The Host by Stephenie Meyer (reviewed by Amethyst Collins)

Do you love science-fiction? Aliens? Romance? World apocalypse, peaceful style? Intense conflict and personal enlightenment? If you answered yes (or maybe) to any of those, then The Host is the book for you.

As a reader, I first liked The Host because of its size. I want a book I can lose myself in, and that doesn’t usually happen in the 200 pagers. At over 600 pages (hardback copy), I was definitely drawn toward this novel.

Told almost entirely in first person, this story is unique in being able to tell the story from two points of view – without actually switching point of view. How is this possible, you ask? Well, you see, the most main character, Wanda, is a parasite, an alien, who has been inserted into a human body, Melanie, and taken complete control. Or at least, that’s what’s supposed to happen. This particular human is not going down without a fight, and even though she has lost her body, Melanie is not giving up her mind.

This is where the romance kicks in. Since Melanie is still present in Wanda’s head, Melanie’s thoughts and desires are a major distraction. And one person is thought of a lot. That would be Jared, Melanie’s partner before her capture. Wanda’s tie to Melanie’s body is complete, and Melanie wants Jared, so isn’t it natural that Wanda would want Jared, too? But Jared is still free, still part of the resistance, and he no longer trusts Melanie – or whatever it is that is inside her.
Wanda was supposed to receive the joys of Earth – the sights, the emotions, the experiences – without a pesky human interrupting her attempt at a normal (for them) invasion. Their species, of which the individual is called a “soul,” has taken over many, many planets in the galaxy. They have technology far advancing the human race – there is no disease, no hunger, no pain – and when they take over a planet it is peaceful. One could rightly argue they make that world a better place. On Earth they cured cancer, eliminated conflict and murder. They truly improve everything around them; but the cost is each individual’s presence in the world. Is it really worth that?

I don’t want to spoil any more of it for you, but by the time you finish this book you will see some things differently (and you will find at least one male character that you love; unless of course you yourself are a male, and then you will just enjoy the violence of the resisting humans and the intricate plot design).

And for anyone who is put-off because this is by the same author who wrote Twilight? Don’t be so ridiculous. Whatever your judgment of Twilight is, put it aside for just a moment. You don’t want to miss out on this because of negative bias.

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OMG Amethyst, I totttttalllly agrreeeee. There's nothing worse than judging a book by comparing it to another book. And this book is a crazy-good-sci-fic romp! I hope she writes another one soon! Click here to check our catalog to see if The Host is on our shelves.