Cassie, who thought she was the last human left on the planet. It turns out she wasn’t, and that book and its sequel, 2014’s The Infinite Sea, gave us new characters to love—like the challenging Ringer; Ben, Cassie’s former high school crush; and the mysterious Evan Walker—to say nothing of villains like Colonel Vosch. The series’ heart-stopping twists have sometimes confounded as much as they’ve compelled, but the good news is that in this final installment there are answers to every question. Yancey doesn’t hit the brakes for one moment, and the action is intense, but the language always stays lyrical and lovely. It’s a satisfying conclusion to an impressive trilogy, true to the characters and the world Yancey created. B+