Review of The Host by Stephanie Meyers

The Host is author Stephanie Meyer's departure from paranormal teen romance into the sci-fi romance genre. (Oh, yah it's also a movie now).

In The Host, Meyer's creates a world where human bodies are taken over by alien souls. Fortunately for human host Melanie, her inhabiter, Wanderer,is sympathetic towards her and lets Melanie find her younger brother and boyfriend Jared. Problem is, they, along with the other humans in their enclave in the Arizona desert, don't trust the alien.

But as Wanderer increasingly becomes accepted in the community, Melanie's feelings for Jared become Wanderer's own even as she develops strong feelings for the another hot, strong guy, Ian.(Love triangle anyone?)

What I liked about this book is the way that Meyers, once again, is able to create a world using the characteristics of the setting. Also similar to Twilight is the extended family aspect of the characters in the enclave, reminiscient of Edward's vampire family. I also thought the concept was unique - the idea of a planet of souls inhabiting other creatures' bodies.

There are a couple of things I didn't like about the novel. The first was that I thought the crisis (the threat of being discovered by the alien seeker) was too easily resolved. As well, I thought there were a lot of filler scenes that didn't have anything to do with furthering the plot line (like the soccer game where Melanie gets to show her stuff to the boys). I guess it's like the vampire baseball game in Twilight.

The thing I disliked the most about The Host is the violence both Jared and Ian show towards Wanderer. She is basically beaten by them several times. Their justification - they think she is the enemy. But guess what? She still loves them anyways! (After all, they said they were sorry). I think this is a dangerous element to have in a novel that will be read by myriads of teenage girls.

You Will Like This Book If:

- you are a fan of the Twilight series

- you like sci-fi mixed with romance

- you like love triangles


Quote: I watched his fingers clench and unclench, and I wondered if he was dreaming that they were wrapped around my neck.”