Third person present tense isn't my favorite, though Wendig uses it well.

Hannah is an interesting character. I wanted to like her. I've given this novel four rather than five stars because whatever I need to really connect with a character? Wasn't here. It was the plot that pulled me through, and that's not common for me. So: good plot, I couldn't guess some thing, I wanted to find out what happened. If that's your jam, give it a try. Just, be prepared to look askance at ants from now on. ( )

If I graded this along with my favourite books, I might drop half a star, but basing this novel on its own merits and the genre, it’s a solid 4/5. One review on the cover claims it to be one for fans of Michael Crichton and I can understand why. Its fast pace and solid imagery makes for a book a reader can plough through. The threat feels real, as does the inevitable countdown to time running out. The march of endangerment is as inexhaustible as the unrelenting insectile invasion, though this is no B-Movie. There’s a disturbing note of truth on the evolutionary, environmental, and genetic interference scale that’s all too sadly believable. Of course, this is a stretch of the imagination, but in this type of story, that’s what the reader is looking for. An enjoyable read, though not for anyone suffering from Myrmecophobia (fear of ants). ( )

Invasive by Chuck Wendig is a highly recommended thriller featuring killer ants.

Hannah Stander is a futurist and consultant for the FBI who assists with cases that feature advanced technological and scientific advances. She identifies unseen threats, whatever they are, and determines the cause. When FBI Agent Hollis Copper has to investigate a dead body with no skin surrounded by the bodies of over a thousand ants found in a cabin in rural New York he calls Hannah in to assist with the case. The investigations leads Hannah to visit entomologist Ez Choi, who determines that the ants were engineered, and have genetic markers from the biotech lab run by biotech billionaire Einar Geirsson. Hannah is invited by Einar to visit the island lab off the coast of Hawaii.

The plot is fast paced, science -based, and suspenseful. It will grab your attention from the start, especially if you like Michael Crichton's novels, and not let go until you have finished. The threat looms large in the plot and Wendig makes sure you will feel all of it. He thoughtfully provides the word for one of these sensations, formication, which is the feeling of insects crawling across or under your skin. This sensation will haunt you, as it does Hannah, throughout the novel. Still, Hannah is a tough, intelligent, determined, and complex protagonist. Raised by parents who were survivalists, she uses the skills (and the distrust she was taught) to her advantage as she interprets the information and the people she meets during the investigation.

Because Invasive is a science fiction thriller, I can set aside disbelief easily, however there were two things that bothered me. I did greatly doubt Hannah would be stupid enough to sleep with Einar, part of the group she is investigating. Also, since I was reading this several years after it was published, I noticed several political statements that dated the novel. This was a perfect example of why you leave the opinions out so the novel has more longevity and because we can't all be futurists. These are trivial though in comparison to the enjoyment found in reading Invasive.

http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2021/12/invasive.html
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4390155707 ( )

I'm really glad I only spent $5 for the book, as it was just a big ol' meh for me.

The writing is good from a technical standpoint, but I felt that Wendig failed to deliver on any really standout characters, or the horror of these ants (until the final act). The story just seemed to plod along to provide opportunities for red herrings, and ant explanations.

Toward the final act, it began to feel like some of those 70s novels about the killer . You know the ones I'm talking about. Killer bees. Killer bears. Killer rats. Killer cats. Killer rabbits...okay, well that one was Monty Python.

Overall, it was better than Zeroes, but not by a hell of a lot, and there really was no connection between the two.

Would I read a third book in this so-called Zeroes series? No.

I just wish Wendig would unleash like he does in his blog (http://terribleminds.com/ramble/blog/). I find his writing there so much more engaging than any novel of his I've read. ( )

Genetically engineered killer ants freak out an FBI futurist sent to investigate them. A fair amount of gore along with the ant science; death of innocents, including at least one child, suggested rather graphically. ( )